Unidentified stormtrooper commander ( Tantive IV ) A Human male stormtrooper commander served as an officer in the Imperial Stormtrooper Corps ' s elite 501st Legion during the Galactic Civil War . He served on the Imperial Star Destroyer " Devastator " , under the command of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader . In 0 BBY , during a battle over the planet Tatooine , the Commander led a squad of Imperial troops to besiege the CR90 corvette " Tantive IV " , the consular ship of Senator Leia Organa . Once the Rebel starship had been secured , the Commander discovered that the stolen plans to the Imperial Death Star battlestation , for which the Empire was searching , were not in the ship ' s main computer and reported this to Vader . Vader ordered the Commander to continue searching for the plans and to bring him the ship ' s passengers alive . Biography . A Human male commander served as an officer of the Galactic Empire ' s Stormtrooper Corps during the Galactic Civil War . He was assigned to the 501st Legion , an elite stormtrooper unit unofficially known as " Vader ' s Fist , " under the direct command of the Dark Lord Darth Vader , Emperor Palpatine ' s enforcer . The Commander was part of the troop complement of the " Imperial I " - class Star Destroyer " Devastator " , Vader ' s flagship . At some point around 0 BBY , he acquired a facial scar from an energy beam that penetrated the shielding of his helmet . In 0 BBY , after Rebel Alliance agents transmitted the stolen plans of the first Death Star superweapon to the CR90 corvette " Tantive IV " , consular ship of the Rebel - affiliated Senator Leia Organa , the " Devastator " pursued and captured the Rebel vessel over the planet Tatooine . This stormtrooper helped lead the 501st Legion as the assault commander during the boarding and securing of the Rebel starship . He reported the ongoing attempt to breach the " Tantive IV " entry locks to Vader and escorted him to the main hangar of the Star Destroyer to board the captured vessel . Stormtroopers captured Rebel Captain Raymus Antilles and took him to the assault commander , shortly before Vader boarded the ship accompanied by Commanders Praji and Jir , who also participated in the operation . When the Dark Lord arrived in the corridor where the prisoners were being held , the assault commander introduced the Rebel Captain to Vader . After consulting with one of the other commanders , the assault leader quickly returned to Vader , who was interrogating Antilles , and reported that the Death Star plans were not in the " Tantive IV " main computer . Antilles denied Vader ' s accusations of intercepting illegal transmissions before dying by the Sith Lord ' s hand . The enraged Vader ordered the assault commander to search for the plans more thoroughly and to bring him the vessel ' s passengers alive . Although Organa was captured by stormtroopers just minutes later , the stormtroopers were unaware that the stolen plans were already on their way to Tatooine in an escape pod with Organa ' s droids , R2 - D2 and C - 3PO . Personality and traits . When the stormtroopers took Antilles to the assault commander , the stormtrooper abused the captive Rebel by physically striking him and flouting his surrendering without putting up a fight . After killing Antilles , Vader whirled unexpectedly , and the nearby Imperial officers , including this individual , shrank under his baleful sculptured stare . The officers hastened to carry out Vader ' s orders — and to retreat from the Dark Lord ' s malevolent presence . Behind the scenes . The character of the stormtrooper commander first appeared in the December 1976 of , ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster . In the novel , the Commander is described as an officer whose " armored helmet [ was ] shoved back to reveal a recent scar , where an energy beam had penetrated his shielding , " and he speaks a different line than his dialogue in the film . The character ' s first live - action appearance occurred in the film " A New Hope " itself , in which he was portrayed by an uncredited extra . His scene was one of the last few of principle photography , filmed sometime between June 29 and July 16 , 1976 in the . The character ' s line was performed by Terence McGovern , said over a walkie - talkie and recorded by sound designer Ben Burtt . In the revised fourth draft script of " A New Hope " , as presented in " " , the Commander is identified as " Imperial Officer . " In the third episode of the film ' s radio drama , a character addressed as " Commander " can be heard in three scenes : first , hailing the " Tantive IV " from aboard the " Devastator " , in place of the character of Nahdonnis Praji ; second , aboard the " Tantive IV " , presenting Antilles to Vader and reporting on the Death Star plans ; and third , arguing with Vader about Senator Organa , in place of Daine Jir . However , in the radio drama , the " Commander " boards the " Tantive IV " before Vader , and in " " , Praji and Jir enter after Vader , revealing that the person who captured Antilles cannot be these two , and is in fact the character of the unidentified stormtrooper commander .