Force speed

"You can use the Force to speed up, both physically and mentally, allowing you more time to make decisions."

- Kyle Katarn

Force speed, also known as burst of speed or Force-augmented speed, was a core Force power that allowed the user to maintain sprinting speeds for a brief time. Greater aptitude granted greater boosts to speed and/or greater duration. The increased speed of the Force-user enabled them to see the world and the entities around them in slow motion, allowing them to dodge attacks easily and attack quicker with greater accuracy. The power also apparently enabled the user to run for extended distances with no visible signs of fatigue.

This technique was commonly used by many Force-users throughout history, including Jedi, Sith, and the Matukai order, an organization of Force adepts who used the physical body to channel the Force. During the Clone Wars, many Jedi used this ability to great effect on the battlefields. It was also commonly used to increase speed during lightsaber duels, as well as in unarmed combat. According to Tionne Solusar's tome regarding the Force, there was a drawback to using this power; using Force speed had a draining effect on a Force-user's energy and metabolism, and required a longer recovery period.

Description
Using the Force to increase one's speed was a common ability among many Force-users throughout history, with many able to both use the Force to increase their muscle speed and to slow down their perception of the world. The increased speed of the Force-user enabled them to see the world and the entities around them in slow motion, allowing them to dodge attacks easily and attack quicker with greater accuracy. With sufficient skill in this ability, one could actually run on vertical surfaces for brief periods of time.

According to Tionne Solusar's tome regarding the Force written at the time of the Second Galactic Civil War, Force Speed would only be achieved after a Jedi used the Force to attune their entire body with their heightened reflexes. The power could be used with such velocity that they appeared to simply vanish from their previous position. If the user was in unarmed combat, they could use it to swiftly bring an end to a skirmish. However, there was a drawback to using this power; using Force Speed had a draining effect on a Force-user's energy and metabolism, and required a longer recovery period.

Applications
"The burst of speed that I experienced was not a fluke, but unlike other Force powers, I cannot say I felt in complete control of it."

- Luke Skywalker reflecting on his experience with Force speed

Increasing sprinting speeds by using the Force to augment the muscles was commonly used by both Jedi and Sith, such as when the Sith Lord Kaox Krul used this Force power to chase Crian Maru and Dree Vandap, who were on a speeder. Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn were known to be skilled in this ability, using it to escape from Trade Federation droidekas, seeming to disappear from their position, only to appear behind them. This technique was not limited to the Jedi and Sith however; the Force-using Matukai who focused on channeling the Force through their bodies, were highly skilled in sustaining agility based motions using the Force.

During the Clone Wars, many Jedi used this ability to great effect on the battlefields, as seen when Jedi Master Mace Windu used this technique to gain momentum for a long-distance Force jump he was about to perform during the Battle of Dantooine, as well as to augment his fighting ability against Kar Vastor on Haruun Kal.

Jedi could also use the Force to augment their muscles and increase the speed of their movements during combat, heightening their reflexes and increasing the speed of their blocks and blows during engagements. Grand Master Luke Skywalker was proficient in this application of the power, often using the Force to increase the speed of his lightsaber strikes, as seen during his duels with Yuuzhan Vong Supreme Overlord Shimrra Jamaane and UnuThul. During their duel, Jedi Master Mace Windu and Dark Lord of the Sith Palpatine both showed considerable skill in this ability, both moving in a blur. In particular, Mace Windu's lightsaber form Vaapad relied on using the Force in this way as in combat it would appear as if he was wielding dozens of swords at once.

Slowing down their perception of the world would give a Force-user more time to react to a situation as Luke Skywalker discovered in 3 ABY, during his confrontation with the human replica droid Guri in Prince Xizor's Palace on Coruscant. With guidance from the voice of Ben Kenobi, Luke gave in to the Force and found that time seemed to slow down considerably, allowing him to dodge the assasin’s attack and defeat her with ease. Luke would later remark to his students at the Jedi Praxeum that he didn't feel in control of this power and instead felt that it was the Force guiding his actions.

Users
Using the Force to increase the speed of movement was a common ability among many Force-users throughout history, particularly among Jedi such as Johun Othone, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn, as well as Sith such as Kaox Krul, Darth Bane, and Darth Maul.

