[77] TK-66744 Troop Log (Social Media Consent)

[Sithping[TK]]

Looks like you all had an amazing troop! 

Awesome to see so much white armour amongst your ranks 

[Morgi[Staff]]

Am 28.8.2023 um 18:49 schrieb Sithping:

Looks like you all had an amazing troop! 

Awesome to see so much white armour amongst your ranks 

 

It was amazing! Always a very special event for most of us. And, yes, there were a lot of TK's 

 

And thank you @BAZINGA, glad to hear that 

 

 

[58] 23.09.2023 -- Family Day at VW Global HQ, Wolfsburg, Day 1

 

 

Since this might be my last troop for the next few months I was determined to make the most of it. We entered the factory premises early in the morning after a security check and were shown to our changing room next to the photo studio. Alongside eight troopers from the German Garrison, VW had invited another eight costumers from a local club.

 

 

To cover the whole area we were split into four groups with different troop times. So as the first group (pictured above) started, we, the second 501st group, got to tour one of the factories out of armor. Afterwards we headed back and got changed into costume an hour early, anticipating a delay in getting to our post due to the crowds outside.

 

 

As it turned out, we had naively underestimated the crowds. It took us nearly 3.5 hours to get to our post, at which point our 2 hour shift was over and we managed the 600 meters back to the changing room in a record time of 1.5 hours. All along the way we were stopped for pictures, never managing more than a few meters before being crowded again.

 

 

This was the only picture I managed to take during the troop. Next to me is TK-56347 with whom I trooped the whole day as a group of two (we'd early on found out that as a group of four we would move even slower). After we got back to the changing room we took a couple of pictures in the photostudio. Later that day I found out that there had been about 40000 visitors that day. 

 

 

 

[59] 24.09.2023 -- Family Day at VW Global HQ, Wolfsburg, Day 2

 

place holder for group picture

 

Having learned our lesson from the previous day, we started off in private, using the photostudio to its fullest extent. This day we were only five troopers from the 501st, but we were an amazing group to troop with. 

 

 

Then we braved the crowds. This time around we didn't even try to get far from the changing room and instead got to participate in a few of the activities nearby. I got a perfect score in hockey, missed all my shots at the football goal and danced along to the music playing. Of course we also got a picture with the DFB (German Football/Soccer Club) mascot.

 

 

We went on to taking even more pictures with visitors. One kid even had a Lego StarWars figure with him because he had heard that there'd be Stormtroopers at the event. All in all, it was a really fun, but exhausting event. I hope we'll get to troop this again in the future -- but with twice as many troopers.

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[Sithping[TK]]

Awesome as always, Luca 

[Morgi[Staff]]

[60] 21.10.2023 -- Elbenwald Store Hamburg Re-Opening

 

 

Sixty already?! Time sure does fly when you're having fun! As you can see, I got lucky and managed to snag another troop for the year. At first I feared that I wouldn't be able to participate due to a once-in-a-century flood the day and night before with several nearby cities flooded and a terrible storm that kept me running around all evening trying to secure everything. However, with the help of the wonderful DZ-23203 (as Bo-Katan this troop) and her boyfriend, we managed to get there bright and early. 

 

 

Of course we started the troop with the obligatory elevator selfie. If you've been reading along, you'll probably recognize the store -- I've trooped at both their festival and another store of theirs before. Since it was re-opening day for them, we were invited to patrol the area and entertain the guest. Some of them had been waiting for two hours to be the first in the store...! No wonder, with 40% off for all costumers. 

 

 

Of course we couldn't miss out on shopping ourselves. Okay, in this picture we don't actually have any merchandise with us and are just posing in front of the store. But at the end of the day we got to buy stuff ourselves! I got some new Stormtrooper t-shirts, Christmas gifts for my siblings, and a Darksaber for my TK-sister who sadly couldn't join us that day. Most of our day, however, was not spent inside the store, as their AC was broken and it had gotten insanely hot in there. Always remember to take breaks and hydrate!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[Morgi[Staff]]

[61] 09.12.2023 -- Comic Con Stuttgart, Day 1

 

 

My first three-years-in-a-row troop, how exciting! This exact event had been my third troop back in 2021, I'd managed to troop it again in 2022, and now I was back for 2023. Compared to the previous two years the layout of the convention had changed -- we got our very own Star Wars area with a couple other clubs and had a truly wonderful booth with several photo points and exhibits. With the changed layout also came a plus of visitors: a plus of about 15,000 visitors for the whole weekend compared to the previous year!

