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Darth Sidious, if not the most powerful, was one of the most powerful Sith Lords of all time. He was also known as Sheev Palpatine, Chancellor of the Republic during the Clone Wars. While revealing himself to the public as the Dark Lord of the Sith, he was the Emperor of the Galactic Empire. I have seen in Youtube comments and on Reddit that the Emperor feared Luke Skywalker for reasons I do not know. So why does Darth Sidious fear Luke Skywalker?

Do Legends, such as the Return of the Jedi novelization, mention this?

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    Did Palpatine ever publicly say he was Sith Lord? I think that other questions and answers indicate the public didn't know Emperor Palpatine was a Sith.
    – M. A. Golding
    Commented Nov 17, 2019 at 16:44
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    Can you please link to those youtube or reddit comments? What is the basis for the assumption that Darth Sidious feared Luke Skywalker at all?
    – user13267
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 4:21
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    Don't the events of Return of the Jedi prove that this fear was well justified?
    – workerjoe
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 13:05
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    @M.A.Golding No, Palpatine did not publicly reveal himself as a Sith, in fact he went to great lengths to keep his Sith identity hidden. Source
    – Probably
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 16:39
  • Because Star Wars 6.
    – Russell McMahon
    Commented Nov 19, 2019 at 0:55

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Vader tells Luke in Empire Strikes Back

VADER: Luke. You can destroy the Emperor. He has foreseen this. It is your destiny. Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son. Come with me. It is the only way.

See also here

If Palpatine had foreseen his destruction at the hands of Luke, why risk trying to turn him?

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    Maybe this quote holds the secret. Only Luke could destroy the Emperor, it's only Luke's destiny. That's why Vader/Anakin could not ultimately do it on the Death Star II. That's why the Emperor is still around in Episode IX, and Luke needs to come back and finish him off.
    – Essen
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 6:14
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    Possibly here but "can destroy" is not "will destroy". It only shows the potential, not necessarily what would happen.
    – VLAZ
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 8:23
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    @VLAZ And even if the result is "emperor is destroyed", there might be other things to consider. The emperor would probably prefer "emperor is destroyed, and Luke ascends to the throne" to "emperor is destroyed, and Luke lets the republic come back". And that's before you get to EU, with their emperor clones etc.
    – Luaan
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 9:29
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    @Luaan sure. There is also the possibility that everything is a lie. Perhaps the Emperor was simply lying to Vader to see what Vader would do with this information. Doesn't sound too far-fetched for a Sith to do this with his apprentice.
    – VLAZ
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 9:45
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    Do we know that Vader wasn't lying to Luke? "The only way to defeat the evil Emperor and bring about peace is to join forces with your long lost Dad and be a family again" sounds like the sort of lie a Sith would use to recruit a new apprentice
    – Lord Jebus VII
    Commented Nov 18, 2019 at 10:27

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