Kylo Ren, formerly Ben Solo, is the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa. He's a former protégé of his uncle Luke Skywalker before joining the First Order and becoming the apprentice of Supreme Leader Snoke.

Before I begin with the thread I want to thank DarthAnt66 for giving me the chance to make this thread.

Note: To optimally view this thread, watch it in Blog format.

Now, respect Kylo Ren.

Biography

General Description

Born as Ben Solo, the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, was once a Jedi apprentice but was drawn to the dark side of the Force by Supreme Leader Snoke and became a member of the knights of Ren, taking on the name Kylo Ren.

Early life

Ben Solo was born shortly after the battle of Endor in which his grandfather, Anakin Skywalker, died. At a certain point in his youth he was sent to his uncle, Luke Skywalker, to begin his training as a Jedi. During his training, he eventually fell to the dark side and became a member of the knights of Ren, taking on the name Kylo Ren in the process.

The Force Awakens

Luke Skywalker, the last Jedi, has disappeared since the destruction of his new Jedi order and Kylo, now a commander in the First Order, has been looking for him ever since. On his quest, Kylo Ren comes across the planet Jakku where the last piece of the map to Luke is located. On Jakku, he crosses paths with Poe Dameron, who has been sent by General Leia Organa, and captures him in the process but fails to retrieve the part of the map which is taken by BB-8, the astromech droid of Poe.

In the chase for BB-8, Kylo Ren ends up in Maz Kanata’s castle where he encounters Rey, a scavenger from Jakku, whom he easily defeats and captured.

Afterwards the Resistance launches an assault on Starkiller Base, the planet sized super weapon of the First Order. A group, led by Han Solo, infiltrates Starkiller base to find Rey and to destroy a vital part so that the Resistance Starfighters can destroy the weapon. The group succeeds in finding Rey but encounter Kylo Ren, who during the following encounter kills Han Solo and gets injured by Chewbacca in the process.

Kylo chases Finn and Rey, finally confronting them in the forests of Starkiller base. He uses the Force to incapacitate Rey and proceeds to duel Finn, who picked up Anakin’s old lightsaber. In the beginning Kylo Ren was toying with him until Finn unexpectedly landed a hit on Kylo’s shoulder, in return for this injury Finn received a slash across the chest.

Still straining against his injury at the hands of Chewbacca, Kylo tries to pull Anakin’s lightsaber towards him but is surprised that it passed him in favour for Rey. Rey then proceeds to attack him, holding her own because of her anger. The two Force users are evenly matched until Rey channels the Force through her and manages to injure and disarm Kylo.

The Resistance fighters gain success in critically damaging Starkiller base and instead of killing Kylo Ren, Rey turns towards the wounded Finn. Kylo is dragged off by Stormtroopers under the command of general Hux, who received orders from Supreme Leader Snoke to take Kylo Ren with him so that he can finish his training.

Knowledge and Training

Training under Luke Skywalker

In order to get a better picture on how much knowledge Kylo Ren, as Ben Solo, had access to, there will be looked at the knowledge Luke Skywalker, Ben’s Jedi Master, gathered during his lifetime up to the point of the destruction of his Order at the hands of Kylo Ren.

First of all, Luke by Return of the Jedi was trained by Yoda, the Grandmaster of the Prequel Trilogy Jedi Order, to not only be a full-fledged Jedi but also be capable of starting a new Jedi Order and pass down his knowledge.

“No more training do you require,” Yoda assured him. “Already know you that which you need.”

Return of the Jedi novelization

“Luke—of the Emperor beware. Do not underestimate his powers, or suffer your father’s fate you will. When gone I am … last of the Jedi will you be. Luke, the Force is strong in your family. Pass on what you … have … learned …”

Return of the Jedi novelization

​Secondly it’s mentioned in Bloodline and in Star Wars Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded that Luke studied the Force and gathered long lost Jedi knowledge when the Galactic Empire was defeated.

