Unraveling the Enigma of Grand Admiral Thrawn's Legendary Night Troopers: A Deep Dive into Star Wars Lore and their Exciting Future

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Ahsoka episode 6

Summary

In Ahsoka episode 6, we witness the exciting live-action arrival of Grand Admiral Thrawn, accompanied by his formidable new unit named the Night Troopers. Notably, the Night Troopers have undergone remarkable transformations since their previous portrayal in Star Wars Rebels.

Set apart from the standard Stormtroopers, the Night Troopers exhibit a unique, worn-out aesthetic, portraying a sense of dilapidation and distress. Evidently, these soldiers have weathered through intense turmoil and confrontations, and intriguingly, their name hints at a sinister affiliation with the enigmatic Force witches recognized as the Nightsisters.

The Night Troopers, potentially linked to the Nightsisters' ability to resurrect, could serve as the undead counterpart to the zombie Death Troopers from Star Wars Legends. They play a role in reviving the military force of the Imperial Remnant. In episode 6 of Ahsoka, Grand Admiral Thrawn (portrayed by Lars Mikkelsen) makes his highly anticipated debut, introducing the Night Troopers as a new Imperial faction. After being banished to a distant galaxy, Thrawn was absent during the Galactic Civil War and the Empire's downfall. However, he now possesses a unique opportunity to reemerge in the known galaxy alongside his enigmatic and formidable soldiers.

In Ahsoka episode 6, Lady Morgan Elsbeth and her group of Dark Jedi mercenaries successfully reach the extragalactic world of Peridea before Ahsoka Tano. They have also managed to capture Sabine Wren, who provided them with a star map in exchange for the opportunity to locate Jedi Ezra Bridger. It is now revealed that Thrawn, who was also banished alongside Ezra, has been located, marking his live-action debut in the Star Wars universe. Notably, Thrawn is accompanied by his new Night Troopers, adding intrigue to their history, potential future, and possible connections to the original Death Troopers from the Legends series.

Have Night Troopers Appeared In Star Wars Before?

Thrawn's new army, which originated from Star Wars Rebels, remains his old one. In the animated series' finale, Ezra Bridger utilized the Force connection between himself and a group of star whales called purrgil to overcome Thrawn. These very same creatures are now being employed by Ahsoka to reach Peridea. By encircling themselves around Thrawn's Star Destroyer, known as The Chimaera, the star whales transported the Grand Admiral, his crew, and Ezra through hyperspace from Lothal to an unidentified location. The Ahsoka show has now confirmed that The Chimaera was sent to Peridea.

As a result, it is evident that Thrawn's forces have undergone significant changes since their last appearance in Star Wars Rebels. The decade they spent stranded in another galaxy seems to have taken a toll on Thrawn and his army. The soldiers, now referred to as Night Troopers, bear the marks of trauma and conflict inflicted upon them by an unknown force. The full details of this encounter have yet to be revealed after Ahsoka episode 6.

How Night Troopers' Armor Is Different To Regular Stormtroopers (& What Else Is Different?)

The armor of Thrawn's Night Troopers deviates from the pristine white appearance of traditional Stormtroopers. Instead, it appears dirty, damaged, and broken, with several pieces replaced by what appears to be gold. Throughout the legion, cracks adorn the helmets, and red straps hold everything together. This can be attributed to the soldiers' years of exile, during which they were unable to receive new armor from the Empire. However, the visible damage suggests that they have faced more than just the wear and tear of time. Thrawn himself has hinted at the troops' significant struggles, including potential casualties.

Among the soldiers in Grand Admiral Thrawn's army, Captain Enoch exemplifies this somber transformation. Specially noteworthy is Enoch's golden mask, which is fused onto the standard helmet of an Imperial Stormtrooper. This distinctive feature sets him apart, as he possesses more gold pieces than most under his command. Moreover, Enoch's mask bears a resemblance to that of the Nightsisters, which is particularly significant due to Thrawn's current alliance with the exiled Great Mothers on Peridea, the Nightsisters' original homeworld. The presence of red wrappings on multiple troopers further supports the notion that the Night Troopers possess a sinister connection to the Force witches, possibly explaining the origin of their name.

Thrawn's Night Troopers Appear To Be A Canon Version Of The Zombie Death Troopers

Following the revelation in episode 4 of Ahsoka, it is revealed that the Imperial Inquisitor Marrok, who served Elsbeth, was actually a reanimated corpse. The dark magics and ability to resurrect of the Nightsisters are mentioned multiple times in episode 6 of Ahsoka. It is possible that the Night Troopers are also undead, which would explain their damaged armor and their new name, which is a reference to the Nightsisters. Additionally, if Thrawn were to command an army of the undead, it would fulfill the promises made to the Imperial Shadow Council in season 3 of The Mandalorian, which stated that the return of the Grand Admiral would lead to a revival of the military forces of the Imperial Remnant.

Furthermore, there is a strong possibility that these new Night Troopers could serve as the canonical counterparts of the zombie stormtroopers known as Death Troopers in Star Wars Legends. In the renowned novel Death Troopers written by Joe Schreiber, an entire Star Destroyer fell victim to the ruthless Blackwing virus, a devastating pathogen capable of reanimating decaying tissue. Consequently, this horrific affliction gave rise to a formidable army of undead stormtroopers. Since the title Death Trooper has already been adopted within the canon to represent the elite troopers showcased in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Night Trooper emerges as a compelling alternative name. This choice is particularly fitting considering the strong likelihood that the Night Troopers were reanimated through the utilization of the dark magicks possessed by the Nighsisters.

How Night Troopers Are Different From Thrawn's Army In Star Wars Legends

In Timothy Zahn's Legends' Thrawn trilogy, which began with Heir to the Empire in 1991, Grand Admiral Thrawn returned to the known galaxy and took command of the Imperial Remnant. He strategically utilized Mount Tantiss, a highly classified Imperial black site formerly controlled by Emperor Palpatine, as a major operations base. Housed within this facility were advanced cloning technologies, which Thrawn adeptly employed to construct his own contingent of stormtrooper clones. This formidable clone army played a pivotal role in bolstering the Imperial forces and countering the New Republic.

Thrawn, in the Star Wars universe, now possesses the power to swiftly assemble an army. However, he achieves this through different means such as employing Nightsister magic and resurrecting the deceased. The mysterious crates being loaded onto The Chimaera likely contain the bodies of either deceased Nightsisters or additional troops, or possibly a combination of both. It is worth noting that Thrawn's Mount Tantiss, with its role as a cloning facility, has recently been reintroduced into the Star Wars canon. This suggests that it may still have a significant role to play when Grand Admiral Thrawn and his potentially undead Night Troopers eventually manage to escape Peridea.

New episodes of Ahsoka are released on Disney+ every Tuesday at 6 pm PT / 9 pm ET.