This thread is in regards to strength in the Force. This means any manifestation or usage of the Force can be used as a gauge, including but not limited to combative application. Essentially, who the Force is strongest with. This doesn't include potential; I mean actualised usage of the Force.
Since this can fluctuate based on emotions, mental clarity/focus etc, you can rank characters based on the highest showing of Force connection they have ever displayed, e.g Anakin demolishing Dooku, Luke demolishing Vader, and so on.
To make it interesting, we'll say that the Ones, Yoda and Palpatine are to be excluded from the list. That said, I'm interested in how people think Luke and Snoke will relate to the latter two in the coming movies.
I'll start with my list.
Top 10
1 - Luke Skywalker (TFA)
I'm expecting him to have reached a great deal of his potential by this point, which I think is grounds enough for putting him at the top; he's the son of the most (potentially) powerful Force user to have ever existed, has spent decades in study and conflict which cultivates power, and has reached the age of 53, which is by no means a mark against him when you look at the age of other powerful Force users; Yoda at the end of his lifespan, Dooku at 80, Palpatine at 60-80, Mace and Maul at 50, etc. Also, assuming he has indeed honed his considerable power since RotJ where he became powerful enough to batter Vader into submission in short order, that sets an extremely impressive benchmark.
2 - Mother Talzin
Someone who is presented as a legitimate individual rival of Palpatine, who has secrets he covets, who can stand up to him on the Dathomir nexus (which, presumably, would amp both Dark Siders) after a dubiously completed ritual which may have weakened Talzin. She was also said to be at the heart of her power, but the point is, she can hold a candle to Sidious - she has to be up there.
3/4 - Anakin Skywalker
Alongside Luke, the most prodigious Jedi (and Sith) in Star Wars, capable of making the superior experience of his contemporaries almost redundant in combat simply by attaining enough focus for his vast power. Quick to excel in whatever field he dedicated himself to, whether it be combat, piloting, telepathic influence, telekinesis, mechanics, etc.
3/4 - Darth Vader
Clearly a different entity altogether from Anakin, I view Vader as coming in shortly after Anakin, with him being above Anakin being a debatable topic. Vader has more mastery and focus of his power on average, but he lacks Anakin's raw power at both of their respective peaks. I don't see Vader doing to Dooku what Anakin managed, at his best. In fact I think Vader very much takes Dooku's role when Luke steamrolls him, with the point of those two scenes being that they mirror each other, however Luke spares Vader while Anakin kills Dooku.
5 - Mace Windu
Largely reputed as Yoda's second-in-command on the Council, one of if not the greatest Jedi warriors to take part in the Clone Wars, and with his considerably impressive showing against Sidious in RotS (albeit with dubious circumstances), I think his spot is one of the most clearly defined of this list.
6/7/8 - Count Dooku
6/7/8 - Darth Maul
6/7/8 - Obi-Wan Kenobi
I long maintain that these three are peers with something of a rock/paper/scissors relationship in regards to their fighting style, and I find it hard to judge who is necessarily strongest in the Force. Dooku with his immense knowledge, experience and clarity of intent? Maul with his immense potential and virtual floodgate of emotional energy tempered by endless training? Obi-Wan with his unwavering devotion to the ways of the Jedi, his willingness to sacrifice anything for what he believes is right, and his ability to let the Force flow through him effortlessly and use him as a vessel? It's hard to say who the Force necessarily "likes" most circa RotS when they've all met, but I think they're damn close.
9/10- Ahsoka Tano
She's not at all far from the three discussed above and could very well surpass any of them. Her experiences during the Clone Wars served her well, and she's now capitalising on her considerable potential in Rebels as shown when she performs admirably against both Maul and Vader. Especially if Malachor is meant to be a nexus in the traditional sense of weakening Jedi and strengthening Sith.
