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2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back

2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back

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2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back retells the classic sequel -- of the radio drama. Similar to 2013 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: A New Hope, the focus is on giving visuals to the NPR radio play. The hobby-exclusive release includes two premium inserts per box.

The 100-card base set offers an artistic interpretation of the radio drama, which ran significantly longer than the film. The result is a deeper story that expands the movie's lore. Base cards have four parallels: Purple (1:3 packs), Bronze (1:12), Gold (ten per card) and Printing Plates.

2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back has four basic insert sets that expand things further. One Year Earlier (18 cards, 1:2) fills in the months leading up to the story. Movie Poster Artist Interpretations (ten cards, 1:3) let illustrators loose, letting them reinterpret the Empire Strikes Back poster. The Mission: Capture Skywalker (ten cards, 1:8) outlines a major storyline.

Premium inserts come in six different forms. The most common are Panorama Sketch Cards. These are double-sized art cards that have been folded to fit in packs. 2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back also has basic Sketch Cards, but these are almost three times as rare. Rarer still are Sketchagraphs, original sketch cards that have also been signed by an actor from the film or radio drama. Artist Autographs essentially parallel the base set. These are signed cards from the person who created it. Film Cel Relics have a frame from the movie embedded in it. Printing Plates round out the set's premium content.

Product Configuration: 24 packs per box, 6 cards per pack
Price Point: Mid-End Entertainment Card
Target Audience: Star Wars Collectors

2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back Box Break

  • 2 Hits or Premium Inserts
  • 3 The Mission: Capture Skywalker Inserts
  • 8 Movie Poster Inserts
  • 12 One Year Earlier Inserts
  • 2 Bronze Parallels
  • 8 Purple Parallels
  • 144 Total Cards

Card Gallery:

Please note, images are mock-ups and are subject to change prior to release (and something tells us this will be true with the Artist Autograph that's shown in particular).

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Set Checklist

2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back Set Checklist

Base Set Checklist

PARALLEL CARDS: Purple - 1:3 packs, Bronze 1:12 packs, Gold #/10, Printing Plates 1/1

1 Renegade Flight
2 Attacking the Convoy
3 Reporting to Needa
4 Status Update
5 Luke and Leia Confer
6 Presenting Commander Skywalker
7 Echo 3 to Echo 7
8 Luke Attacked
9 Droids Identify
10 The Wampa Cave
11 Luke Fights the Wampa
12 Solo Returns
13 Working on the Falcon
14 Ben's Guidance
15 Breaking the News
16 A Tender-ish Moment
17 Stuck in the Snow
18 Shutting the Professor Up
19 Han Rides Out
20 Discovering Luke
21 Keeping Warm
22 Inside the Shelter
23 Closing the Shield Doors
24 The Search Begins
25 Rescue on Hoth
26 Luke's Visitors
27 Zone 12 Moving East
28 Destroying the Probe
29 Ordering the Evacuation
30 Ozzel's Bad News
31 Captain Piett's Plan
32 Ozzel's Final Punishment
33 Luke and Leia's Farewell
34 Walkers on the North Ridge
35 Rogue Flights Attack
36 Rogue Leader
37 The Great Harpoon Plan
38 Walker Down
39 Rogue Leader Down
40 Man Vs. Walker
41 Echo Base Invasion
42 Snowtrooper Invasion
43 The Millennium Falcon Departs
44 Rogue Flight Reunion
45 Against the Empire
46 Set Course for Dagobah
47 Entering the Asteroid Field
48 Darth Vader's Interruption
49 The Kiss
50 Mynocks in the Cave
51 Out in the Cave
52 Monster in Space
53 Contacting the Emperor
54 Crash Landing
55 Meeting Yoda
56 Little Green Nuisance
57 Dinner at the Hut
58 Yoda's Warning
59 Jedi Training Begins
60 Harsh Lessons
61 Spirits in the Cave
62 Bounty Hunters Assembled
63 Boba Fett On The Spot
64 The iFalconsi escape
65 Balancing Stones
66 Size Defeats Luke
67 Master Yoda's Great Power
68 With the Garbage
69 Luke's Vision
70 Bespin Arrival
71 Introducing Lando
72 Threepio's Intrusion
73 Ignoring the Masters Advice
74 Bringing Back Threepio
75 Vader's Surprise
76 Standing Idly By
77 Han's Torture
78 Han's Cell
79 Chewbacca's Rage
80 I know
81 The Freezing of Han Solo
82 He's alive
83 In Pursuit of Fett
84 Leia's Frantic Warning
85 Meeting Vader
86 The Duel Begins
87 A Quick Defeat
88 Lando Tricks Back
89 The East Platform
90 To the Falcon
91 The Millennium Falcon Departs
92 Luke Overpowered
93 The Duel Continues
94 Luke's Bitter Defeat
95 Vader's Dark Truth
96 Through the Force
97 Escape From Bespin
98 Watching the Escape
99 Hyperdrive Operational
100 New Hand New Mission

Artist Autographs Set Checklist

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Film Cel Relics Set Checklist

25 cards. Set is skip-numbered.

