Not long after Order 66, Darth Vader was already hunting down Jedi survivors across the galaxy. But in the Legends comic Purge, that hunt becomes much more personal. Vader is not just acting as the Empire’s enforcer. He is still obsessed with Obi-Wan Kenobi, and that obsession is exactly what leads him to Kessel, where a group of surviving Jedi try to use Kenobi’s name to lure him into a trap. What follows is one of Vader’s earliest and deadliest confrontations with multiple Jedi at once.
The Surviving Jedi Tried to Use Obi-Wan as Bait
The story begins on Eriadu, where a group of Imperial Stormtrooper is hunting Jedi survivors of Order 66. But everything changes when a Jedi named Tsui Choi suddenly appears and cuts down every Clone Trooper sent to kill him. Afterward, Master Tsui Choi reunites with a female Jedi named Bultar Swan.
Their reunion is brief, as Bultar tells Tsui Choi that several surviving Jedi have already gathered and are hiding together. She also reveals that they are planning to fight back against the Empire. After hearing that, Master Choi agrees to join them without hesitation.
Meanwhile, on Coruscant, Darth Vader finishes torturing Jedi Dama Montalvo by killing him after Dama refuses to reveal Obi-Wan Kenobi’s location. At that moment, Darth Sidious arrives and scolds Vader for his lack of patience in the hunt for surviving Jedi, especially his obsession with finding his former master. Soon after, a trooper informs Vader that Imperial spies have uncovered information about the hidden Jedi gathering.
The Surviving Jedi Come Together to Ambush Vader
The Jedi gathering was called by Shadday Potkin. When Bultar and Tsui arrive, the number of Jedi present rises to eight. Together, they debate what should be done about the Empire and the destruction of the Jedi Order, with Koffi Arana even suggesting that they should turn to the dark side in order to defeat Vader. But before they can settle on a plan, the group senses a dark presence approaching. It is Darth Vader.
What the others do not know is that Shadday secretly arranged for Vader to come. She spread rumors that Obi-Wan Kenobi would be there, hoping to lure Vader into a trap where the Jedi could surround and overwhelm him. To give herself an advantage, she also armed herself with a cortosis-woven blade.
The battle quickly turns brutal. Vader cuts down Sia-Lan Wezz almost immediately, and while fighting the others, he also kills Ma’kis’shaalas. Shadday manages to corner him and uses her cortosis weapon to disable his lightsaber, but Vader responds by seizing her with the Force. He takes control of her weapon and snaps her neck. Wielding the cortosis blade himself, Vader then disables the lightsabers of Roblio Darté and Arana. Aleena Choi manages to sever Vader’s hand, and with help from the others, the Jedi force him into what looks like surrender.
But Arana does not believe Vader means it. When Bultar objects and reminds him that the Jedi do not kill unarmed opponents, Arana takes Bultar’s lightsaber, kills her, and goes after Vader himself. He badly underestimates him. Vader uses the Force to drive the cortosis blade, still clutched in his severed hand, straight through Arana, then grabs a spare lightsaber dropped by one of the fallen Jedi.
The three surviving Jedi rally and hurl debris at Vader through the Force, nearly overwhelming him. Tsui Choi finally decides that Vader has to be finished off, but before he can act, a group of stormtroopers arrives and opens fire. Jastus Farr is struck and falls to his death, while Choi holds off the troopers long enough to give Darté a chance to escape. But Vader’s interference ruins that chance as well, and the last two Jedi are ultimately gunned down in the barrage.
Vader later returns to Coruscant, where the destruction of the Jedi conclave becomes legend. The story grows into the rumor that Darth Vader tracked down a nest of fifty Jedi and slaughtered them all.