9/10 - Savage Opress
Uh oh, incoming "Savage only do saberz!! no force!" Simply put, the rate at which Savage picked up his training is astounding. In mere months, he mastered the saberstaff, developed considerable strength in telekinesis, Force sense, etc, to the point he became a worthy contender and a seriously dangerous threat for most of everyone listed above him during TCW, was sensed as a threat that was growing in power by the day by Dooku, and was worth being eliminated personally by Sidious. That learning rate can only be attributed to his bloodline, which is why it makes sense for him to share a top 10 spot with Maul and Talzin. I considered putting him above Ahsoka, and I personally believe his potential his higher than hers (one of the highest in the mythos for certain), but her greater experience, training and focus probably edge out his raw aptitude.
Unknown/Speculative
Could very well enter the list if we knew more about them.
Darth Plagueis - Clearly very powerful, but by how much? Enough to train Palpatine to become the most powerful Sith in history but... Above Vader? Below Vader? On-par with Snoke and Talzin? Who knows. He would knock Savage off of his spot if I knew where to put him.
Yaddle - A member of Yoda's species and because of this is attributed as having a similar aptitude for the Force as him, the question is, how much? We'll likely never know.
Qui-Gon Jinn - His relationship to both the Living and Cosmic Force, and his deep understanding that led to him becoming a Force Ghost, should be considerable enough to at least have him mentioned. It's just one of those cases of apples and oranges; he wasn't the best fighter or telekinetic by a long shot, but then he has one of the rarest showings of Force Mastery we have ever seen. Who's to say which is better?
Force Priestesses - It's been a while since watching the Yoda TCW arc and I've done little research on them, so I suppose the question is, are they possibly more powerful than any non-entity Force user? Or do they fall somewhere among mere mortals?
Darth Bane & Banite Sith - How powerful was Canon Bane, and how powerful were his successors relative to a top 10 list? Perhaps we'll never know, but it's worth thinking about.
Snoke - Responsible for Kylo Ren's training, presented as being considerably powerful, possibly Luke's main rival in TFA. We just don't know enough to know where to place him yet. Could be sub-Vader, could be higher than Talzin.
Honourable Mentions
Not quite top 10 ("yet", in some cases) but worthy of mention/debate.
Kylo Ren - His bloodline, reputation as a Jedi killer, decades of training, and various Force feats (mainly including him fighting through both physical injury from an explosive to the stomach and emotional turmoil from killing Han) indicate to me he's worth mentioning.
Asajj Ventress - Always a worthy contender during TCW, someone worth eliminating for Sidious' trouble.
Quinlan Vos - His staggering power progression when using the Dark Side, to the point he could briefly outdo Dooku and pummel Ventress, indicate that he has plenty of potential which he took a shortcut to. Maybe there's a case for him being on the top 10?
Kanan, Rey - Clearly novice Force wielders on average, but they have brief moments of... inspiration... which indicate their high potential when fully open to the Force. I suppose Kanan in the state of being where he can embarrass Maul is top 10 material, just as I'd mention Anakin and Luke's rare moments of immense success, but something feels wrong about including him.
Pong Krell - Heh. I think he's clearly worth mentioning for his combative ability and esoteric powers alone, I know others will disagree.
Vonn - He's supposedly better than Kylo in the coming movie? Don't know much about him but seemed worth mentioning.
Closing Point
Perhaps the timeless discussion of who is "strongest in the Force" is ultimately redundant? Perhaps the Force, which we know to have a will of its own, as a universally binding force, simply goes through its motions, maintaining balance, acting on motives and intentions mortal beings can have no comprehension of. Perhaps it is entirely random. All we know is, it manifests itself in living, sentient beings (as well as non-sentient species and plant-life), and there are beings who can harness the power of the Force (or allow the Force to harness them). There are gaping disparities in this concept of "balance", e.g Kanan making a mockery of Maul around the time he would struggle with Inquisitors, who Maul displayed no trouble against. Kylo Ren being defeated by Rey. Luke defeating Vader. Sidious nearly destroying the Jedi. The Jedi, a thousand years prior, nearly exterminating the Sith. There are also neutral Force groups such as the Nightsisters and Knights of Ren. Who's to say who is more powerful, more connected to the Force, who is "right", essentially, when the Force seemingly operates on its own accord? It's like I said before, who is to say any expression of the Force, whether it be Light Sided, Dark Sided, combative or spiritual necessarily holds more merit than another?
Log in to comment