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 Posted: Sat Sep 23, 2006 5:09 pm
Core Force Powers
The Core powers are the first learned, and, for the most part, directly affect his own body or nearby objects or people.
Basic Force Powers
These are the powers that a Jedi or Sith learn early on, before they attempt more difficult ones.
Telekinesis
This ability is used to lift objects and move them in a desired direction. While training Luke Skywalker on Dagobah, Yoda tells him that the size/weight of an object is only relevant in the mind of the practitioner, and that once the mental distinction about an object's size can be dispelled, objects of any size can be moved. Yoda demonstrates this by lifting Luke's X-wing starfighter out of the swamp.
Force Push/Pull
Telekinetic abilities to pull or push objects away, as well as enemies. The greater the user's aptitude with this, the heavier the object that can be pushed or the more wide the arc or radius of the force 'wave'. It can be used to pull the weapons from enemies. Force pull was used by Luke to get his lightsaber from the snow in the wampa cave, as well as Obi-Wan Kenobi when he pulls sabers, blasters, staves, and other varied weaponry to his hands in the prequel trilogy.
Force Leap/Jump
Uses the Force to augment the user's natural leaping ability. Force users adept in this can perform record-smashing vertical/horizontal leaps with impunity. This ability appears to be somewhat basic and is performed many times in the Star Wars movies, notably essential when Obi-Wan killed Darth Maul, as it is mostly used during lightsaber battles. This ability is essential for practicers of Form IV lightsaber combat, like Yoda.
Force Sense
This power gives the Jedi the ability to see things before they happen, as well as sense when other Force users are near. Often used in combination with Force Speed, to get even more reaction time. In Episode III, Yoda uses this power to avoid being assassinated. Anakin Skywalker is able to sense the images on Mace Windu's datapad when he is being tested by the Jedi Council. Empathy is a related Light Side-oriented sense ability (post 2). Another type of Force sense can also enhance the bearer's visual and spatial perception even in the dark or behind walls. When Luke destroyed the first Death Star he must have used this ability, even unbeknownst to him. Trained users can have their sight amplified and are able to counter-attack Persuasive powers of the Force, due to enhanced perceptions of what is really going on. The dark Jedi Master Jerec relied on this power constantly in lieu of his physical blindness, as did Jedi Master Tahl, before her death.
Advanced Force Powers
These are powers that one must put great effort and time into learning. Most can only be mastered with many years of practice and meditation.
Force Strike
To attack an opponent with the Force. In the neutral sense, the target must not be a living organism. In The Phantom Menace, Qui-Gon Jinn used Force Strike in a frey to throw a team of battle droids away. If the adversary assaulted is a living organism, the wielder verges upon the Dark Side. Yoda uses it in combat against Lord Sidious and his Imperial Guards.
Force Grip
Believed to be an enhanced combination of two neutral force-powers (force pull and force push) the force grip can be used to grip a target's internal organs. Normally it's effect is lifting the target off their feet, choking them until they suffocate, and, optionally, slamming them into a wall or sending them flying over a precipice. While the attacker can quite simply break the target's neck, death by strangulation appears to be favored by the Sith. It was used briefly by both Darth Tyranus against Obi-Wan Kenobi at the beginning of Revenge of the Sith, and by a deluded Anakin against the pregnant Padme, and briefly against Obi-Wan. Some Jedi are also able to make use this ability, as evidenced by Luke using it to dispatch of two of Jabba's guards. In the Clone Wars Microseries, Mace Windu is also seen using this power on General Grievous. There is a more powerful dark side variant of this ability known as 'Crush'. Crush is possibly the darkest Force ability known to both the Jedi and the Sith and used only by the greatest of the Sith Lords, this deadly Force ability lifts the opponent and instantaneously, as they are floating, their body literally implodes as it is crushed from within.
Telepathy
The ability to mentally communicate over small or vast distances. Obi-Wan Kenobi uses this power to speak with Luke Skywalker as he is about to destroy the Death Star in a A New Hope. This is not very easily done, however... It is not a simple thing for one Jedi to touch the mind of another. It is an intimate thing, the kind of thing done between the closest friends. Or between a Knight and his Padawan. It usually only works when there is a need and desire for the thought to be transmitted, and unless the user is a practiced telepath... only when the Force allows it.
Force Speed
This power can let the user slow down their perception of time, giving them more time to think or react to a given situation. This is often used in combination with Force Sense. Another kind of Force Speed is speed of body. The user can make their muscles more efficient through the Force, demonstrated at the beginning of The Phantom Menace when the Droideka show up. However, speeding up the body without first learning to speed up the mind can have devastating consequences.
Farsight
Makes the mind of the Jedi fly through space and perceive around. This is a key ability, as it allows the user to see events over great distances that have occurred in the past, present, or future. The most notable practitioners of this power are Yoda and Darth Sidious.
