STAR WARS: MAUL - SHADOW LORD Reveals the True Power Gap Between Darth Vader and the Inquisitors

When fans first heard Obi-Wan Kenobi talk about Darth Vader hunting down the Jedi in Star Wars: A New Hope, it painted a picture of a one-man nightmare wiping out the remnants of the Order.

Of course, as Star Wars canon expanded, that story evolved. Vader wasn’t alone. The Empire had backup in the form of the Inquisitorius, a group of Force-sensitive hunters trained to track down surviving Jedi after Order 66.

These Inquisitors have popped up all over the timeline, from Obi-Wan Kenobi to the Jedi-focused video games, and now they’re back again in Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord.

One familiar face, Marrok, returns after his introduction in Ahsoka, and while the series makes it clear he’s dangerous, it also draws a sharp line between him and the Dark Lord of the Sith.

In the episode “Chapter Six: Night of the Hunted,” Marrok tracks down Captain Lawson and clashes with Jedi Eeko-Dio Daki and Devon Izara. It’s a tense sequence that ends with the heroes making a narrow escape aboard an Imperial gunship.

Here’s where things get interesting. Marrok has a clear opportunity to stop them. He’s close enough, the ship is within reach, and the stakes are high. But he doesn’t attempt to use the Force to pull it down.

That moment says everything. We’ve already seen what that scenario looks like when Darth Vader is involved. In Obi-Wan Kenobi “Part V,” Vader faces a nearly identical situation while chasing Obi-Wan and members of the Path.

Instead of letting them go, he reaches out with the Force, grabs a transport mid-flight, and drags it back to the ground like it’s nothing. It’s one of the most jaw-dropping displays of raw power in modern Star Wars, and it nearly ends the escape right there.

If Vader had been standing where Marrok was, that gunship wouldn’t have made it out of the atmosphere. Marrok’s decision not to act strongly suggests he simply can’t.

He’s skilled, no question, but he isn’t operating on the same level as Vader or Emperor Palpatine. That gap traces back to who Vader is at his core. As Anakin Skywalker, he was the Chosen One, a being with unmatched potential in the Force. Even after his fall, that raw strength didn’t disappear. It just took a darker shape.

The Inquisitors, on the other hand, are powerful but limited. They’re trained hunters, not unstoppable forces of nature. Marrok’s choice to let other gunships handle the pursuit while he finds another route feels less like strategy and more like self-awareness.

That raises a bigger question about where Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord is heading. The episode closes with Marrok speaking to a mysterious hologram, keeping the identity hidden.

It’s the kind of tease that immediately gets fans theorizing. With Maul building up his criminal operations and proving to be more than the Inquisitors can handle alone, the Empire might decide to escalate.

If that happens, there’s really only one solution they trust… Darth Vader.

The idea of Vader stepping in to deal with Maul isn’t just exciting, it feels inevitable, and if Shadow Lord is building toward that confrontation, it could deliver one of the most intense Sith showdowns fans have been waiting years to see.