Galactic Style Guide – Backpacks I

Welcome back to another installment of the Galactic Style Guide, the bimonthly series where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to help you create a more authentic ‘outer persona’! This topic has been requested by several folks, so it’s been a long time coming. In this entry, we’re taking a look at an oft-overlooked category of gear, which can really elevate an impression and make it feel like a living, breathing kit. We’re talking about backpacks! Due to the sample size, I’ve decided to break this into two parts – one for ‘hard’ backpacks, and one (next month!) for softer packs.

Let’s go chronologically and kick things off with this paired bedroll-backpack from the old, Old Republic (Tales of the Jedi: Redemption #3). As usual, the cover art is far more evocative than the actual panels, but I include it here as the pack itself seems to be fairly structured:

I’m sure there have to be other pre-Prequel-era examples, but I haven’t found them! If you know of any, please let me know below! Next, let’s move on to some liveaction hard packs.

According to Parts of Star Wars, Anakin’s backpack was made from a rigid daypack (designed by Mario Hasuike and made by Italy’s MH Way), apparently covered in leather, and with a leather pocket, CD wallet, and telescoping poster tube added. Naturally, it was given a strong dose of weathering befitting Anakin’s station and location (a slave on Tatooine would have a much grungier backpack than a Corellian diplomat), to which the leather cover better lends itself.

(In researching this post, I learned that toystore FAO Schwarz actually released a replica in 1999-2000, which sold for only $20, and included a not-just-for-looks CD wallet!:

The supplemental materials of the era provide several more technical examples, several including a curious triangular component – any ideas what it is?

The 2008 Clone Wars series introduced this style of hard-body flapped backpack frequently used by GAR clonetroops. As a piece of legitimate military hardware, it features a Republic roundel–a rare bit of factional branding.

In the Imperial period, we often see stormtroopers using specific loadouts depending on deployment location. Sandtroopers use bulky backpacks along these lines, which presumably have cooling or hydration functionalities – has there ever been an official breakdown that explains what each various component does? Note that the rigid and efficient Empire’s use of 100% ‘plastoid’ for their field gear – no softparts seen here!

Continuing this trend (thanks, Ryan!) we have the cold weather assault ‘snowtroopers’ whose backpacks are similarly technological – presumably, these are not for carrying belongings but instead for maintaining the user’s body temperature.

The Rebel Alliance military also uses rigid backpacks tailored to the environment, but with canvas covers that help soften the ‘techy’ appearance and retain the ‘natural/earthy’ associations of John Mollo’s original designs.

While little seen, the bounty hunter Dengar bore a boxy backpack (along with what looks like a teeny-tiny bedroll on top!) as well. Any ideas what its functions could be?

SWRPG artist Langdon Foss created this modular explorer’s backpack (including a underslung medical kit) for inclusion in the Wizards of the Coast Galactic Campaign Guide (2003). Because exposure is no fun for anyone, in addition to various tools and doohickeys, Foss wisely also gives his outfitted adventurer a bedroll. (For our analysis of the larger image, see this earlier post.)

Hopefully, this has given you some ideas for the kinds of packs you might use to give your GFFA kit some real-world functionality and survival points!
So far, these are all the examples of rigid-type backpacks I’ve managed to dig up, but I’m sure there are more out there – let me know in the comments below or come discuss with us in the SWLH facebook group! See you next month for part two!

(Special thanks to this month’s supporters R.F. and P.D.! Researching, compiling, and writing this series takes a lot of time and mental energy. If you’ve enjoyed reading, or will use this post to design our own in-universe backpack, please consider supporting my work via ko-fi, or with a small donation below! Thank you!