“They say on my world that the Force sometimes runs strong in certain families.” So much of the lore of the Jedi had been lost—but on Gatalenta, the old religion had remained strong. History had become legend, but some of the legends were still told. Gatalenta had been one of Luke’s first destinations when he began his research into the Jedi Knights of old.

Star Wars Bloodline

“After the Empire is defeated, Luke undertakes much study, travel, and spiritual contemplation, before committing to pass his knowledge on to a new generation of Jedi Students.”

Star Wars Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded

Furthermore the Star Wars Character Encyclopedia also mentions that Luke gained knowledge from the famous explorer Lor San Tekka, who’s said to have uncovered much of the Jedi History (The Force Awakens Visual Guide), possess many Jedi secrets (The Force Awakens Visual Guide) and discovered many fragments of ancient Jedi traditions (Star Wars Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expan

In his travels, Lor San Tekka uncovered much of the history of the Jedi Knights that the Galactic Empire had tried so hard to erase.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Others now seek him for his knowledge of Jedi Secrets.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Lor San Tekka uncovered many fragments of the ancient Jedi traditions that the Old Empire had worked so hard to destroy. When Luke Skywalker began researching Jedi history in the hope of restoring the Jedi Order, he learned much from Lor San Tekka.

Star Wars Character Encyclopedia Updated and Expanded

Additionally it’s mused by Leia Organa that there isn’t a Jedi ruin that Lor San Tekka hasn’t explored.

Dark Side Knowledge

The Force Awakens Visual Guide acknowledges that Kylo Ren studied arcane (= very rare) Dark Side lore.

Having studied Jedi skills as well as arcane dark side lore, Kylo Ren is the embodiment of conflict, drawing upon contradictory teachings and deriving power from discord.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Knowledge about Lightsaber Combat

He created his crossguard lightsaber based on an ancient design dating back to the Scourge of Malachor, this implies that he had access to ancient knowledge.

Kylo Ren’s unusual lightsaber is an ancient design, dating back thousands of years to the Great Scourge of Malachor.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Jedi Knowledge

Kylo Ren could have access to Jedi Knowledge and possibly at least part of the Jedi Archives because we know that the First Order pulled out the map to the First Jedi Temple out of the old Imperial Archives while at the same time we know that the Grand Inquisitor studied these Jedi Archives.

"I am familiar with general droid technical specifications. I don't need to acquire one: What I want is located in it's memory. It's carrying a section of a transgalactic navigational chart. We have the rest, recovered from the archives of the Empire."

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Training under Supreme Leader Snoke

Likewise we can take a look at the knowledge Kylo Ren’s master Supreme Leader Snoke possessed.

Supreme Leader Snoke, who trained Kylo Ren, is said to be steeped in Dark Side knowledge.

Kylo Ren is the most gifted apprentice of Supreme Leader Snoke, a mysterious figure steeped in dark side knowledge who commands the First Order from a distance.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

To put Snoke's knowledge better in perspective we can take a look at the canon novel Dark Disciple where Darth Sidious's involvement with the Dark Side is described as 'steeped'.

"Darth Tyranus," intoned Count Dooku's Master. Even though he wasn't physically present, the simple sound of his voice - rasping, papery, somehow, like the rustling of ancient parchment - sent a shiver through Ventress. This man was steeped in the dark side of the Force, saturated with it, in a way that she was certain Vos, perhaps even Dooku, had never been.

Star Wars Dark Disciple

Force power

In an interview with J.J. Abrams, director of The Force Awakens, it is revealed how Kylo Ren was manipulated and turned to the dark side in which J.J. Abrams comments that Kylo possesses an incredible potential.

“An incredible power, an incredible force, and incredible potential that was, like many young people, sort of misguided and unclear. And the story for him is one of conflict, not just internal conflict but external conflict. And it’s what makes him a rather interesting villain.”

Interview with J.J. Abrams

In an article written by two StarWars.com writers named "From a certain point of view: Who is stronger with the Force - Rey or Kylo Ren?", Kylo Ren was named as one of the most powerful combatants in the history of Star Wars.

