Star Wars Legion – Darth Vader

The HQ element of the Galactic Empire Starter Set is none other than Darth Vader himself! This miniature is not exclusive to the starter set and is also available as part of the SWQ103 set, alongside General Veers.

During the production of Star Wars Legion, multiple poses of Darth Vader were created.

• SWL57 Darth Vader (Operative Expansion - The Emperor's Apprentice)
• Darth Vader Limited Edition 2019 CON Exclusive
• Darth Vader from the SWL01 Core Set (Dark Lord of the Sith) - also included in SWL121 Blizzard Force

This new sculpt for the new edition is kept in the design from The Empire Strikes Back.

With the update to the new edition of Star Wars Legion, more miniatures have been moved to hard plastic and now come on a sprue. In the case of the SWQ103 set, each model comes on a single sprue of its own. Today, however, we are just talking about Darth Vader. There are no options on the sprue, but the casting is very sharp with only the slightest hint of mould lines. It is a very clean and crisp recreation of the model.

As part of the starter set, you get a unit card and some further command cards in four languages (English, German, Spanish and French), and a 25 mm round base.

The details of the helmet and cloak have been captured perfectly in this model, and the only gap you need to worry about is the lower coat around his legs, as everything else is a single piece. The fit is great; there were no issues.

However, I should mention that Darth Vader is tall. As you can see in comparison with regular Stormtroopers, he is really tall. Star Wars Legion is in 1:48 scale, which translates to around 35 mm with realistic proportions (i.e. true scale rather than heroic scale). As you can see, this makes the regular infantry the same size as the 32 mm heroic scale figures from Games Workshop.

This is a proper pose for Darth Vader.

Conclusion

This is a well-designed update of Darth Vader for Star Wars Legion. It has much better proportions than the early sculpts produced under Fantasy Flight Games. The pose is familiar from the comics, in which Darth Vader is depicted as a commander of armies rather than a single character.

Assembly was straightforward and problem-free. As part of the SWQ103, it has an RRP of 34.99 USD, which is a reasonable price, and it is a good deal when included in the Galactic Empire Starter Set. So even if you have a Vader sculpt already, this new one is a serious consideration as a replacement or addition.

• Production Quality: 4/5
• Design appeal: 4/5
• Options / Customization: 2/5 
• Value for money: 3/5*
• Ease of Assembly: 4/5

*as part of SWQ103

Star Wars Legion is a game by Atomic Mass Games and distributed by Asmodee.

The reviewed product item was provided by the manufacturer.