A force cage served as a containment apparatus, specifically engineered to hold Force-sensitive detainees. The earliest iterations of these devices emerged before 3956 BBY during the Jedi Civil War. These detention devices, which remained in use through the New Republic era, were essentially tube-shaped energy shields. The structure comprised a base and a cap, interconnected by a rear column that also secured it to a wall. This arrangement functioned as a channel for the energy barrier, ensuring its operation and stability. Force cages were deployed across the galaxy, on diverse worlds ranging from the bustling city-planet of Taris to the isolated Sith planet of Korriban, and even on warships like the Leviathan, the flagship of the Sith Empire's war fleet. A portable variant of this device, which was still widely used, was developed in the years leading up to the Galactic Civil War. Bounty hunters like War'qi, Jango and Boba Fett frequently used these portable cages to keep their live captives secure until delivery.
Most force cages presented a seemingly uncomplicated design, resembling activated octagonal tubes. The frame, typically affixed to a wall or bulkhead, stood approximately two meters tall, with the base often positioned slightly below floor level. The emitted force fields varied in color, ranging from vibrant blue to orange, and could deliver a charge that spanned from a mild shock to complete incapacitation, potentially causing minor electrical burns. These devices could also be modified to project a "torture field," which, upon activation, would transmit extremely painful electrical currents through the trapped individual. The intensity of this effect was also adjustable, and could be increased to lethal levels, effectively serving as an impromptu execution method. Standard force cages provided sufficient space for a detainee to stand or sit. Some, like those in the Telosian Jedi Academy, which had been repurposed from water regulation pipes, were spacious enough for a full-grown Human to sleep comfortably.
Later force cage designs, particularly those employed during the era of the Galactic Empire, were constructed from a lightweight yet resilient ceramic material. Portable models typically measured two meters in length and height, and four meters in width when assembled. These portable models, even after assembly, offered an additional electrical deterrent against escape attempts. Assembly was generally straightforward, requiring only a basic understanding of security technology. However, they were not without weaknesses. Portable force cages were generally weaker than their permanent counterparts. Improper assembly could nullify the shocking effect of the force field, and even when correctly assembled, a sufficiently strong individual could break through the field or the frame.
While most force cages employed non-lethal barriers, they were frequently modified to inflict minor pain when uncooperative prisoners attempted to force their way through the energy barrier. Force cages could also be adapted into torture devices by adding feedback nodes that projected powerful electric shocks into the confined victim. Examples of such modifications were found in the estate of Tarisian crime lord Davik Kang, who used one to torture the former pilot of his ship, the Ebon Hawk. Other modified cages were located aboard the Leviathan, Admiral Saul Karath's Sith flagship, where he tortured the captured Revan, Carth Onasi, and Bastila Shan while interrogating them about their mission to locate the Star Forge. These cells could also be used for executions via electrocution or poison gas, as seen in the Sith military base on Taris, or the Republic Embassy on the neutral planet of Manaan. Similar cages were also present within the Sith Academy on Korriban.
Upon their initial development before 3956 BBY, force cages were commonly grouped together in dedicated, often locked rooms within police stations, security facilities, and similar locations throughout the galaxy. One such location was within the offices of the Telos Security Force aboard the massive Citadel Station in orbit above Telos IV, where the Jedi Exile and her companions, Kreia and Atton Rand, were briefly detained following the destruction of the Peragus Mining Facility. These cell blocks were typically managed through a central computer interface terminal, allowing for the simultaneous raising or lowering of barriers in various combinations. When an assassin, working for the Exchange criminal syndicate and disguised as TSF officer Batu Rem, attempted to assassinate the Exile and her party, he used a similar console to disable the security holocams and shut down the cages holding them.
The reformed Sith Empire utilized force cages during the Great Galactic War and its aftermath, installing them on Sith warships to transport prisoners of war. One such prisoner was the Togruta Jedi Master Dar'Nala, captured by Imperial forces under Captain Sivill in 3653 BBY, shortly after the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant. Sivill, believing Dar'Nala had violated the treaty's terms, subjected her to the cage's torture field while interrogating her. Dar'Nala insisted on her innocence, enduring severe punishment via electric shock. She withstood most of the torture but seemingly succumbed to the jolts after Sivill ordered her execution. In reality, Dar'Nala survived even these shocks, though she was severely scarred by the high voltage.
During the Galactic Empire's reign, a portable version, featuring a frame made of ceramic compounds, was developed for field use. These collapsible force cages, similar in form and function to those found in Imperial detention centers throughout Imperial Space, remained somewhat mobile after assembly and activation. Bounty hunters frequently used these devices to secure live captures, either for delivery to the bounty's issuer or for other purposes. One popular model, the S-3 manufactured by Damorind Securities, was purchased by War'qi and installed in his ship's cargo hold. One of the six holding cells within the Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft Slave I, the vessel previously owned by Jango Fett and later by Boba Fett, was a force cage. On Questal, Honest Ellam, a merchant and owner of Honest Ellam's Speeder Lot, used a force cage to restrain three caniphants. He released these predatory creatures at night to patrol the Speeder Lot and deter intruders.
The concept of force cages was initially introduced in the 1987 West End Games roleplaying publication The Star Wars Sourcebook as an in-universe description of the [prison](/article/prison-legends]-like cargo hold on Boba Fett's starship, Slave I. Subsequent West End Games sourcebooks reprinted this information without further elaboration on the type of force cage found on the vessel. However, Galaxy Guide 10: Bounty Hunters expanded upon the general characterization, describing a force cage as a portable detention device similar to fixed installations in Imperial prisons.
The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels introduced a conflict with established continuity by stating that Slave I's cargo hold contained prisoner cages and a force cage specifically designed for Force-sensitive individuals. This information was repeated in Star Wars: Behind the Magic and did not align with previous descriptions of a force cage. However, the earlier comic series Star Wars: Dark Empire depicted a type of containment device for Force users called a Universal Energy Cage. The Official Star Wars Fact File 26 further complicated the continuity by stating that Slave I contained a universal energy cage and prison cages, but not force cages. The New Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels noted that Slave I included a cell for Force-wielding prisoners. Other publications, like Star Wars: Incredible Cross-Sections and Star Wars: Complete Cross-Sections, did not specify the type of prisoner containment on Slave I. The Shadows of the Empire comic book featured three panels depicting prisoner containment systems on Slave I, but they were not identified, and their types remained unclear.
In contrast to earlier depictions, the force cage models in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, and The Old Republic, Threat of Peace Act 2: New Galactic Order are shown as permanent or semi-permanent structures that are immobile once built and lack a collapsible version. Other similar devices are featured in Star Wars lore, such as the containment field from Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, and the mobile stockade from Showdown at Centerpoint.