Chances are that you have already watched Star Wars: The Force Awakens by now. For those of you who haven’t, we do not guarantee that there are no spoilers here even though we are bringing you news on the OTHER stars of Star Wars – the spacecrafts and transporters. Here are some things you might have missed or might not have learnt from the movie. Lets start with…
First Order Tie Fighter
You would think that 30 years after the Galactic Civil War, the First Order would have done away with the TIE Fighter, but apparently not. The “single-seater” TIE has been upgraded and now has a “two-seater” variant to accommodate pilot and rear gunner, and we see Poe and Finn hijack one of this more commodious model. The most visible difference is the new TIE has an inversed colour scheme, with white panels and black borders.
Resistance X-Wing
The Resistance flies a T-70 X-Wing which has a similar silhouette as the Incom T-65 models from the original trilogy. The T-70 is not a new design at all, but was a work-in-progress version that Joe Johnston and Ralph McQuarrie had drawn back in the seventies. The obvious difference is the split-wings of the T-70 with split engine intakes and a flatter nose.
First Order Star Destroyer – Finalizer
The bad guys always get the best props. The Finalizer is shared by Kylo Ren and General Hux, and is twice the length of the Imperial-era Star Destroyers (compensating for something?). Besides carrying the First Order’s personnel, which includes a legion of stormtroopers, the flagship also features heavy armament that is augmented by a hundred assault crafts. It has fast-charging turbolasers powered by kyber crystals from the Unknown Regions. The existence of the Finalizer is in violation of treaties with the New Republic, but bad guys take “you do you” literally.
Atmospheric Assault Landers
Really just a nice name for stormtrooper transporter. The tiny crafts hovering around the Finalizer are armour carriers with a 20-stormtrooper capacity, sending the soldiers to battlefields for ground operations or usually to their imminent deaths. The pilot sits in an elevated cockpit while a gunner keeps an eye out during final approach.
Rey’s Custom-made Speeder
In another life, Rey could have been an auto customiser. The young (and pretty) scavenger built this personal vehicle from salvaged parts. It takes a skilled pilot to handle this machine, but in the right hands, it moves pretty fast and can bear considerable weight. Sounds like some muscle cars we know…
Luggabeast
No, this is not a machine, but the Luggabeast is part organic, part mechanical, so it deserves a place on this list. Its head is covered in heavy armour and it has cybernetic instruments, which the Teedos use in salvaging and locating droids.
Which Star Wars vehicle do you wish would come true? Our vote is for the Luggabeast, but we don’t think that that is very likely.
