Army ( First Order ) The Army was the ground - based service branch of the First Order military . Formed from the previous Imperial Army of the Galactic Empire , it would be responsible for maintaining order throughout First Order space and the gradual conquest and colonization of the Unknown Regions . History . Following the defeat of the Galactic Empire at the Battle of Jakku and its surrender with the signing of the Galactic Concordance , the First Order and its military eventually formed in the Unknown Regions where it plotted its eventual return to power . The First Order ' s Army was descended from the Imperial Army , which served as the ground forces of the " Old Empire . " The Army was responsible for enforcing order throughout First Order space and the colonization of the Unknown Regions . During the cold war , the stormtroopers of the First Order ' s army saw action against the Resistance on various locations and operations including Ovanis , Spalex , the search for Lor San Tekka , and the quelling of the strike at Pressy ' s Tumble . In 34 ABY , First Order stormtroopers were also deployed during the attack on Tuanul and the search for the map that lead to Luke Skywalker . The First Order ' s army was led by General Armitage Hux , who also commanded Starkiller Base . Substantial First Order army forces including walker s were stationed on the snowy planet , which doubled as a superweapon . The First Order ' s army and other branches including the First Order Navy were involved in the construction of the massive superweapon . Following the Hosnian Cataclysm , First Order stormtroopers saw action against the Resistance during the Battle of Takodana . The First Order military sustained many casualties during the Battle of Starkiller Base . During the Battle of Crait , significant First Order ground forces including stormtroopers , snowtrooper s , AT - ATs , AT - STs , All Terrain MegaCaliber Six walkers , All Terrain Heavy Hauler s , and a Superlaser siege cannon assaulted the Resistance outpost on Crait . Organization . The army of the First Order was largely composed of stormtroopers , which had several variants that included snowtrooper s , megablaster heavy assault trooper s , flametrooper s , riot control stormtroopers , rocket troopers , and First Order stormtrooper gunner s . Other positions in the army included First Order officer s and the subset of vehicle commander s , First Order walker pilot s , engineer s , and gunner s . Rank structure . Both infantry and armored units was commanded by trained officer s . From squad leader to Supreme Leader , many different ranks existed in the First Order ' s military with various levels of power . Vehicles and machinery . The Army of the First Order employed a variety of ground assets for their ground operations . It used an arsenal of walker s for transport ation , artillery , and other objectives . Such walkers included the All Terrain MegaCaliber Six , the First Order All Terrain Armored Transport , the All Terrain Heavy Hauler , the All Terrain Mobile Artillery , the First Order All Terrain Scout Transport , the All Terrain Patrol Droid , the All Terrain Heavy Scout , the mobile assault walker , and the spider walker . The Army also made use of other vehicles , including the elite speeder bike , the Light Infantry Utility Vehicle , and the one man troop transport . The Army was also equipped with a superlaser siege cannon that served as an artillery piece . Weapons and equipment . The Army of the First Order possessed a variety of weapons and equipment . Ranged weapons included the FWMB - 10 repeating blaster and its variant , the FWMB - 10K , the RK - 3 , the SE - 44C blaster pistol , and the F - 11D blaster rifle . The Army ' s weapons arsenal also consisted of the F - Z0 antipersonnel blaster cannon , the D - 93 Incinerator flamethrower , and the Smart Rocket . The Army was also equipped with melee weapons , which included the Z6 riot control baton , the Laser ax , the Electrostaff , the riot shield , and the Vibro - knife . Equipment deployed by the Army incorporated quadnoculars , Jump Pack s , pauldron s , and thermal detonator s .