LUKE SKYWALKER
Role: The Prototypical Young Hero
Group Affiliations: None
PL 11 (214), PL 12 (214) With the Dark Side
STRENGTH 2
STAMINA 4
AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 11
DEXTERITY 5
INTELLIGENCE 1
AWARENESS 3
PRESENCE 3
Skills:
Acrobatics 7 (+12)
Athletics 9 (+11)
Close Combat (Lightsaber) 3 (+14)
Deception 2 (+5)
Expertise (Soldier) 7 (+8)
Insight 4 (+7)
Investigation 3 (+6)
Perception 8 (+11)
Persuasion 3 (+6)
Stealth 2 (+7)
Technology 4 (+5)
Vehicles 8 (+13)
Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, Defensive Attack, Diehard, Equipment 3 (Blaster +5, Assorted Gear), Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Lightsaber) 2, Improved Defense 2, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative 2, Improved Smash, Interpose, Languages (A Few), Luck, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Quick Draw, Ranged Attack 6, Seize Initiative, Takedown 2, Teamwork, Uncanny Dodge
Powers:
"Mastery of The Force"
"Force Senses"
Senses 12 (Detect The Force- Ranged 5, Detect Life- Ranged 5) [12]
Senses 4 (Precognition) (Flaws: Uncontrolled) [2]
Enhanced Skill 2: Vehicles 2 (+15) [1]
Enhanced Advantages 5: Defensive Roll 2, Improved Aim, Precise Attack 2 (Ranged/Cover, Close/Concealment) [5]
"Force-Assisted Movement"
Leaping 1 (15 feet) [1]
Speed 2 (8 mph) [2]
"Jedi Laser Deflection" Deflect 12 (Extras: Multiattack, Reflect, Redirection) (Flaws: Limited to Lasers, Lightsaber-Based, Multiattack Requires Multiple Lasers -1/2) (18) -- [22]
- AE: "Use The Force" Move Object 8 (Feats: Subtle) (Diminished Range -1) (16)
- AE: "Force Push" Damage 2 (Feats: Subtle) (Extras: Area- 30ft. Cone +1/2) Linked to Affliction 7 (Strength; Hindered & Vulnerable/Prone & Stunned) (Feats: Subtle) (Extras: Extra Condition, Area- 30ft. Cone +1/2) (Flaws: Limited Degree) (15.5)
- AE: "Jedi Mind Trick" Affliction 6 (Will; Dazed/Compelled) (Feats: Subtle) (Extras: Area- Audio Perception, Selective) (Flaws: Limited Degree) (13)
- AE: Communication (Mental) 2 (8)
"Channel the Dark Side"
Enhanced Strength 1 [2]
Enhanced Advantages 1: Close Attack 1 [1]
Enhanced Skills 4: Intimidation 4 (+7) [2]
"Lightsaber" (Flaws: Easily Removable) (Feats: Restricted to Those Trained) [9]
Strength-Damage +6 (Extras: Penetrating 7) (13 points)
Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Lightsaber +14 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Dark Side Unarmed +12 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Dark Side Lightsaber +15 (+9 Damage, DC 24)
Laser Blaster +11 (+5 Ranged Damage, DC 20)
Force Push +2-6 Area (+2 Damage & +7 Affliction, DC 12 & 17)
Mind Trick +6 Area (+6 Affliction, DC 16)
Initiative +13
Defenses:
Dodge +14 (DC 24), Parry +14 (DC 24), Toughness +4 (+6 D.Roll), Fortitude +6, Will +11
Complications:
Relationship (Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda)- Luke treats both as mentors, but Obi-Wan as more of a father-figure.
Enemy (Darth Vader)- Luke wants Vader to pay for the death of Obi-Wan, but is also afraid of the man. When it turns out that Vader is Luke's FATHER, things only get complicated further. He views facing Vader (who's defeated him before) as his greatest challenge, but wants to see the good in him at the same time.
Motivation (Defeating the Empire)- A humble Moisture Farmer, Luke finally "Heard the Call", and once the Empire killed his adoptive parents, he's been devoted to stopping their evil once and for all.
Relationship (Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia, C-3PO, R2-D2)- Luke is devoted to his friends- when he fears their deaths in Cloud City, he abandons his training with Yoda in order to save them, despite assurances that he will suffer for doing so.
Responsibility (The Dark Side)- The Dark Side is dangerously-close for all Jedi. Using the "Channel the Dark Side Powers", using Dark Side-like powers (like strangling someone with The Force, or crushing them internally), killing defeated foes or otherwise killing needlessly, and even using All-Out or Power Attack too often can lead the Jedi down a dark path. The Dark Side is "quicker, EASIER- more seductive," and the temporary boost of power can easily tempt one. Excessive use of the Dark Side will twist one's spirit, and mangle their body. Luke in particular is in constant danger from giving in to anger when facing his father.
Total: Abilities: 68 / Skills: 60--30 / Advantages: 35 / Powers: 59 / Defenses: 22 (214)
Luke- The Hero's Journey:
-Luke Skywalker (originally "Starkiller") is of course The Hero, and the cog around which the entire Original Trilogy revolves. He starts off as this Bored Farmboy, but Hears The Call when he uncovers a Droid with a random message from this "Princess Leia" chick. He goes to get his "Uncle Ben Kenobi" for help, and ends up discovering both his heritage and his destiny- his father was a Jedi Knight, and he himself has access to the same powers. Soon his adoptive parents are killed (they're pretty much never mentioned again- Luke seems WAY more attached to Ben), and there's no going back- he joins Ben/Obi-Wan and some mercenaries on a suicidal rescue mission, watches Obi-Wan die against this Darth Vader guy, and soon Luke "Uses The Force" to fire the last shot in the battle which destroys the Death Star. The Farmboy is now an intergalactic hero.
