Yoda Yoda , a Force - sensitive male member of a mysterious species , was a legendary Jedi Master who witnessed the rise and fall of the Galactic Republic , as well as the rise of the Galactic Empire . An ancient Jedi revered for his advanced age and wisdom , Yoda served as Grand Master of the Jedi Order during the latter days of the Republic and also held a seat on the Jedi High Council along with other legendary masters such as Mace Windu or Ki - Adi - Mundi . For over eight - hundred years he mentored others in the ways of the Force and had a hand in the training of many Jedi during their time as younglings . Approximately thirty - two years before the Battle of Yavin , Anakin Skywalker was presented as the Chosen One to the High Council by Jedi Master Qui - Gon Jinn . Although the former slave from Tatooine demonstrated exceptional sensitivity to the Force , Yoda and his colleagues declined to train him due to the fear they sensed within him . The High Council later reversed its decision in the wake of Jinn ' s death despite the dissenting opinion of Yoda , who sensed that Skywalker represented grave danger to the future of the Jedi Order . Over the next decade , the galaxy became increasingly destabilized by a secessionist movement that threatened to tear the Republic asunder . When it became evident that the Confederacy of Independent Systems intended to secede from the Republic by force of arms , Yoda oversaw the deployment of thousands of clone trooper s to Geonosis , where the first battle of the Clone Wars commenced . As a Jedi General of the Grand Army of the Republic , Yoda ' s time was spent directing the Jedi in their new role as wartime leaders , negotiating with potential allies such as King Katuunko of Toydaria , and leading clones on the battlefield against the Separatist Droid Army . By the third year of the galactic conflict , the Jedi discovered that Darth Sidious and Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine were one and the same . Yoda ' s colleagues on the High Council moved to arrest the Sith Lord , but Skywalker ' s betrayal thwarted their efforts and led to the start of the Jedi Purge through Order 66 . Across the galaxy , the Jedi Knight s and their apprentices fell victim to the secret kill order that the clones had been programmed to obey . Yoda survived the attempt on his life , however , but later fled into exile after failing to kill the self - appointed Galactic Emperor . The Grand Master spent the last two decades of his life on the planet Dagobah , where he was found by Anakin ' s son , Luke Skywalker , who endeavored to complete his training in the Jedi arts . On his deathbed , Yoda confirmed that Luke ' s father had become Darth Vader — the Emperor ' s apprentice in the dark side of the Force . After a lifespan of nine - hundred years , Yoda succumbed to death , shedding his mortal coil and becoming one with the Force . Shortly afterward , the prophecy of the Chosen One was realized when Vader killed his Sith Master at the cost of his own life in order to save his son . This act of self - sacrifice allowed the late Yoda to preserve the Anakin ' s consciousness in the Force . As the Rebel Alliance celebrated their victory over the Empire , Luke saw the spirits of his mentors , Yoda and Obi - Wan Kenobi , standing beside a redeemed Anakin Skywalker as they watched over him and his friends . Yoda would again visit the realm of the living from the Netherworld of the Force roughly thirty years after the Battle of Endor . By then , Jedi Master Luke Skywalker was a broken man who lived as a hermit on Ahch - To . It had been Yoda ' s dying wish to see Skywalker restore the Jedi Order by passing on what he had learned to a new generation of Jedi Knights . Skywalker made the attempt , but the fall of his gifted nephew , Ben Solo , all but destroyed his plans , leading him to believe that it was time for the Jedi to end . With Yoda ' s help , Skywalker overcame his guilt and subsequently became one with the Force , passing the mantle of the Jedi to the Jakku scavenger Rey . Biography . Pre - Invasion of Naboo . Born 900 years before the Battle of Endor , Yoda belonged to an ancient and mysterious species . As he was keenly attuned to the Force , he joined the Jedi Order as a youngling . After undergoing the ritual known as the Gathering , he received his kyber crystal , and Professor Huyang helped him construct his first lightsaber aboard the " Crucible " . Thereafter , Yoda was paired up with a personal mentor . During their time together , Yoda ' s Jedi Master told him the tale of K ' ungfu and Chuang , two great Jedi of the past . Around the age of 100 , Yoda was ready to pass on what he had learned . Having attained the rank of Master , he spent the next eight centuries training and tutoring generations of Jedi . It was estimated that over his lifetime , he trained around 20 , 000 Jedi . Centuries later , Yoda took on the human Dooku as his last known padawan in the era of the Galactic Republic . During one mission to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk , the padawan witnessed his master face off with a giant , dreadful terentatek . Yoda visited Kashyyyk on several other occasions prior to the Battle of Kashyyyk , serving as Jedi negotiator in many incidents involving the Wookiees and their Trandoshan neighbors . This earned him the ancient title of " Defender of the Home Tree " , as well as becoming a member of many Wookiee leaders ' and all the inhabitants of Kachirho ' s honour families . Yoda also taught outside the Master / Padawan relationship , and trained all the Jedi youngling s prior to their teaming up with Jedi Masters , including Master Obi - Wan Kenobi . Kanan Jarrus , as Caleb Dume , often heard Yoda counsel " Do , or do not . There is no try . " He also taught groups of younglings in the basics of Jedi training , including lightsaber instruction . Invasion of Naboo . During the invasion of the planet Naboo by the Trade Federation , Yoda served on the Jedi Council as the Grand Master of the Jedi Order , having trained Jedi students for about 800 years . He was present when Jedi Master Qui - Gon Jinn presented Anakin Skywalker , a young slave boy from the planet Tatooine , to the Council in the hopes of training him . Although Jinn believed Skywalker to be the Chosen One , prophesized to bring balance to the Force , Yoda and the other Council members did not share his opinion , sensing an uncertain future and a high amount of fear in the boy , and refused to grant permission . After Jinn and his Padawan , Obi - Wan Kenobi , returned to Naboo , they forged an alliance between the human inhabitants of the world and the native species in order to combat the Federation occupation forces . The Federation ' s droid army was eventually deactivated after the accidental destruction of its command ship by Anakin Skywalker . During the battle , however , Jinn and Kenobi dueled a dark side Force user — Darth Maul , the Dathomirian Zabrak apprentice of the Sith Lord Darth Sidious — which cost Jinn his life . Yoda , along with other members of the Council , was present at the Naboo victory parade and Jinn ' s earlier funeral , sharing his thoughts on the apparent reemergence of the Sith with fellow Master of the Order