FR-1 On the Frozen Wastelands
FR-2 Back at Echo Base
FR-3 Monster in the Snow
FR-4 Recovery and Preparation
FR-5 The Imperial Fleet
FR-6 The Imperial Walkers
FR-7 Luke Vs. the AT-AT
FR-8 Imperial Pursuit
FR-9 Asteroid Field
FR-10 Dagobah Landing
FR-11 Han and the Princess
FR-12 Yoda's Hut
FR-13 Message From the Emperor
FR-15 Bounty Hunters Assemble
FR-16 Failure at the Cave
FR-17 Trial by X-Wing
FR-20 A Most Gracious Host
FR-21 Torturing Han
FR-23 Han in Carbonite
FR-25 You Are not a Jedi Yet
FR-26 Lando's Redeption
FR-27 Battle in the Gantry
FR-28 The Truth Revealed
FR-29 Rescuing Luke
FR-30 Saying Farewell

The Force Awakens Checklist

2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back 36

11 BB-8 on the move!
67 Kylo Ren ignites his Lightsaber!
76 Finn on the run!
96 The Millennium Falcon

The Mission: Capture Skywalker Set Checklist

10 cards
1:8 packs
PARALLEL CARDS: Printing Plates 1/1

1 Darth Vader
2 Luke Skywalker
3 Han Solo
4 Princess Leia
5 Lando Calrissian
6 Captain Piett
7 General Veers
8 Probe Droid
9 Boba Fett
10 Yoda

Movie Poster Artist Reinterpretations Set Checklist

10 cards
1:3 packs
PARALLEL CARDS: Printing Plates 1/1

MP-1 Jerry Vanderstelt
MP-2 Tony Harris
MP-3 Mike Mayhew
MP-4 Chad McGowan
MP-5 Mike Allred
MP-6 Tom Hodges
MP-7 Jason Crosby
MP-8 Chris Trevas
MP-9 Doug Cowan
MP-10 Kevin Graham

One Year Earlier Set Checklist

18 cards
1:2 packs
PARALLEL CARDS: Printing Plates 1/1

OY-1 Luke Skywalker
OY-2 Princess Leia Organa
OY-3 Han Solo
OY-4 Chewbacca
OY-5 Yoda
OY-6 R2-D2 and C-3PO
OY-7 Wedge Antilles
OY-8 Lando Calrissian
OY-9 Captain Piett
OY-10 Darth Vader
OY-11 General Veers
OY-12 The Wampa
OY-13 Boba Fett
OY-14 Bossk
OY-15 4-LOM
OY-16 Dengar
OY-17 IG-88
OY-18 Zuckuss

Panorama Sketch Cards Set Checklist

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Sketch Card Set Checklist

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Sketchagraphs Set Checklist

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Shop Sketch Cards

Want to browse or shop for 2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: Empire Strikes Back Sketch cards? Here are some that are currently listed on eBay.

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More Info

For more on 2015 Topps Star Wars Illustrated: The Empire Strikes Back, check out the following:

Ryan is a former member of The Cardboard Connection Writing Staff.   His collecting origins began with winter bike rides to the corner store, tossing a couple of quarters onto the counter and peddling home with a couple packs of O-Pee-Chee hockey in his pocket. Today, he continues to build sets, go after inserts with cool technologies, chase Montreal Expos and finish off his John Jaha master collection.

User Reviews

Jestin
Jestin

We are 1 week out now from release date, any updates on the checklist yet?

Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell

Jestin We will post the full checklist as soon as we receive it.

Jestin
Jestin

Will there be a checklist released soon? Really want to know who all the sketchgraphs will be!

Jestin
Jestin

Will there be 2 hits per box unlike the 1 hit per New Hope boxes?

Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell

Jestin There should be two premium inserts – Panoroama Sketch, Film Cell, Sketch, etc – per box.

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