-The two sequels show off more development, as he learns more of the philosophy behind the Jedi, gathers some XP, enters some hardcore training from the Jedi Master Yoda, loses his hand against Vader (who then shocks the world by declaring "I AM YOUR FATHER!"), and is at his lowest... but comes roaring back in
Return of the Jedi, which sees this full-fledged warrior annihilate the bad guys, finally defeat the arch-villain Vader in solo combat... but then denies the chance to gain revenge, refusing to slay his fallen father. Instead, he tells The Emperor "I am a Jedi, like my FATHER before me..." and thus witnesses his father's redemption, and avoids falling to the Dark Side by slaying a helpless foe.
-Luke is a good character with an excellent Character Arc, but is rarely anyone's favorite character from what I've seen. Most people generally-prefer the more rogueish Han Solo (who himself has a great Character Arc), or naturally gravitate towards Darth Vader- it's easy to see a pretty generic "Hero Character" as less-dynamic. And that's DESPITE the fact that being a Jedi was all any kid wanted to be for like ten years after these movies came out! Hell, they're STILL the most-iconic part of the franchise, beating Droids, Wookiees, all sorts of damn aliens and more! It doesn't help that Mark Hammill... wasn't REALLY a great actor in these films. He seemed very wooden in the first, and often over-acts in the series- there's a reason that Harrison Ford & James Earl Jones had far more successful post-
Star Wars careers than Hammill did, and that the Shakespearean types like Alec Guinness have more respect. That said, Hammil made a hell of a career for himself as a Voice Actor, where his overacting paid off in spades- he really learned how to utilize his voice as an instrument. And playing VILLAINS of all things!
Luke in the Sequel Trilogy:
-... hoo boy. I mean, Hammill himself more or less said "I'm with you guys" when fans complained about it, because he was saying before the second movie even came out that the writers saw Luke differently than he did. In
The Last Jedi, Luke is depicted as an isolated shut-in, having cut himself off from the Force out of shame- turns out that years ago, he tried to start a new Jedi Order with Han & Leia's son Ben and others, but in a moment of weakness, feared Ben's inherent power, and was prepared to kill him. Unwilling to go through with it, he was nonetheless caught in the act by Ben, who turned to the Dark Side and went nuts. While Luke is... pretty easily believed as an impulsive person judging by the Original Trilogy, this seemed a BIT unreasonable for a much older man, and people kind of freaked a bit. It came off like they just needed an excuse for him to be away in the first movie (where he would have certainly overpowered the rest of the cast in terms of plot significance), and that's the best they could come up with- this weird "enh, so I guess he felt Ben might be evil and too strong).
-Though at least Hammill's upgraded acting was on display- he completely overshadowed poor Daisy Ridley, acted like a snarky jerk, and lectured her in the classic ways of Jedi Masters. He chides Rey for her seeking of power and her reckless nature, and generally shows a ton of range. And in the end, he shows an exceptional new Force Power- projecting an illusory image of himself across the galaxy, which ultimately causes his death. This moment saves the Resistance and comes off as a worthy sacrifice to me (and allows the newbies their place in the sun, which seems like an important thread throughout the Originals, much as fans wanted it to be "the Original Cast Kicking Ass"). Most shamefully, however, is that Hammill does about zero interactions with the other characters- it's like nobody cared enough to have THE FRICKIN' ORIGINAL CAST get back together- Hammill himself had to improvise a bit with C-3PO, because he was like "Well Luke has to do SOMETHING!".
Luke's Powers:
-Luke Skywalker's PL could be all over the place- I was gonna make him PL 10, but on further thought, I went with PL 11. PL 10 makes him about the same level as Daredevil and The Punisher- he feels higher to me. If he were a Marvel character, he'd easily fit in with The Avengers. At PL 11, he can demolish Stormtroopers & Palace Guards, face off against monsters like Darth Vader, and stand out as the greatest warrior of the Rebel Alliance. Even BEFORE his training with Yoda, he was strong enough to one-shot an Abominable Snow Monster! He's still PL 10 on defense, though- going All-Out Attack generally isn't a good idea with him. I figure him for PL 7-8-ish in
Star Wars, PL 9-10 in
Empire (where Vader handily defeats him after controlling the entire fight), and finally hits PL 11 as a full-fledged Jedi in
ROTJ. Luke isn't that strong (it's a fairly Low-ST Universe, here), but packs great accuracy with one of the most-lethal weapons in the galaxy- especially since few characters are really great Parry-fighters in the series (most haven't faced a Lightsaber in decades).
-I needed to build Luke first, as he's pretty much the definitive Jedi, with more Force Powers than most (though as the franchise has expanded, so has the number of Force Powers)- he's the template by which you can judge all of the others. As you'll see, he's a fair bit more powerful than most other Jedi Knights in the Prequels, though sometimes that can be tricky to assess, as improvements in filming, special effects, fight choreography and more all add up to make Luke seem like a rather un-dynamic, slow fighter in these Late '70s/Early '80s films, especially compared with the Hyper-Acrobatics of people like Darth Maul, Yoda and more. But I figure Luke and Jedi like him for less-flashy, but more-effective fighters- all that flash and jumpy-rolly nonsense from other Jedi lacks the substance of a good old-fashioned accurate Force User (you'll note how Count Dooku wasn't acrobatic, but was a high-tier swordfighter all the same). And in terms of raw power with The Force, Luke is high-tier, which can make a huge difference.