 

 

With the Surplus of visitors came a lack of space, so I apologize that most of my photos of Saturday were taken during the group picture of the 501st, since that was where we had the most space. Everywhere else was cramped, overcrowded, hot and stuffy, so I spent most of my day near our booth seeking out some peace and quiet that came with being away from the main hall space. 

 

 

Since we were so many troopers on Saturday, we got to take some awesome pictures and videos with the Witches and Thrawn after the group picture. You should definitely take a look at this video of us! All that time back there for the photos was probably my favorite time during the troop. Once the first people began leaving I even got to take a few pictures of my own, which was great. 

 

 

Additionally, this troop was a wonderful opportunity to meet many of my friends once more. Given that I live in the very north of Germany, it's not often that I get to see my friends in the south and I'm always glad when I get these opportunities. 

 

 

 

[62] 10.12.2023 -- Comic Con Stuttgart, Day 2

 

 

Day 2 was less busy with less visitors around, so we got to enjoy the con a bit without people constantly bumping into our armors. To that end, we started off by exploring the halls and taking pictures. This day I was joined by TK-71384 and TK-92227, turning this into an official Fireteam troop for the Chaos Division. 

 

 

This day it was a lot easier to run into our friends for a quick chat and a couple of pictures. Gotta love the Christmas-vibe of the picture above, right?

 

 

After the 501st group picture, us TK's went to take over the gaming stage with Lord Vader. On our way there we had to be careful not to stop, because once we stood anywhere, visitors would flock towards us, asking for a picture. Fair enough, how often do you get a TK patrol with eight troopers and Lord Vader, after all? Definitely one of the highlights of the convention!

 

 

Once I got out of armor in the afternoon, I got to join TK-55550 for something special. A trooper had brought along a TK-kit and we were going to build it live at the convention -- well, at least do some trimming that is, for a full build we'd have needed more helping hands, tools, and time. Definitely a fun and special way to end the convention before traveling at least part-way home, completing the last few hours of travel the next day. Thanks for letting me join you, Danny!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[BAZINGA[TK]]

Wow!  So many TKs I love it all!  Bart

[Morgi[Staff]]

Am 19.12.2023 um 15:19 schrieb BAZINGA:

Wow!  So many TKs I love it all!  Bart

 

Right?? Can't ever have enough white plastic! Really grateful we've got so many TK's in my Garrison 

 

[63] 16.12.2023 -- Dreamhack Hannover 

 

 

Time for the last event of the year! With troopers from all over Northern Germany, we patrolled the gaming convention in Hannover for the weekend. I got to join on Saturday with TK-71384 and TK-92227 as the Chaos Division. 

 

 

We met old and new faces, made sure to keep everything in order and went on patrol with ID-15519 and TK-21698. Since there were a few games we could play as well, we faced off against a cyber bullying monster and even got under the top ten! Even though us troopers might not hit anything, we've got a very good sense of timing apparently, as the game was all about fast reactions and proper timing. As a price we got a t-shirt and a bag with goodies.

 

 

To end the day, I did an armor swap with my good friend and clone-brother CC-75367. And although my armor wasn't a perfect fit for him and the Wolffe armor felt a bit awkward in places, nobody noticed that we'd switched -- as long as we wore our helmets at least. And the double-takes we got with our buckets off might just have been the highlight of the troop. After this, I am even more hyped for my own Clone armor!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off

[Morgi[Staff]]

[64] 03.02.2024 -- Retro Amour, Day 1

 

 

First troop of the year! I have no idea, just why I expected the event to be less boring this time around, but similar to last year there was minimal interest in us and it was a pretty small convention. However, we did not let that stop us from having fun. 