Mace Windu and pointing out that the Rule of Two , the Sith succession system in effect at the time , meant that another Sith was still present . Unbeknownst to the two Jedi , the remaining Sith was Sheev Palpatine , the Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic , having been sworn in after a Vote of No Confidence forced his predecessor Valorum to resign . With Jinn dead , following the events on Naboo , the Council named Jinn ' s former Padawan Obi - Wan Kenobi a Jedi Knight , who informed Yoda of his master ' s final will — that Skywalker be trained . Reluctantly , Yoda permitted him to take the boy as his Padawan . Separatist Crisis . Ten years after the Naboo crisis , several thousand systems , disillusioned by heavy taxation , seceded from the Galactic Republic and formed the Confederacy of Independent Systems under the leadership of Count Dooku , a former student of Yoda who left the Order due to widespread corruption in the Republic . As the Galactic Senate , the chief governing body of the Republic , debated the creation of a standing army , an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of Senator Amidala of Naboo . After Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker cornered the assassin , the killer was in turn killed by a mysterious person who escaped using his jetpack . The events prompted the Council , which included Yoda , to appoint Kenobi to track him down . Kenobi ' s investigation led him to attempt to find the planet Kamino , whose location had been missing from the Jedi Archives , alarming Yoda , since only a Jedi could have erased the files . Interrupting a training session with the Bear Clan , Yoda helped Kenobi pinpoint the world ' s exact location through meditation , allowing the latter to travel there . Following Kenobi ' s departure , Yoda experienced a vision while meditating , in which he heard the voice of the spirit of Qui - Gon Jinn , and sensed that Anakin Skywalker was in terrible pain . He discussed the vision with fellow Master Mace Windu afterwards . Having arrived on Kamino , Kenobi reported that the Kaminoan cloners had created a clone army , the order for which had been placed by Jedi Master Sifo - Dyas , who had perished around the time of the Invasion of Naboo . Kenobi believed that the template used to create the army , bounty hunter Jango Fett , was the person involved in the attack on Amidala . After a brief encounter with Fett , Kenobi followed him to the planet Geonosis , where he found that Dooku ' s Separatists ordered the assassination attempt on Amidala and had constructed a droid army . After relaying the information to the Jedi Council , Kenobi was captured and scheduled for execution , later joined by Amidala and Anakin Skywalker . The Clone Wars . Battle of Geonosis . News of Skywalker ' s and Kenobi ' s capture prompted the Council to dispatch a Jedi strike team to Geonosis , while Yoda headed to Kamino to take command of the clone forces . As the strike team interrupted the execution of Kenobi and his associates , suffering casualties at the hands of the numerically superior Confederate battle droid forces , Yoda led the clones into battle , thus beginning a galaxywide conflict that would become known as the Clone Wars . As the clones engaged the Confederacy ' s forces in a massive battle , Yoda headed to rescue Kenobi and Skywalker from Dooku , who had incapacitated the duo in a duel . The diminutive Jedi Master showed his mastery and power over the Force surpassed Dooku by casually repelling Dooku ' s telekinetic assault and Force lightning . He then engaged Dooku in a brief but intense duel , having the upper hand . Dooku realized that he is outmatched by Yoda and telekinetically destabilized a large metal pillar , forcing Yoda to break off the duel and use his own powers to stop it from crushing Obi - Wan and Anakin . Dooku used the distraction to flee aboard his personal craft . Although the battle on Geonosis ended in the Republic ' s favor , Yoda was concerned about the growing influence of the dark side of the Force and the outcome of the Clone Wars . Mentoring Anakin Skywalker . As the Clone Wars progressed , Yoda decided to alleviate Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker ' s fear and inability to lose loved ones by assigning him a Padawan learner , Ahsoka Tano . He believed that by becoming a teacher , Skywalker would develop emotionally and that when the time came for Tano to go off on her own , he would understand that his excessive bonding to those he cared about was unnecessary . Tano traveled to the planet of Christophsis , where she presented herself to Skywalker in the midst of a battle against Confederate forces . After the battle had concluded , Yoda himself arrived on the planet and assigned the duo to the task of finding Rotta , the son of influential Hutt crime lord Jabba , who had been kidnapped as part of a plan arranged by his uncle Ziro to alienate the Hutts and the Jedi and drag the former into war . After the two Jedi successfully completed the mission , Yoda , along with a group of clones , extracted them from the planet Tatooine . Mission to Rugosa . Some time later , Yoda , along with an escort of clone troopers , was sent to the neutral coral moon Rugosa to negotiate the construction of a Republic base on Toydarian territory with the incumbent monarch , King Katuunko . Simultaneously , the Confederacy dispatched Asajj Ventress , an assassin trained by Confederate leader Dooku , to the moon with droid escort to pressure Katuunko into siding with the Separatists . Yoda ' s starship was ambushed by two Confederate vessels upon arriving into the system , forcing him to use an escape pod to land on the surface of the moon , accompanied by three clone troopers . The Jedi then successfully made contact with the Toydarian delegation , prompting Ventress , who was at the king ' s location , to challenge Yoda : if he could defeat her droid units , Toydaria would join the Republic , but a defeat would result in the planet pledging its allegiance to the Confederacy . The Jedi accepted , and Katuunko requested that he be given a fair fight , which Ventress did not intend to honor . Encountering the droids , Yoda destroyed a squad of them by himself without using his lightsaber , and returned to assist his clone companions , until the arrival of droideka s forced them to flee . The Jedi covered their escape by deflecting the droids ' blaster fire at a nearby rock formation that collapsed and crushed them , after which he and the clones retreated to a nearby cave to rest . In the cave , Yoda relaxed into his natural role as a teacher . Calling each clone by name , he raised their morale by lecturing them on their individuality in the Force . Upon hearing the sound of more approaching Confederate units , Yoda and his escort left the cave . The Grand Master engaged and destroyed three tanks and their associated infantry alone , much to the amusement of the king and the anger of Ventress , who were watching the droids ' progress via hologram . Breaking the terms of the competition , the assassin sent in droidekas to take out Yoda , which the clones prevented by launching their final rocket that caused the enemy to be buried under a rock slide . The " Malevolence " crisis . As the war progressed , the Confederacy developed the " Malevolence " , a heavy cruiser designed to incapacitate and destroy Republic vessels with its mammoth ion cannons , which proceeded to destroy dozens of ships without leaving survivors . The Jedi Council dispatched Jedi Master Plo Koon to track down the superweapon , but upon locating it , his fleet was ambushed and destroyed by the starship . Although Koon and some clones survived in an escape pod , Yoda , alongside fellow Jedi Mace Windu and Obi - Wan Kenobi , forbade Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano to search the system for survivors , citing the threat posed by the " Malevolence " . Skywalker and Tano , however , disregarded his warnings and successfully rescued Koon . The " Malevolence " was later destroyed by a concerted Republic assault . Gunray ' s capture . Some time after the destruction of the " Malevolence " , Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray was captured by the Republic on the planet of Rodia , but as he was being transported to Coruscant aboard the cruiser " Tranquility " by Jedi Master Luminara Unduli and Ahsoka Tano , a Separatist boarding party led by Asajj Ventress freed the prisoner . Unduli and Tano subsequently reported the loss of Gunray to Anakin Skywalker and Yoda . Attack on the Jedi Temple . During the peak of the war , Barriss Offee with the help of Letta Turmond bombed the Jedi Temple on Coruscant . Yoda then ordered Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka Tano to return from Cato Neimoidia to help investigate , refusing to trust anyone who was in the temple during the bombing . Yoda ' s judgement was clouded , but he still guided the Jedi as the leader of the Council . Turmond was captured by Skywalker and Tano . In prison , she requested Tano speak with her , saying Tano was the only one she could trust . When Turmond was strangled to death by way of the Force , Wilhuff Tarkin , who was serving as an admiral in the Republic Army , had Tano arrested , accusing her of being the mastermind responsible for the attack . Desperate to prove her innocence , Tano escaped the prison , resulting in a manhunt led by Anakin Skywalker and Captain Rex . During the chase , Tano lost her Shoto lightsaber . After Tano fled to the Underworld , Yoda ordered Skywalker and Plo Koon to track her down and bring her to the Temple , with some resistance from Mace Windu , who felt that Skywalker ' s emotional connection to Tano would only make things worse . Tano was quickly captured by Asajj Ventress , who agreed to help the young Padawan in exchange for a pardon for Ventress ' crimes as a Sith . Tano contacted Barriss Offee at the Jedi Temple . Offee led Tano into a trap by telling her she could find evidence to prove her innocence by going to a warehouse on Level 1315 . There , Offee jumped Ventress , stealing her lightsabers and mask . She attacked Tano , knocking her out in front of crates of Nanodroids and effectively framing her for the bombing . Tano was then brought back to the Temple , where Yoda and the rest of the Jedi Council reluctantly agreed to expel her from the Jedi Order and have her face a military tribunal before the Senate . Yoda , Obi - Wan Kenobi , Plo Koon and several other Council members were present in the court room , where Tano was prosecuted by Tarkin and defended by Padme Amidala . However , before the jury could render its decision , Skywalker burst in with Barriss Offee , who confessed to being responsible for the bombings and the framing of Tano . In light of this revelation , Yoda , Skywalker and the Council personally invited Tano to rejoin the Order , but to their shock , she refused and left . Yoda would regret the Council ' s decision and began to question the doctrine of the war . Uncovering The Truth . Prior to the start of the war , Palpatine and his apprentice , Count Dooku secretly created the Clone Army with the assistance of an unsuspecting Sifo - Dyas , who had seen visions of a conflict beforehand . When this was done , they had organic inhibitor chips implanted in their brains . which caused the clones to do anything Palpatine told them to , in this case execute the Jedi . With one simple command , the clones would enter a trance - like state and perform whatever orders they were given . During the Battle of Ringo Vinda , Clone Trooper Tup murdered Jedi Master Tiplar when his inhibitor chip was activated prematurely . Sidious ordered Dooku to apprehend Tup to prevent the Jedi from discovering the truth . Tup was eventually sent to Kamino after Anakin Skywalker , Captain Rex and ARC trooper Fives were able to recover Tup from a Separatist Transport . After escorting Tup to Kamino , Fives and Rex were greeted by Jedi Master Shaak Ti , alongside the main developer of the clones , Kaminoan scientist Nala Se . Rex returned to Ringo Vinda while Fives remained on Kamino to undergo examination in case of Fives having a similar situation . Disputes over the tests led to a debate . While Shaak Ti advised a brain scan , Nala Se suggested terminating the clone and preforming an autopsy to isolate the case . Shaak Ti contacted the Jedi Temple where Yoda , alongside Obi - Wan Kenobi , decided Tup should be brought to the temple to be examined through the Force . What the Jedi were unaware of was that the Kaminoans knew of the inhibitor chips and were working with Count Dooku , who used his Sith name , Tyrannus , to prevent the Jedi from making the connection . Dooku ordered that Tup be terminated and that the chip be sent to him to be looked at . Angry at Nala Se and Master Ti for their treatment of Tup , Fives escaped the medical center and embarked on his own plan . Fives faked leaving the planet , but stayed to try and save Tup and discover the truth . He and the medical droid AZI - 3 were able to preform a brain scan on Tup , where they learned of the inhibitor chips . Fives had the droid take the chip out of his and Tup ' s brains . Unfortunately , the already - weakened Tup died soon after the operation , whispering his last words to Fives . Fives blamed Nala Se for what happened to Tup . Suspecting the Kaminoans of treachery , and with the support of Master Ti , Fives insisted on presenting his evidence and the removed chips directly to Palpatine . Fives was eventually brought to Coruscant , at the request of Shaak Ti , where he was brought before the Chancellor . As the ship landed , Nala Se drugged Fives , causing him to act strange . When Fives attempted to assassinate Palpatine , Yoda was a part of the Jedi council that ordered Anakin Skywalker to investigate . Fives was killed in the end , and Yoda was ultimately told that the doctors had found another cause , and that a vaccination had been prepared , in case of a future incident . Sifo - Dyas . Sometime later , The Jedi received a distress single from a moon near Oba Diah . Sending Plo Koon and Commander Wolfe to investigate , they found the remains of a shuttle and the lightsaber of Jedi Master Sifo - Dyas , who was killed sometime around the Battle of Naboo while dealing with a conflict on Felucia . Upon reviewing the temple archives , Jocasta Nu and the Jedi found that the information had been sealed by order of the Supreme Chancellor . While