Lightsaber Bombs?! A Shocking New Twist in Star Wars Canon!
Lightsabers: From Jedi Weapons to Explosive Devices!
Lightsabers are iconic. They're synonymous withStar Wars! Yet, despite appearing often in the franchise, in-universe, they're surprisingly rare. They're the main weapons forJediandSith,and other Force-users (like theKnights of Renand theProphets of the Dark Side—although this second group is fromLegendscontinuity). But get this—modern Star Wars canonnow has a way to turn those amazing weapons into bombs. Seriously.
BothLegendsand the modern canon rely on special crystals to power lightsabers, originally focusing on these mystical gems: inLegends, these are standard, and the colors denote blade color; whereas the modern version, which calls themKyber crystals,starts clear and then change color when the Jedi use them. And here’s where the bombs enter.
Synthetic Kyber Crystals: The Key to Lightsaber Explosives
ModernStar Wars canonreveals the key– those highly unstablesynthetic Kyber crystals! Way less stable than cracked ones likeKylo Ren'slightsaber’s crystal. It makes using them incredibly risky!
We still don't fully know how these synthetics are made, but they’re unusable and extremely explosive, turning yourlightsaberinto a walking, swinging bomb.ThosecrossguardsinKylo Ren'slightsaber, might’ve done more than provide an additional weapon: this addition helps stabilize the highly unstable blade it created; meaning a weapon that shouldn’t function as a lightsaber– functions better in certain ways because the structural stability provided creates a functional weapon in some unusual sense. We are not necessarily talking weapons here, it’s completely different in its purposes and effectiveness!
Legends vs. Canon: A Different Kind of Synthetic Crystal
InLegendscontinuity, those syntheticlightsaber crystalsare perfectly safe, initially appearing inSteve Perry'sShadows of the Empire(1996) novel! That famous green lightsaberLuke Skywalkerbuilt was powered by a synthetic crystal. Why? The Empire destroyed almost all those naturally occurring gems which explains that necessity to resort to synthetics for this particular purpose; another point to keep in mind! TheSithfrequently used synthetic gems almost always.
Synthetic crystals get made with both technology and theForce, thoughSithuse the dark side.TheJediwere not particularly fond of making synthetics but ended up heavily using these synthetic gems at the close of the original trilogy, showing just how great the need truly was! And theNew Jedi OrderinLegendsrelied heavily on synthetic gems in that period and even afterward, emphasizing the larger, longer lasting importance of such inventions, completely changing the very dynamics surrounding the development of lightsabers overall. Even though those are from the now non-canonLegendsstories, there are several relevant thematic parallels!
Conclusion: The Explosive Potential of Lightsaber Technology!
This addition to theStar Wars canonadds another layer to those fascinating weapons! We already have lots of potential plots; even showing surprising ways thoselightsaberscan function as devastating explosive devices. While thoseLegendssynthetic crystals present a distinct approach, this article shows that it's surprisingly not completely that separate and disconnected; adding those significant parallels across bothLegendsand modernStar Warswhich adds considerable significance across different continuities. It really makes a good point regarding creative approaches towards technological aspects within the greaterStar Warsnarrative!