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In the Legends-EU novel "I, Jedi", we learn that some Jedi develop skills in certain areas that are stronger than others. For instance, I was rather surprised to learn that some Jedi (namely the Halcyon line) have great difficulty performing telekinetic acts unless they first absorb energy from an external source (such as geothermal heat, a blaster bolt, etc.). The ability to absorb energy is also referenced as being "one of the greatest and rarest" of all Jedi abilities. After learning that the main character, Corran Horn/Kieran Halcyon, possesses this ability, Luke Skywalker mentions that his father demonstrated some level of the same skill. This causes me to wonder: as someone whose very birth was the result of a movement of the Force, did Anakin possess equal talent in each discipline?

Note: I will accept any canon as an answer, even if it is Legends.

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    starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Tutaminis
    – Valorum
    Commented Feb 24, 2015 at 19:28
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    Does whining like a little girl count as a talent?
    – Valorum
    Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 14:25
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    Whining. Insubordination. Murder. Abusive relationships. The list of talents is vast. Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 17:14

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Anakin had a strong affinity for Force Visions to be sure, evident in mainly in G-canon (with Attack of the Clones showing his mother's death and in Revenge of the Sith showing his wife's). This ability seems fairly rare outside the Skywalker family tree, especially considering how often they get them.

Otherwise, his main focus was in lightsaber combat, lowering the amount of more complex Force powers he's shown using. Though in T-canon (both in Clone Wars and The Clone wars) his telekinesis is noted to be quite powerful, such as in Chapter 18 of Clone Wars where he duels Asajj Ventress on Yavin IV and they are shown throwing entire trees at each other and he uses the Force to block a Force Push without it slowing him down.

His ability to Force Choke is also a good representation of his focus on telekinesis, demonstrated by choking Admiral Kendal Ozzel on the Executor's bridge from his meditation chamber just before the battle of Hoth (G-canon), or during the Battle of Kashyyk, where he choked both and Imperial officer and the Jedi Kento Marek while pointedly looking away from them, itself an act that requires power and experience. (C-canon)

While in the novelization of the Empire Strikes Back, (G-canon), Vader used Force Deflection in Cloud City, in I, Jedi (Legends C-Canon) Luke believes Vader used Tutaminis to absorb Han Solo's blaster bolt and used the absorbed energy to pull Han's blaster away from him.

Other than all of that, Anakin does seem to have a very large amount of raw power across the board due to his unprecedented amount of midi-chlorians (his Force Scream reduced a medical facility and the droid within to scrap in Revenge of the Sith, as noted in Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader) even if his focus on lightsaber combat restricted his knowledge somewhat.

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  • The (canon) novelisation described Vader as "deflecting" the bolt, not absorbing them.
    – Valorum
    Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 0:03
  • Ah okay my bad. I'll edit it to reflect that, as my info comes from Legends Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 0:26
  • In the film itself it looks like he absorbs them (no clue about the novelisation though)
    – Thomas
    Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 21:41
  • I haven't read the novelisation myself, so I'm trusting @Richard's judgement. But the contradiction would be covered by the fact that while it seems to be deflection (according to the book), Luke believes he was absorbing it, which is what the OP would be referring to in the book I,Jedi Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 22:45
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    @TheRealSpartacus - Sorry, I should have given the full quote from the ESB Novelisation; "But the man who may have been the fastest draw in the galaxy was not fast enough to surprise Vader. Before those bolts zipped halfway across the table, the Dark Lord had lifted a gauntlet-protected hand and effortlessly deflected them so they exploded against the wall in a harmless spray of flying white shards." - No room for misunderstanding there.
    – Valorum
    Commented Feb 25, 2015 at 22:53

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