The canon has introduced several powerful Imperial Inquisitors. Once skilled Jedi who fell to the Dark side, they travel the galaxy with one goal in mind: hunt and destroy the Jedi.
Inquisitors were first introduced in Star Wars: Rebels, and they still continue making appearances throughout the franchise. Now we get to learn even more about them from Jedi: Fallen Order and the new Obi-Wan Kenobi show.
However, many questions still remain.
Who are they, and how do they manage to find the Jedi in the most remote parts of the galaxy?
Can Inquisitors Sense Jedi And the Force?
We’ll try to understand how Inquisitors managed to hunt skilled Jedi. To succeed, we need to take a step back through their origins. From canon, we already know that Imperial Inquisitors were once Jedi. They survived Order 66 and became a part of the Great Jedi Purge after the Clone Wars and the fall of the Republic.
It is never explicitly explained how the Inquisitors managed to lead the hunt. Even so, we have several suggestions. Usage of Imperial influence, technologies, and the Force are among some of them.
Though, what played a bigger role in their hunt: Force or the Empire?
#1 Cal Kestis
Inquisitors appeared in Jedi: Fallen Order as prominent antagonists of the game. In particular, they were the ones to find the Jedi Cal Kestis.
Canon doesn’t necessarily confirm how they managed to do it. As such, it leaves us some room for speculation.
The Second Sister and the Ninth Sister arrived on the planet of Bracca after Kestis was forced to save his friend. In doing so, he reconnected with the Force. It is no coincidence that the Inquisitors found him precisely after this incident.
When the cable breaks and Prauf (Cal’s friend) is about to fall, there’s another compelling detail. It is very easy to miss, yet if the players look hard enough, they can notice the probe droid recording the incident.
Probe droids belong to Inquisitors and allow them to find Force-sensitive individuals. We can assume that the same droid tipped the Second and Ninth Sisters.
Even so, the same droid is seen several times before the revelation.
Did the Inquisitors already know that Cal was Force-sensitive?
As a matter of fact, it is possible, although we will need to go through other examples to get to the actual answer. After all, patience is a key to hunting Jedi.
#2 Nari and Obi-Wan Kenobi
The Obi-Wan Kenobi show finally brought the Inquisitors to live-action. We got to see how efficient the Grand Inquisitor and his followers truly were.
They are widely recognized by all the characters they encounter. Clearly, they have gained a reputation as merciless and terrifically successful in their hunt.
Can we devote their success to the probe droids?
No, this time, the Inquisitors found an even better technique.
“Jedi cannot help what they are. Their compassion leaves a trail. For example, in our line of work, rumors run rampant.”
-Grand Inquisitor
From the Inquisitor’s speech, it is easy to deduce how the “Red Blades” hunt Jedi. They are feared throughout the galaxy and scare people into submission.
That’s exactly how they found Nari, a Jedi who desperately tried to get away and even asked Obi-Wan Kenobi for help.
Nari, Order 66 survivor, couldn’t stop himself from helping the owner of the canteen. The former might have been threatened by Tatooine locals.
To be fair, Tatooine is full of slave traders and criminals. No wonder Anakin Skywalker disliked his sandy home planet!
When the Inquisitors showed up, they were ready to threaten everyone in the city. Reva, the Third Sister, even loses her patience and throws a knife into the canteen’s owner. In the dramatic turn of events, the Jedi finally uses the Force to stop a knife from killing the man.
Compassion is indeed the undoing of all the Jedi!
During the episode, we see the Inquisitors questioning and threatening people to get information. Sadly, they succeeded and took the life of another Jedi.
Still, their manipulative techniques do not explain how Reva found Obi-Wan in the old hanger. She deduced that he didn’t know Anakin was alive without needing droids or rumors.
Was there something else in their methods that we still don’t see?
#3 Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger
We won’t hold the intrigue longer than necessary. We mentioned time and time again that the Inquisitors were Force-sensitive. As such, they might not be the Jedi or the Sith, yet Force still curses through their veins.
