Star Wars: The Clone Wars introduced a rare Force power that never made its way into the movies: psychometry, sometimes referred to as "retrocognition." The Force is a powerful ally to a Jedi, and intimate knowledge of the Force unlocks countless abilities. A Jedi's training begins with learning to block blaster bolts with a lightsaber, an exercise that teaches them to trust in the Force.

But some powers are rare, with individual Jedi showing a predilection toward them that appears to be genetic. One example was Mace Windu's "Shatterpoint" power, arguably still canon as part of the novelization of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. This allowed Mace to instinctively sense the weakness in any object or even person. It made him a ruthless tactician and a tremendously skillful combatant, even if it wasn't enough for him to defeat Palpatine; he correctly intuited Anakin Skywalker as Darth Sidious' shatterpoint, but didn't understand what it meant until it was too late.

Related: Star Wars Hints Qui-Gon Was The Only Jedi Who Could Stop Sidious

"Psychometry" was another unique Force power that was introduced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. This was a rare ability demonstrated by Quinlan Vos, and it allowed him to experience an object's past whenever he touched it. Most Force users do not learn psychometry, but rather are born with the ability, and find early experiences physically exhausting. The Jedi Council distrusted psychometry because it opened a Jedi up to the emotions they were sensing; if a Jedi touched a murder weapon, for example, they would potentially experience the anger of the killer or the fear of the victim. Quinlan Vos' use of psychometry continually drew him toward the dark side.

Star Wars Quinlan Vos

Rey may well have a predilection toward psychometry as well, because the power bears some similarity to the Forceback she experienced when she touched Luke Skywalker's old lightsaber in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. There's a hint of psychometry when Rey handles Ochi's Sith dagger in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, but it isn't developed in any consistent manner. As a result, most viewers wouldn't even know anything special in the Force was going on at that moment - let alone that Rey was tapping into a rare Force power. It's frankly fortunate for Palpatine that she wasn't more proficient in this ability, because she could potentially have seen through a lot of his tricks with it.

Psychometry - sometimes called "sense echo" - may not have become a prominent part of the movies, but the ability has been featured extensively in other mediums. The Jedi: Fallen Order game focused on the character of Cal Kestis, a Jedi who survived Order 66 and remained active during the Dark Times. He possessed the ability of psychometry, and the game incorporated it into its mechanics as a convenient plot device. Meanwhile, Kevin Shinick's young-adult novel Force Collector featured another Force-sensitive who was born with psychometry; Karr Nuq Sin wasn't particularly strong in the Force, but he could intuit an object's past the moment he touched it. That story was set shortly before the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, so it's entirely possible he will join with Rey and help rebuild the Jedi Order, using his Force-acquired knowledge to help her.

More: Star Wars Confirms The First Jedi DIDN’T Serve The Light Side