 

 

We took pictures with the few people who wanted to take pictures with us, listened to the frequent Ghostbusters song playing at the booth across, quite a few of us bought merchandise, and we simply used the time to catch up with each other. It was great seeing so many familiar faces and getting to troop with my former squad once more!

 

 

 

[65] 04.02.2024 -- Retro Amour, Day 2

 

 

Not only were there fewer visitors on the second day, but also our white plastic got reduced to myself and a scout. Instead we had a group of Tuskens and quite a few pilots with us on Sunday.

 

 

To pass the time, we did booth duty, patrolled the convention and stumbled across some retro games that had been set up. Can't believe I didn't find them the previous day -- they were really fun, even if I spectacularly lost at Mario Kart.

 

 

DZ-88900, TB-88723 and I went to catch some fresh air at some point in the afternoon and almost caused a few cat accidents by standing next to the street on the sidewalk. Luckily, traffic was slow so nothing actually happened. In general a very quiet troop. Still, thank you to DZ-88900 for letting me stay at his place, so I could attend this troop in the first place!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[BAZINGA[TK]]

Nice turn out for those of you in costume though!

 

One of the last ones I did in 2023 they had us tucked away from the main crowd, which was small to begin with, so we were left to our own devices much of the time to make our own fun too.  Bart

[Morgi[Staff]]

Am 14.2.2024 um 15:40 schrieb BAZINGA:

Nice turn out for those of you in costume though!

 

One of the last ones I did in 2023 they had us tucked away from the main crowd, which was small to begin with, so we were left to our own devices much of the time to make our own fun too.  Bart

 

Right? It's always a great opportunity to catch up and do some silly stuff!

 

 

[66] 28.03.2024 -- Retirement at the Airbase Jagel

 

 

A long time member of our local airbase got discharged and sent into retirement. Since he's been at the airbase for decades and was well loved, it was decided to celebrate the occasion in a special way. He's a huge fan of StarWars and so they invited us to visit him on his last day at the base.

 

 

But before that, us troopers got shown around the base. We got an in-depth explanation of the Tornado aircraft -- it's design, variants, roles and history -- and were even allowed to sit in one for a quick picture and to ask some detailed questions. Truly a crazy feeling to be sitting on the pilot seat, knowing just what the aircraft is capable of. The mechanics were just as excited to show us everything as we were to see everything, so we almost ended up missing lunch. 

 

 

Never let it be said that they aren't great hosts! The food was good, even if we had to rush. Then it was time for us to show up during the ceremony. We observed during the whole ceremony, listened to the speeches, saluted the retiring member one last time -- and were, of course, available for pictures with both him and everyone else who was interested. After everyone had gotten their pictures and most people had left, they had handed over the check of money they had collected for charity for this event. One of my shortest troops yet, but nevertheless a really interesting one!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off

[Morgi[Staff]]

Busy weekend!

 

[67] 03.05.2024 -- Star Wars in Concert A New Hope in Hamburg

 

 

Starting off strong with Star Wars in Concert on Friday! Unluckily, right next door was a soccer match, so we arrived with 1.5 hours delay and having to expect violence later on. 

 

 

Still, everyone had lots of fun, I got to troop another Chaos Division troop, met my fellow Squad Attaché and posed for lots and lots of pictures with the visitors. We got to watch the movie as a compensation for showing up, so that was fun too!

 

 

We had to cut down a bit on our program and most of us spent the second half of the Concert in our changing room, fooling around, having fun, and welcoming a new member who had his first troop that day. 

 

 

At the very end we went out in front of the stage to lots of applause. Definitely a good showing from our squad, even if we were all really tired afterwards, arriving back home at about 02:00 am.

 

 

Lucky for us the soccer match had ended peacefully as well, so we had a calmer evening than expected after the early chaos.

 

 

[68] 04.05.2024 -- Planetarium Wolfsburg 

 

 

For Star Wars Day the planetarium offers a special Star Wars showing. The Garrison was invited by a local costume club to bolster their numbers a bit. 