"Kylo Ren has a lifetime of training and practice, is one of the most powerful combatants in the history of Star Wars, and is the leader of the Knights of Ren."

StarWars.com

In another interview with Adam Driver, who plays Kylo, and J.J. Abrams, the director of The Force Awakens, it is mentioned that Snoke especially chose Kylo Ren to be his 'ally' because of his incredible potential.

Director JJ Abrams then builds on this, musing: "It's more than just having a 'bad seed' as a kid. Snoke had targeted this kid and knew that this kid was going to be incredibly powerful in The Force and wanted him as an ally.

Interview with J.J. Abrams and Adam Driver

Supreme Leader Snoke, who has seen the Galactic Empire rise and fall, named Kylo Ren as the most promising student he ever had. Afterwards he proceeds to praise Kylo Ren as pure, strong and unbreakable.

“When next Snoke spoke there was an intimacy in his voice, a familiarity that stood sharp in contrast to the commanding tone he had used with Hux. “I have never had a student with such promise—before you.” Ren Straightened. “It is your teachings that make me strong, Supreme Leader.”

Snoke demurred. “It is far more than that. It is where you are from. What you are made of. The dark side—and the light. The finest sculptor cannot fashion a masterpiece from poor materials. He must have something pure, something strong, something unbreakable, with which to work. I have—you.” He paused, reminiscing. “Kylo Ren, I watched the Galactic Empire rise, and then fall. The gullible prattle on about the triumph of truth and justice, of individualism and free will.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren is a member of the Skywalker line, a family extremely powerful in the Force.

“The elements align, Kylo Ren. You alone are caught in the winds of the storm. Your bond is not just to Vader, but to Skywalker himself. Leia…”

The Force Awakens novelization

Leia Organa comments that her son, Kylo Ren, is strong in the Force.

“He knew our child would be strong with the force. That he was born with equal potential for good or evil.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren is a descended of the most powerful Jedi and Sith.

Supreme Leader Snoke considers Kylo Ren to be the ideal embodiment of the force, a focal point of both light and dark side ability.

"The Supreme Leader believes Ren to be the ideal embodiment of the Force, a focal point of both light and dark side ability."

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Kylo Ren, as Ben Solo, is considered a promising apprentice to Luke Skywalker.

Telekinesis (TK)

The Visual Dictionary claims Kylo Ren’s telekinetic defenses are immense.

Kylo Ren used the force to freeze a discharge that was fired in his direction by Poe Dameron.

“Perceiving the threat, Kylo Ren reacted immediately. A hand rose sharply, palm facing toward the unknown assailant. The gesture was merely the physical manifestation of something infinitely more powerful and entirely unseen. It intercepted the discharge from the pilot’s weapon, freezing it in mid-air as effectively as any solid barrier.”

The Force Awakens novelization

NOTE: The discharge was kept in the same position while Kylo Ren interrogated Poe Dameron, only releasing it when he returned to his shuttle.

After stopping the discharge, Kylo also stunned Poe Dameron, making it impossible for Poe to move.

“Initially driven by pure rage, Poe now found that he could not move. His heart pounded, his lungs heaved, but his voluntary muscles refused to respond. He was paralyzed as effectively as the blast from his blaster.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren pulls Lieutenant Mitaka towards him.

“Reaching out, a black-gloved hand clutched the startled lieutenant and pulled him violently forward. That metallic visage was now close, closer than Mitaka had ever been to it. As the officer struggled to breathe in that remorseless grasp, Kylo Ren’s voice took on a timbre lower and more menacing than any the lieutenant had ever heard.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren effortlessly freezes Rey to the point she can only breathe slowly.

“Until, evidently, he tired of it. He raised a hand, held it toward her, palm outward. As she inhaled sharply, her hand froze on the blaster. She tried to turn, to run, but her legs refused to respond. She could only stand there among the trees, taking in slow, measured breaths, as he came toward her.”

