Anakin Skywalker

Anakin Skywalker, a Force-sensitive human male, was a Jedi Knight of the Galactic Republic and the Chosen One of the Force. During the Clone Wars, his accomplishments as a battlefield commander earned him the Hero With No Fear moniker. After turning to the dark side of the Force, he became known as Darth Vader, a Dark Lord of the Sith and apprentice to Emperor Darth Sidious. As a Sith Lord, Vader turned against his former comrades and hunted the surviving Jedi into near extinction. He became an enforcer of the Galactic Empire, who worked to crush the Alliance to Restore the Republic for opposing his Sith Master's will. Yet despite his actions as Darth Vader, a glimmer of the light side of the Force remained within the former Anakin Skywalker.

Skywalker was born in the year 41 BBY before moving to the Outer Rim planet Tatooine during the Age of the Republic. Although he had a mother, the slave Shmi Skywalker, the truth about his parentage was that Anakin had no father—leading Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn to suspect that Skywalker's conception was the work of the midi-chlorians. Recognizing the boy's unprecedented connection to the Force, Jinn was determined to see Skywalker trained as a member of the Jedi Order, the task of which ultimately fell to his Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi following Jinn's death in 32 BBY.

Over the next decade, Skywalker rose to become one of the strongest Jedi in galactic history. While he was both caring and compassionate, his fear of loss was ultimately the catalyst for his downfall. During the war, Skywalker trained a Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, who ultimately left the Jedi Order after she was framed for the terrorist attack on the Jedi Temple. The loss of Tano affected Skywalker on a personal level, causing him to feel more isolated and bitter towards the Jedi High Council. With the Clone Wars nearing conclusion, Skywalker succumbed to the temptations of the dark side, believing the Sith had the power to save the life of Senator Padmé Amidala, his secret wife. Christened "Darth Vader" by his new Master Darth Sidious, the newly-minted Sith Lord assaulted the Coruscant Jedi Temple, killing fully-trained Jedi and novice younglings alike.

After assassinating the leaders of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, Vader was confronted on Mustafar by his one-time friend and mentor, Kenobi, resulting in a lightsaber duel that left Vader burned and mutilated. As a consequence of his defeat, he was rebuilt as a cyborg and encased in a life-sustaining suit of armor, further distancing the persona of Vader from that of Anakin Skywalker. In addition, Amidala's death in childbirth broke the fallen Jedi Knight's heart, leaving him more machine than man mentally as well as physically.

Throughout the Dark Times, the former Anakin Skywalker brought fear to the galaxy in his capacity as the Emperor's dark enforcer. However, in spite of his deep immersion in darkness, Vader never succeeded in fully killing the side of himself that was Skywalker. His confrontation with his son, the aspiring Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker, during the Galactic Civil War awoke the compassion within the Sith Lord, causing Vader to renounce his allegiance to the Sith in order to save Luke from the Emperor's wrath. By killing his master, however, Vader sustained critical damage to his armor, making death inevitable. Resigned to his fate, his dying wish was to see his son with his own eyes for the first and final time. In the end, he died not as Darth Vader but as Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One who brought balance to the Force by destroying the Sith. His destiny fulfilled, Skywalker's consciousness was able to endure beyond death due to his sacrifice and redemption, allowing him to live on in spirit alongside his deceased Jedi mentors, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Grand Master Yoda.

Decades after the Battle of Endor, Anakin's footsteps were followed in by Ben Solo, his grandson by Princess Leia Organa and the smuggler Han Solo. Ben fell to the dark side and took the identity of Kylo Ren under the influence of Supreme Leader Snoke, believing it was his destiny to complete Vader's legacy and annihilate the Jedi Order. However, Kylo was ultimately redeemed, becoming Ben Solo again and helping Rey destroy the resurrected Darth Sidious once and for all before sacrificing himself to save Rey, thus succeeding in what Anakin failed: saving the woman he loved.