How to play Darth Vader
Vader is the Dark Side's leader hunter. Force Pull drags the enemy leader into your army, and when that leader dies, your whole organic army heals. Every Vader game is about landing one pull at the right time. Here's how his kit works, with the numbers from the game files.
At a glance
| Side and era | Dark Side · Galactic Empire |
|---|---|
| Type | Organic · Melee |
| Health (level 1) | 1,386 |
| Attack (level 1) | 88 |
| Max level | 8 (every perk is open by level 7) |
| Unique card | Doctor Aphra · 2 energy |
| Skill | Force Pull, 15 second cooldown |
| Passive | Fearsome Enforcer (army heals on a leader kill) |
| Attack | Heavy lightsaber slashes |
His kit, explained
- Skill: Force Pull (15 second cooldown). Vader pulls every enemy in front of him toward him and deals 100% of his Attack Power to them. The damage is small. The point is dragging the enemy leader into your units.
- Passive: Fearsome Enforcer. When the enemy leader dies, every organic unit you control instantly heals 18% of its health. Win the leader fight and your army is topped up for the counter-push.
- Doctor Aphra, his Unique. Two energy, and her grenade stuns organic units and leaders. Pull the leader in, Aphra stuns them, and Vader finishes the job.
- Toughest Dark Side leader here. 1,386 HP lets Vader stand in the front line in a way Snoke and Cad Bane can't.
- Weak spot: he's slow. If he misses the pull, he walks a long way for nothing.
Perks and when they unlock
Perks unlock as the leader levels up and cost Perk Points and Credits. Leaders max out at level 8, and the fifth perk needs level 7, which is why so few players have seen a fully perked leader yet.
| Perk | Unlocks at | What it does | Perk Points | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Level 1 | Increases Health by 5%, Attack Power by 5%. More health and damage. | 1,000 | 6,000 |
| 2 | Level 3 | Increases damage by 40%. Force Pull hits 40% harder. | 3,450 | 10,000 |
| 3 | Level 4 | Decreases cooldown by 2 seconds. Force Pull every 13 seconds. | 8,500 | 16,000 |
| 4 | Level 5 | Changes basic attack to become a powerful slash when Force pull is successful. A successful pull turns his next attack into a heavy slash. The perk that makes the pull a kill combo. | 16,000 | 32,000 |
| 5 | Level 7 | Darth Vader also recovers health if enemy leader is defeated. Vader heals too when the enemy leader dies. | 31,750 | 136,000 |
| All five perks | 60,700 | 200,000 | ||
Game plan
- Pull the leader, not the swarm. Line up so the enemy leader is the target in front of you, then pull them into your units.
- Aphra right after the pull. Drop her grenade where the leader lands for a stun, then slash.
- Heal and push. A leader kill heals your organic army 18%. That's the moment to walk everything into the turret.
- Build all organic. The heal only works on organic units, so skip droids and vehicles.
- Go full Empire. Eight Galactic Empire cards make Force Pull come back 15% faster.
A deck to start with
| Card | Job | Why it is here | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Doctor Aphra 2 energy, 616 HP | Unique, stun | Stuns the leader you just pulled in. |
 | Stormtroopers 2 energy, 167 HP, x3 | Cheap ranged | Two energy bodies that heal on the leader kill. |
 | Devaronian Bladesmen 3 energy, 316 HP, x2 | Melee damage | Fast attacks that shred a pulled leader. |
 | Sandtrooper 3 energy, 240 HP | Ranged | Solid ranged damage behind Vader. |
 | Death Troopers 3 energy, 264 HP, x2 | Damage | Powerful blaster fire. |
 | TIE Fighter 3 energy | Air strike | Three energy line clear. |
 | Dewback Trooper 4 energy, 2,515 HP | Turret pressure | Charges the turret while their leader respawns. |
This is the Vader Dark Fist starter deck, all Galactic Empire and all organic. Full guide: Vader Dark Fist.
More builds from other players: community decks for this leader in the deck gallery.
How to beat Darth Vader
- Stay out of his line. Force Pull only hits what's in front of him. Approach from the side.
- Bait the pull. Send a cheap unit in front of your leader so he pulls the wrong target, then you have 15 seconds.
- Kill Aphra first. Without her stun, the pull is just a small hit.
- Don't trade your leader. Every leader kill heals his whole army. Play your leader safe against Vader.
Best and worst matchups
Community votes on the whole match (leader, Unique and usual deck) from the leader matchup chart.
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What players are saying
Vader is one of the most-played Dark Side leaders in Reborn, and the Vader Dark Fist starter deck is one of the most-opened decks on swfar.com. 40th Anniversary Vader has his own fans too: SkodenGaming shared a 9-1 run into Tier 6 in the SWFAR Discord (open it in the builder). Join the conversation in the SWFAR Discord or the SWFAR Facebook group.