Why Starkiller Feared Yoda after Meeting Him on Dagobah [Legends]

If you’ve ever played, or at least watched, the scene where Galen Marek, a.k.a. Starkiller, meets Yoda on Dagobah in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, you probably remember how simple it looked. Yoda guides him toward the dark side cave, helping him see a vision that points him toward his destiny.

But what most people don’t realize is that, after that moment, Galen actually felt a sense of fear toward Yoda. The game barely shows it, but the Force Unleashed II novel explains what was really going through his mind, and why that brief meeting left such a strong impression on him.

Starkiller’s Path Through the Force Led Him to Dagobah

Before Starkiller ever met Yoda, it’s important to understand what brought him to Dagobah in the first place.

After escaping from the Empire, Starkiller managed to rescue General Rahm Kota from Imperial captivity. Once the two were safe, Kota wanted to return to the fight and help the growing Rebellion. He told Starkiller that his power could make a real difference in the war, and urged him to take command of the Rebels.

But Starkiller wasn’t thinking about the Rebellion at all. His mind was completely on Juno Eclipse, the woman he cared about most — and she was missing. Every vision and feeling through the Force told Starkiller that Juno was still alive, and he refused to stop searching for her.

The argument between Starkiller and Kota came to a breaking point aboard their ship. Kota insisted that Starkiller should focus on the bigger picture — the fate of the galaxy — but Starkiller rejected that idea. To him, finding Juno was the only thing that mattered. Frustrated, Kota finally told him to drop him off and go his own way.

After leaving Kota behind, Starkiller followed a strange feeling through the Force, one that pulled him toward a distant, swamp-covered world,Dagobah. He didn’t know what he was supposed to find there, only that the Force was leading him toward it.

Starkiller Met Yoda on Dagobah and Faced His Vision Inside the Dark Cave

After leaving General Kota, Starkiller landed on Dagobah following the guidance of the Force. He explored the swamp world until he reached the entrance of the dark side cave, the same cave that had drawn him there in the first place.

At that moment, Yoda appeared. The Jedi Master didn’t introduce himself or question Starkiller’s presence. When Starkiller asked if Yoda was guarding the cave, Yoda simply replied, “No. Only a watcher am I now.”

Their meeting was short, but it left an impression on Starkiller. He could sense the incredible strength surrounding the old Jedi, a kind of power that didn’t need to be shown or spoken. Yoda’s calm presence carried more weight than any opponent Starkiller had ever faced.

That quiet strength unsettled him. Starkiller had fought Vader and survived the Emperor’s wrath, but standing before Yoda, he felt a sense of fear, not from threat, but from realization. Yoda represented a level of mastery in the Force that Starkiller could barely comprehend.

Without saying more, Yoda pointed him toward the cave. Starkiller entered, still uneasy from the encounter.

Inside the cave, the air felt heavy with the dark side. As Starkiller stepped deeper, the shadows around him began to shift and take shape. From the darkness came figures that looked exactly like him — broken, half-formed versions of himself reaching out in silence. The clones moved closer, surrounding him, their faces twisted with confusion and pain.

At first, Starkiller was disturbed by the sight. Each clone seemed to represent a failed version of who he was, reminders that he might still be one of them, another copy that wasn’t truly real. But as he focused, he understood they weren’t alive. They were only visions created by the cave, testing his fear and identity.

The scene changed. The clones disappeared, and Starkiller suddenly saw Juno Eclipse. She was wounded, clutching her shoulder, but she was alive. That image stopped him completely. Even through the illusion, he could feel her presence, hear her voice calling out for help. The vision confirmed what he had believed all along, that Juno was still out there.

Moments later, everything faded. The cave fell silent again, and the vision was gone. Starkiller left the darkness and stepped back into the swamp, where Yoda was waiting.

Yoda didn’t ask what Starkiller had seen. He simply said, “What you have seen, follow it you must.”

For Starkiller, that was all he needed to hear. The fear he had felt before was still there — not of Yoda, but of what the truth might mean, yet he finally had direction. He knew where to go next.

Starkiller Realized the True Power of Yoda and It Left Him Afraid

When Starkiller left the cave, he couldn’t understand how Yoda could even stand near it. The dark side was everywhere on Dagobah, rolling like waves through the air. As the novel describes, “He could feel the dark side rolling in waves at him. The undertow was powerful.” Starkiller had barely survived the pressure of the cave himself, yet Yoda stayed only a few steps away, completely calm.

That realization unsettled Starkiller more than anything else. The text notes, “The little creature possessed a power out of all proportion to his appearance.” Yoda didn’t fight, threaten, or even raise his voice, yet Starkiller could feel the Force moving through him like a storm held perfectly still. It was a kind of strength he had never encountered before.

When Yoda said, “Whatever you have seen, follow it, you must,” Starkiller could only nod. He tried to match that calm with determination, replying, “To the ends of the galaxy if I have to.” But deep down, he knew the truth, Yoda’s power came from a place Starkiller couldn’t reach. The old Jedi had mastered balance, standing right beside the darkness without falling to it.

That was what truly frightened Starkiller. It wasn’t fear of Yoda’s strength, it was fear of what that strength revealed: the difference between control and chaos, between peace and the endless storm that had defined his life.