While it's rare in the Yoda wields his iconic lightsaber. Whether during the High Republic Era or his exile on Dagobah, the Jedi Grandmaster is quite an impressive swordsman despite his diminutive stature (which he should never be judged by). However, Yoda wielded his teachings and words of wisdom far more in the Star Wars galaxy than he did his green-bladed lightsaber.
Despite being a senior member of the Jedi Council and a Grandmaster, Master Yoda has plenty of his own adventures across the Star Wars galaxy, never content with staying behind the walls of Coruscant's Jedi Temple for long. As such, there have been some pretty exciting moments in both canon and Legends where Yoda has been forced to wield his lightsaber which Grogu almost inherited during the New Republic Era. Here are Yoda's eight best lightsaber battles in Star Wars history ranked, both on-screen and in the comics.
8 Yoda Duels Luke Skywalker... With A Stick
(Star Wars Adventures: Luke Skywalker and the Treasure of the Dragonsnakes)
While technically part of the non-canon Legends continuity, Dark Horse's Luke Skywalker and the Treasure of the Dragonsnakes by Tom Taylor and Daxiong expanded Luke Skywalker's Jedi training on Dagobah. This includes the reveal that Yoda helped Luke hone his lightsaber skills with sparring sessions. However, the Grandmaster is shown using his walking stick rather than his traditional lightsaber, as the Grandmaster swore never to raise a lightsaber again following Revenge of the Sith. Nevertheless, the lightsaber training session is quite entertaining as Yoda helps Luke become a Jedi Knight.
7 Yoda Leading A High Republic Assault
(Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #2)
In the prequels, Yoda preferred imparting wisdom to the youngest generations of the Jedi Order, and the same was just as true hundreds of years prior, during the High Republic Era. At the dawn of the Emergence and the Nihil rising as a major galactic threat, Yoda led a force of younglings against the marauders who were taking advantage of the crisis in the Trymant system. Yoda was also ed by Master Torban Buck, who'd been leading the academic Jedi cruiser full of students. Overall, it's a pretty exciting way to kick off this new Star Wars era.
6 Yoda Defends A Remote Village
(Star Wars: Yoda #1)
Yoda would frequently go on extended sabbaticals during the High Republic, visiting remote parts of the Star Wars galaxy to experience new cultures, listen to the will of the Force, and those in need. In Yoda #1, the Grandmaster defends a group of villagers caught in an unending civil war with a neighboring tribe. The battle presents Yoda at his most heroic, and he's truly in his element. However, it gets even better with Yoda's return trips, guiding both tribes to make peace after an entire generation has ed, a true benefit of Yoda's age and long life span.
5 Yoda and Anakin Skywalker vs The Megadroid
(Star Wars: Yoda #7-9)
During the Clone Wars, Yoda had a rare team-up with Anakin Skywalker in Yoda #7-9. While the duo had a couple of partnerships in the Clone Wars animated series, this comic series was their first alliance in battle. As such, the opportunity to see the Jedi Grandmaster and Chosen One fighting side by side to destroy a Separatist factory developing massive and extremely powerful prototype "megadroids" is quite impressive, especially when Yoda uses his small size to destroy one of the droids from within.

10 Best Yoda Moments of All Time (That Fans Only Got in The Comics)
Yoda is one of the most powerful Jedi Masters in the Star Wars canon, and some of his best moments have come from the comics (both canon and Legends)
4 Yoda vs The Dead & Multiple Sith Lords (Vision)
(Star Wars: Yoda #10)
During one of Yoda's first visits to Dagobah's Cave of Evil, the Grandmaster was given a dark vision that forced him to face his mistakes and guilt over the Jedi Order's fall. This involved Yoda having to duel deceased versions of his former allies like Qui-Gon Jinn, and multiple Sith Lords (Palpatine, Dooku, Darth Vader). While the vision nearly overwhelms Yoda in this issue, the Jedi Master ultimately rises above the darkness, determined to remain in the light to train the galaxy's new hope to succeed where he failed.
3 Yoda vs Count Dooku
(Attack of The Clones)
Attack of the Clones was the first time Yoda was even shown wielding his green-bladed lightsaber, on-screen or otherwise. Dueling Count Dooku at the film's end, who was revealed to be Yoda's old apprentice, it's incredible to see how Yoda makes up for his size using the Force and various acrobatic moves in between various strikes and counters. While Dooku ultimately fled and left Yoda to save Anakin and Obi-Wan, it's still one of Yoda's best lightsaber battles of all time.
2 Yoda vs. General Grievous
(Star Wars: Yoda #7)
Remarkably, one of Yoda's best duels was against General Grievous, part of the same arc that saw Yoda ing forces with Anakin Skywalker. While investigating the droid factory, the Jedi Grandmaster found himself face-to-face with the leader of the Seperatist Droid Army, wielding multiple lightsabers from fallen Jedi he'd slain. Having been far too overconfident in his own skills due to Yoda's small size, Yoda was able to not only damage Grievous' mask, but he also stole back one of his "trophies" before a wave of Super Battle Droids came to the cyborg's aid, forcing Yoda to retreat.
1 Yoda vs Emperor Palpatine
(Revenge of the Sith)
Yoda's most impressive duel will always be his Revenge of the Sith battle with Emperor Palpatine in the Senate chambers. Intending to rid the galaxy of the Sith and avenge so many Jedi who'd already fallen due to Order 66, Yoda ultimately failed in his duel against Palpatine and was forced to go into exile on Dagobah. Nevertheless, it wasn't for a lack of trying, as Yoda was moments away from defeating Palpatine, wielding his lightsaber and the light side of the Force in tandem as a formidable counter to the dark power of Darth Sidious.

- Created By
- George Lucas
- Cast
- Frank Oz, Tom Kane
- First Appearance
- Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
- Died
- Star Wars: Episode VI - Return Of The Jedi
- Alliance
- Jedi
- Race
- Unknown
Star Wars Movies |
Release Date |
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The Mandalorian & Grogu |
May 22, 2026 |