The Force Awakens novelization

When striding back to this personal shuttle, Kylo Ren, without gesturing, used the force to lift up the blaster from Poe Dameron and let it crash into a nearby structure.

“Once he was beyond its reach he touched it-but not with his hands. It rose, seemingly of its own accord, and flew free, smashing into a nearby structure and scaring the wits out of an idling Stormtrooper unfortunate enough to be standing nearby.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren disarms Finn by pulling his lightsaber from his hand.

Kylo used the Force to pull Finn’s lightsaber from his grip. As the weapon flew through the air, Rey knew it would be her only chance to stop Kylo.

Rey's Story

When striding back to this personal shuttle, Kylo Ren, without gesturing, used the force to lift up the blaster from Poe Dameron and let it crash into a nearby structure.

“Once he was beyond its reach he touched it-but not with his hands. It rose, seemingly of its own accord, and flew free, smashing into a nearby structure and scaring the wits out of an idling Stormtrooper unfortunate enough to be standing nearby.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren, while being injured and enduring an emotional trauma, disarms an enraged Rey and then proceeds to hurl her into a nearby tree.

“Before she could fire, Ren raised a hand, halting her. She strained against him, her anger giving her strength. But she couldn’t fire. He was struggling also, against her newly discovered ability, as well as the wound inflicted by Chewbacca’s bowcaster. Gritting his teeth, he flung his arm sideways in a single, powerful gesture—and the blaster went flying out of her hand. Inhaling deeply, he gestured again, and this time it was Rey who went flying, to smash into a tree nearby and slide to the ground, dazed and hurt.”

The Force Awakens novelizatoin

Following quotes will give a better understanding just how much Kylo Ren was hindered by the emotional trauma and by Chewbacca’s bowcaster.

“Stunned by his own action, Kylo Ren fell to this knees. Following through on the act ought to have made him stronger, a part of him believed. Instead, he found himself weakened.”

The Force Awakens novelization

“Amid the rising bedlam and confusion, Kylo Ren struggled to stand.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Mind probing/TP

Kylo Ren is skilled at using the force to probe someone’s mind.

Beyond such tools, Kylo Ren is skilled at using the Force to probe the minds of the unwilling, tearing loose deeply held secrets.

The Force Awakens Visual Guide

Kylo Ren has mastered telepathic intrusion according to The Visual Dictionary

Kylo Ren probes the mind of Del Meeko, a former member of the Imperial Special Forces Inferno Squad, for the location of the map to Luke Skywalker.

Kylo successfully interrogates Poe Dameron, who had resisted every other interrogating method.

“General Hux was waiting for him. As expected, the interrogation had not taken long. The senior officer did not have to ask if it had been successful. No matter how determined the prisoner, not matter his or her individual resolve, Ren’s questioning invariably produced the same results.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo discovers information about Rey by entering her mind.

“Surprised by what he was finding, Ren lowered his hand. Relieved of the mental intrusion, she sucked in great, long draughts of air. His brows drew together and a reluctance to believe his own findings colored his comments. “Is it true, then? You’re nothing special after all? You’re just a—Jakku scavenger?” How did he know that? She agonized as she stared back at him. Surely she hadn’t thought it! She’d tried to keep her mind blank, her memory locked, and still he had wormed his way in.”

The Force Awakens novelization

With just a hand gesture, Kylo Ren makes Rey fall unconscious.

“The squad leader saluted, lingered a moment to look on in fascination as at a gesture from Ren the young woman standing motionless before him collapsed, and then he hastened to relay the command lest his interest in something that was none of his business be noticed.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren again effortlessly enters Rey’s mind.

“That, and then the mind probe. The pain. Her efforts to shut it out, and the contemptuous ease with which her mental defences had been brushed aside.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren tried to penetrate her mental defenses a third time but was stopped by Rey, who had discovered her powers at that moment.

“Ah he thought to himself. Something there, of interest. Not the image of the map. That would take another moment. But definitely something worth investigating. He shifted his perception toward it, seeking to identify, to analyse, to—the barrier he encountered stopped him cold. And it was he, Kylo Ren, who blinked. It made no sense. He pushed, hard, with his mind—and the probe went nowhere.”