sending Anakin Skywalker and his master , Obi - Wan Kenobi to Felucia , Yoda went to speak with Palpatine , not knowing he was the Sith Lord that orchestrated the murder and the creation of the Clone Army . Palpatine told Yoda to visit Chancellor Valorum ( These events happened before the Vote of No Confidence that led to Palpatine becoming Chancellor ) . Palpatine then contacted Count Dooku , telling him to destroy the last piece of the puzzle before the Jedi would be able to unravel the mystery . Anakin and Obi - Wan attempted to communicate with the native tribe on the Felucia , but were unable to understand them . They did learn , however , that a Second Jedi had shown up with Syfo - Dias . Valorum told Yoda that he sent Sifo - Dyas to negotiate with the Pyke Syndicate to stop a booming drug trade underneath Coruscant . Valorum also revealed that he kept this secret , fearing his opponents in the bureaucracy . The talks were postponed after the Council sent Sifo - Dyas to intervene on Felucia . Valorum was unable to identify the second Jedi , but did say that his assistant , Silman , was with Sifo - Dyas when he was shot down . Eventually , Yoda dispatched Anakin and Obi - Wan to Oba Diah , where they learned the Pykes were paid to shoot down the ship carrying Sifo - Dyas , but had kept Silman captive as leverage and that Dooku was in fact the individual known as Tyrannus , leading them to realize Dooku impersonated Syfo - Dias to help push forward the Clone Wars . Yoda , not knowing how to stop the plot , suggested the Jedi keep the discovery a secret , and that they should keep playing the Sith Lord ' s game . Discovering immortality . While meditating during the end of the war , Yoda heard the voice of Qui - Gon Jinn , who demonstrated his presence by levitating Yoda . The encounter left Yoda distracted during the subsequent Council gathering , leaving them worried about whether the stresses of the war were finally taking its toll on him . While strolling through the Temple gardens , Yoda was greeted by Anakin . Yoda asked him about his encounter with Qui - Gon ' s spirit on Mortis , which Anakin had dismissed as a trick , noting the Jedi belief that one could not retain their identity after becoming one with the Force . Yoda responded that he now questioned this dogma . Yoda confessed what happened to the Council , much to their disbelief . They agreed though to meditate with him , to verify his experience . Despite meditating together for an entire day , they were unable to hear anything . Ki - Adi - Mundi expressed worry that Yoda had become susceptible to Sith manipulation , so Yoda underwent medical tests that revealed that he was still in good health . Jedi Doctor Rig Nema suggested Yoda undergo a deprivation ritual that would allow him to meditate more strongly and find the source of the voice . Agreeing , Yoda was suspended in a liquid tank with an oxygen mask to bring him as close as possible to death without actually becoming one with the Force . While unconscious , Qui - Gon ' s voice requested Yoda go to Dagobah , and to tell no one about it . After , Obi - Wan broke open the tank due to his concern over Yoda ' s failing life signs . Put on bedrest and under guard , Yoda convinced Anakin to help him escape by posing as simply accompanying each other for a walk . Guided to the Jedi Temple Hangar , Anakin lent Yoda his astromech droid R2 - D2 to accompany him to his personal interceptor . Yoda and R2 - D2 flew to Dagobah , where Yoda asked the droid to stay with their ship while he found a clearing to meditate . Qui - Gon ' s voice greeted him . Yoda asked why he could not see him . Qui - Gon explained he had not been fully trained enough to do so . The Living Force appeared to Yoda in the form of fireflies , guiding Yoda to a cave strong with the dark side , it showed the Jedi Master a vision of the future , where a hooded Sith Lord slaughtered the Jedi . Qui - Gon explained to a distraught Yoda that he would help him bring hope for the future , and directed him to the planet that spawned the midi - chlorian s . Arriving there , Yoda gave his lightsaber to R2 - D2 for safekeeping , and descended into the world to meet the Force Priestesses , who agreed to teach him how to achieve life after death . First , Yoda confronted a manifestation of his own dark side , conquering his hubris . Next , he witnessed a vision of the Jedi massacred in the Temple , where an apparition of a dying Ahsoka Tano asked him if she would still become one with the Force after being expelled from the Jedi Order ; this vision was a manifestation of Yoda ' s guilt over having placed Tano on the path that led to her departure . An apparition of Katooni then invited Yoda to enter a peaceful courtyard to escape these painful events . Seeing Qui - Gon Jinn , Kenobi , Tano and Dooku together , alive and full Jedi , Yoda eventually recognized the vision ' s falsehood , overcoming its temptation and his attachment to those that have fallen . Instructed to complete his tests on the Sith homeworld of Moraband , Yoda and R2 - D2 flew to the valley where the ancient Sith Lords were buried . Recognizing the danger , Yoda instructed R2 - D2 to return to the Jedi Temple and inform the Council of what happened , if he did not come back after three nights . Spectres of a serpent , undead Sith warriors and even Darth Bane himself confronted him , but Yoda brushed them off . As he entered a temple execution chamber , the Force Priestesses warned Yoda that whatever he encountered there would be beyond their control . Unknown to Yoda , Darth Sidious and Dooku sensed his presence on Moraband , and met in an abandoned tower in the industrial sector of Coruscant . Using Dooku and Yoda ' s Force - bond , Sidious planned to reach out to Yoda and crush his spirit . Appearing to Yoda in the form of Sifo - Dyas , Sidious had Yoda wake up in a Republic attack gunship with Anakin and members of the 501st Legion , en route to terminate the Sith on Coruscant . As they arrived , the clones , lead by Captain Rex , rushed at Dooku only to be hit with Sith lightning . Skywalker immediately attacked Dooku while Sidious fled . Walking sadly past the fallen clones , a dismayed Yoda witnessed Skywalker brutally decapitate Dooku . However , he left Skywalker and pursued Sidious . Emerging out on a catwalk , Yoda and Sidious dueled . Skywalker tried to help , but Sidious knocked him out . Sensing an opportunity , Sidious damaged the catwalk , forcing Yoda to divide his attention between Force - lifting Skywalker to save him from falling to his death and blocking Sidious ' Sith lightning . After Sidious taunted him by suggesting he sacrifice Skywalker to concentrate on defeating him , Yoda put down his lightsaber to ensure Skywalker ' s safety . As the catwalk collapsed Yoda maneuvered Skywalker to safety and grabbed Sidious , dragging him down too . The incident proved Yoda ' s selflessness and demonstrated his resolve to Sidious , who concluded the illusion as he realized it would take more to defeat the Jedi Master . Yoda awoke , and was greeted by a Priestess who explained he would continue his training with Qui - Gon ' s spirit . As she disappeared in a glow of light , Yoda had a vision of the future , including his own death . Yoda returned to the Jedi Temple , where Windu and Kenobi greeted him in the garden . Yoda claimed his journey had been uneventful , but felt it had demonstrated the Jedi had been wrong to wage the war on the Republic ' s behalf . Utapau Crystal Crisis . Following the death of Master Tu - Anh on the sinkhole world of Utapau , Yoda and his fellow Jedi Council members sent Master Kenobi and Anakin on a mission to investigate her death . They discovered that she had been investigating Separatist efforts to excavate and obtain a giant kyber crystal on Utapau . After destroying the crystal and thus denying the Separatists access to the weapon , Yoda was present at a Council meeting when the two Jedi gave a report of the events on Utapau . During the meeting , Yoda recounted how the ancient Sith had constructed superweapons using massive kyber crystals to power them up . He feared that Dooku ' s mysterious master Darth Sidious had similar intentions . The Dooku assassination attempt . Yoda and his fellow Jedi Council members witnessed Count Dooku ' s devastating attack on Mahranee , the home world of the Mahran species , via hologram . The Council was reluctant to condone an assassination , but ultimately concluded that killing Dooku was necessary to end the war and prevent more deaths . The Council decided to use Master Quinlan Vos , who had considerable experience with undercover work , to assassinate the Separatist leader . When Vos suggested that a partner accompany him , Yoda recommended Asajj Ventress , Dooku ' s former Sith apprentice and a Nightsister for that mission , knowing her hatred for Dooku . Ventress agreed to assist Vos with his mission but insisted that he had to learn the ways of the dark side . Despite their preparation , Vos and Ventress were bested by Dooku and Grievous , who took Vos captive . Dooku then managed to bring Vos over to the dark side by revealing that Ventress had murdered his late Master , Tholme . After Vos spurned Ventress ' offer to rescue him , he became Dooku ' s newest Sith apprentice and assumed the persona of " Admiral Enigma . " Ventress informed Master Kenobi who conveyed the news to his fellow Council members including Yoda . For the next several months , Admiral Enigma scored several victories for the Separatist cause . When Vos ' old friend Akar - Deshu , a Mahran Jedi , brought Ventress into a Council meeting to discuss rescuing Vos , Yoda and Kenobi spoke up for Ventress when Windu wanted to arrest her . During the proceedings , Yoda and his fellow Jedi learned that Ventress had instructed Vos in the dark side in order to defeat Dooku . While Windu was suspicious of Ventress , Yoda and Kenobi were convinced that she genuinely cared for Vos and that she had rejected the Sith ways for good . After sending Ventress along with Desh and Anakin outside , Yoda and his fellow Jedi debated whether to include Ventress in their rescue mission . When Master Kenobi suggested leading the operation to rescue Vos , Yoda accepted Kenobi ' s offer and also argued that Ventress was key to the rescue mission . He also recommended that Kenobi take both Ventress and his former Padawan Skywalker along for the mission . After receiving intelligence from Admiral Wullf Yularen that Count Dooku and " Admiral Enigma " were planning to attack Taris , the Jedi Council decided that they had to move quickly to rescue Quinlan . In the end , the Council decided to offer Ventress a pardon for all her crimes in return for rescuing Vos . The rescue mission was a success and the Jedi succeeded in recovering Vos alive . To reward her services , Ventress was formally pardoned . Unknown to Yoda and his colleagues , Vos had become a Separatist double agent in order to gain Dooku ' s trust so that he could learn the identity of Darth Sidious and destroy the Sith once and for all . Using his position in the Jedi Order , Vos leaked intelligence about Jedi and Republic military operations to Count Dooku ; allowing the Separatists to undermine these operations . After several Council members voiced their suspicions about Vos ' true loyalties , Yoda had a personal meeting with Vos and was able to deduce that Quinlan had fallen to the dark side . To test Vos ' loyalties , the Jedi Council sent him to assassinate Dooku , but secretly sent Kenobi and Skywalker to tail him . Vos managed to defeat Dooku in lightsaber combat , but did not kill him . When Vos demanded that Dooku lead him to Darth Sidious , Kenobi and Skywalker promptly revealed themselves and arrested the two men . After learning of Vos and Dooku ' s arrest , Master Yoda ordered Kenobi to bring them back to the Jedi Temple where they would be interrogated and executed for their crimes . However , Vos and Dooku escaped with the unwitting help of Ventress , leading to the events of the Second battle of Christophsis . In the end , Ventress helped Vos return to the light side , but was killed by Dooku . Kenobi and Skywalker then recaptured Vos and brought him back to Coruscant . After Vos confessed all his crimes and explained his motivations to destroy the Sith , Yoda and his fellow Council members accepted Vos ' repentance as genuine and pardoned him . Kenobi , who believed that the order to assassinate Dooku was morally wrong and responsible for Vos ' fall to the dark side , took on the responsibility of monitoring Vos during his rehabilitation . Kenobi accompanied Vos to Dathomir for Ventress ' funeral . Distrust of the Chancellor and Battle of Kashyyyk . Three years after the initial battle on Geonosis , the Republic was crumbling under the attacks of the Confederacy . Throughout the course of the war , Palpatine had been granted ever increasing personal authority by the Senate to command both the war and the Republic at large . The Jedi Council , though reluctant to oppose the extremely popular Chancellor , nonetheless grew ever more concerned about the continual centralization of political power in Palpatine . After a Separatist attack on the Republic capital world of Coruscant by General Grievous , Skywalker came before Yoda , seeking counsel . He had been experiencing terrifying visions of the death of a loved one , though he did not reveal that the one in question was his secret wife , Padme Amidala . Yoda warned Skywalker to be wary of his visions and of his own feelings , as fear was a path to the dark side , and advised him to " train himself to let go of everything he feared to lose " . Skywalker , however , was dissatisfied with this answer , as he could not bear the thought of losing someone he loved . Shortly afterwards , Palpatine , hoping to increase his influence over the Jedi Council and further ingratiate himself with Anakin Skywalker , appointed the young Jedi to be his personal representative on the Council . The Council , having little choice , begrudgingly accepted Palpatine ' s interference , but refused to grant Skywalker the rank of Jedi Master , infuriating him . Additionally , the Council gave Skywalker the unofficial assignment of spying on Palpatine , an assignment which Skywalker was less than enthusiastic about , as he regarded Palpatine as a friend and a mentor . Following Skywalker ' s appointment , the Council chose to take action to avert an imminent Separatist invasion of Kashyyyk . Yoda chose to personally oversee the defense , as he was held in high esteem by the Wookiees . After the battle , Yoda participated in a holographic session of the Council , where he learned from Skywalker that Republic intelligence located the fugitive General Grievous in the Utapau system . When Skywalker volunteered to lead the campaign , with the stated approval of Palpatine , Yoda and Mace Windu both disagreed , and Yoda nominated Kenobi to be sent instead . Agreeing with Yoda , fellow councilor Ki - Adi - Mundi seconded the nomination and the decision was made . While Yoda was on Kashyyyk , Supreme Chancellor Palpatine revealed his true identity as the Sith Lord Darth Sidious , turned Anakin Skywalker to the dark side of the Force , and defeated a group of Jedi Council members who had come to arrest him . Order 66 . Christening his newfound apprentice Darth Vader , Palpatine sent him and and the 501st Attack Battalion to attack the Jedi temple and slaughter all who resided there . Meanwhile , Sidious began to broadcast Order 66 to the clone troopers , a contingency order that required them to eliminate their Jedi Generals . As the clone army turned on their leaders galaxywide , Yoda sensed the deaths of his fellow Jedi and fell to his knees . Commander Gree and another trooper received Order 66 a few moments afterwards and prepared to shoot Yoda . However , Yoda sensed their intentions and decapitated the duo with his lightsaber . He then proceeded to escape with the help of the Wookiees Chewbacca and Tarfful , rendezvousing with Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and Obi - Wan Kenobi , who had escaped death on Utapau . The two Jedi discussed their situation , during which Bail and Yoda informed Kenobi that the Temple was broadcasting a coded retreat message , ordering all surviving Jedi to return to Coruscant . Yoda and Kenobi decided to return to the Temple and reconfigure the beacon to warn any survivors to go into hiding , and to that end Bail took them to Coruscant . The two Jedi fought their way in and witnessed the effects of the rampage by Vader and his clone unit , including the visible lightsaber cuts on several dead clones . In the meantime , Palpatine reforms the Republic into the first Galactic Empire with himself as its Emperor . That was the beginning of the Age of the Empire . The Age of the Empire . Duel in the Senate . Having recalibrated the signal , Kenobi wished to learn the identity of the one responsible for the massacre . Yoda , aware that Anakin Skywalker ' s fall to the dark side would cause Kenobi pain , cautioned him before the younger Jedi activated the security recordings . The duo thus learned of Palpatine ' s Sith identity and the formation of the Galactic Empire from the Republic . Agreeing that the two Sith had to be destroyed , Yoda headed to the Galactic Senate to confront Palpatine , while a deeply reluctant Kenobi departed to the volcanic planet of Mustafar to face his former apprentice . Upon arriving into the Senate , Yoda confronted Palpatine , who surprised the Jedi and rendered him unconscious with a burst of Force lightning . As the Sith boasted about the eradication of the Order at his hand , Yoda managed to wake up and slammed his opponent into a wall . Palpatine attempted to escape , but the Grand Master blocked the exit . The duo then drew their lightsabers and engaged in a fierce duel that soon continued into the central auditorium of the Senate Building . Yoda was able to overwhelm Sidious in lightsaber combat and the Dark Lord began using the Force to assault Yoda . After repulsing Sidious ' s multiple telekenetic assault , which used several Senate Hoverpods , Yoda was disarmed of his lightsaber by Sidious ' s Force Lightning and forced to use the Force to absorb the attack . Yoda was able to deflect Sidious ' s lightning back to him but was flung to the bottom of the Senate Building . Yoda realised that he cannot defeat Sidious and chose to flee . He crawled through the maintenance tunnels of the building to the airspeeder of Senator Bail Organa , considering the duel his personal failure and voicing his intent to go into self - imposed exile . Exile . After being rescued by Bail Organa , the two proceeded to the asteroid Polis Massa , where Yoda conferred with Qui - Gon Jinn ' s spirit , who offered him to train him in techniques that could help him retain his identity after his death . Obi - Wan Kenobi , having defeated but not killed Vader on Mustafar , arrived soon thereafter , bringing with him the dying Senator Amidala . She gave birth to her twins from Anakin Skywalker and named them Luke and Leia before her death . Sensing the children ' s power in the Force , Yoda , Kenobi and Organa decided to keep them hidden in unsuspecting locations to avoid detection by the Empire ; Luke Skywalker was delivered to the Lars family on Tatooine , while Organa personally adopted his sister , Leia . As the trio prepared to go their separate ways , Yoda asked Kenobi for a moment of his time . He revealed that he had training for him during his solitude on Tatooine , and that Qui - Gon Jinn had reached the path to immortality , having returned from the Netherworld of the Force . Yoda decided he would teach Kenobi to communicate with Jinn . Using an E3 - standard starship lifeboat , Yoda returned to Dagobah to begin his own exile . The lifeboat served as Yoda ' s initial shelter but it started to degrade within a year due to Dagobah ' s swamp y environment . As the first shelter was slowly consumed by the swamp , Yoda built a new home for himself . He thus settled down to wait for the twins to grow up , and continued his studies of the Force . Helping the Spectres . During his exile on Dagobah , Yoda kept an eye on other Jedi throughout the galaxy , including those who ventured into the various Jedi Temples found amongst the stars . Approximately four years before the Battle of Yavin , Yoda spoke to Kanan Jarrus , who had been the Padawan of Depa Billaba and a survivor of Order 66 . Jarrus had traveled to the Jedi Temple on the planet Lothal with his own Padawan , Ezra Bridger , to whom Yoda also spoke . Bridger was in the temple in order to overcome his greatest fears ; Yoda acted as an anonymous guide in helping Bridger do so and to understand why he wanted to become a Jedi and how to withdraw from the anger and the wish of revenge within him . This guidance led Bridger to receive a kyber crystal , which he used to build his own lightsaber . Meanwhile , Yoda counseled Jarrus about Jarrus ' insecurities as a teacher . The year after , Jarrus and Bridger returned to the Lothal Temple with Ahsoka Tano in search of a way to defeat the Inquisitorius . Yoda cast an illusion of the Jedi Temple Guard for Jarrus , including the Grand Inquisitor as he was before the Jedi Purge . The Inquisitor forced Jarrus to recognize his fears and knighted him a true Jedi . Meanwhile , Bridger pleaded with Yoda for help : despite his pacifism , the Jedi Master ultimately directed him to go to Malachor . When the other Inquisitors arrived , Yoda used the Temple Guard to distract them as the Jedi escaped . As she fled , Tano turned back and saw Yoda , who smiled and waved at her : she smiled back . Galactic Civil War . Taking a new