Sith Lightsaber Controversy

Cos Dashit · Post by **Cos Dashit** » 2006-02-07 08:00pm

What makes Sith lightsabers red?
The Sith Explained (2005). On page 2, paragraph 7, it reads: "The Sith prefer synthetic crystals for their sabers. The synthetic crystals save the Sith the long trek to get Illium Crystals, provide more blade tuning options, and give Sith sabers their characteristic red blade."
A few months later I was re-reading Star Wars, The Visual Dictionary ( 1998, certified by Lucasfilm Ltd.), when I stumbled upon something that shocked me. On page 6, chapter Special Technology, subchapter Lightsabers, it reads: "Operating on the complex principle of tightly controlled arc-wave energy, it (lightsabers) requires focusing elements made from naturally-occurring crystals that cannot be synthesized."
So Stuffo says that Sith lightsabers use synthetic crystals, while Lucasfilm Ltd. claims that those Illium crystals cannot be synthesized. Who is right?

Post by **Vympel** » 2006-02-07 08:24pm

I own the Visual Dictionary. I'm quite certain it refers to the use of synthetics at some point. Perhaps in reference to Vader's lightsabre. It's probably only referring to Jedi lightsabres.

loomer · Post by **loomer** » 2006-02-07 09:03pm

If I recall, synthesized crystals can be either green or red, whereas for the good old Blue crystals and the orange and purple and yellow and all the colours under the rainbow crystals, they need to be natural.

Either way, we could simply write them off as two conflicting sources, and go with the body of evidence.

nightmare · Post by **nightmare** » 2006-02-07 09:29pm

Cos Dashit wrote:Who is right?

Both. Not only ilum crystals can be used for lightsabers.

Darth Servo · Post by **Darth Servo** » 2006-02-07 09:56pm

I'm pretty sure that in Shadows of the Empire, Luke had R2 synthesize the crystal for his new lightsaber that he used in ROTJ so its not just a Sith thing.

Gene Starwind · Post by **Gene Starwind** » 2006-02-07 11:13pm

Aren't the crystals a matter of personal preference?

Count Dooku · Post by **Count Dooku** » 2006-02-08 12:38am

Darth Servo wrote:I'm pretty sure that in Shadows of the Empire, Luke had R2 synthesize the crystal for his new lightsaber that he used in ROTJ so its not just a Sith thing.

Luke had R2 synthesise a crystal for his lightsaber!? I thought Jedi travelled to a planet to get the crystals for their lightsabers. This is DIRECTLY from starwars.com, "Unlike the Jedi, who use natural crystals mined from such worlds as Ossus in the Adega system, the Sith prefer synthetic crystals to generate their lightsaber blades. While the crystals are being forged in a blazing furnace, it is not uncommon for a Sith to reach out with the Force and manipulate the process, focusing his hatred for the Jedi to increase the potency of the crystals" (http://www.starwars.com/databank/techno ... ber/?id=eu).

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2006-02-08 12:41am

Darth Servo wrote:I'm pretty sure that in Shadows of the Empire, Luke had R2 synthesize the crystal for his new lightsaber that he used in ROTJ so its not just a Sith thing.

Ah yes, I vaugely recall him fucking around with a blast furnace in Kenobi's hut.

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2006-02-08 12:53am

Here we go;

Shadows of the Empire page 29 wrote:Luke stared at the little furnace, as if so doing could hurry the process. Inside, the ingredients for a lightsaber gem cooked at an incredible heat and pressure, hot enough to melt denscris, intense enough to collapse durasteel into a liquid ball. And yet from a meter away, except for the red operating diode, you couldn't tell the thing was even on.

next paragraph wrote:The furnace had been working for hours and the little yellow diode had not yet began to blink, the signal that the process was in the final stage.

page 30 wrote:According to that book, the best lightsabers used natural jewels, but there weren't a lot of the kind he needed lying around where he could find them on Tatooine. He'd managed to collect most of the electronic and mechanical parts in Mos Eisley-power cells, controls, a high-energy reflector cup-but he had to make his own focusing jewel. Ideally, the best lightsabers also had three of those, different densities and facets, for a fully adjustable blade, but for his first attemp at building the Jedi weapon, Luke wanted to keep it as simple as possible.