Psychometry
The mental technique of picking up impressions and traces of information about the object touched and the events that have surrounded it. The Kiffu are able to use this power, and, particularly, Quinlan Vos is skilled with its use.
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Posted: Sat Sep 23, 2006 5:13 pm
Light Side Force Powers
To the Light Side are powers who benefit the Jedi personally by protecting or defending him. Most of these powers affect others, yet make no direct or permanent harm to targets. These are powers that Jedi learn after they have completed their training with basic Core Force Powers. Most of these powers can be used to some degree by those inexperienced with them, but they all take years of practice and meditation to master.
Heal
- The Jedi Healer uses the Force to accelerate the natural healing process rapidly for a short duration. Initial levels require meditation, but greater aptitude usually grants faster regeneration, without need of meditation. A common misconception is that this power's effect is instantaneous. It most certainly is NOT.
Empathy
- A Light orientation of Sense. The Force endows the user with the skill to read surface thoughts and emotions of another. The Jedi Council often uses this talent to test Jedi initiates and potential members of the order. Darth Vader senses that Luke has a sister though he tries to suppress his feelings.
Combustion
- The ability to cause an object to explode through concentration. Yarael Poof has been known to use this power. The object, however, must be readily combustible. A Jedi cannot make water or rocks explode, for example. This ability takes time and patience to master.
'Jedi mind trick', Affect Mind or Persuasion
- This has various levels of use: It can confuse and persuade others towards the caster's will while in conversation. It usually only works on those who are weak-minded. Used by Qui-Gon Jinn in The Phantom Menace, Obi-Wan in Attack of the Clones and A New Hope, and Luke Skywalker in Return of the Jedi. Toydarians and Hutts seemed to be immune to it.
Lightning (Light Side Variant)
- This version of Force lightning is attuned to generate maximum damage to electronic systems such as processor circuitry, but do absolutely nothing to the electrical systems of organic creatures. People who use this ability also have the potential for the more common version of Force lightning, but tend not to use it unless absolutely necessary. The light side variant of Force Lightning appears white instead of blue. It is the easiest way to tell them apart.
Projection
- Creates an inanimate apparition similar to the caster. Very effective if the user is wearing a cloak; the caster doesn't have to worry about facial expressions and details.
Illusion
- The ability to make animated apparitions not limited to the image of the wielder. Yarael Poof casts illusory forms to elude a direct contest. Both Illusion and Projection can only be mastered after years of meditation and practice and are only achieved by the wisest masters.
Force Stealth
- The ability to weaken one's Force presence. With this power, the bearer can, in effect, turn completely invisible. It is very useful in planning surprise attacks or avoiding dangerous confrontations. In a New Hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi must have used this on board the Death Star for a diversion while returning from the tractor beam controls. Darth Sidious is an incomparable master of this power, as he evades detection even on the Jedi Temple's homeworld. Aayla Secura also used this technique to hide herself from wild quarra beasts that had gathered around her; she walked past them without the beasts realizing she was there. This technique also appears to hide emotions as well; trying to track Aayla through the fear she senses with her antenna, Aurra Sing was confused when she hence lost the Jedi's trail.
Enhance Ability
- The Force boosts the user's abilities, empowering his or her strength, dexterity, and endurance. Yoda uses this ability to overcome the infirmities of old age, which is quite necessary for a practitioner of Form IV lightsaber combat.
Alter Environment
- Various techniques that allow the user to manipulate nature, enabling the creation of such phenomena as Force whirlwinds or fog over limited areas. Plo Koon further modifies this ability with his considerable knowledge of physics.
Hibernation Trance
- This is an ability of a Force user to go into a very deep hibernation state. This slows down the Force user's metabolism and breathing to a standstill. A fully trained Force user can stay in this state for up to four days.
Protection
- A power only achieved by high-rank Jedi masters, Force protection will make the bearer invulnerable to a wide range of attacks. The ultimate power in terms of defense.
Dissipate Energy (Absorb)
- The ability to disperse energy or the Force and even redirect it in some cases. Yoda is so skilled with the Force that he was able to use his palms to absorb Force lightning, as he did in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. In The Empire Strikes Back, Darth Vader used this power to dispel blaster fire.
Force Light
- This immense power is used to purge a Dark Side manifestation from a nexus point. Yoda uses this ability on Dagobah. It is a difficult ability to learn and even harder to master.
Animal Friendship
- The ability to calm an animal. Anakin Skywalker uses this technique to still the reek and ride the creature. This power is related very closely to the Jedi ability to affect another being's mind.