The Force Awakens novelization

NOTE: After discovering her new powers, Rey was able to instinctively use a mind trick on the Stormtrooper guarding her, showing her immense potential.

Force Barrier/Deflection/Tutamis

Kylo Ren fends off Rey’s lightsaber strikes utilizing the force.

“The weapon went flying into the snow. Unarmed, he raised a hand and utilized the Force to fend off one slashing blow after another, until finally her fury penetrated his remaining defenses.”

The Force Awakens novelization

The feat is even more impressive if you consider that Kylo was severely injured to the piont that he had trouble with pulling Anakin's lightsaber towards him.

"The hilt wobbled in the snow. Pulling it through the Force proved more strenuous than it should. The pain of Ren's wound clouded his concentration."

The Force Awakens junior novelization

Physical Traits

Accolades

Kylo is said to have immense reflexes.

Strength

Kylo Ren holds lieutenant Mitaka up with one hand.

“Reaching out, a black-gloved hand clutched the startled lieutenant and pulled him violently forward. That metallic visage was now close, closer than Mitaka had ever been to it. As the officer struggled to breathe in that remorseless grasp, Kylo Ren’s voice took on a timbre lower and more menacing than any the lieutenant had ever heard.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Kylo Ren is considered stronger as Rey.

“To an observer at a distance, it would have appeared as if a series of small explosions was going off in the depths of the forest. Blow after blow landed as lightsaber struck against lightsaber. Though Ren was bigger and stronger than Rey, their struggle had nothing to do with physical size.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Speed & Agility

Kylo is said to have immense reflexes.

Finn and Rey can’t outrun a wounded Kylo Ren.

Finn kept pulling them forward. Kylo Ren was surely close behind them. The red flash of his lightsaber caught Rey’s eye. Rey and Finn stopped for a moment and looked at each other. Silently, they agreed that they couldn’t outrun him.

Rey's Story

Kylo Ren is fast enough to easily deflect the blaster bolts Rey shoots at him.

Kylo easily deflected both bolts. With a terrifying confidence, he walked toward her. Rey fired shot after shot, but Kylo deflected every blast.

Rey's Story

Durability & Pain Tolerance

Kylo Ren keeps on fighting after being mentally hindered to the point the fell to his knees in shock and being hit by Chewbacca’s bowcaster.

“Stunned by his own action, Kylo Ren fell to this knees. Following through on the act ought to have made him stronger, a part of him believed. Instead, he found himself weakened.”

The Force Awakens novelization

“Amid the rising bedlam and confusion, Kylo Ren struggled to stand.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Lightsaber skill & combat ability

Accolades

Kylo Ren’s lightsaber skills are described as deadly and they were pivotal in bringing down the new Jedi order, implying that his skill with the lightsaber is second only to Luke Skywalker.

Kylo Ren is described as an almost unstoppable force on the battlefield.

Kylo Ren is named as the greatest warrior of the First Order

Ultimately Finn is no match for Kylo Ren despite that the latter was injured.

Finn was fighting bravely, and Kylo was hurt from Chewbacca’s earlier shot, but Finn was still no match for Kylo’s practiced attacks. With a mighty blow, Kylo knocked Finn to the ground, wounding him.

Rey's Story

Lightsaber Combat

Kylo Ren, while injured by Chewbacca’s bowcaster and enduring an emotional trauma, engages Finn, who is depicted as a being amongst the best stormtroopers, in lightsaber combat. Ultimately, after toying with him, Kylo Ren defeats Finn.

“Drawing himself up, a towering figure in the snow, Ren did not even bother to gesture. “I’m going to kill you for it.” He rushed forward. Despite his feat, Finn raised the beam to defend himself. Ren lunged, struck—Finn parried. Shards of light flew, illuminating the snow and the surrounding vegetation. Drawing back slightly, Ren considered his unexpectedly determined opponent, then resumed his assault with a vengeance.