 

 

All six of us had been at the concert the night before, but we weren't tired enough to not troop. I myself mostly had fun with the stuff they had in that area, such as this gigantic bench. To my surprise, sitting on that one was super comfortable and it was really easy to get on and off. Who would've thought?

 

 

The local police showed up for a couple pictures and since it was almost tradition by now, I simply had to take a couple pictures in their car. Always a really fun experience and everyone just loves it!

 

 

To end the troop we guarded the planetarium as the visitors got to enter. A few visitors got really scared when they spotted us. Aside from the bench, those reactions might have been my favorite part of the troop.

 

 

[69] 04.05.2024 -- Episode I in Cinema Wolfenbüttel 

 

 

No pictures from this troop, oops! 

 

For the re-release of Episode I the local club from the previous troop also had an appearance at a cinema. We entertained people on the street, as well as the cinema's visitors, before getting to watch the movie ourselves. For me it was the first time ever watching Episode I in cinema and it was so, so good! Way better than on a TV screen!

 

Also, this was my first ever time officially trooping two events on one day. Kinda crazy to consider 

 

 

And although I had another event on Sunday it was a Doctor Who convention -- I met David Tennant! He liked my outfit! -- so I will spare you the details. This is, after all, my Stormtrooper troop log. Just know that it was the best convention I've ever been to and that my TK just got a contender for "favorite costume" 

 

[Sithping[TK]]

Fantastic report of your latest events, Luca! 

I noticed one of my friends in your pictures Wolf from the Coastal Hammer Squad, we met with his wife Jessica and some of our Garrison in Glasgow for drinks and food. 

Congrats on meeting David Tennant you must have been buzzing! 

[BAZINGA[TK]]

Oh my.  So many troopers in one place at the same time and such fun venues!  Nice!

 

Bart

[Morgi[Staff]]

Am 7.5.2024 um 18:32 schrieb Sithping:

Fantastic report of your latest events, Luca! 

I noticed one of my friends in your pictures Wolf from the Coastal Hammer Squad, we met with his wife Jessica and some of our Garrison in Glasgow for drinks and food. 

Congrats on meeting David Tennant you must have been buzzing! 

 

I'm a huuuge fan of David Tennant and his work! Getting to meet him, see him, talk with him was just an extraordinary experience and worth every cent paid. 

 

Am 7.5.2024 um 22:49 schrieb BAZINGA:

Oh my.  So many troopers in one place at the same time and such fun venues!  Nice!

 

Bart

 

I think that's one of the best parts of being in such a large Garrison: we got lots of troopers and fantastic events 

 

 

[70] 25.05.2024 -- Comic Park Erfurt, Day 1

 

 

It was a long, long travel there, but everyone I'd met told me of the great location and all the fun they'd had last year, so I had to see this event for myself. And the location didn't disappoint! A beautiful park stretching over kilometers, bustling with visitors and cosplayers in hot summer weather. 

 

 

I started off the event by getting to meet and escort the city's mayor -- crazy who you'll meet simply because you thought running around in plastic sounds fun -- alongside a few of my fellow troopers. We had our own Star Wars area together with a handful of other clubs. One of which had organized a bounty hunt for kids, where they had to find several characters. Alas, their TK wasn't actually a TK that day, so I agreed to jump in. Since I was the only OTTK that day (we had one FOTK as well), I didn't want to disappoint the kids who were looking for a Stormtrooper.

 

 

Still, I tried to get the most out of that day, without collapsing of a heatstroke, and spent lots of it with CC-75367 and a new recruit who was wearing his CT for the first time. We explored the park, stumbled across a fantastic playground, and lazed around in the sun. On the playground I did manage to get a new crack in my armor, but with a quick repair I was ready to face the second day. 

 

 

 

[71] 26.05.2024 -- Comic Park Erfurt, Day 2

 

 

With not enough sleep and even higher temperatures we started into the second day of fun and shenanigans. This time I refused to participate in the bounty hunt, and with one other Stormtrooper from my Garrison we were a total of three Stormtroopers that day -- if only for a short while. Can't say I blame them for not wanting to spend too much time in armor considering the temperatures and instead changing into a Narkina 5 prisoner and club clothing respectively. 

