His face locked behind a hideous metal breath screen, Vader cannot survive without the artificial support of his suit, which functions like a walking "iron lung," breathing for his crushed lungs and keeping his shattered body alive. In spite of these injuries, Vader is a powerful and dangerous figure. Ruthlessly employing torture and brutal violence to achieve his objectives, Darth Vader commands fear within his own troops as well as among his Rebel enemies.

While there are those within the military who despise his weird "sorcerer's ways" and his eccentric and dramatic behavior, as Vader's power has grown these objections have become fewer.

Once a Jedi Knight, Vader was formerly the pupil of Obi-Wan Kenobi in the days of the Old Republic, learning the ways of the Force for the purpose of defending truth and justice throughout the galaxy. Impatient with Obi-Wan's teachings, Vader chose a different way of using the Force, and followed the temptations of the dark side of this power. Corrupted and turned evil, he betrayed his mentor and helped the Emperor hunt down and destroy the Jedi, leaving the terrible regime of the New Order unopposed.

When Grand Moff Tarkin's Death Star was destroyed by the Rebels, it was believed that Vader had been lost to the void. But he did survive, piloting a special advanced prototype fighter equipped with hyperspace engines. Vader returned from deep space more powerful than before, to take command of the Imperial Star Destroyer fleet assigned to track down Luke Skywalker.

Through the use of thousands of probe droids dispatched to comb the galaxy, Vader eventually located the new Rebel base on the ice planet Hoth. Vader directed the invasion of Hoth and then trapped Luke's friends as they sought refuge on Cloud City. Ruthlessly manipulating Han Solo, Princess Leia, and Chewbacca, Vader used their pain as bait to bring Luke to their rescue, all the while plotting to capture Skywalker for the Emperor. In his confrontation with Luke, Vader would unleash psychological horror to bring Luke down the same dark path. Tempting him with power, chilling him with revelation, Vader fought young Skywalker with far more dangerous powers than the lightsabers clashing savagely between them.

Their final confrontation would be before the Emperor himself, on board the second Death Star, within the depths of the Emperor's dark Throne Room. Here the ultimate battle for good and evil would be played out between their spirits, and in one last defining moment Vader's identity is at least revealed for everything that it is. Luke triumphs for both of them, and the circle of the Force is at last truly complete.