Finn blocked him again and again, once letting the other man’s beam slide against his own and harmlessly off to one side. He counterattacked, to no avail. The longer the contest continued, the stronger Ren seemed to become. It was as if he was enjoying the challenge. Feeding upon it.

At least, it appeared so until Finn parried, swung, and unexpectedly stabbed, the tip of his lightsaber beam grazing Ren’s arm. That made it more than a challenge. Taking a step back, Ren reconsidered his opponent. When he closed the distance between them anew, it was with a purpose that had been previously lacking. Expecting an execution, he had found a contest. Now he had been touched. It was time for play to end.

Advancing relentlessly, he was driven by something that Finn could not even sense, far less counter. Still the ex-trooper fought back, until Ren landed a blow that cut across Finn’s chest and sent the lightsaber flying from his hand. It landed in the snow six meters distant. It was over.”

The Force Awakens novelization

Finn is noted as a being among the top 1% stormtroopers.

"Whatever the test, whatever the evaluation, FN-2187 consistently scored in the top 1 percent."

Before The Awakening

Note: For more information on Finn, take a look at WollfMyth209's respect thread about him.

Following quotes will give a better understanding just how much Kylo Ren was hindered by the emotional trauma and by Chewbacca’s bowcaster.

“Stunned by his own action, Kylo Ren fell to this knees. Following through on the act ought to have made him stronger, a part of him believed. Instead, he found himself weakened.”

The Force Awakening novelization

“Amid the rising bedlam and confusion, Kylo Ren struggled to stand.”

The Force Awakening novelization

Kylo Ren, while severely injured and under psychological hindrance, duels an enraged Rey, who had picked up Anakin’s lightsaber. After a long and intense duel, Rey finally defeats him when she lets the Force flow through her.

“But she had no time to ponder his comment, nor was she inclined to do so anyway; she was to consumed with rage. Holding the haft of the lightsaber in both hands, she ignited the beam—and charged.

Ren met her with his own weapon alight. Expecting weakness, he encountered only strength. Her skill with the device was raw at best, but it was backed by a fury that was as new to his experience as it was unexpected.

When the beams of their lightsabers crossed, the resulting burst of energy lit an entire section of forest.

…

To an observer at a distance, it would have appeared as if a series of small explosions was going off in the depths of the forest. Blow after blow landed as lightsaber struck against lightsaber. Though Ren was bigger and stronger than Rey, their struggle had nothing to do with physical size. What she lacked in mass, she made up for in ferocity.

For a while she actually drove him backward, until he regained his self-assurance and in turn pressed her. The fight continued to shift back and forth; first he gained the advantage, then an enraged Rey took it back.

There was a vast rumbling, as of a continent sighing, and a gigantic chunk of forest behind Rey simply collapsed downward, leaving her fighting on the edge of a cliff so high that the newly formed surface below could not be seen through the rising cloud of dust.

Ren held his lightsaber, poised to strike. “I could kill you right now. But there is another way.”

Breathing hard, Rey looked up in disgust at the man looming above her. “You’re a monster.”

“No. You need a teacher.” He was beseeching and insistent all at once. “I can show you the ways of the Force!”

Slowly she shook her head. “The Force?” That was what this was about? Instead of moving to defend herself, Rey closed her eyes. Ren hesitated, confused by her actions. A long moment passed, in which Ren sensed a change in the air, a change in her. Then she opened her eyes and attacked, viciously, in a way she didn’t know she was capable of, striking again and again as Ren was slowly driven back. The flaring energy from the interacting lightsabers was more pronounced than ever in the flurry of her attack. And—Ren went down.

He was up again in an instant, but not in time to fully deflect a following blow from Rey’s weapon. He succeeded in blocking it, but he still took the full force of the strike against the haft of his own lightsaber. The weapon went flying into the snow, he raised a hand and utilized the Force to fend off one slashing blow after another, until finally her fury penetrated his remaining defenses.”