 

 

My fellow TK -- now my escaped prisoner -- had taken a skateboard with him to the event and I joined forces with a few other young people to enjoy some silliness. All of us were pushed along on that skateboard in full armor, desperately trying to not fall over. Video link. Once we'd exhausted ourselves there, we moved on to taking silly pictures. Piggyback rides, climbing onto trees, and silly faces. I believe I ended up with roughly 400 pictures from that alone. 

 

 

Something I didn't expect out of this troop was anything to do with David Tennant, but I found out that there was a Good Omens Fanmeet happening next to our Star Wars area. Of course I couldn't miss out on that one, so I headed over there. I met quite a few of the people from the Doctor Who/Good Omens convention earlier this month and got a bracelet and a rubber duck out of it. Definitely a highlight of the weekend! 

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[Morgi[Staff]]

[72] 15.06.2024 -- Charity-Event „Team-Doppelpass“ Nortorf

 

 

On one of my very few free days in June I had the pleasure of supporting the "Team Doppelpass" event in Nortorf. It's a soccer tournament with local clubs, where they raise money for every goal shot, as well as taking separate donations -- this year of up to 10000€.

 

 

We were there simply for the fun of it. People could take pictures with us, or simply enjoy our presence. The real heroes of the event were all the players on the field, playing some spectacular games and raising the money. 

 

 

It was a really rainy and pretty chilly day. I had been sick the week before and trooping that day set me back in my recovery, but I'm certain that it was well worth it. One of our troopers had his 100th troop, for two others it was their very first. Definitely a special day. And not only that, but the event raised a total of 43,114.30€ for children's cancer, which is incredible!

 

 

 

[73] 22.06.2024 -- Supporting the Family Support of our military at the Kieler Woche, Kiel

 

 

For those of you who don't know, the Kieler Woche is the world's largest sailing event. It's a week-long street festival all over the city with vendors, games, more vendors and of course some sailing. Honestly, trooping that event had been one of my biggest goals since I first joined and this year I had the honor of making that dream come to life!

 

 

Our non-501st (but still Trooper!) contact at the military managed to snag this event for us, by promising that we'd support the family support center of our military that day. In return for posing for pictures with kids and adults, we'd show presence in the heart of the military area of the Kieler Woche. 

 

 

For us that meant walking around, visiting tanks, planes and ships, sometimes getting an exclusive behind the scenes tour, talking to the visitors to encourage them to take a look at what the family support does, and taking lots and lots of pictures. People there loved us! We barely could move most of the time. 

 

 

Since it was a rather hot day, we spent every free minute in the shade and drinking water or iced tea that we were supplied with. And not only that, we got everything from classic military food to ice cream -- and a small birthday present for me since it had been my 21st birthday a day prior. Everyone had lots of fun and I'd gladly troop this event again next year!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off 

[BAZINGA[TK]]

Always enjoy seeing and reading your troops and Happy Birthday!

 

Bart

[Morgi[Staff]]

Am 6.7.2024 um 16:40 schrieb BAZINGA:

Always enjoy seeing and reading your troops and Happy Birthday!

 

Bart

 

Thank you! 

 

 

[74] 07.09.2024 -- Annotopia Rotenburg an der Fulda, Saturday

 

 

Two months without trooping?! Good to be back in white plastic after that break! Exactly three years after my approval as a 501st Stormtrooper I got to troop an event that's, well, it's basically my first ever troop, but at a different location. Crazy coincidence!

 

 

With the help of CC-75367 and TK-19525 this was made possible, so thank you both! The weekend turned into a very hot experience, so we weren't out and about too much, rather seeking out our cooled changing room and water bottles. After I'd already gotten a sunstroke only a few weeks earlier I still hadn't recovered fully and a relapse wouldn't be welcomed.

 

 

Although StarWars isn't a main focus of the event in any way, shape or form, the visitors loved interacting with both us, as well as the local clubs that were there. Especially whilst escorting Han Solo around the premises we gained a lot of attention -- and even had some escape attempts when his fellow Rebels spotted our prisoner.

