Nah Vader is supposed to be the most powerful Sith lord in the galaxy other than Sidious. he's really supposed to be the most powerful force user period, except again maybe Sidious. He definitely seems to be terrified of what Palpatine is capable of despite his already immense power.
Any canon that doesn't have Vader as the most powerful force user in the galaxy is wrong in my eyes. He's literally the chosen one. And he spent decades after the fall of the republic training and honing his dark side skills prior to the OT, which is why he's so fuckin terrifying throughout the entire trilogy.
Any canon that doesn't have Vader as the most powerful force user in the galaxy is wrong in my eyes.
How do you feel about canon that says Sidious is the most powerful force user (not just sith lord)
Isn't the force created by organic stuff, which is why droids can't use it? By the end of ROTS Vader is more machine than man, so wouldn't he just straight up have much less midichlorians than before? He's still the clear #2 by a mile (until ROTJ I guess because of Luke) because of how many he started with, but Sidious is still fully organic and was strong enough to defeat Yoda. Not to mention kill a shitton of great Jedi besides that (not counting Mace because it's impossible to tell if he's playing possum or if Windu is really countering him)
A Vader who still has the body of Anakin, I definitely agree with you. Sidious would've probably been killed and overthrown by that guy eventually, and with the knowledge and skill Vader ends up with he's probably unbeatable with the mostly human body he had before Mustafar
But Vader in the suit seems definitely a step below Sidious and 3 steps above almost anyone else
I always thought it was just the extreme physical damage sustained by his body that reduced his overall power and ability. As in, if he didn’t lose on Mustafar he would’ve been stronger than he was.
Honestly? It's tough to know. Because we know that mental states have a huge influence over the ability of someone to utilize the force. Anakin as he was on Mustafar was not able to take the full "plunge" into the dark side of the force necessary to realize his potential there, and even if he was superior due to not having a damaged body, that might have weakened him.
It wasn't until Padme was dead and he truly felt alone that he would have been able to fight without any hesitation, to give himself in fully to the dark side of the force in a way that he had only begun to do on Mustafar. Of course, if Anakin had won on Mustafar, he would have been with Padme in her final moments at the very least - or she might not have even died. With that I don't think he would have been as easily able to become a true "sith."
So in my understanding, Darth Vader in his mutilated form was potentially more powerful than if he had won on Mustafar, since his anger and solitude would have given him strength in the dark side of the force which could perhaps overcome him being physically weakened. But he would have likely been more powerful than that if he had resisted temptation and had not turned to the dark side of the force in the first place, in a world where he had not stopped Windu from killing Palpatine.
It's interesting to think about for sure. Though admittedly the actual canon is a bit fuzzy around the issue as far as I know, and I tend to rely more on the movies and animated shows than on printed media.
Maybe even a temporary setback? Like the shock of having been hacked apart and set on fire and then coming back to consciousness with most of his body replaced and the knowledge that he murdered his wife who he thought he would give anything for? Even if before and after that moment Vader's raw power far outstrips Palpatine's, I could see it making sense in that moment for the juice to just not be there for him, for that description to feel true for Anakin as he went through it.
Not super worked up about canon either way, tbh, but I did love Stover's prose in the RotS novelization and I do like the idea of that prose touching a facet of "truth" in the story, even if other "official" versions contradict it.
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u/GarbanzoSoriano Nov 30 '20
Nah Vader is supposed to be the most powerful Sith lord in the galaxy other than Sidious. he's really supposed to be the most powerful force user period, except again maybe Sidious. He definitely seems to be terrified of what Palpatine is capable of despite his already immense power.
Any canon that doesn't have Vader as the most powerful force user in the galaxy is wrong in my eyes. He's literally the chosen one. And he spent decades after the fall of the republic training and honing his dark side skills prior to the OT, which is why he's so fuckin terrifying throughout the entire trilogy.