a diagram of lightsaber components
Lightsabers are the primary weapons used by Jedi, and by groups and individuals that broke away from the Jedi Order, including the Sith Order and many former Jedi.
See also: Jedi lightsaber training.
Lightsaber Components[]
The Jedi Path says that all lightsabers, whether of standardized make or handcrafted, include these basic components:[2]
- blade emitter[2]
- radiator casing segment[2]
- charging port[2]
- activator[2]
- blade intensity control[2]
- handgrip[2]
- power cell release cap[2]
Lightsaber Variants[]
lightsaber pike
Lightsaber design variants include:
- Curved-hilt lightsaber: this is simply a lightsaber with a slight curve in the handle. It's regarded as good for dueling, and often used by Makashi users.[2] Dooku used a curved-hilt lightsaber.[3] A few decades before the Prequel trilogy, they were regarded as unfashionable.[4]
- Shoto: this is shorter than a standard lightsaber, and can be used as a secondary weapon, or by a saber-wielder of a smaller species as their primary weapon.[2] Yoda used a shoto as a primary weapon[3] Ahsoka Tano used one as a secondary weapon.[5]
- Lightclub: this is a very large lightsaber with a thick hilt, usually carried by saber-wielders of larger species.[2]
- Dual-phase lightsaber: this is a lightsaber built with two crystals rather than one. It has focusing controls to shift which of the two crystals is powering the lightsaber.[2]
- Double-bladed lightsaber[2] or Saberstaff:[6] has a blade on either end of a central hilt, and is difficult to learn to use. It has commonly been used by Sith marauders.[2] Maul used a double-bladed lightsaber.[7]
- Lightsaber pike: this has an elongated, saber-resistant hilt and short lightsaber blade on one end.[2]
- Lightwhip: difficult and dangerous to learn to use, the lightwhip has a flexible tendril of energy that can "entangle or cut".[2] Vernestra Rwoh had a lightsaber that could turn into a lightwhip when she turned the front ring. She was concerned that other Jedi would question her if they knew about her lightwhip — the first thing Imri Cantaros said when he saw it was to point out that Nightsisters also used lightwhips. Jedi during the Sith Wars used lightwhips to fight against Sith using the Forbidden Forms.[8]
Lightsaber Forms[]
A citation note: Aside from The Jedi Path, sources referenced below may refer to these forms only by their numerical designations and not by their names.
Form I: Shii-Cho[]
Shii-Cho is the simplest and most basic form, taught to Jedi younglings as they begin learning to use practice lightsabers.[9]
Form II: Makashi[]
Makashi is used by duelists[2] and is similar to real-world fencing.
Notable wielders: Dooku,[10] Ki-Adi-Mundi.[11]
Form III: Soresu[]
Soresu, also known as 'the classic form[12],' is an almost purely defensive form, based around deflecting blows and blaster bolts back to the attacker, or off to somewhere harmless.[2]
Notable wielders: Obi-Wan Kenobi,[13] Barriss Offee[11]
Form IV: Ataru[]
Ataru is the gymnastics form, full of jumps and flips that users call on the Force to help them do.
Form V: Djem So[]
Djem So, also known as Shien, is based around sheer physical strength and power.
Notable wielder: Anakin Skywalker.[2]
Form VI: Niman[]
Niman is also known as "the diplomats' form," as it's regarded as the easiest lightsaber form to learn after Form I. It's a mashup of other, more fundamental forms, and also utilities use of other Force abilities in combat, such as a Force push, more than the other forms.[2]
Form VI.5: Jar'Kai[]
Jar'kai, the usage of one full-length lightsaber and one off-hand shoto in tandem, is most commonly used with the primary form of Niman.[2]
Form VII: Juyo[]
Juyo users draw on their emotions to give them power in the Force while they fight. It's used almost exclusively by Darksiders. Mace Windu notably pioneered a variant called Vaapad, which only a few Jedi were ever allowed to study.[14]
Lightsaber Training[]
The Jedi Order has a set of traditions for teaching the use of lightsabers.[2]
References[]
- ↑ Legends & New Canon · Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 Legends · The Jedi Path: A Manual for Students of the Force, "Part III: Padawan"—"Lightsabers: Their Construction and Use", by Daniel Wallace. Published 2010 by becker&mayer! (1st/Vault Edition and 2013 e-book); Chronicle Books (2011 standard trade edition, 2014 Dual Deluxe Boxed Set, and 2016 Secrets of the Galaxy Deluxe Boxed Set).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Legends & New Canon · Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones
- ↑ New Canon · Topps Star Wars Evolution: Lightsaber Evolution, "Count Dooku's Lightsaber"
- ↑ Legends & New Canon · The Clone Wars
- ↑ Legends · Star Wars: The Old Republic. Developed by BioWare and released in 2011.
- ↑ Legends & New Canon · Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace
- ↑ New Canon · Test of Courage, chapter 12, by Justina Ireland in the series The High Republic. Published 2021 by Disney • Lucasfilm Press.
- ↑ Legends · The Jedi Path, "Part II: Initiate"—"The Third Pillar: Self-Discipline", by Daniel Wallace.
- ↑ Legends · Star Wars: Attack of the Clones: The Visual Dictionary, "Count Dooku", by David West Reynolds. Published 2002 by DK Publishing.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Legends & New Canon · The Clone Wars, Season 2 "Return to Geonosis" DVD Featurette
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedROTS - ↑ Legends · The Force Unleashed, chapter 1, by Sean Williams. Published 2008 by Del Rey. Novelization of the video game
- ↑ Legends · The Jedi Path, "Part IV: Jedi Knight"—"Advanced Lightsaber Techniques", by Daniel Wallace.