 

 

 

[75] 08.09.2024 -- Annotopia Rotenburg an der Fulda, Sunday

 

 

Starting the day off strong, we immediately headed to the playground after the parade to have some fun fooling around, taking pictures and videos. For someone who'd claimed on Saturday morning that it was impossible for him to sit in his armor, TK-19525 adapted quickly and joined us in all sorts of shenanigans -- everything from the swings to a sand ceremony with our Tusken got explored and enjoyed. 

 

 

With better temperatures on Sunday we walked around a lot more, found a second playground and explored other costuming groups and their booths. The Annotopia is great in that it had just about everything: post-apocalyptic role play, zombies, orcs, trolls, superheroes... whatever you could think of that is fun, interactive and in character, it is there and it fits there. I became a zombie myself during our exploration, but luckily there were experts there who could help out. 

 

 

A bit of a random part of the event was where they'd organized a Wolverine/Hugh Jackman double to perform various songs on stage. But as confused as we'd originally been, the double was really, really close to what I've seen of Hugh Jackman so far and I very much regret not getting a better picture of him than the vastly zoomed in one I took of him on the stage. All in all a pretty fun weekend with some fantastic company!

 

 

And given that it was my first weekend since finishing exams, I couldn't help but really really enjoy every minute of it. Note to self: two months is too long a time to go without trooping. 

 

 

 

[76] 14.09.2024 -- TimeWarp Braunschweig, Day 1

 

 

Why have one trooping weekend, if you could have two? Welcome to the day that I mostly spent behind the camera! The TimeWarp retro convention was held for the first time ever with a handful of vendors, a few star guests and a small, but steady stream of visitors gracing it's halls. We started off by touring around the area and spending a bit of money (I got a 1960's Batman comic!) on various merchandise. 

 

 

Having seen everything and with it being CX-37202's first troop in his Tech, we decided to show off this masterpiece. He'd spent two years bringing that armor to a seldom seen perfection, including working gadgets and lots and lots of electronics. With there being lots of space in our changing area it was the perfect opportunity to take different types of pictures -- everything from the Clone Bar on Coruscant to action scenes in Imperial facilities to dramatic chip removals from other Clones. 

 

 

I probably should've switched my phone to a professional camera and my armor into clothes with actual mobility at some point of this spontaneous photoshooting, but neither did any of us have a camera with us, nor did I think of changing. Oh well, we still got some incredible pictures out of it! And after the troop (and, yes, some more public appearances outside of the changing room as well) (and an armor switch, because I actually really love wearing Clone armor) we'd all gone for a nice joined meal, beat, but ready for Day 2.

 

 

 

[77] 15.09.2024 -- TimeWarp Braunschweig, Day 2

 

 

Day 2 started off better than day 1, with us fooling around with the crew and with Deadpool and all the other cosplayers, instead of sticking mostly to our own as we'd done the previous day. There still wasn't too much foottraffic -- and they'd have deserved lots more visitors, cause it's a really cool convention -- but the people who were there enjoyed our shenanigans as much as we did ourselves. As a joke TK-71384 suggested that we should join the world championship happening at the convention (it was about cassette tape, so it would've been a pretty harmless joke, if a televised one).

 

 

What started as a joke ended with our Sandtrooper as the new world champion, our pilot in third place and TK-19525 in second place! Congratulations! Now, that deserves FISD kudos! It's not every day that one of our own wins a world championship, and in full armor no less. 

 

 

What started as a fantastic day suddenly turned into one of my most depressing moments in armor in a matter of seconds. I'd been posing on this horse as a kid started up the mechanism, making me loose my hold and get an irreparable crack in my codpiece. My armor is pretty old and has been through a lot over these past few years, so I'm going to have to get myself new armor soon. Lucky for me, with some emergency repairs and lots of helpful advice from my fellow troopers, the armor should hold up for a couple more troops, I'll just have to be more careful. 

 

 

Maybe I should leave the horseriding to Deadpool in the future, he seems to be more of a natural in it. That heartbreak aside it was a really cool troop and I very much hope that they'll do another one of these next year!

 

 

TK-66744 signing off