Force Choke

"I find your lack of faith, disturbing."

- Darth Vader

Chokeholding was an early level of the infamous Force Grip ability. Like Grip, it was used to 'grip' the target's internal organs and practice some pressure. However no lifting or telekinetic manipulation was used. The area affected was only the target's neck. It caused just immobilization and choking, which in later levels can lead to death.

The reason why Sith masters usually used it instead of Grip, is when they need to just punish, threat or scare their target, without wanting to cause death.

Possibly the most notable display of this ability was by Darth Vader in the Death Star. Admiral Motti expressed his feelings concerning the Dark Lord's "sorcerer's ways", to which Vader replied with a Force Grip to his throat, saying "I find your lack of faith disturbing."

Usage
Those most experienced with Force Grip needed only a live visual of their victim in order to perform the technique. Darth Vader demonstrated this by choking Admiral Kendal Ozzel over a viewscreen, even though the admiral was far away at the time.

Darth Vader was in fact one of the most (in)famous users of this Force technique, often choking those whose "lack of faith was disturbing" or who had failed him, in a clear and powerful demonstration of the Force to any non-believers in view of the grim display. Other Force-users known to have used this power included Darth Revan, who was seen choking a Republic Soldier who boarded his flagship, and Darth Malak, right before his death at the hands of Revan.

Although the dark side revelled in using the power, especially for humiliation, this power was used by the light side as well.

One of the most famous Jedi to use Force Grip after the Great Jedi Purge was Luke Skywalker who used it against Gamorrean guards in the process of gaining entrance to Jabba's Palace.

Notable instances

 * Padmé Amidala &mdash; choked by Darth Vader when Vader came to the belief that she had betrayed him. She survived its initial use, but it may have contributed to her death shortly after.
 * Beladar&mdash;choked by Darth Vader after Vader realized how long Beladar had "tolerated" the Rebel presence on Reytha. Perished.
 * Transe Decar&mdash;choked by Darth Vader after he decided to declare the planet's indepedence. Perished.
 * Motti&mdash;choked by Darth Vader aboard the Death Star I during a conference. Upon insulting Vader's belief in the Force, Motti was momentarily choked by the Sith Lord. This was the first real mention of the ability. Survived.
 * Kendal Ozzel&mdash;choked by Darth Vader after his miscalculation brought the Death Squadron too close to Hoth. Perished.
 * Lorth Needa&mdash;choked by Darth Vader after his failure to find the Millennium Falcon. Perished.
 * Two Gamorreans&mdash;choked by Luke Skywalker in Jabba's Palace when they tried to refuse him admittance. Survived.

Behind the scenes
Like the relationship between Mind Trick and Force Persuasion, the line of discrepancy between Force Choke and Force Grip is very fine. Though the name "Force Grip" appeared in Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II and the game implied this was to be the power we had seen in Star Wars films (the sound used is identical), the word "Choke" seemed to have already stuck, and it was used in other sources to describe Vader's power. This, combined with the fact that the ability depicted in the Jedi Knight games had noticeable differences from what was seen in the films, may indicate that they are separate, though similar, uses of the Force.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * Star Wars: Battlefront II
 * Star Wars: Bounty Hunter
 * Star Wars: Epic Duels