@darkitect01: I believe the argument is that the two are comparable. So yes, Palpatine is better. The blog post I think acknowledges as much. But this doesn’t mean Vader isn’t approachable.
@eredin12: Starkiller being both bloodlusted and super charged when he ripped into Vader with lightning should cancel out any exhaustion he was feeling by then.
Pushback against Vader lowballing always makes me happy. I would add a few things to this:
Multiple sources say that Vader eventually overtook his Mustafar iteration. While there are sources that claim that Vader never returned to his pre-cybernetic heights, these statements aren't necessarily incompatible. Pre-Cyborg Vader's best was him during Knightfall. Most of the sources that say Vader surpassed his RotS iteration refer specifically to him during his duel with Obi-Wan on Mustafar. So in effect, post-cybernetics Vader at his best is in-between the Knightfall and Mustafar iterations, being below the former but above the latter:
Many years later, Obi-Wan and Darth Vader duel a second time. The Sith Lord is now more experienced and powerful.
-- Beware The Sith
This duel was very different from their last. Obi-Wan was older and weaker while Vader was even stronger, fueled by hatred and thirst for revenge.
Credit to Dawn_of_Ages
-- Jedi Battles
In his duel against Darth Vader on Bespin, Luke Skywalker reveals himself as an extraordinarily gifted artist with the blade who has largely taught himself. After a single brief session with Obi-Wan Kenobi years ago, and only a short time with Yoda, Skywalker is able to hold up against a Dark Lord of the Sith at the height of his powers.
Credit to Azronger
--Insider 62
Ben was still clutching his lightsaber when he reached an access tunnel that led back to Docking Bay 327. As he entered the tunnel, he sighted a tall, shadowy form at the tunnel's other the end. Even if Ben had never seen Darth Vader's cybernetic incarnation via a HoloNet broadcast on Tatooine, he still would have sensed the power of his former apprentice, now concealed within black armor.
Credit to Azronger
-- The Life And Legend Of Obi-Wan Kenobi
“This is a fight you cannot win, Darth. Your power has matured since I taught you, but I too have grown much since our parting. If my blade finds its mark, you will cease to exist. But if you cut me down, I will only become more powerful. Heed my words.”
-- A New Hope
His power was great, now, greater than it had ever been. It shimmered from within, and resonated with the waves of darkness that flowed from the Emperor.
-- Return Of The Jedi
You are Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith, master of the Dark Side of the Force. Once a power for good in the galaxy, you are now feared as the ultimate evil. Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Knight, opened you to the power of the Force. You became his apprentice and learned the ways of the Jedi. But Kenobi's methods were slow and difficult, not quick and easy as you hoped they would be.
So you gave yourself over to the Dark Side, allowing it to consume you so that you could be reborn in a more powerful image. Now you stand with the Emperor, bent on subjugating the entire galaxy to his New Order.
Credit to Azronger
-- Lightsaber Dueling Pack: Darth Vader
More powerful in the Force than ever before as well as a master of the lightsaber, Darth Vader prepares for his final battle as the Rebel fleet hammers the fully operational Death Star.
Credit to Azronger
-- Darth Vader Return Of Anakin Skywalker
Vader's performances against the likes of Galen Marek, Starkiller, and a resurrected and amped Darth Maul all contradict the idea that he's some sort of weakling, especially when all of these were done by a Vader who was years away from his post-Mustafar peak in Return of the Jedi.
Vader's vulnerability to Palpatine's lightning does not mean that any and all users of FL can take him down like he's a water Pokemon. To refer again to the fight with the Starkiller Clone, Vader takes an absolutely obscene amount of electrical abuse from a bloodlusted and super-charged Starkiller without dying or even being knocked out. Heck, his armor doesn't even appear to have sustained any serious visible damage. So its probably worth arguing/stating that Vader is really only vulnerable to Palpatine's Force Lightning, and not Force Lightning in general:
A burst of lightning arced from Starkiller's fingers. Too late, the Dark Lord raised his lightsaber to catch the attack. Lightning crawled up and down his chest plate and helmet, provoking a painful whine from his breathing apparatus. The servomotors in his right arm strained.
Starkiller had only a split second before his former Master repelled the attack. The Force flowed through him. Droid parts and debris rose up and spun around the room. With a harsh rending sound, the metal wall burst outward, letting in the fury of the storm. But even in the grip of his passions he knew that there was a difference. He was intimately familiar with what being driven by negative emotions felt like. His original had been a slave to the dark side until Juno and Kota had shown him how to be free. That legacy remained even now. He would choose the emotions that ruled him. He would not be a slave to them.
The dark side tugged at Starkiller, and it was hard to resist. He hated his former Master. He feared for Juno. He doubted the very fact of his existence. Killing the man who had created him would go some way to solving at least two of those problems. The temptation was very strong. Vader's blade caught the edge of the lightning. The Dark Lord began to straighten.
-- The Force Unleashed 2
And when Vader forced Starkiller onto his back foot and raised his lightsaber to strike him down, Starkiller fired a lightning blast into the side of Vader's armor that was so concentrated, even the new insulation couldn't absorb it.
The Dark Lord stiffened, betrayed by his extensive prosthetics. The distraction lasted only a moment, but it was enough. Starkiller knocked his blade out of the way and moved in to strike.
-- The Force Unleashed 2
There are sources that say that Palpatine viewed Vader as a threat to his mastery, and that Vader and Luke working together might well have been successful in overthrowing Palpatine:
More important, by the time Vader was capable of becoming a risk to his Mastery, Sidious would be fully conversant with the secrets Plagueis had spent a lifetime seeking–the power of life over death. There would be no need to fear Vader.
-- Dark Lord: The Rise Of Darth Vader
However if Vader and Luke -father and son- were to combine their might against the Emperor, they could usurp Palpatine's power and bring a new era of peace to the galaxy.
But...but Sigmar and Archaon are better than Skarbrand...
Disagree
Either way, Durthu being Top 10 tier as a warrior is pretty insane.
Yuup. And Coedill is on his level.
As I see it, if Aenarion can beat Skarbrand, other characters on his tier should be able to as well, and I definitely put Sigmar and Archaon at their best in that category. But we can table that discussion for another day, since it doesn't relate to magic ;)
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