Lightsaber

**Lightsabers** were the iconic weapons used by members of the Jedi Order, as well as by their primary historical foes, the Sith. Consisting of a blade of plasma emitted from a device which served as the weapon's hilt, lightsabers were used in a manner very similar to that of traditional swords, with the plasma blade generating enough heat to allow the weapon to 'cut' by melting or burning nearly instantaneously through almost any substance, even thick metals and armor such as those used in the construction of heavy blast doors. Lightsabers could also be used defensively, as the electromagnetic bottle effect used to form the plasma blade could be used to deflect both the blades of other lighsabers as well as incoming blaster bolts. Usage of lightsabers was typically restricted to Force users, mainly because some of the critical steps involved in their construction required the use of the Force, but also because using a lightsaber effectively in an era dominated primarily by advanced ranged weaponry necessitated reflexes far beyond the natural capabilities of most species capable of wielding them.

## History

### Origins

The earliest known examples of energy blade melee weapons predate the Republic, having been used by the Rakata during the reign of their Infinite Empire, and were known as Forcesabers.

## Mechanical overview

### Construction

Traditionally, a typical lightsaber consisted of three primary components: a high-output power source, a kyber crystal, and a focusing array. Two of these could be easily sourced, with suitable power sources being found in industrial fusion cutters and other types of tools, and the focusing array able to be made by modifying those found in blasters and certain types of small deflector shield generators. The component then that was responsible for making lightsabers as rare as they were, as well as for restricting not only their use but their proliferation to those with sensitivity to the Force, was the kyber crystal.

Alternatively called Adegan crystals due to their discovery in the Adega system in the earliest days of the Jedi Order, kyber crystals were Force-reactive, having a poorly-understood natural connection to the Force and being able to be imbued with a Force-sensitive's power. This imbuement was critical to the proper alignment of the crystal within the lightsaber, and was the difference between constructing a lightsaber versus what would effectively be at best a glorified fusion cutter, or at worst a poor-man's hand grenade.

#### Sith traditions

The difference between the Jedi and Sith traditions in lightsaber construction was unsurprisingly primarily concerned with the kyber crystal at the lightsaber's heart. While the Jedi traditions for sourcing kyber crystals reflected the Jedi Order's values of oneness and attunement with the Force and the natural order of the universe, Sith traditions reflected the Sith desire to express dominion over both the Force and the natural world. Kyber crystals existed in natural attunement towards the light side of the Force, so creating a Kyber crystal in tune with the dark side inherently involved some for of perversion of the natural order.

Two well-known methods existed for sourcing kyber crystals imbued with dark side energies. The first method was the use of dark side alchemy to produce artificial crystals, forcibly injecting them with dark side energy as the crystals were formed. This method resulted in colorless or pitch black crystals that produced blood red or violet blades respectively, depending on the exact methods used. The second method was known as "bleeding" a naturally-formed kyber crystal, forcibly severing the crystal's natural attunment with the light, breaking its natural "will" and making it accept dark side energy, turning the crystal blood red and causing it to produce a blood red blade. This method was most common among fallen Jedi, who would often perform this process on crystals taken from the weapons they had wielded as a Jedi.

Beyond the crystal, the most common difference in Sith lightsabers versus those wielded by Jedi was a greater usage of dark colored materials on the exterior of weapon, as well as a more frequent usage of purpose-built components (depending on the era).

## Variations

### Crossguard lightsaber

As the name suggests, crossguard lightsabers featured small blades emitted perpendicular to the main blade to serve as crossguards like those found on a traditional metal longsword. Crossguards are commonly omitted from lightsabers, as the magnetic bottle effect that maintains the blade produces an attractive binding force when two of them connect, making sliding one blade along another require considerable effort and force. As a result, the application of such sliding techniques to target an opponent's hand were rare, unlike with conventional swords. Additionally, because they were composed of plasma just like the main blade, the cross guards posted a potential danger to the wielder, and required extra awareness on their part in order to prevent injury. However, skilled wielders of crossguard lightsabers could utilize the crossguards offensively, or to perform unconventional blaster bolt deflections.

Importantly, lightsabers with decorative crossguards or even functional lightsaber-resistant crossguards have traditionally not been considered to be in the same category as "true" crossguard lightsabers featuring plasma crossguards.

### Curved hilt

Lightsabers with curved hilts allowed the weapon to be used more comfortably and nimbly with a single hand, allowing most traditionally bipedal wielders a dedicated off hand to be used for balance or grappling. Curved hilts were particularly popular among practitioners of Form II.

### Lightclub

   Perhaps a misnomer as they were rarely used like clubs, lightclubs were simply oversized lightsabers with blades of atypically large length and girth, used primarily by species of larger than average stature.

### Polesaber

A polesaber, also often known as a saberpike or lightsaber pike, was a lightsaber, usually with a shortened blade, with a dramatically elongated hilt, almost always constructed from a lightsaber-resistant material such as phrik or cortosis.

Polesabers were often considered the most effective form of lightsaber weaponry in regards to combat with other lightsaber wielders, due to their long reach and exceptional flexibility in usage, with the pole hilt allowing exceptional leverage and typically also being used as a striking weapon. Despite this, however, they have historically remained quite rare. This is partly due to the rarity of lightsaber-resistant materials, but the primary reason was that polesabers were much more difficult to use in defense against blasters. Additionally, polesabers were difficult to carry and conceal; some examples use collapsible poles to rectify this, but this has a detrimental effect on the weight and balance of the weapon.

### Saberstaff

Also known as a double-bladed lightsaber or dualsaber, a saberstaff was simply a lightsaber with emitters on both of its ends, producing two blades. One of the earliest significant variations of lightsaber design, saberstaffs were originally developed by the Sith, and were simply two separate lightsabers welded pommel to pommel. The design quickly evolved to allow for two blades to be generated by a single power source, though some rare examples throughout history maintained separate power sources to enable the weapon to be separated into two halves which could then each be used as individual, fully-functional lightsabers in Jar'Kai fighting techniques.

In general, saberstaffs were particularly well-suited to aggressive, highly offensive fighting styles, with the dual blades enabling rapid flurries of successive strikes. Early double-bladed sabers operating from a single power source often had hilts not much longer than that of a standard lightsaber, but it eventually became more common for saberstaff hilts to be closer in length to those of their early, welded counterparts, enabling the user to gain additional leverage and apply more force behind their blows. Saberstaffs could also be used like conventional, single-bladed lightsabers by simply igniting only one of the blades, lending the design a significant degree of flexibility in usage. It was also not uncommon for saberstaff hilts to be coated in phrik alloy, allowing the user to block an opponent's lightsaber strikes with the hilt itself.

Despite their creation by the Sith and strong association with the Sith, with the most famous saberstaff user being Jedi Knight turned Sith Lord Exar Kun, saberstaffs also enjoyed relatively wide usage by the Jedi Order, particularly in times of great conflict such as the Galactic Wars against the resurgent Sith Empire or the New Sith Wars.