Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith featured a duel between Yoda and Palpatine, two of the most powerful Force-users ever seen in the Star Wars universe. But even though Yoda left the battle in defeat, neither one of them seemed to be able to best the other. Both were expert lightsaber duelists, to the point where neither could decisively win with a blade. And both of them were masters of the Force, which essentially caused a stalemate when Yoda continually blocked Palpatine’s lightning. Despite this, it seemed like one of them wasn’t using every tool in his arsenal to destroy the other.
The Sith possessed many dark side powers, most of which were considered unnatural. While the Jedi guard, protect, and guide others to become the best versions of themselves, the Sith often tampered with another’s life force for personal gain. Palpatine potentially used a version of this ability to create Anakin within Shmi, inadvertently spelling out his doom in the process. He likely learned this power from his master, Darth Plagueis the wise, who was able to manipulate his own life force to extend his life. But despite Palpatine having life-manipulating powers through the dark side, he does not tap into them during his duel with Yoda.
Palpatine’s Force Drain Would Have Allowed Him To Draw Power From Yoda
One of the darkest abilities Palpatine has access to is the ability to drain power and life from another being through the Force. Most notably, he uses this ability in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker to suck power out of Rey and Kylo’s dyad in the Force. By leeching the life force out of them, he simultaneously weakened his opponents while strengthening himself. Since he performs offense and defense at the same time, it is easily one of the most powerful abilities he has. Yet in his duel with Yoda during Revenge of the Sith, he seemed to hold back from using it on Yoda.
Why Palpatine Didn’t Use Force Drain Against Yoda
There are several explanations as to why Palpatine didn’t attempt to Force drain Yoda. It’s possible he needed to be in a place like Exegol—which was immensely powerful with the dark side—in order to perform the ability. This makes sense, given some other Force abilities need specific objects or locations in order to work properly. Luke’s vision in the Dagobah cave was only possible given Dagobah’s unique connection to the Force. So it’s not out of the question to say Palpatine could only utilize his most powerful ability on Exegol, the ancient home of the Sith.
It’s worth noting that The Rise of Skywalker didn’t invent Force drain; the ability was shown in The Clone Wars season 3, when Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka journeyed to Mortis. It’s also possible (though unlikely) that Palpatine had not reached his full potential in Revenge of the Sith, and that he had not learned or perfected the art of Force draining at the time. In any case, he may have held back because Palpatine knew he’d won with Order 66. He also may have even intentionally left Yoda alive, letting Yoda wallow in his failure to protect both the Jedi and the galaxy in Revenge of the Sith.
