Yoda vs. Darth Vader: Who Would Win a Fight?

We’ve seen our fair share of powerful fighters in the world of Star Wars, as most of the strong ones tend to be intimidating and fearsome. Nevertheless, despite his small frame, Yoda has always been considered the greatest Jedi. When you compare him to someone like Darth Vader, you wouldn’t even think he is a threat judging by his size and appearance. But who would actually win in a fight between Yoda and Darth Vader?

Yoda will most likely win in a fight against Darth Vader because he is more skilled with a lightsaber and has the experience and feats that allow him to trim whatever size and strength advantage Darth Vader has over him. In fact, Yoda nearly defeated Palpatine, something that Vader could never do. 

Of all of the different Force users we’ve seen in Star Wars, Yoda seems to be held in high regard due to his wisdom, experience, and strength in the Force. He has never been the type of character that would immediately impress people, but he lets his lightsaber do the talking. So, with that said, let’s look at this fight between Yoda and Darth Vader in greater detail.

Physical attributes

Yoda is by far the smallest Jedi Master we’ve seen in the storyline of Star Wars, as he is only a shade over two feet tall. While he lacks size and strength, he makes up for his small frame with incredible speed and mobility. He will never overpower an opponent, but he can simply speed-blitz his foes using his acrobatic moves and confusing attacks. That is why no one could ever underestimate Yoda’s lack of size.

Darth Vader used to be very mobile and agile when he was still Anakin Skywalker, but he lost a good amount of his mobility and speed after cybernetic parts replaced his limbs and because he had to live his entire life in a life-support suit. Nevertheless, Vader retains some of his speed and is very forceful when it comes to his lightsaber strikes because he got stronger because of his cybernetic parts.

Even though Yoda may be agile and nimble enough to avoid most attacks, he would get in trouble if Vader could land a few blows because the Sith enforcer is bigger and stronger than him.

Yoda 0, Vader 1

Lightsaber skills

One of the things that Yoda was known for during his time with the Jedi Order was his skill with the lightsaber. He was one of the few Jedi that could make Form IV: Ataru work without suffering from its lack of defense, as he was too small for opponents to hit.

Ataru is one of the most offense-oriented lightsaber combat forms, as it uses acrobatic maneuvers and the Force to overwhelm opponents at the expense of defense. But because Yoda is so small, his opponents can’t take advantage of the openings that Ataru leaves behind, allowing him to fight the likes of Count Dooku and Palpatine on par.

Darth Vader was a master of Form V: Djem So, the same lightsaber combat form he used when he was still known as Anakin Skywalker. However, he was no longer as mobile and flashy as Anakin.

Instead, Vader used calculated maneuvers to defeat opponents quickly after parrying and blocking their attacks. He was a master of counter-flurries and powerful attacks that struck fear into the hearts of all of the different Force users that still lived during the reign of the Empire.

Few people have ever dueled Count Dooku and Palpatine and lived to tell the tale, which is why Yoda is a better lightsaber duelist when compared to Darth Vader.

Yoda 1, Vader 1

Force powers

Yoda and most of the members of his species have always been uniquely strong in the Force. He is one of the strongest Force users in the history of Star Wars, as he could lift entire starfighters using the Force. Yoda is also the only Jedi we’ve seen to use the Force to deflect Force Lightning without using a lightsaber. And he fought Palpatine’s Force abilities on par during their duel on Coruscant.

Anakin Skywalker was supposed to be the strongest Force user of all time before his injuries diminished his potential. Nevertheless, Darth Vader’s hatred allowed him access to incredibly strong Force powers that allowed him to crush entire rooms telekinetically and choke people that were light years away from him. On top of that, he could block lightsaber attacks and blaster bolts with nothing but the Force.

From what we’ve seen in the lore, the full extent of Yoda’s Force powers is more or less equal to that of Darth Vader’s Force powers. They are both equally gifted in the use of telekinesis, and this could go either way.

Yoda 1, Vader 1

Feats

Regarding feats, Yoda has shown his ability to do things that no other Jedi during his time could do. During the events of the Clone Wars, he fought Count Dooku on par and forced the Sith Lord to flee from Geonosis because he knew that he could never defeat him.

Then, after the rise of the Empire, Yoda tried to assassinate Palpatine and easily defeated his elite guard without even breaking a sweat. He immediately matched the prowess of the emperor until he realized that neither of them would win that fight. 

Anakin’s best feat was defeating Count Dooku in single combat. Of course, he defeated more Jedi Knights and Masters during the events of Order 66 and the reign of the Empire. Vader fought Obi-Wan Kenobi numerous times and stalemated him with their final duel, which was the fight that killed the legendary Jedi Master. Of course, his other feats include killing Jedi Master Cere Junda and defeating Jedi Master Jocasta Nu.

While Darth Vader defeated Count Dooku, an opponent that Yoda couldn’t defeat, we know that Vader could never have given Palpatine a good fight, or else he would have already tried to overthrow his master. As such, the fact that Yoda almost defeated Palpatine gives him the edge here.

Yoda 2, Vader 1

Experience

The only thing you need to know about Yoda’s experience is that he lived for 900 years and trained countless generations of Jedi for 800 years. That means he has seen and experienced it all in nine centuries of living. He fought and lived through many different wars and battles in the past and was responsible for training some of the most prominent Jedi Masters during the height of the powers of the Jedi Order.

Despite his relatively young age, Darth Vader was already a veteran of a galaxy-wide war in his early 20s. He was almost always on the frontlines during the Clone Wars and was responsible for numerous victories against the Separatists. Then, during the time of the Empire, he was also on the frontlines when it came to hunting down any Jedi survivors. And he even participated in numerous operations against the Rebels.

It might be true that Vader has had his fair share of experiences. But his experiences pale compared to the 800 years that Yoda spent training Jedi and taking on missions that only a Jedi of his caliber could complete.

Yoda 3, Vader 1

Yoda vs. Darth Vader: Who is more powerful?

Even though a lot of us would say that Yoda is a lot stronger than Darth Vader, the truth is that their gap isn’t exactly very wide. It’s just that Yoda is simply more skilled than Vader because he has experience and wisdom on his side. Of course, Vader was supposed to be the strongest of all time before his potential was diminished. So, if he didn’t get injured in his duel with Obi-Wan Kenobi, he would have surely surpassed Yoda, as Palpatine himself admitted during his duel with his “little green friend.”

Who do you think would win in this fight? Let us know in the comments!