Return of the Jedi was the perfect setup for Star Wars‘ “New Jedi Order.” After all, Master Yoda told Luke to pass on all he had learned; he did so, in both the old Star Wars Expanded Universe (now “Legends”) and in canon. Meanwhile, further stories have charted the Star Wars timeline, revealing the Jedi of the distant past. George Lucas himself returned for the prequel trilogy, unveiling the Jedi Order of Anakin Skywalker’s age.
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All this naturally means we’ve seen some pretty powerful Jedi. It’s true that none of them are the Chosen One, possessing the near-limitless Force potential of Anakin and Luke Skywalker. But many have been formidable in their own right, often operating at times when the shroud of the dark side had yet to fall, meaning their connection with the light side was easier and more natural. So here are the seven most powerful Jedi introduced after the original trilogy, ranked according to power. Note that it will deliberately omit Jedi who became Sith, because their feats are harder to assess in terms of Force aspect.
7. Anakin Solo
Another classic Legends Jedi, Anakin Solo was Darth Vader’s grandson – and said to be heir to all his namesake’s power and potential. As a child, Anakin feared going down the same dark path as Darth Vader; Leia later admitted she’d placed quite a burden on him when she named her youngest son. Through his natural affinity with the Force, the young Anakin accessed powers such as Battle Meditation that normally required decades of training to master, and he was among the first beings to connect with Yuuzhan Vong through the Force.
Anakin would probably have eventually found himself in first place on this list, if not for the fact he died during the Yuuzhan Vong war. At the moment of his death, Anakin achieved a state of oneness with the Force that has seldom been reached, manifesting as a pillar of white light that devastated Yuuzhan Vong forces and allowed his fellow Jedi to escape them. Killing Anakin changed the entire narrative of the New Jedi Order epic, and fans remain divided about it today, even though the story is now non-canon.
6. Ahsoka Tano
By now, there can be no doubt Ahsoka Tano deserves her place on this list. Anakin Skywalker’s former Padawan, Ahsoka started out cocky but learned wisdom over the course of her life. It’s unclear whether her potential in the Force was always so strong, or whether it was amplified after a mysterious encounter on the Force planet known as Mortis, where she was resurrected by one of the Mortis Gods. Whatever the truth may be, Ahsoka has proved herself a true champion of the Force, even surviving a duel with Darth Vader (barely).
Ahsoka has demonstrated a wide range of Force powers over the years. Even as a youngling, she was able to bond to monstrous beasts that should have killed her. Most impressively, she was able to use her innate connection to the light side to “purify” kyber crystals, removing the taint of the dark side from them. She’s matched Darth Maul, and even killed Imperial Inquisitors who the former Sith Apprentice could not defeat. Ahsoka is definitely not to be underestimated.
5. Rey
It’s very hard to assess Rey’s true power. This is because she is part of a Force Dyad, sharing a mysterious bond with Ben Solo (aka Kylo Ren). When Ben unwisely entered her mind in The Force Awakens, she absorbed so many of his powers and so much of his knowledge; over time, the two developed a unique connection allowing them to teleport objects through space between one another, showing just how powerful they really are.
Ironically, the Dyad is the problem with placing Rey on this ranking. That (presumably) ended with Ben Solo’s death in The Rise of Skywalker, and we simply don’t know what happened to the power they shared. Are Ben and Rey still connected in some way, even after death? Has Ben’s power simply gone to Rey? Or has Rey been diminished? It’s reasonable to assume Lucasfilm bosses haven’t quite decided the answers to these questions. We may well have to wait for Simon Kinberg’s Star Wars trilogy to find out.
4. Avar Kriss
Introduced in Charles Soule’s Light of the Jedi, Avar Kriss was one of the greatest Jedi of the High Republic Era. Avar perceives the Force as music, and she senses each Jedi presence as an instrument in a great orchestra; remarkably, she possesses the power to bring all those different tones and presences together to perform feats no single Jedi would be able to accomplish. In Light of the Jedi, she literally saved an entire star system by combining the power of ever Jedi in the galaxy.
Avar feels like the embodiment of the High Republic Jedi, concerned not with individual greatness but with the synergy that comes from working together. She’s a powerhouse in her own right – a Master rightly invited on to the Jedi Council – but her presence also makes every Jedi more efficient and capable. Avar has her flaws, of course, including attachments that threatened to derail her to the dark side; but she had much more wisdom than Anakin Skywalker when it came to navigating them.
3. Kyp Durron
Hailing from Legends, Kyp Durron was one of Luke Skywalker’s first students – and considered his greatest. Initially trained by Order 66 survivor Vima da-Boda, Kyp survived the spice mines of Kessel and even navigated a black hole cluster through the Force even before he was fully trained. Great power results in temptation, though, and Kyp was corrupted by the spirit of long-dead Sith Lord Exar Kun. Luke’s best student became his most dangerous, stealing an Imperial superweapon and destroying an entire star system with it.
Kyp became something of a rival for Luke in the New Jedi Order, pushing for a more aggressive approach to battling the Yuuzhan Vong. To give an idea of the scale of Kyp’s power, during one battle he managed to move a microsingularity – a miniature black hole. During brushes with the dark sides, Kyp demonstrated the same kind of Force Storm and Force Drain powers you normally associate with Sith Lords.
2. Meetra Surik
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic introduced many formidable Jedi, but none are quite so impressive as Meetra Surik. Exiled from the Jedi for a time, Meetra possesses a power that’s similar to Avar Kriss; she bonds with others, but at an unconscious and instinctive level. This power can serve as a huge advantage in combat, but it’s also a weakness, because Meetra unwittingly amplified some of the darkness of her war against the Sith. Surik’s true potential initially went unrecognized due to her lack of discipline, but she’d prove herself an absolute powerhouse in the Force.
Meetra Surik is probably one of the most important and influential Jedi in the old Star Wars Expanded Universe, because her war with the Sith reshaped the galaxy. She hasn’t directly appeared in canon yet, but has been namedropped, confirming her existence. It’s surely only a matter of time before Surik and her KotOR allies and enemies become full canon.
1. Nomi Sunrider
Originating in Dark Horse’s Tales of the Jedi, Nomi Sunrider is an ancient Jedi who was considered one of their greatest. Sunrider mastered some of the most incredible Force powers in Star Wars history, including battle meditation, allowing her to unite other Jedi in combat. She pushed it one step further, forcing enemies to kill one another through the Force – a feat that hasn’t been seen elsewhere, but that nevertheless skirts a little too close to the dark side. Sunrider could shatter Sith magic with apparent ease, deflecting Force attacks or even blaster bolts without even needing her lightsaber.
Most remarkable of all, Sunrider learned how to cut off another person’s access to the Force. She lacked refinement of this power, though, and didn’t know how to reverse it; she could cut someone off, but never restore them. Sunrider so impressed the Jedi that she was placed in charge of massive task forces – even commanding the Jedi Master who trained her. Nomi Sunrider’s legend looms over the galaxy, and she was even almost acknowledged in a Clone Wars Easter egg, even if she is (currently) non-canon.
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