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Posted: Sat Sep 23, 2006 5:18 pm
Dark Side Force Powers
To the Dark Side belong powers used to harm or kill targets. Some (like Rage or Drain) are used to benefit the caster personally, like some powers of the Light Side, with the difference that these can be used in the expense of his own health or an other individual's Force reserve. While it is stressed (particularly in the games) that the powers themselves are not inherently evil, but rather reflect the alignment of the Force-user (Jedi/Sith), these powers are often labeled as "evil" due to their common usage or because of the people who use them. Some of these powers can be used for good, just as some powers traditionally considered light can be used for malevolent purposes. Yet although they become evil only when used for personal gain, it has been reported that continuous use of dark powers has a corrupting effect on the Force-user.
Force Lightning
- First portrayed by Palpatine in Return of the Jedi, Force lightning is a purely energy-based specialty attack of the Sith (Dark Jedi are capable of using this particular perversion of the Force, but their lightning is nowhere near as effective as a Sith's). Force energy takes the form of lightning bolts which exit the Force-user's body through his fingertips or palm; Force lightning can be executed with either one or two hands. The greater the user's aptitude, the more power the lightning bolts possess and the more the user's ability to make the bolts fork if they wish, allowing the possibility of striking multiple foes at once. This Force-power is often used as a form of torture, as it not only causes severe physical damage but also extreme agony to the victim. However, a single powerful blast may be sufficient to kill a person instantly. It is unclear why in the film Palpatine kept electrocuting Luke Skywalker for so long. It is likely that Palpatine, harboring extreme antipathy toward the Jedi, sought to maximize the intensity and duration of Luke's suffering. Others maintain that the Emperor's Force powers were, by that time, insufficiently strong to rapidly dispatch Skywalker. More likely it was because of Luke's natural power in the Force. In the novelization of Return of the Jedi, after Luke was first hit with Palpatine's Force lighting, he realized that if it was Force-generated, it could be Force-repelled. Using the Absorb/Dissipate skill, he raised his hand and was able to deflect Palpatine's bolts away from him at first. But Palpatine increased the strength of the bolts and they soon overcame Luke's strong yet fledgling powers in the Force. That is when the Emperor said his famous line, "Your feeble skills are no match for the power of the dark side". This scene really showed why the Emperor was afraid of Luke's powers. In only six months of training he was able to do something that, as far as we know, only Yoda was able to do, which is to deflect Force lighting.
Depending on the intensity, Force lightning can apparently ground itself on an ignited lightsaber, as seen in Attack of the Clones. Nevertheless, a sufficiently powerful Force-user can blast through the defenses afforded by a lightsaber, as seen when Darth Sidious blows Jedi Master Yoda's lightsaber right out of his hand during their duel in the Senate chamber. Force lightning can also be absorbed and redirected by a Jedi of sufficient skill; Yoda demonstrated this ability by both reflecting and absorbing it during a fight with Count Dooku in Attack of the Clones. It appears that prolonged use of Force lightning can drain the user physically, and could possibly result in severe deformations. This may have been the case in Revenge of the Sith, when Darth Sidious unleashes a barrage of Force lightning on Mace Windu, but has it reflected back upon him by the Jedi Master's lightsaber. Nevertheless, this view is highly controversial; it is thought by some that Sidious' physical appearance as Chancellor Palpatine was an illusion created with Force energy, and that the lightning merely melted the illusion away.
Though a powerful Sith Lord, Darth Vader was unable to use Force lightning for much of his reign, as both of his arms were mechanical for most of the time he was a Sith Lord.
Rage
- Augments speed, strength and fierceness of the caster, with the expense of stamina. A noted ability of Sith Marauders.
Drain
- Same as Heal, except that the user drains the target's Force reserves to fuel the regenerative process in him or herself, or to replenish their own strength in the Force. Greater aptitude allows exceptional drainage speed and the ability to drain multiple people at once.
Destruction
- Certain gifted Sith warriors are able to perform devastating explosive attacks upon their enemies. The Force destruction power, fueled by the Sith's hatred, can create a massive energy field and throw it at any direction.
Deadly Sight
- The power of the dark side is capable of making Sith masters inflict damage upon their enemies merely with their sight. With this power, the user can also damage entire groups within the field of vision. Only the darkest of Sith masters are adept with this ability.
Force Scream
- This power is an involuntary reflex of a Dark Jedi as a result of frustration from battling an opponent. If a Dark Jedi is being beaten and frustrated by his foe, he may let out an enraged scream, amplified by the Force, that triggers shock waves that ripple through the Force, devastating both the Dark Jedi and those who are unfortunate enough to be in close proximity. The Force Scream has been called "a wave of hatred, amplified and fueled by the dark side, that is capable of smashing through mental and physical defenses with ease". A number of references to Dark Jedi in Old Republic archives often mention the Dark Jedi losing control, violently, in the final moments of battle. Anakin Skywalker once screamed out Dooku's name in battle on the planet Tythe. With all the Force and wrath in the scream, an entire building's roof collapsed. Only very strong Sith and dark Jedi Knights have ever managed this. The power is completely involuntary, and spontaneous.
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