WEAPONRY WEDNESDAYS: LIGHTSABERS

The first response on Facebook to last week’s post was “Psi Blades” and while not technically powered by psychic energy, lightsabers seem a logical step from that and let’s face it, this weapon is iconic. Complain all you want about Ewoks and Gungans or whatever George Lucas has changed, one thing this genius got absolutely right was the lightsaber. While technically science fiction, I don’t think many would argue that a major part of Star Wars’ appeal comes from its fantasy elements and in many respects, Star Wars has had as big an impact on fantasy literature as Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. One cannot even think of a magic sword without comparing it to the colorful energy blades wielded by Jedi Knights in a galaxy far far away.

Part of the greatest appeal of the lightsaber is its uniqueness. While all lightsabers basically serve the same function and operate on the same principles, each is individually crafted by its wielder and has a distinct appearance. Those colorful blades are incredibly dramatic, but the hilts are equally distinctive. And since Disney purchased Star Wars, we’ve seen even more variation among lightsabers, from models that spin to those that have built in blasters. And of course The Force Awakens has the new hilted lightsaber. Considering the elegant simplicity of the weapon, I’m only surprised that this hasn’t happened sooner.

Let’s break into the pros and cons of these weapons from a more civilized age.

PROS

They cut through pretty much anything. There have been books and comics that describe materials that the lightsaber cannot cut through or even short circuits them when the blade makes contact, but none of them are cannon anymore. The only thing the weapon can’t cut through is another lightsaber blade and anything else only slows it down.

The weapon’s blade is also weightless, a huge pro considering their cutting power. You may recall from last week’s discussion of the war hammer that power equals mass times acceleration. The lightsaber doesn’t need to worry about mass, it relies on the energy emitted by the blade which is exactly as fast as the wielder’s reflexes. Imagine all those times you’ve played with a flashlight pretending it was a lightsaber and you actually wouldn’t be too far off. Coupled with the Force-enhanced reflexes of the Jedi and this weapon is formidable.

Finally, the weapon has omni-directional cutting power. In short, the wielder doesn’t have to keep track of an edge or angle the weapon a particular direction to cut, relying instead on the energy of the blade to do that for them. The maneuvers the traditional sword are limited to are no longer an issue with the lightsaber. No matter how you swing it, it’s going to cut something. Also, it never has to be sharpened!

CONS

Range. In a world of blasters, the limited reach of the lightsaber is a terrible detriment. There have been books that described models with extendable blades, but melee weapons simply struggle against those that can shoot. A perfect historical example is Henry V’s famous victory over the French in the Battle of Agincourt. Short version: the French were decimated by Henry’s use of the composite longbow. While the lightsaber is capable of reflecting blaster bolts, that requires exceptional skill, beyond human reflexes, and a masterful sense of timing. While all three of these things are found in Jedi, anyone else trying to use a lightsaber in the Star Wars universe is at a huge disadvantage.

Ergonomics. As aesthetically pleasing to my inner sci-fi nerd, most of the lightsaber hilts I’ve seen would be incredibly uncomfortable. While the Jedi craft their lightsabers individually so that they feel right in their hands (or whatever appendage our nonhumanoids prefer) those ridges, corners, and bumps are not something you’d want digging into your hand whenever you hit something. It weakens your grip and risks you losing your weapon.

No Guard. I realize that the new lightsaber from The Force Awakens’ trailer is a subject of hot debate, but hear me out. Most Jedi never actually get into a straight up lightsaber duel, so the absence of a hilt doesn’t really matter. To them, the lightsaber is more of a tool than a weapon. But when melee is the goal, a guard on your weapon is an absolute must. Honestly, I’m surprised the famous duel between Luke and Vader didn’t see one of their hands sliced off sooner. The lightsaber blade and hilt offer a straight line for an enemies’ blade to slide down unimpeded and lop off fingers, hands, or simply ruin the weapon.

In short, the lightsaber is a specialty weapon. It works in the hands of those with the capacity to utilize it to its optimum potential and its cons are largely circumstantial. The hilt can be made more comfortable (I think a wookie Jedi actually made one from wood), the lack of a guard rarely matters, and when you can leap buildings in a single bound and are fast enough to deflect something moving at the speed of sound, limited reach isn’t really an issue. SO, super abbreviated version: Lightsaber’s are great for Force users, but nobody else would last very long trying to take one into a battle where there’s anything other than melee weapons. Unless you mix in time travel—can you imagine the kind of damage a Jedi Knight could have wrought in the 100 year war? The Battle of Agincourt would have gone very different had the French had a Jedi capable of deflecting all those arrows and closing the distance.

What kind of lightsaber would you wield or what is your favorite lightsaber you’ve seen so far? Let me know in the comments below!