Stormtroopers were the elite soldiers of the Galactic Empire. The troopers' most distinctive equipment is their white battle armor, inherited from their time as clone troopers. The complete armor set completely encases the body and typically has no individually distinguishing marking in contrast to the clone trooper armor, which typically had various colorings to denote rank or unit. These faceless enforcers of the New Order were considered an extension of the Emperor's will, and thus they often used efficient yet usually unreasonable tactics as a way to keep thousands of star systems throughout the galaxy in line. At the height of the Empire, stormtroopers had effectively become symbols of major authority.