LEWISTON — Riley Shible did not seem to know his next move.

The 3-year-old had already high-fived each stormtrooper with his left hand and his right. He had rapped his knuckles on their shell-like armor and examined every inch of their gear.

“He is so taken with these guys,” said Julile Shible, Riley’s nana. “He just can’t get enough of them.”

You could say that again. Not five minutes after Shible offered this observation, Riley came charging clear across the park to get one more look at the stormtroopers, his entire family giving chase.

Who knew intergalactic war could be this fun?

From the very start, it was clear that the “Star Wars” theme was going to give this year’s Great Falls Balloon Festival an extra edge.

Everywhere the stormtroopers went, swarms of eager fans followed along.

And not just wide-eyed 3-year-olds, either.

“Of course I’m a ‘Star Wars’ fan,” grandmother Jeannette Nolin said. “In fact, I have the movie on the very first VHS tape that ever came out.”

Nolin, of Lewiston, posed for pictures with the stormtroopers. For her grandchildren, she said.

Virginia Brown, also a grandmother, went up next, standing between the stormtroopers while Nolin snapped a picture.

“Oh yes, I’m a fan,” she said. “I went to see the movie when it first came out and now I have the complete set.”

When the festivities got underway in Simard-Payne Memorial Park on Friday afternoon, hundreds of people were already there. The balloon launches were still a couple of hours away, but there were vendor booths, live music, carnival rides and food everywhere you turned.

And stormtroopers — specifically Adam Pattison of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Portland’s Timothy McMahon, the two men in the stormtrooper garb under a blazing hot sun.

“It’s quite warm, yes,” said McMahon, 44. “But you get used to it. It’s part of our duty.

“To me, half the fun is goofing off with little kids — and grown-ups, too!” McMahon said. “I get so many high-fives and fist-bumps that my hands get sore.”

And don’t think the people didn’t appreciate it. Although movie stormtroopers are hardened soldiers for the Galactic Empire, the pair in Simard-Payne Memorial Park couldn’t have been more affable.

“They must have gone over to the light side,” quipped 13-year-old Gavin Mills, “because they sure are friendly.”

Rachel DesGroseillier posed for photos with the troopers and couldn’t wait to gloat about it.

“I’m going to send it to my 9-year-old grandson,” DesGroseillier said, “and say, ‘look who I’m with!’ He loves ‘Star Wars.’ It’s all he can talk about.”

With almost-perfect weather playing its part, the crowd at the park just kept growing larger as it grew closer to balloon launch time. Imagine it: a massive Darth Vader and Yoda in the air to go with the stormtroopers on the ground?

“It’s definitely better with ‘Star Wars,'” said 19-year-old Kelly Plummer, there with her twin sister, Kimberly.

That seemed to be the popular sentiment. But in case anybody worried that “Star Wars” fandom was obligatory at the festival, Arnold Splan came marching through the park wearing a bright red “Star Trek” uniform and towing along a 4-foot replica of the Starship Enterprise.

Say what?

“‘Star Wars’ is fine, don’t get me wrong,” Splan said. “But ‘Star Trek’ came first. Capt. Kirk came first.”

He’d have a hard time selling that to Riley Shible, the 3-year-old. As far as the boy was concerned, the stormtroopers were the coolest thing in the park, which was absolutely littered with coolness Friday night.

And his glee was infectious.

“I’m loving this,” said nana Julie Shible, looking after her grandkids, 3 and 7 years old. “Because of these guys, I’m having so much fun.”

By 6 p.m., the number of stormtroopers on the field had risen to about half a dozen. The crowd numbers had increased even more dramatically — up to 5,000 people by some estimates — to the point where it was shoulder-to-shoulder in many parts of the field.

Unlike some years, conditions were near ideal for balloon launches. A few minutes after 6 p.m., the first balloon lifted off. It was followed by another and then another after that until the sky was once again dotted with balloons.

At about 6:45 p.m., the face of Darth Vader began to appear on the field as that balloon was inflated. The emergence of the dark overlord drew a mad rush of people who swarmed around the balloon for a closer look.

“What do you think of that?” one father asked the boy perched upon his shoulders.

“Wicked!” the boy said.

“Do you know who that is?” the father asked.

“Nope,” said the boy.

When the head of Darth Vader was completely inflated, the crowd cheered and a buzz of renewed excitement sizzled across the park.

The Force was with them, for sure.

Stormtrooper Timothy McMahon speaks:

“I think the theme of The Force Takes Flight is great! “Star Wars” fandom is going through a real renaissance these days, what with all the new movies and TV shows and video games and comic books and novels and … Well, you get the idea. Plus, having the Darth Vader and Yoda balloons coming to Maine is great! The balloons are famous, and they are works of art. I’ve had friends who’ve traveled to Montreal to see them in the past. It’s great that they will now be in our own backyard.

Best way to act like a stormtrooper? Stand at attention, but be on alert. But not to take it too seriously, either. To me, half the fun is goofing off with little kids. I get so many high-fives and fist-bumps that my hands get sore. And if I see a little kid who is apprehensive about the suit, I like to do a silly little dance to show them it’s all for fun. You’d be surprised how well that works!”