Pcm979 · Post by **Pcm979** » 2006-02-08 03:57am

[quote="Count Dooku]Luke had R2 synthesise a crystal for his lightsaber!? I thought Jedi travelled to a planet to get the crystals for their lightsabers. This is DIRECTLY from starwars.com, "Unlike the Jedi, who use natural crystals mined from such worlds as Ossus in the Adega system, the Sith prefer synthetic crystals to generate their lightsaber blades. While the crystals are being forged in a blazing furnace, it is not uncommon for a Sith to reach out with the Force and manipulate the process, focusing his hatred for the Jedi to increase the potency of the crystals" (http://www.starwars.com/databank/techno ... ber/?id=eu).[/quote]Luke a) Didn't know about that tradition and b) wasn't in any position to go haring around the galaxy just to get a crystal. He was kinda hiding from the Empire at that time, y'know.

Master of Ossus · Post by **Master of Ossus** » 2006-02-08 04:43am

Vympel wrote:I own the Visual Dictionary. I'm quite certain it refers to the use of synthetics at some point. Perhaps in reference to Vader's lightsabre. It's probably only referring to Jedi lightsabres.

Of course, Jaina's lightsaber also uses a synthetic crystal, but hers turned out purple. It almost certainly has to do with the manufacturing process, as opposed to being inherent to a manufacturing process.

Sonnenburg · Post by **Sonnenburg** » 2006-02-08 08:20am

Didn't Shadow Hunter also describe how Maul spent a great deal of time in front of a furnace, making his crystals by manipulating them with the Force?

Jedi Guardian · Post by **Jedi Guardian** » 2006-02-08 09:29am

Well i'm sure your smarter than me at this so read this...

http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=84994

Cos Dashit, i'm sure that a sith's lightsaber is colored the same way as a Jedi's, so read this hope it helps if not well sorry.

nightmare · Post by **nightmare** » 2006-02-08 05:29pm

Pcm979 wrote:
Count Dooku wrote:Luke had R2 synthesise a crystal for his lightsaber!? I thought Jedi travelled to a planet to get the crystals for their lightsabers. This is DIRECTLY from starwars.com, "Unlike the Jedi, who use natural crystals mined from such worlds as Ossus in the Adega system, the Sith prefer synthetic crystals to generate their lightsaber blades. While the crystals are being forged in a blazing furnace, it is not uncommon for a Sith to reach out with the Force and manipulate the process, focusing his hatred for the Jedi to increase the potency of the crystals" (http://www.starwars.com/databank/techno ... ber/?id=eu).
Luke a) Didn't know about that tradition and b) wasn't in any position to go haring around the galaxy just to get a crystal. He was kinda hiding from the Empire at that time, y'know.

The Empire also banned ilum crystals as a trade goods, no doubt to make life more difficult for any Jedi while survivors were tracked down by the inquisition.

Cos Dashit · Post by **Cos Dashit** » 2006-02-08 06:32pm

i had thought that if you used any type of synthetic crystal the wiring would have to be extremely precise and that most of the time the lightsaber would detonate upon activation.

Lord Pounder · Post by **Lord Pounder** » 2006-02-08 07:22pm

IIRC correctly Luke did have a lot of failures before he finally made he new lightsaber in SotE.

Darth Servo · Post by **Darth Servo** » 2006-02-08 07:27pm

According to the quotes Knife provided from SotE, it was Luke's first attempt.

Jedi Guardian · Post by **Jedi Guardian** » 2006-02-08 10:03pm

Cos Dashit wrote:i had thought that if you used any type of synthetic crystal the wiring would have to be extremely precise and that most of the time the lightsaber would detonate upon activation.

Just to say yes it's true. Now is it just me or could a Jedi on purposly do that and when in a fight with a Sith pull that out, throw it, and it would explode?

