LEGO ARC-170 Starfighter 75402 Review: Clone Wars Workhorse

⭐ Introduction — The Clone Wars Fighter That Did the Actual Work

⭐ This review is part of our LEGO Star Wars Hub – every set we have built and graded, in one place.

Every Star Wars conflict has a glamour ship and a workhorse. The glamour ship gets the poster; the workhorse does the dying. In the Clone Wars, the X-wings of their day were the ARC-170s — chunky, three-seat clone gunships that escorted bombers, screened Venators and got chewed up over Coruscant while the Jedi flew the sleek interceptors. They are not the prettiest fighter in the saga. They are my favourite kind of Star Wars ship: the one that looks like it has a job. After a 15-year absence from the LEGO lineup, the LEGO Star Wars ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) brings it back, and it nails the assignment.

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LEGO Star Wars ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) (opens in a new tab)

The Clone Wars three-seat gunship in playset scale — 497 pieces, three clone pilots, an R4 astromech, adjustable S-foils and spring-loaded shooters.

For the Dadnology community, this is the kind of set that quietly earns its keep. It is not a five-figure-piece UCS centrepiece you build over three weeks and then guard from small hands. It is a mid-range fighter you can build with your kid on a Saturday morning, swoosh around the living room, crash into the sofa, and still admire on a shelf afterwards. After building it and handing it straight to a nine-year-old supervisor, the verdict is a confident 9 out of 10 — and the only thing keeping it off a 10 is a touch of obligatory blaster-gimmickry I will get to.

That wingspan matters. At 38cm across, the ARC-170 has genuine table presence for a set well under UCS money. It is big enough to feel like an event when it is finished, small enough that nobody needs to clear a dedicated display shelf for it.

🛠️ Build Experience — Substantial Without Being a Marathon

The build opens with the fuselage core — a sturdy spine that the three cockpit sections plug onto in sequence. This is where the set earns its 497 pieces: the body is properly engineered rather than hollow, so the finished fighter has real heft and survives a child picking it up by the nose, which a flimsier build at this price would not.

From there you build outward to the twin engine nacelles and the wing assembly, and this is the part of the build that makes the set. The S-foils are mounted on a lever mechanism that opens and closes the six wing surfaces between the closed cruise configuration and the splayed attack mode. It is a clever, sturdy bit of LEGO engineering — the kind of mechanical function that turns a static model into a toy, and the kind of thing a kid will work back and forth approximately four thousand times in the first hour.

It is genuinely a great build to share. The piece count and step pacing sit right in the sweet spot for building alongside an older child: substantial enough to feel like an accomplishment, not so long that attention spans evaporate before the engines go on. If you are looking for a “build it together this weekend” set rather than a “Dad disappears into the study for three weeks” set, this is exactly the size you want.

🎨 Design, Display and Play — A Silhouette You Cannot Mistake

The finished model is unmistakably an ARC-170 — that distinctive profile of a tapered nose, bubble cockpits stepped down the spine, and the big rear S-foils flaring out behind the engines. LEGO has captured the proportions well; this is not a vague approximation of a clone fighter, it is the clone fighter, and any prequel or Clone Wars fan will clock it across the room.

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LEGO Star Wars UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser (75367) (opens in a new tab)

The carrier the ARC-170 flies from — the Clone Wars flagship in Ultimate Collector Series scale. Pair the fighter with its mothership for a full animated-era display.

The three opening cockpits are the standout play feature, because they mean each of the three pilots gets a seat. There is no greater playset crime than a fighter with more figures than it has places to put them, and the ARC-170 sidesteps it entirely — pilot, co-pilot and rear gunner each get a canopy, plus the R4 unit slots into the back. The whole crew has a home. That completeness is exactly what makes a set feel finished rather than fiddly.

On the swoosh-factor front — the single most important metric for any fighter a child will get their hands on — the 75402 scores high. It is light enough to fly, sturdy enough to survive the landing, the S-foils give a satisfying “battle stations” transformation mid-flight, and yes, the two spring-loaded shooters fire. My only real gripe lands here: the shooters are the obligatory modern-LEGO play gimmick, and on a ship this clean they feel slightly bolted-on. They are not a dealbreaker, and kids love them, but a purist will quietly leave them off the display build.

