Less powerful as a force user. The quote is available on the forum somewhere, but yeah, it's quite explicit that in terms of the force, because he's now something like half-machine, he can never be what he could've been, or as powerful as he was. He's likened to a painter gone blind, a composer gone deaf, etc.Is he less powerful in a Force-user sense, or less powerful in a crippled, ruined lungs, stiff neck and shoulders sense?
No, he has a breakdown alright ... when he learns that Padme was dead from Sidious. He lets out the full fury of the force, in an attempt to "destroy" the shadow- clearly being Palpatine, who's described as a shadow earlier in the novel, but he can only destroy the entire room and all the droids in there- though there is the fact that he doesn't really want to destroy the shadow, since it all he has, forever. Until he finds about his children ... of course. (that last sentence isn't in the novel, it's jsut obvious).I haven't read the novelisation, so is it possible that he's simply had a breakdown? He was incredibly arrogant, then his best friend left him to die, and then he woke up a hideous half-man, unable to survive without mechanical support. That's a huge comedown, and perhaps he was never able to psycologically come to terms with his injuries?
But either way, it is clearly established in the novel and by Lucas in the commenatries that he's not what he once was, nor ever will be.
It's not just the limbs, as I understand it. The novel says he doesn't even really have lungs anymore.. His injuries were extremely grave- it takes more than merely a hand to seriously affect you. Vader lost a LOT of himself- Anakin after AOTC and Luke after TESB didn't really at all.My problem with the 'weaker because of his injuries' = 'weaker because of cyber' is that he already had lost an arm, Luke lost a hand, etc, and noone said 'shit, you're down 10% Force interaction' or 'oh my, the midiclorians are moving out in droves'. I'm not being argumentative, I'm just not sure I understand.
Which makes me really enjoy Vader cutting Obi-Wan down in ANH. Old bastard. Mack Daddy my arse.
Poor old Kenobi, not powerful enough to beat a much-reduced apprentice, weighed down by the superior powers of Vader enough that his eyes were blurry and he felt physically heavy in his presence (ANH novelization), gave up like a wimp."Your powers are weak, old man!"
Ahhh ... gold. Vader gets his revenge. A day long remembered.
Do you get the impression I think Obi-Wan's a dickhead?
Obi-Wan gave Luke just the right information that he needed, without burdening him (or scaring him) so that he could get the job done.
How did this go from a discussion of why cloned limbs aren't prevalent in the SW-verse to a discussion of Vader's fighting skillz? Rather the hijack, I'd think..... 