LongVin · Post by **LongVin** » 2006-02-08 10:24pm

In one of the comics or RPG sourcebook didn't scientists succeed in creating a lightsabre in a lab without any help from a force user?

Kurgan · Post by **Kurgan** » 2006-02-09 01:15am

Count Dooku wrote:
Darth Servo wrote:I'm pretty sure that in Shadows of the Empire, Luke had R2 synthesize the crystal for his new lightsaber that he used in ROTJ so its not just a Sith thing.
Luke had R2 synthesise a crystal for his lightsaber!? I thought Jedi travelled to a planet to get the crystals for their lightsabers. This is DIRECTLY from starwars.com, "Unlike the Jedi, who use natural crystals mined from such worlds as Ossus in the Adega system, the Sith prefer synthetic crystals to generate their lightsaber blades. While the crystals are being forged in a blazing furnace, it is not uncommon for a Sith to reach out with the Force and manipulate the process, focusing his hatred for the Jedi to increase the potency of the crystals" (http://www.starwars.com/databank/techno ... ber/?id=eu).

I guess you'd need to ask where StarWars.com (or the databank at least) fits into canon. I always just assumed it wasn't part of canon. The direct quotes they provide from canon sources are really the only canon on there... but I know some folks treat it as gospel.

Kurgan · Post by **Kurgan** » 2006-02-09 01:18am

Illium? What happened to Aedegon crystals? I thought those were the big deal lightsaber crystals... at least according to the SW Radio Drama and Jedi Outcast... IIRC.

It seems like nobody really remembers the lightsaber mechanics, they just kinda wing it or make it up in each new source... while the movies never seek to explain it.

nightmare · Post by **nightmare** » 2006-02-09 01:40am

Kurgan wrote:Illium? What happened to Aedegon crystals? I thought those were the big deal lightsaber crystals... at least according to the SW Radio Drama and Jedi Outcast... IIRC.

Same thing. Crystals mined from the planet Ilum in the Adegan system. Although there has been some confusion over this.

Cykeisme · Post by **Cykeisme** » 2006-02-09 04:23am

According to the RPG, a Force user has to "imbue the crystals with the Force" prior to the construction of a lightsaber. Sounds a bit excessively mystical.
It's more likely that the alignment of the crystals used has to be precise in order to avoid the device malfunctioning and melting itself or exploding (or some other negative side effect). The Force probably simply guides the user in attaining proper positioning of the components that require precision alignment.

Jedi Guardian wrote:
Cos Dashit wrote:i had thought that if you used any type of synthetic crystal the wiring would have to be extremely precise and that most of the time the lightsaber would detonate upon activation.
Just to say yes it's true. Now is it just me or could a Jedi on purposly do that and when in a fight with a Sith pull that out, throw it, and it would explode?

They have a number of devices specifically designed to perform that task more cheaply, including but not limited to thermal detonators.

Cos Dashit · Post by **Cos Dashit** » 2006-02-09 08:27am

Jedi Guardian wrote:
Cos Dashit wrote:i had thought that if you used any type of synthetic crystal the wiring would have to be extremely precise and that most of the time the lightsaber would detonate upon activation.
Just to say yes it's true. Now is it just me or could a Jedi on purposly do that and when in a fight with a Sith pull that out, throw it, and it would explode?

i would hope that a sith could survive/dodge a simple explosive, no matter how skillfully it was thrown. even if managed to injure the target, he would still have a lightsaber and the proverbial "pitcher" would be absolutely defenseless.

An Ancient · Post by **An Ancient** » 2006-02-09 10:35am

Cos Dashit wrote:
i would hope that a sith could survive/dodge a simple explosive, no matter how skillfully it was thrown. even if managed to injure the target, he would still have a lightsaber and the proverbial "pitcher" would be absolutely defenseless.

I think what he was thinking about was more along the lines of the Jedi pulling a 'lightsabre' and letting the Sith get his hands on it;

Sith; "Ha, I have your lightsaber, be prepared to die at your own blade!"

-Boom-

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Sith Lightsaber Controversy

Sith Lightsaber Controversy

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