With the Jedi called to arms in the Clone Wars, many Jedi would use this ability during the many battles of the conflict to aid in combat. The Jedi Generals Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Yoda, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and Aayla Secura, were all known to use the Force to enhance their speed in battle. Anakin Skywalker's Padawan Ahsoka Tano was also capable of this technique, using it to outrun podracer Kidd Kareen in a foot race across a bridge on the planet Mon Gazza. Jedi Master Kit Fisto showed a high level of skill in this ability when engaging a Jedi Killer droid on Ord Cestus, moving in a blur of motion that baffled even the experienced gaze of Obi-Wan Kenobi. He would later use this technique to dodge blaster fire and reach a family of four who were cornered by one of the droids. Jedi Masters Roan Shryne, Bol Chatak and Padawan Olee Starstone also used the Force to enhance their speed to put some distance between them and the Clone troopers who were pursuing them after the execution of Order 66. Shryne would later use this ability to flee Darth Vader during the attempt to rescue Senator Fang Zar. Another user of Force speed was Darth Vader's Sith apprentice Galen Marek, who would use the Force to quickly cross short distances. The Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress was also known to have used this ability while fighting the other gladiators in the Couldron.

It was a common ability among members of the New Jedi Order, with many employing the technique including Mara Jade Skywalker, Anakin Solo, Ulaha Kore, Thann Mithric, Jaina Solo, Tenel Ka, Leia Organa Solo, Tahiri Veila, and Kam Solusar. Jedi Battlemaster Kyle Katarn became proficient in this ability after using it for the first time on Nar Shaddaa to escape 8t88's thugs. He would later use the technique to get access to the administrative tower of Barons Hed. When returning to the Jedi after his absence, Katarn had to use this ability in a test prepared by Luke Skywalker to regain his lightsaber. Katarn would later pass this ability on to his student Jaden Korr, who became skilled in its use during his training at the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4. In 11 ABY, under the influence of ancient Sith Lord Exar Kun, Jedi trainee Kyp Durron used the Force to work the controls of the superweapon Sun Crusher with Jedi speed to dodge the tractor beams of the Caridan defense system, before he used the Sun Crusher to destroy the Carida system. Jedi and later Sith Lord Jacen Solo was also a skilled and frequent user of the technique often using it in dangerous situations and combat. During their first duel, Jaina Solo and Darth Caedus both called on the Force to exchange lightning-fast blows. Jaina experienced a powerful connection to the Force, enabling her to move faster than she ever could before; she believed she could even catch a blaster bolt between her fingers. Fallen Jedi Alema Rar was also a proficient user of this technique, being able to move at speeds that surpassed that which her Jedi training should have allowed her. Another skilled user of this technique was Valin Horn who used this technique while under the influence of a Force madness in an effort to escape his father, Corran, who he believed to be an impostor. Corran Horn also used this technique to keep up with his son as he attempted to bring Valin to his senses. Later after Valin Horn escaped Jedi custody, Jedi Masters' Council member Octa Ramis used a Force-aided burst of speed to gain distance for a jump to land on the classic X-wing starfighter which Valin was using to escape. Seff Hellin, who suffered from the same Force-related madness as Valin, was also capable of using this technique, using it to escape pursuit while attempting to rescue Valin from the Armand Isard Correctional Facility.

Behind the scenes
In Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II, Speed when triggered, augments the game sprite's speed. In Star Wars: Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast this is not the case; the game around the player slows down while that of the player remains normal, signifying that the ability did not only augment his speed, but it altered the Jedi's perception of time.

Kyle Katarn also made an appearance in the computer game, Star Wars: Empire at War, which is set several months prior the Battle of Yavin IV, before Katarn discovered that he was sensitive to the Force. However, in the game one of his special abilities is speed, which actually could be the untrained use of Force speed. This is supported by the fact that Force speed was the first Force power Katarn ever learned. A more mundane explanation could be that it is simply the same "sprint" ability that is also possessed by Han Solo and Chewbacca within the same game.

In Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, it is possible for the player to learn the power Burst of Speed. The games have different levels of skill for the power, Knight speed and Master Speed, which increase the player's defense and attack stats with use of the power. In the Roleplaying Game Revised Core Rulebook, there are also different levels of the power named Knight Speed and Master Speed which allow the user to move at up to twenty times and thirty times faster than normal, respectively, and also increase a user's jumping distance.

Notes and references
Macht-Geschwindigkeit