Cosplay Command Center is a series connecting cosplayers to resources and expert insights to complete their costumes from Star Wars animation.
Who wouldn’t want to join up with Clone Force 99? We can't stop talking about the conclusion of the first arc in the final season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, featuring the unique unit known affectionately as the Bad Batch. And if you want to continue to celebrate these specialized clone troopers with your own cosplay build, Kilian Plunkett, who served as art director for both Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, has a few tips!
“All four members of the Bad Batch wear custom armor,” Plunkett says, but the gear is unified with the same basic pieces sourced from a standard Republic Commando kit, like the armor worn by Republic Commandos like Gregor or Scorch. And the underlying bodysuit is a match for the standard-issue clone bodysuit in both color and material.
Among the Bad Batch members, Hunter’s special skills are his heightened senses and combat prowess, the result of genetic experimentation. But he still closely resembles a regular clone at a glance, with shaggy locks and a skull tattoo on the left side of his face, which can be achieved with make-up. A red bandana with a tiny skull emblem helps to show off his membership to Clone Force 99, as well as the distinct color scheme of his armor.
“Hunter’s armor is closest to standard Republic Commando gear,” in shape and definition, Plunkett says. “Its unique features are the sheath on the forearm for his vibroblade and the helmet, which is closer in appearance to an Imperial Stormtrooper,” thanks to the enlarged visor area. His right shoulder pauldron carries the skull emblem and both shoulders are marked with a “99,” but his helmet is painted to mirror the skull tattoo on his face beneath.
“Unlike the white armor worn by the regular GAR troops, the Clone Force 99 armor has large areas of exposed metal on it,” Plunkett says, with shades of dark grey and a burgundy ‘Republic Red’ forming the accent colors on each Bad Batch member’s kit. “The dark grey paint can have a slight metallic quality,” Plunkett notes, “but it should be subtle and ideally a visibly different finish to the raw gunmetal sections of armor. The red paint and ‘99’ skull emblem would be a dull/matte finish to suggest a lot of wear and exposure to the elements.”
