Earlier today I talked about one of the two LEGO Clone Wars-specific sets coming to stores in January 2015–the LEGO Star Wars Geonosis Troopers 75089. But the Republic is mighty and well-manned, so the Geonosis Troopers minifigures won’t be coming alone! Fans have been asking for another crack at the LEGO Senate Commando minifigures for years, and they’ll get it soon: the LEGO Star Wars Senate Commando Troopers 75088 set charges into battle in winter 2015!

I’ll be honest: I was totally psyched the first time we saw Republic Senate Commandos in the Clone Wars cartoon. But after the first season, the Senate Commando Troopers ended up being rather irrelevant to the plots on Star Wars Clone Wars, unfortunately.

But in 2015, LEGO Star Wars fans will have a chance to do justice by the Senate Commandos at last, as the LEGO Senate Commando minifigures will appear in an army-builder pack for the first time ever!

LEGO 75088 is one of the most surprising LEGO Star Wars 2015 sets for me. Given the end of the Clone Wars series and the relative obscurity of the Senate Commando Troopers, I never expected we’d see them show up in their own army-builder LEGO Star Wars Battle Pack. Even so, it’s wonderfully refreshing to get a LEGO Star Wars minifigures pack that’s not just Clones or Stormtroopers minifigures, so I’m totally on board with LEGO releasing something unorthodox.

The 75088 LEGO Star Wars Senate Commando Troopers set contains 106 pieces for $12.99, and will include three LEGO Senate Commando minifigures and one LEGO Senate Commado Captain minifigure. We’ve had these types of troops before, but they’ve been redesigned and were always in much more expensive sets before. In addition, the set will also include a multi-stud firing cannon gimmick that’s basically the same as the one in the LEGO Geonosis Troopers Battle Pack.

Rumor had it that this set might be cancelled, but with packaged photos and hi-red images running rampant in circulation, it would be really shocking if this set didn’t release into stores this winter.

Even so, I’m actually somewhat hesitant to predict how well this LEGO Star Wars Senate Commando Troopers Battle Pack set will fare at retail. Not everyone is familiar with Senate Commandos, as they only appeared in Clone Wars, and with that (magnificent) series now off the air, I’m skeptical of how much demand there will be for LEGO 75088.

The LEGO 75088 Senate Commando Troopers set is scheduled to be released in January 2015, with limited quantities likely arriving in some stores in December 2014 in time for the holidays. I’ll post an update to the Bricks and Bloks Facebook Page once the LEGO Star Wars 2015 sets are spotted in stores, so keep watch there if you want this set as a holiday gift for someone you love (including yourself!).

What do you think of the Senate Commando Troopers LEGO Star Wars 75088 set, LEGO fans? Are you overjoyed to see the Senate Commando minifigures in their own Battle Pack, or do you think this semi-obscure faction will rot of the shelves in 2015?