Dark Spirit

"What's in there?''" "''Only what you take with you."

- Yoda and Luke Skywalker

The Dark Spirit was a protean manifestation of the dark side of the Force that dwelled within the Dark Side Cave on the planet Dagobah. When the Jedi Master Yoda took refuge on Dagobah following the birth of the Galactic Empire in 19 BBY, he confronted the Spirit, which turned into the Galactic Emperor Palpatine. Twenty-two years later, the young Luke Skywalker also duelled the mysterious entity during his apprenticeship under Yoda, with the spirit assuming the form of Darth Vader, his father.

History
Toward the end of the Clone Wars in 19 BBY, a lone Dark Jedi was mortally wounded after a duel with the Jedi Master Yoda. The darksider was able to retreat into a cave on the swamp planet of Dagobah, where he took his last breath. The site of the Dark Jedi's death absorbed their dark energies. It became the Cave of Evil and was haunted by a protean manifestation of the dark side known as the Dark Spirit. This fearful phantom was endowed with prophetic powers, and those who confronted it would learn about the darker side of their own nature. Although bound to the cave, the Dark Spirit could still roam the swamp-covered landscape of Dagobah, radiating an aura of fear and hate that could cloud the minds of most Force-sensitive individuals, thus weakening or even paralyzing them in the process.

Shortly after the death of the Dark Jedi, the autocratic Galactic Empire was formed, and Yoda chose to settle on Dagobah in order to avoid the new government's anti-Jedi persecutions. At some point, the old Jedi Master explored the Cave of Evil. He came to face the Dark Spirit, which had taken the form of his archfoe Palpatine, Galactic Emperor and Dark Lord of the Sith. Immediately before his self-imposed exile on Dagobah, Yoda had fought the real Palpatine in the Grand Convocation Chamber of the Senate Rotunda, and the Jedi had been forced to flee. Now in the Cave, Yoda confronted the grinning Spirit without his lightsaber, only armed with a gimer stick.

By 3 ABY, Yoda had been hiding from the Empire for years. As part of his training, Yoda sent the young Luke Skywalker into the cave to confront the Dark Spirit, which took the form of the Sith Lord Darth Vader. After a short duel, Skywalker gave in to rage and stroke down the spirit, severing its head. As the apprentice watched the helmet-encased head flying away, the Dark Spirit's armored body completely vanished in the shadows. For a moment the helmet remained on the ground completely still, then it cracked in half, revealing Luke Skywalker's own face, looking up at him. The young apprentice realized that although this construct had been defeated, he still had much training left to do before confronting the real Vader. In no time, the ghostly vision of the decapitated head dissolved into nothingness.

Powers and abilities
The Dark Spirit was able take on the form of its intended victim's fears or darker sides. It could move unhindered and nearly undetected through the swamp of Dagobah, only being noticed by strong Force-sensitives. In battle, the entity radiated an aura of fear that could unnerve and even paralyze an opponent and, as Darth Vader, it used a phantom lightsaber that could cut like a genuine lightsaber.

Behind the scenes
In the games LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy and LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga, the duel with the Dark Spirit is very different for gameplay reasons. For example, Yoda takes part in the duel because two players are required in all levels.

"Game On!", an article published in the Star Wars Insider 135, cited the duel in the Cave of Evil with the Dark Spirit in Empire Strikes Back as a possible inspiration for the fake Vaders (Kurados, Gaos, Sasori and Wampa) in the ambiguously canon Japanese Star Wars game from 1987, who were said to have been "intended as illusions representing Luke's fears." However, since those game opponents were able to kidnap Luke Skywalker's allies and hold them prisoner, the game contradicts the article's statements, since they appeared to be real creatures rather than mere illusions.

Appearances

 * The Life and Legend of Obi-Wan Kenobi
 * A New Hope: The Life of Luke Skywalker
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back novel
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back junior novel
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars Infinities: A New Hope
 * LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga