Hasbro has pumped out several stormtroopers using the outstanding VC140 (sourced from Rogue One).  By my count, and I’m sure I’m missing something, there were 6 repaints using that mold.  But then they out-outstanded that one by adding rocker ankles for the VC231 (sourced from ANH).  Again, so far, Hasbro has made 6 different releases of this sculpt, and they’re all amazing.  However, at this point, we could use another tweak…adding the current style of ball-jointed hips.

There isn’t much to be said about this base figure that hasn’t already been covered.  It’s outstanding.  And while it has surpassed VC140, between the two, they have crushed all previous stormtroopers.  Posing them is a joy, and they look straight out of the films/shows, unlike earlier versions that have ranged from terrible to less terrible to barely tolerable.

This time around, we get the Artillery Stormtrooper from The Tragedy, which was S2:E6 of The Mandalorian.  As fans, there were many memorable moments from that episode, including Boba Fett regaining his armor (after smashing a squad of stormtroopers with his gaffi stick), Grogu communicating across the galaxy via the Force, and the launch of the Dark Troopers.  Many of us collectors specifically recall that episode because it also featured the destruction of the Razor Crest, which (fortunately for Hasbro) occurred after the Haslab campaign was completed.

But also memorable was watching a platoon of stormtroopers in full tactical mode.  Disembarking from assault shuttles, charging up to the objective, communicating with hand signals, using mixed weaponry, etc.  It featured the debut of the Artillery Stormtrooper, who set up his mortar, and fired several rounds in an attempt to take out (or at least flush out) Fennec Shand.  The trooper had yellow flashes, in essentially the same pattern as the red flashes on the Incinerator Trooper.

Aside from the awesome base figure, this one comes with a bunch of accessories.  Of course, he comes with the standard Imperial blaster.  Hasbro is pretty inconsistent with the coloring and paint apps on these.  This time around, it has no silver details.  But the draw here is the mortar, which comes in 3 pieces - the tube, the bi-pod, and the base plate.  The pieces can be assembled and adjusted a bit to help give you the right display.  The figure has a back pack, with a space that allows for the included 4x mortar rounds to snap into place.  The figure can hold the round to simulate loading the tube, and it can also be dropped into the tube itself.  The only thing it doesn’t do (thankfully) is fire the round. 

The figure interacts well enough with the accessory, at least as far as setting up a realistic looking launching pose.  He doesn’t actually hold onto the mortar at all.  Sadly, there is no way to stow the weapon on his backpack, and he can’t really carry it (well, maybe he can, I didn’t try too hard).  Also, the only real drawback is that without a holster, the trooper has no place to put his blaster while he sets up and fires the mortar.  Oh well. 

One weird thing I noticed when setting up the trooper lineup in the gallery above, sometimes Hasbro paints the soles of the boots black, sometimes not.  No idea what the logic is, so I’m assuming they just forget sometimes.

The figure alone is already a 10/10, so the added accessories and paint detailing make it…a better 10/10.