Just How Many Jedi Survived Order 66?

Order 66 wasn’t that bad, right?

I mean, not EVERYBODY died. That’s a win in some sense? I think? Sure, MOST of the Jedi bought the farm, but a handful of them survived! We’ve gotta look on the bright side every once in a while, right? Otherwise, how can we stand living under the tyranny of an evil intergalactic empire hellbent on eradicating peace, justice, and freedom from the galaxy? We just won’t.

At any rate, if you want to know just how many Jedi survived the infamous Order 66 in the Star Wars universe, you’ve come to the right place.

So how many Jedi survived Order 66?

About 20.

Yep. 20. Actually, a little less if the list I linked above is to be believed. And not all of them lasted long. Many were killed by Inquisitors immediately after Order 66, but at least they had a couple of days left to live! That’s nice! Obviously, we know that Obi-Wan Kenobi survived, along with Ahsoka Tano. Yoda made it out, too. After all, SOMEBODY had to train Luke in order to defeat Darth Vader and the rest of the Empire.

So how many Jedi died during the attack? Almost 10,000—meaning that only 0.2% of Jedi survived. Hey, that’s 0.2 more than 0.0!

But what killed them? They’re Jedi, after all! They cut through imperial foot soldiers like cake! How did this happen?

Numbers happened.

Overwhelming odds almost always assures victory in war, even against an enemy who is better trained and better equipped. 300 Spartans held out against thousands of Persians at Thermopylae for days, but in the end they were overwhelmed. Not even the finest Jedi could survive being suddenly blasted with lasers on all sides in a surprise attack from their own comrades. It was unthinkable, diabolical, and therefore, diabolically effective.

But not super-effective, to put it in Pokémon battle terms. The surviving Jedi ended up coming back from the brink of death and destroying the supremacy of the Empire! Woo-hoo! It just goes to show how powerful 0.2% of the Jedi are. Despite all that preparation, the Empire still underestimated them.

(featured image: Lucasfilm)