Phase I Clone Trooper (2024) — Star Wars The Black Series #AOTC 05
The Black Series Phase I Clone Trooper 2024 update — Phase 4 AOTC Collection #05, 2024. Updated Phase 1 armour with 18 joints including butterfly shoulders. The current-era Phase 1 army builder. Collector guide.
Overview
Phase 4 AOTC Collection #05 is the Phase I Clone Trooper in the 2024 production update — the current-era re-release of the standard Phase 1 white armour at updated engineering standards. The 2024 version introduces butterfly shoulder joints to the Phase 1 clone scheme, enabling the forward-reaching two-handed rifle poses that the earlier #AOTC 02 couldn’t achieve cleanly. Same armour design, updated articulation, current production quality.
Blaster rifle. 18 joints including butterfly shoulders. $24.99. 2024.
The 2024 Engineering Update
The butterfly shoulder joints are the 2024 version’s primary improvement over the 2020 #AOTC 02 — the specific forward-sweep capability that enables the two-handed blaster grip, the tactical crouch with weapon extended, and the shoulder-level aiming poses that define Clone Wars combat animation. For army builders who prioritise articulation over price, the 2024 version at $24.99 vs the 2020’s $19.99 is the current recommendation.
The 18-joint total is slightly below the Lieutenant’s 23-joint premium scheme but includes the butterfly shoulder addition that the standard 19-joint #AOTC 02 lacks.
2020 vs 2024: Which to Buy
The collector decision between the two Phase 1 Clone Trooper releases:
The 2020 #AOTC 02 at $19.99 (secondary market) is the budget army builder — functional articulation, correct armour design, lower per-unit cost for large formations. The 2024 #AOTC 05 at $24.99 offers butterfly shoulders and updated production quality at a slight premium. For mixed formations: 2024 figures in the foreground display position, 2020 figures filling out the formation depth. For pure army building at scale: the 2020 version’s price efficiency wins.
The Ongoing Phase 1 Production
Phase 1 Clone Troopers have been produced across multiple Black Series generations because demand never abates — army builders buy multiples, new collectors need formation bases, and the Phase 1 visual is the AOTC and early Clone Wars’ most essential imagery. The 2024 version represents the current production peak for the design.
Secondary Market
Modest secondary market prices — standard army builder. No production variants documented.
Verdict
The current Phase 1 army builder with butterfly shoulder update. Buy for new formations or to upgrade existing Phase 1 displays to current articulation standards.
Butterfly Shoulders in Context
The butterfly shoulder joint is Phase 4’s most significant articulation advancement over Phase 3’s standard scheme. The forward sweep capability — the joint moving the entire upper arm forward past the chest centerline — enables poses that the ball-joint-only shoulder cannot: the two-handed forward grip, the shoulder-level scan, the push-forward running pose. For military figures whose primary accessory is a rifle, the butterfly joint is directly functional rather than merely articulation-completeness.
The 2024 Phase 1 Clone Trooper at #AOTC 05 is one of multiple Phase 4 releases to introduce butterfly shoulders to established designs — a wave of articulation updates that ran through the 2023-2024 production cycle.
Three Phase 1 Clone Trooper Releases Compared
The AOTC Collection now contains three Phase 1 configurations spanning 2020-2024:
Lieutenant (#AOTC 01) at 23 joints provides the premium articulation with command markings — the correct choice for officers and close-up foreground display. Phase I Clone Trooper 2020 (#AOTC 02) at 19 joints provides the budget army builder — correct design, functional articulation, lowest cost per unit. Phase I Clone Trooper 2024 (#AOTC 05) at 18 joints with butterfly shoulders provides the current articulation standard at standard pricing. Each release serves a different army-building strategy; all three together enable the most complete Phase 1 formation the line has ever offered.
The Persistent Army Builder Demand
Phase 1 Clone Troopers’ three releases across five years demonstrate sustained collector demand that Hasbro continues to serve. Unlike many figures that receive one generation of production, the Phase 1 clone has been updated twice — evidence that army building demand for the design is consistent enough to justify re-investment.
The 2024 Phase I Clone Trooper at #AOTC 05 is the current production standard for Phase 1 army building. For collectors who started their formations with the 2020 version, the butterfly shoulder update is visible at close display range. For new collectors starting fresh, this is the version to buy at the current standard.
The 2024 Phase 1 Clone Trooper’s position at #AOTC 05 — released four years after the 2020 #AOTC 02 — reflects the specific production logic of army builder figures: they get updated when articulation standards advance enough to justify a new release. Butterfly shoulders at Phase 4 standards are that advancement.
The 2024 update’s arrival means collectors now have three Phase 1 Clone Trooper options covering three different price tiers and articulation levels. The choice is not which figure is correct — all three are Phase 1 clones — but which serves each specific collector’s formation and budget.
The 2024 Phase 1 Clone Trooper update at #AOTC 05 is also a statement about army builder longevity. The Phase 1 clone design will continue to be produced as long as collectors buy multiples — which means indefinitely. Each new production era updates the articulation standard and re-releases the design at that era’s quality ceiling. The 2024 butterfly-shoulder version is the current ceiling; a future release will improve on it. Collectors building formations can always choose: current standard, previous standard, or mixed.
No production variants documented. The current production standard for Phase 1 army building.
The 2024 Phase 1 Clone Trooper at #AOTC 05 has one specific advantage over both earlier releases: it is the current in-production version, meaning it will be most easily restocked when army-building purchases deplete supply. The 2020 releases are secondary market only; the 2024 version is still in retail circulation. For large formation builds, starting with current retail versions and supplementing with secondary market earlier versions is the most cost-effective strategy.
The current Phase 1 standard. This is the version to buy new.
Part of Star Wars The Black Series | Phase 4 AOTC Collection. Related: Phase I Clone Trooper 2020 P4-AOTC-02 | Clone Trooper Lieutenant P4-AOTC-01 | Attack of the Clones.