In Star Wars, there's nothing more powerful than the Force. It's both a feeling and a tool mainly used by those more sensitive to its pull, like the Jedi. Once tuned in with the Force, these peacekeepers can use their abilities to perform impossible feats. From moving objects with their mind to being better equipped in lightsaber combat, the Force has shown that it can make a good person great or a bad person worse. But for most Jedi users, and even Sith, there's one invaluable maneuver that they rarely use: the Force Jump. So what's the reason that these powerful individuals haven't utilized such a helpful resource?
The Force Jump could allow the user to leap great heights with minimal effort on their part. In fact, this same maneuver saved Luke Skywalker from being frozen in carbonite and allowed Obi-Wan Kenobi to land a killing blow on Darth Maul. But even though the maneuver has proven valuable throughout Star Wars, it's not a skill that has been near as abused as the Mind Trick or Force Push. But the reason behind that may be more because of an individual's strength rather than their skill.
Most Jedi focus on different styles of lightsaber combat. For example, Obi-Wan was known for his defensive style, which made him nearly impenetrable to attacks. There is also another form known as Ataru, which was used by Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn. But it was a skill not meant for the faint of heart. To be a master of Ataru, users had to rigorously train their body and mind to measure up to the toll the form would take on the body. Furthermore, unlike other saber styles in Star Wars, Ataru also utilized the Force for acrobatic attacks. This also meant that Force Jump was a main factor.
While Yoda became an undisputed master of the form, others like Luke Skywalker and Qui-Gon Jinn suffered from typical human fatigue. While their stamina was already higher than the average person's, the acrobatics of Ataru utilized more of their strength than any other form. This was why it was unlikely to find many Ataru users during the Republic era, even though they existed.
Instead, Force Jump became a more common form of traversal in Star Wars and had remained as such for years to come. However, the Force was still an essential part of Jedi users' saber combat and was often used to amplify strength or more gymnastic maneuvers. A great example of this was Ahsoka Tano, who was famous for her flips and twists during combat. Ultimately, using these moves was much easier than the high jumps and flips needed for Ataru. That same fatigue even contributed to Qui-Gon's death against Darth Maul.
In the end, the Force Jump may still be one of the most important moves in Jedi history. However, due to the toll it takes on the body, only a small few in Star Wars have found the full range of benefits the move could provide. Nevertheless, it has proven to be a foolproof method to quickly get out of tight spots. But perhaps the best part of its underutilization has been that few expect a Force Jump to happen until it already has.
