Why did Vader believe Luke was on the Falcon

Surely, he would have thought that Luke might have also been on one of the X-Wings leaving Hoth?

 

he wasn't necessarily after luke at this point. the falcon made a fool of vader and he wanted the ship. vader knew luke would come to him if he had the ship because he knew they were luke's friends. it was all part of his scheme.

 

He may have sensed Leia and assumed it was Luke.

 

He wanted all the main rebels. If he didn't catch Luke on the Falcon, he would still have Luke's friends. Either way, Luke would have to face Vader.

 

You stand corrected Bib Fortuna, Twi'lek.

 

There is no indication from the film that Vader ever thought Luke was on the Falcon. (Referring to the scenes immediately following the battle of Hoth.) True, he's after the Falcon, but he never says that he thinks Luke is on it. "There will be a substantial reward for the one who finds the Millenium Falcon..." "I want that ship, not excuses" etc. Vader's goal is clearly to capture Luke's friends and lure him in to rescue them.

I don't remember any explanation for why the Imperial fleet didn't just go after Luke's X-Wing leaving Hoth. Vader can obviously sense Luke's presence, but when Luke is leaving, there's no sign of any Imperial ships chasing him down.

(Could it be because the Falcon was easier to capture, and the X-wing was too fast? I doubt it - Han refers to the Falcon as "the fastest ship in the fleet" in ROTJ, and the fleet clearly includes X-Wings.)

 

Luke and Wedge found a seam through the Imperial fleet. Han was not so lucky.

 

Evidently so.

I guess they didn't take Vader seriously when he said "Deploy the fleet so that nothing gets off the system."

 

In the ESB radio drama, it's clear that Luke, Wedge and Terran(whoever the heck that is) are among the very last Rebels to leave Hoth. Wedge expresses concern about running the Imperial blockade, but Luke says, "The Empire must be pretty scattered by now from chasing all the other transports."

So I think all the Star Destroyers probably accidently left a space open somewhere in their attempt to capture the other fleeing ships, leaving a gap for Luke and them to slip through undetected.

 

He wasn't after Luke at that point.

The Falcon was one of the last ships to take off, and was spotted by Imperial Stormtroopers as it left the base. It made an easier target - freighters cannot maneuver as fast as starfighters.

The ship had contributed to the destruction of the Death Star at Yavin.

The Falcon was more recognisable than one X-wing in a fleet of several.


Several reasons

 

"He wasn't after Luke at that point."

Yes, he was. "I am sure, Skywalker is there" and the line in the opening crawl about him searching for Luke.

 

i always thought Vader was pist at the Falcon for what happens at the end of ANH.

 

I agree with Franksta to a certain extent, and came to the conclusion that Vader knows that if he finds the Falcon he'll find Luke. If Luke was on the Falcon then Vader has him. If Luke wasn't on the Falcon, Vader can use it to lure Luke to rescue his friends. Either way he has Luke.

 

Besides, Luke's X-WIng had a functional hyperdrive, so (even if he could pick it out among all the other X-Wings in the area) the Falcon was the ship that couldn't get away as easily.

 

The only time I remember Vader thinking Luke was on the Falcon was when Luke, Leia, Lando and Chewie were leaving Bespin. Man I gotta watch that again.

 

He knew he'd come with help, and he knew he wouldn't come alone.

 

if i understand the post preceding mine, he means luke.

and yes, r2d2 was a big help

 

i always thought Vader was pist at the Falcon for what happens at the end of ANH.

Maybe - but I don't think that would be justification for him to use the sheer amount of military resources he did to find the Falcon. He had to think there were important passengers onboard.

 

I always got the impression that the plan went pretty much as Vader wanted, and that he knew that Luke wasn't on the Falcon, but the Falcon would ultimately bring him Luke.

 

I think Vader just wanted the Falcon cause it was such a thorn in his plans. Plus he probably knew what the Falcon do.

 

Or maybe he spotted 3PO running aboard the Falcon and wanted his old droid back

 

"i always thought Vader was pist at the Falcon for what happens at the end of ANH."

I don't think that was really Vaders concern.

He foresaw that he could use Han and Leia as bait.

Thats why he tortured them on cloud city but didn't ask them any questions.

Because he knew in the past, Luke would have a vision of the future of his friends in pain. Vader knew this.

"that is why your friends are made to suffer"

Vaders goal for the falcon is not made clear until Lando reveals that it is all a trap for Luke. He has no interest in Leia, CHewie, Han or the falcon.

 

He probably knew Luke would be on it for Luke was on it with Obi-Wan and he thought it was the ship for Luke to be on.

 

The Falcon is a pretty cool ship. I wish I had one. I can't blame Vader for wanting one of his very own.

 

Personally I think he know Luke was not there and wanted his friends future to distract him and sent him the vision of his friends to him when he was on Dagobah to stop his traning.