What do we know for sure about Force-sensitive people in this franchise?
They can manipulate people, levitate objects, predict the future, and sense emotions. Beyond that, they all have the power to sense the Force itself.
That is why the Inquisitors were picked from the Jedi, not anyone else.
“The Inquisitorius. A project of mine, long-planned. Slaves to the light side once, now awake. Hunters, one and all.”
“What do they hunt?”
“Why, Jedi, of course.”
-Darth Sidious and Darth Vader
You can find out why Palpatine chose to use Inqui in the first place here.
To hunt Force-sensitive fugitives, you have to be one yourself.
After all, who can do a better job in hunting Jedi than the former light-siders themselves?
Naturally, we have proofs directly from Star Wars: Rebels.
Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger, the main protagonists, Jedi, and survivors of Order 66, were hunted by the Inquisitors. Kanan and Ezra barely escaped the Fifth Brother and the Seventh Sister. Besides, they only did so because Ahsoka Tano was there to help.
That episode clearly showed that the Inquisitors could destroy inexperienced Jedi. However, they hardly stand a chance against an adequately trained Jedi Master.
Still, no matter how many times Kanan and Ezra tried to escape, the Inquisitors would always find them.
This became especially apparent in Season 2 of the Rebels. The Inquisitors always remained only one step behind. Even though we can argue that the Imperial apparatus played its role, there has to be something more.
Sensing the Force
How did many Jedi manage to stay in the shadows even with Imperial followers on their heels?
The answer to this prolonged dilemma is in the Force. As to everything in the Star Wars universe. Even the Inquisitors themselves admit to sensing ripples in the Force:
Inquisitor: “Agent Kallus, I may have something. A power surge at a decommissioned medical station in Sector 11. Could be Rebels.”
Kallus: “Could be anything. A malfunction or even scavengers.”
Inquisitor: “No. I sense those we seek.”
Kallus: “One of your disturbances, I assume.”
-Kallus and Inquisitor (Rebels 02×04)
This dialogue confirms that Inquisitors could sense the disturbances in the Force. Every time a Jedi used the Force, the Inquisitors were already packing their red lightsabers.
We’ve got more proof from Dave Filoni, the executive producer behind Star Wars: Rebels. The producer compares the light side of the Force to a star. It lights up the whole galaxy and undeniably attracts attention from other Force users.
This revelation about the Force perfectly fills in the previous gaps we noticed. First, it explains why the Inquisitors already had their eyes set on Cal Kestis. They were likely keeping an eye on him since they sensed his strength in the Force. The incident with his friend only confirmed their suspicions.
The Inquisitors’ ability to sense Force users also helps us understand the Obi-Wan Kenobi show.
Reva could feel the Negotiator’s emotion and track him with utmost precision.
It would also explain why Kenobi wasn’t discovered before. He was hardly connected to the Force after 10 years of solitude. The need to save Leia and all the memories about Anakin forced him to bring up his Jedi past.
We also know that Kenobi himself sensed Darth Vader in Episode 3 and vice versa. This instance is one of many examples when the Jedi could feel the Dark Side of the Force.
If the Jedi can, why can’t the Inquisitors?
Final Thoughts: Inquisitors vs. Jedi
It is impossible to deny that the Inquisitors didn’t use the extra help from the Empire. They had many droids all round the galaxy, tracking Force-sensitive people. Moreover, they relied upon rumors and their ability to threaten possible witnesses.
Even though their vicious reputation helped them to hunt the Jedi, their connection to the Force made them deadly.
Without the Force, the Inquisitors wouldn’t be able to find Kanan and Ezra in Rebels.
We can apply the same conclusions to the Second and Ninth Sisters who tracked Cal, even with the droid’s help. Besides, Reva used the Force to find Obi-Wan Kenobi and decipher his emotions.
Thus, former Jedi and now the Imperial Inquisitors indeed were able to sense Jedi and the Force round them.
You can find out more about how the Inquisitors differed from the Sith, and how strong they really were in these articles.
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