Some exotic saber-proof melee weapons have been introduced in the Expanded Universe as well as later episodic films. Other times, the lightsaber has been shown to cause bleeding wounds in the flesh, sometimes accompanied by burns.
The blade has even been used as a tool to weld metal. It leaves cauterized wounds in flesh, but can be deflected by another lightsaber blade, or by energy shields. There are several variations outside of the traditional single-bladed lightsaber, such as the double-bladed lightsaber (most famously wielded by Darth Maul), Kylo Ren's unique crossguard lightsaber, and the darksaber, primarily wielded by the non-Force-sensitive Mandalorian rulers of Mandalore (including Maul, Bo-Katan Kryze, and the Mandalorian).Īs presented in the films, a lightsaber's energy blade can cut, burn, and melt through most substances with little resistance. A lightsaber's hilt is built by its wielder and is, therefore, unique in design. The color of a lightsaber's blade is given by its power source, the kyber crystal, which is influenced by the wielder and the Force as they connect with and tune the crystal. The Jedi use different colored lightsabers (predominantly blue and green), while the Sith wield exclusively red-bladed sabers to distinguish themselves from the Jedi. In the Star Wars universe, the lightsaber is the signature weapon of the light side-wielding Jedi Order and the dark side-wielding Sith Order and the Knights of Ren (named after another term for lightsaber), but can also be wielded by non- Force-sensitive characters as an ordinary weapon or tool. The lightsaber's distinct appearance was created using rotoscoping for the original films, and with digital effects for the prequel and sequel trilogies. First introduced in the original Star Wars film, it has since appeared in most Star Wars films, with at least one lightsaber duel occurring in each installment of the " Skywalker saga".
A typical lightsaber is depicted as a luminescent plasma blade about 3 feet (0.91 m) in length emitted from a metal hilt around 10.5 inches (27 cm) in length. Plot element from the Star Wars franchiseĪ lightsaber (also referred to as a laser sword) is a fictional energy sword featured throughout the Star Wars franchise.