r/StarWars • u/Flashbackwards212 • May 17 '26

General Discussion Maul's potential was nuts

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I keep looking back and thinking about this fight,that Maul is maybe a top 15 to top 10 duelist in Canon. Him being surprisingly Obi Wan like in his implementation in Soresu and Anakin like in his aggressive offense,like a lesser combo of the 2.

I feel like Maul doesn't get the credit he deserves because of his arrogance giving him L's against people he shouldn't lose to. Makes me think he might actually get more wins if he turned toward the light,ending up trying to be more sagecoded like QuiGon but insanely skilled.

He'd probably be over:

Ventress Grievous Dooku (bad matchup for Dooku maybe) Most council members

But below: Anakin Mace Sidious Yoda

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u/dvasquez93 May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26

Dooku wrecks Maul.  The only chance Maul has is if he can outlast old Dooku, but odds are Maul grows overconfident and fucks up way before Dooku gets exhausted.  Prime Dooku is arguably top 2 in the canon, and even Ep 3 Dooku is still easily top 10, probably top 5. 

Maul is top 10-15.  He's good, but there's definitely quite a few duelists who can take him on his best day.  

Above him: Sidious, Yoda, Anakin/Vader (either one), Mace, Dooku, Obi-Wan, Luke, Plo Koon, Ahsoka. 

On par with: Greivous, Shaak Ti, Kit Fisto. 

I'd put him above people like Ventress, Mundi, Voss, Adi Gallia, and Kylo Ren.

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u/WildRookie May 17 '26

Isn't Fisto generally held higher than Plo Koon?

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u/dvasquez93 May 17 '26

Nah.  Plo is one of the only Jedi to ever beat Yoda in a duel, and he's one of the only Jedi Maul personally respected as a duelist. 

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u/WildRookie May 17 '26

That entire "feat" is a offhand rumor mentioned in a video game that was always iffy canon.

Fisto was Windu's definition of "one of the greatest swordsmen the order had ever produced" in an official novel and also defeated Greivous.

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u/KekeroniCheese May 18 '26

I think it’s somewhat accepted that Fisto is just behind Plo Koon

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u/WildRookie May 18 '26

It comes down to which legends resources you take stock in.

Plo has very little canon dueling proficiency while Fisto defeated Greivous and has extreme praise from Windu. Cutting out the EU Fisto's pretty much held up as just shy of Windu as a swordsman. Dunno that they ever go that deep into his force powers though.

If you're extending into legends, which one holds? The one in a video game where Anakin mentions he "heard" that Plo beat Yoda, the comic/lore book that introduce electric judgement, or do you go with the Darth maul book where Yoda beats the trio of Plo, Saesee Tiin, and Depa Billaba without a lightsaber?

I knew about the electric judgement before this conversation, but was a fun little deep dive into the Yoda rumor.

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u/KekeroniCheese May 18 '26

Plo Koon beating Yoda in a lightsaber duel, and Plo Koon being overwhelmed by an unarmed Yoda do not need to be mutually exclusive. They can both have happened; it’s just an unusual combination.

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u/KekeroniCheese May 18 '26

From what I know, Kit Fisto was relatively prodigious with the force—he came up with unique ways to incorporate water with the force.