Darth Vader

Darth Vader

Sith Lord

The fall of Anakin Skywalker to the dark side was as impressive as it was tragic. After helping Darth Sidious defeat over one hundred Jedi during the execution of order 66, the newly-anointed Darth Vader took his place as Emperor Palpatine’s right hand. The first order of business was cutting down the leaders of the Separatists on Mustafar. After murdering Nute Gunray and the other leaders, Vader initiated the order to shut down the droid armies, leaving the clone troopers unchecked as they wiped out their Jedi generals across the galaxy.

However, one surviving Jedi was Obi-Wan Kenobi, Vader’s former mentor. Confronting his fallen pupil on Mustafar, Obi-Wan was unable to persuade Anakin back to the light during the furious lightsaber duel amid the lava on the planet. With such dire circumstances, and with Skywalker’s pregnant wife in the process of delivering, Obi-Wan was forced to amputate Skywalker’s legs. Sliding down a black slope, Vader landed near the lava below, which caused his robes to catch on fire. Even as he burned, Vader had little regret or remorse for his violent actions.

Some time after Obi-Wan left Mustafar, Emperor Palpatine found Vader in the dirt, barely alive. Quickly delivering medical care to his apprentice, Sidious had a metal suit constructed that would aid his survival, complete with a black helmet. Saved from death by the dark side, Vader was filled with rage when he learned he had survived but his wife Padme had not.

It was under such drastic conditions that the rise of Lord Vader began. The advancement of Emperor Palpatine's plans came at great personal cost to Darth Vader, as he retreated further into the dark side. Using the anger formed from his dark past, Vader hunted down the last surviving Jedi across the galaxy and cut them down, after constructing his new red lightsaber. Now more machine than man, Vader became the dreaded symbol of the Galactic Empire, backed by a powerful army of storm troopers, who were crafted in the image of Kamino's clones.

The will of the Force would not be ignored, however, Once again confronted by Obi-Wan Kenobi, many years later, Vader gained the upper hand in the battle this time and defeated the elder Jedi Master. The Emperor next instructed Vader to murder his own children, Luke and Leia Skywalker, should they fail to join the dark side. Both of his children resisted the pull of evil, however, and Vader was faced with a difficult choice in the end. But, mortally wounded during the duel against his son, Vader realized that Palpatine's destructive choices could no longer define the galaxy. Seizing his Master by the robes, Vader hauled him over the end of a balcony, sending the Emperor plummeting to a grisly end.

It was in his final moments that Vader made peace with Luke, encouraging him to continue his path as a Jedi Knight. Although the reconciliation was hardly enough to make up for his violent past, Vader's final actions restored balance to the Force.