apprentice . Years later , Luke Skywalker , under guidance from the Force spirit of Obi - Wan Kenobi who had served as his mentor , sought Yoda in his Dagobah exile to receive Jedi training . To test Skywalker , Yoda did not reveal his true identity and instead promised to lead him to Yoda ; Skywalker ' s subsequent frustration and his age made the Jedi doubtful as to whether it was a good idea to train the boy , but Kenobi ' s spirit managed to convince him to do so . Yoda proceeded to tutor Skywalker with a variety of exercises , including the telekinetic manipulation of objects in the area . As part of his training , he also sent Skywalker into a nearby cave , which was powerful with the dark side in order to demonstrate the dangers of falling to the dark side of the Force . During his tenure with Yoda , Skywalker sensed that his friends were in danger in Cloud City on the gas giant Bespin , and headed there to confront Darth Vader in spite of Yoda ' s and Kenobi ' s persuasion to the contrary . Although Kenobi was distraught by Skywalker ' s rushed departure , Yoda reminded him that there was still another offspring of Anakin Skywalker — Leia Organa . Death . Skywalker , having engaged in a duel with Vader on Cloud City , returned to Dagobah after a year . Yoda , ill and very close to death , confirmed what Vader had revealed to the young Jedi on Bespin : that the Sith Lord indeed was Anakin Skywalker , his father . He also warned him that with his training fully complete , his final task would be confronting Vader again and defeating him , and cautioned Skywalker not to underestimate the Force powers of Galactic Emperor Palpatine . Finally , he also managed to inform him of the existence of another member of the Skywalker family . Yoda then died , and his body disappeared as he became one with the Force . Postmortem and legacy . Thanks to the techniques passed on to him by Qui - Gon Jinn ' s spirit , Yoda managed to retain his consciousness without a physical presence by becoming a Force spirit . Luke Skywalker used the training he received to confront Palpatine and Darth Vader aboard the Death Star II over the forest moon Endor as part of an all - out attack on the station by the anti - Imperial Rebel Alliance , defeating Vader and turning him back to the light side of the Force , resulting in Palpatine ' s death at the hands of the redeemed Anakin Skywalker . After his redemption , Anakin would die . As the rebels and Luke celebrated on the surface of the moon due to the demolition of Death Star and the deaths of Palpatine and Vader , the ghosts of Anakin , Kenobi and Yoda briefly appeared to Luke . Thirty years later , Rey heard Yoda ' s voice describing the Force during a vision she witnessed upon touching the lightsaber that previously belonged to Luke Skywalker , and his father before him . Sometime later , after Rey had visited Luke on his hermit - island on Ahch - To , a disillusioned and self - loathing Skywalker tried to burn down what few Jedi artifacts and writings were left in hopes that it would rid the galaxy of the Jedi once and for all , who , through him , had failed . Luke was surprised by the sudden appearance of Master Yoda as a Force spirit , who not only didn ' t seem to mind the ancient scripts burning up , but was the one to actually start the fire by causing lightning to strike the tree . In fact , unbeknownst to Luke , Rey had already taken the Jedi books when she left . During their meeting , Yoda pointed out that mistakes and failure are important lessons , if not the most important lesson , for a Jedi Master . Ultimately , Yoda helped Skywalker come to terms with his failed training of Ben Solo , and to realize that Rey already was a powerful Force user in her own right that didn ' t need his help . In reality , it was Luke that needed to forgive himself . This final , heartfelt meeting between the two friends led to Luke changing his mind and helping save the Resistance from certain defeat during the Battle of Crait . Personality and traits . Known for his wisdom , Yoda had spent eight centuries training and tutoring generations of Jedi . He was reluctant to accept Anakin Skywalker or Luke Skywalker for Jedi training , considering them unfit . In both cases , however , he allowed Obi - Wan Kenobi to persuade him into accepting them as trainees . When Dooku triggered a partial room collapse during his duel with Yoda on Geonosis , the Jedi , confronted with the choice of pursuing the fleeing Sith or protecting the hurt Obi - Wan Kenobi and unconscious Anakin Skywalker from the falling debris , opting to save his comrades instead of going after Dooku . However , when fellow Master Plo Koon ' s fleet was destroyed by the Confederate superweapon " Malevolence " , Yoda forbade Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano to conduct a search for Koon , citing the danger posed by the Separatist vessel . Yoda was able to resist being tempted by the specter of the dead Sith Lord Darth Bane , who had appeared to him in a vision on the planet Moraband , recognizing that the spirit was a mere illusion and rejecting its call to the dark side . As he neared his death before the Battle of Endor commenced , Yoda accepted his own mortality and imminent demise and died becoming one with the Force . Yoda ' s ears were expressive and would sometimes curl when he was expressing strong emotions like surprise . Despite his intensive Jedi training and high status within the Order , he stated that he secretly had a dislike for ancient Jedi texts . He also had a good sense of humour and a sense of curiosity , despite his age and wisdom , which was shown when he playfully rummaged through Luke ' s belongings when he first met him , fought R2 - D2 for a torch , and laughed gleefully when he supposedly set the ancient Jedi texts on fire , and finding Luke ' s continued ignorance amusing , commenting that he had ' missed him ' . Powers and abilities . Despite his advanced age and small size , Yoda was an extremely powerful and skilled Jedi Master , considered to be the greatest Jedi Master of his time . Exceptionally skilled in lightsaber combat , Yoda was considered to be the most skilled warrior in the Jedi Order , even being the only one in the Order who surpassed the likes of Mace Windu and Count Dooku as a Jedi in lightsaber combat . Wielding a short green - bladed lightsaber , Yoda displayed a tremendous level of efficiency and skill with it . His dueling style appeared to heavily incorporate acrobatics that were supplemented by his small body ' s great agility . His mastery of lightsaber combat allowed him to not only stalemate Count Dooku , now Darth Tyranus , who had just previously easily defeated the likes of Anakin and Kenobi , but he also held a noticeable advantage over his fallen apprentice and would have defeated him had he not fled . He was also shown to be able to fight Darth Sidious , who had effortlessly outmatched the likes of Agen Kolar , Saesee Tiin , and Kit Fitso , who were both highly capable duelists on their own right , on equal footing and slowly gain the upper hand , forcing the Dark Lord to use the Force to force Yoda to flee . In addition to his exceptional skills with a lightsaber , Yoda was also tremondously powerful in the Force