🪖 Minifigures — Three Clone Pilots Is a Generous Hand

Here is where the value really shows. Three clone pilots in one mid-range set is unusually generous — most fighters this size give you one figure and an astromech and call it a day. The named pilots Odd Ball and Jag are nice nods for fans who know their Clone Wars pilot rosters, and the third clone rounds out a full crew. The clone pilot helmets and printed flight gear are sharp, and three of them in a box means you are not buying a second set just to crew this one.

The R4 astromech is the cherry on top. It physically slots into the fighter, it is a clean little printed dome, and it is the kind of detail that ties the model back to its on-screen reference. Between the pilots and the droid, the minifigure haul here punches well above the set’s price — and if you are the kind of dad who quietly builds an army of clones across multiple sets, this is a very efficient way to add three to the ranks.

👨‍👧 The Clone Wars Connection — A Fighter With a Mothership

For those of us who went deep on the Star Wars animated era, the ARC-170 is not just a model — it is a recurring character. It screens the bombing runs, it dies in the dogfights, it is the ship in the background of half the space battles across the best seasons of The Clone Wars. If Dave Filoni’s animated shows are your Star Wars — and for a lot of us, they are the best of the franchise — this fighter is woven into the texture of those battles.

And there is a beautiful piece of LEGO synergy waiting here. The ARC-170 is a carrier-based fighter; the carrier it flies from is the Venator-class Republic Attack Cruiser. We reviewed the UCS Venator (75367) — the Clone Wars flagship in full Ultimate Collector Series scale — and the two sets are made for each other. Stand the ARC-170 in front of the Venator’s hangar and you have the entire opening shot of a dozen Clone Wars episodes rendered in brick: the mothership in orbit, the gunship launching into the fray. The Venator is the grand, weeks-long display project; the ARC-170 is the playable fighter that actually flies the missions. Together they tell the whole story.

That pairing is, for my money, the strongest argument for this set. On its own it is an excellent fighter. As part of a Clone Wars display anchored by the Venator, it becomes something more — a narrative object that completes a scene.

💸 Value — The Easy Yes of the Clone Wars Lineup

Let me be plain about the money, because honesty over affiliate clicks is the rule: this is one of the easier value calls in the Star Wars LEGO range. You are getting a substantial 497-piece build, three clone pilot minifigures, an R4 astromech, working S-foils and a 38cm wingspan, all at a price that sits comfortably below the “planned purchase” threshold. Compared to the per-figure cost of buying clones in smaller sets, the minifig value alone nearly justifies the box.

It is not flawless. There is no display stand in the box, so collectors who want it floating in flight pose will have to source one separately, and the spring-loaded shooters are a concession to play that a display purist will ignore. But these are quibbles on a set that does almost everything right for its segment. It builds well, it plays brilliantly, it displays handsomely, and it crews itself completely. That is a genuine 9 out of 10.

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LEGO Star Wars ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) (opens in a new tab)

The Clone Wars three-seat gunship in playset scale — 497 pieces, three clone pilots, an R4 astromech, adjustable S-foils and spring-loaded shooters.

📌 FAQ — Frequently Asked Questions

How many pieces does LEGO ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) have?

The LEGO Star Wars ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) has 497 pieces. It comes with three minifigures - clone pilots Odd Ball and Jag plus an unnamed clone pilot - and an R4 astromech droid.

Is LEGO ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) worth it?

Yes. At a mid-range price you get three clone pilot minifigures, an R4 astromech, adjustable S-foils and a distinctive Clone Wars silhouette. The minifig value alone makes it strong, and it builds and plays beautifully. It is a 9 out of 10.

What minifigures come with the ARC-170 Starfighter?

The set includes three clone pilots - the named pilots Odd Ball and Jag plus an unnamed clone pilot - and an R4 astromech droid that slots into the rear of the fighter. Three pilots in one set is unusually generous at this price.

Is the ARC-170 Starfighter from the Clone Wars or Revenge of the Sith?

Both. The ARC-170 debuts in Revenge of the Sith and features heavily across The Clone Wars animated series. It is one of the defining clone-era starfighters, which is why it carries strong appeal for fans of Dave Filoni’s animated shows.

How long does the ARC-170 Starfighter take to build?

Around 1.5 to 2 hours for an adult. It is an excellent set to build alongside an older child - the 497-piece count is substantial enough to feel satisfying without becoming a marathon.