and was shown to be immensely skilled in applying the Force in combat . He was shown to be capable of using the Force to absorb and redirecting the Force lightning of Count Dooku through his bare hands with no apparent strain . He was even able to at least partially replicate this feat with the lightning cast by the immensely powerful Darth Sidious , though he was nearly overwhelmed in the attempt and could not fully redirect it . Yoda was also shown on several occasions to possess extraordinary telekinetic prowess , and was able to easily halt and redirect numerous heavy objects thrown at him by Count Dooku before their duel . He could effortlessly telekinetically disarm the very powerful Dark Jedi Asaji Ventress by simply gesturing at her weapons . He had enough telekinetic strength that he was able to keep Anakin levitated while also grounding Sidious ' s Force Lightning with his lightsaber while in the illusion that Sidious created . Yoda ' s telekenetic prowess was even strong enough to send Sidious flying through the air with a powerful Force Push , and stop and redirect a Senate hoverpod thrown at him by the Dark Lord during their duel . In order to teach Luke Skywalker that anything was possible with the Force , Yoda levitated his student ' s sunken T - 65B X - wing starfighter out of a swamp of Dagobah and onto dry land with apparent ease . Yoda was able to stop strikes from Giants of living stone . During a confrontation with Confederate forces on the coral moon of Rugosa , Yoda annihilated an entire squad of droids without using his lightsaber , and destroyed three assault tanks and their accompanying infantry single - handedly . His abillity to use the combative applications of the Force notwithstanding , Yoda ' s incredibly strong connection to the Force combined with his years of extensive study also granted him numerous supplementary abilities . During the trial of Quinlan Vos , Yoda revealed that he could uncover the alignment of a Force - user just by touching them — stating that the Force had permitted him to read the history of a soul , able to easily sense that he had fallen to the Dark Side despite Vos being proficient enough to hide it from many other Jedi . While physically isolated on Dagobah , Yoda was able to see other Jedi that were active in the Force ; he could not see one that had forsaken the ways of the Jedi . He could keep in mental contact with the Jedi Temples across the galaxy , and telepathically converse with any Jedi within them . He also was able to fully master the skill of maintaining consciousness after death , something that Qui - Gon Jinn was unable to do , allowing him to manifest a form rather than just being invisible while speaking . Yoda was also shown to be capable of experiencing Force visions . However , he understood that Force prophecy was not absolute and that the future was always in motion . His visions led him to foresee the fall of the Jedi in the Clone Wars and even his own death . Yoda was also shown to have a level of profiency in piloting despite often leaving it to his soldiers , as when he was forced to travel alone by Qui - Gon Jinn , Yoda displayed the abillity to single - handedly pilot Anakin ' s personal interceptor comfortably without fail and was able to avoid inflicting any damage on it until he returned to the Jedi . In spite of all his abilities however , the diminutive Jedi Master was ultimately unable to defeat Darth Sidious during their final duel in the Galactic Senate chamber . As a Force spirit , Yoda was evidently capable of either manipulating weather to create lightning strikes , or summoning such strikes himself . He was also shown to be capable of striking Luke Skywalker with his walking stick , demonstrating an ability to interact with the living world in a physical sense despite both Yoda and the stick being ostensibly non - corporeal . Behind the scenes . Originally named " Minch Yoda " before it was shortened to simply Yoda , the character made his first appearance in the 1980 film , and subsequently appeared in , the closing installment of the original trilogy . He was also featured in all three episodes of the prequel trilogy , and multiple episodes of the and " Star Wars Rebels " animated television series . Yoda also played a role in various Expanded Universe material now under the " Star Wars " Legends brand and thus non - canonical . Many of the information and training that Yoda gave to Luke on Dagobah was originally going to be given by Ben Kenobi , but due to Kenobi ' s death in " A New Hope " , George Lucas conceived Yoda to fulfill the role of Luke ' s teacher after Kenobi ' s death . Early concepts of Yoda imagined him as a large alien before he was reimplemented as a tiny one , with various gnome – and elfin - like portrayals being created by the design team of Episode V . Once Yoda ' s appearance was finalized , make - up and creatures supervisor Stuart Freeborn created a detailed puppet , brought to life on screen by Frank Oz . A new model , younger in appearance , was built by Nick Dudman ' s animatronics crew for the filming of Episode I , in which Yoda also appeared as a CGI model for two shots ' duration . In Episode II , Yoda ' s character was realized entirely through computer - generated imagery , partly due to the practical necessity imposed by the action scenes of Yoda ' s duel with Dooku , and partly due to the determination of Animation Director Rob Coleman . Designed specifically to not exceed Oz ' s puppetwork in realism , the animated version of Yoda was accepted after several shots from " Empire Strikes Back " were recreated using the new technology as animation tests and evaluated . Yoda ' s " Star Wars : The Clone Wars " incarnation was voiced by veteran " Star Wars " voice actor Tom Kane . During the " Revenge of the Sith " DVD press conference in 2005 , Frank Oz initially mentioned that he was going to be involved in the series , but in a 2007 interview with Aintitcoolnews . com he eventually denied any involvement . In spite of this , Oz later returned to voice the character in " Star Wars Rebels " . Frank Oz also reprised his role as Yoda in both the 2015 film and the 2017 film . In " The Force Awakens " , Yoda ' s voice was heard during Rey ' s Force vision along with Obi - Wan Kenobi ' s . During the film ' s early development , Yoda was originally going to have a bigger role , a decision that went far enough to ask Frank Oz to record some lines as Yoda , although these recordings went unused when the character was cut from the film . According to " The Last Jedi " director Rian Johnson , for Yoda ' s appearance in the film : " Neal Scanlan and his team did a recreation of the Yoda puppet . It ' s not only a puppet , it ' s an exact replica of the " Empire " puppet . They found the original molds for it . They found the woman that painted the original eyes for Yoda . Then Frank came and worked with them for a few weeks to get the puppet right . He did a lot of testing and a lot of adjusting with the puppet creators . It was amazing to watch the process . " The number of toes on Yoda ' s feet has long been debated . In " " , Yoda is given as having three toes at the front of each of his feet , and one at the back , comparing them with that of many birds .