why are sentinels the "lightsaber masters"?

[Atamasama]

From what I've read in the lore, a lightsaber was nearly impossible to wield by non-Force users because the same magnetic field that contained the plasma blade in an arc also acted as a gyroscope, meaning that the weapon would feel like it was fighting against you when you swung it around. It took someone who could tap into the Force, usually, to be able to use a lightsaber without accidentally killing themselves.

 

Granted, that seems to not be displayed in the original film, where Luke picks up a lightsaber and begins swinging it around casually in Obi-Wan's house. Either he had some sort of instinctual grasp of the ways of the Force (which is plausible, considering that he became a Jedi Master with barely any training while other Jedi required decades of training) or the Expanded Universe was conflicting with film continuity. But either way, I thought the idea of a gyroscope in the weapon explained why you pretty much never see anyone ever using a lightsaber who doesn't have some talent in the Force.

[LyneaSapphire]

Going back to the OP.

When you pick your AC, the trainer explains that "sentinels are the lightsaber masters of our order". Why sentinels and not guardians included? What makes the sentinel the lightsaber master? Cuz they dual wield? Did dual welding suddenly become superior over the single blade? I don't understand this.

 

First of all, the quote does not say anything about dual wielding being inherently superior to single wielding. Secondly, it obviously requires more skill to master wielding two weapons perfectly than it does one. Dual wielding may or may not be as effective, but one cannot deny the skill required to dual wield. When you think of a "master", which comes to mind first: "skill" or "strength"? The term "master" often tends to be synonymous with "teacher", especially within the Jedi Order. That said, does that mean that one can conclude that these "masters" simply possess more skill, not necessarily strength (youth has a factor in strength too) with which they use to teach other less experienced and youthful Jedi? I would say that it does.

[Aeneas_Falco]

From what I've read in the lore, a lightsaber was nearly impossible to wield by non-Force users because the same magnetic field that contained the plasma blade in an arc also acted as a gyroscope, meaning that the weapon would feel like it was fighting against you when you swung it around. It took someone who could tap into the Force, usually, to be able to use a lightsaber without accidentally killing themselves.

 

Granted, that seems to not be displayed in the original film, where Luke picks up a lightsaber and begins swinging it around casually in Obi-Wan's house.

 

Han also used it to slice open a tauntaun, though to be fair he didn't swing it.

[ILoveAmerica]

Yeah it seems plausible that a non-force user could maintain control of the saber to do something simple like a controlled slice or just waving it around like Luke did in the original. If you've ever handled a razor sharp, full length long sword, or a katana, you can understand how simply holding something so dangerous briefly, or swinging it once or twice in the air is a lot different from effectively wielding it in combat without hurting yourself.

[Vekmar]

I'll just leave this here. It's merely to echo what others have said. I used to be of the thinking that dual-wielding was nothing more than appealing to the young teens that know nothing of true combat, until I discovered these ******es.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimachaerus

[Prototypemind]

Generally in the Lore of SW those who dual wield or use double-bladed sabers are specialists who focus on Force-guided melee combat as opposed to other arcane uses of the Force: Asajj Ventress, Raskta Lsu and Sarro Xaj, Darth Maul, Kas'im, Tulak Hord--though he is said to have been skilled with far more than the saber. It makes sense that they, in this game represented by Sentinels and Marauders, are written of as being lightsaber masters. If you notice they lack abilities like Force Push, and are not able to maintain Force Choke/Hold while still engaging in other combat. They specialize in melee combat, so it is not unreasonable to see them as masters of this over those who have more diverse skills in the Force.

 

There's also the aspect that in-game these dual wielding classes deal more damage than their single wielding counterparts, but as it says both in the description and in the Lore, the classes that focus on melee sacrifice both other abilities in the Force and overall protection in order to maximize their damage output. They focus on saber combat pretty much to the exclusion of all other things, therefore, masters of their technique.

[CapuchinSeven]

In reality, when facing multiple opponents, a weapon in each hand is preferred. If you're capable of course.

[michael-]

If anyone has read "The jedi path" book in the Sentinel section it says "Striking a balance between the guardian and consular, the jedi sentinel is a class that combines both disciplines and civilian expertise. Because we don't focus our time on lightsaber exercises or force meditation". Edited January 9, 2014 by michael-

[DarthAstinius]

Olcraft, that does not make much sense. We're discussing sabers--energy weapons, not physical weapons.

 

 

 

That makes a little more sense, but the force can be called upon to greatly exceed physical limitations. Most people would agree that speed kills. Admittedly, this is subject to dispute and rebuttal, but I believe rapiers and other quick, precise weapons are what lead to the obsolescence of armor, not bigger stronger melee weapons.

 

What lead to the obsolescence of armor was gunpowder and the use of guns.

[sineak]

Here's my take on it. For pure offense duel wielding is fine. But, for defense one blade is the way to go. Soresu is the most defensive form, and in order to use it effectivly requires incredibly tight bladework. You can't do that with 2 blades because to use them effectively requires they be swung in wide arcs so they don't interfere with each other.

[Manweth]

Sentinels were a subset of Jedi Order that didn't traditionally use any sort of specific style, the title relates to their position as Jedi investigators.

 

Guardiians, title descended from Jee'dai Temple Guardians, are the best trained and most talented lightsaber duelists of the order. The dedication to a single blade is because it was tradition at first, and at modern SW era, there wasn't that much crystals to build two sabers for all Guardians.

 

In reality, the only arm of the order that did wield more than one blade was always the Guardians. And that was rare even amongst them.

 

SWTOR's lore is convoluted with gameplay mechanics. Sentinels are certainly not blademasters in the lore, but in the game, dedication to pure saber combat is apparent. You'll see they are less mobile than Vigi Guardians, for instance.

 

Which always bugged me. Shien is the choice form for lightsaber oriented combat, and Ataru is the jumpy-athletic Jedi style. It shhould've been Ataru for Vigilance and Shien for COmbat sents.

 

Hence, it may be true that sentinels are saber masters, but any sane warrior knows that it is about skill, not the number of sabers you hold.

 

Note: As a fencer, using anything longer than a dagger at offhand is simply stupid in my eyes. Dedication to a single blade yields more than some people here realize.

 

Besides, it always seemed stupid to me that a Jedi in Old Republic era not using blasters. I mean war is everywhere, and with Force on your side, you can rarely miss. You can defend with blade and shoot with blaster.

 

 

........ No practicality on either Jedi or developers.

[stormdrakelord]

Sentinels were a subset of Jedi Order that didn't traditionally use any sort of specific style, the title relates to their position as Jedi investigators.

 

Guardiians, title descended from Jee'dai Temple Guardians, are the best trained and most talented lightsaber duelists of the order. The dedication to a single blade is because it was tradition at first, and at modern SW era, there wasn't that much crystals to build two sabers for all Guardians.

 

In reality, the only arm of the order that did wield more than one blade was always the Guardians. And that was rare even amongst them.

 

SWTOR's lore is convoluted with gameplay mechanics. Sentinels are certainly not blademasters in the lore, but in the game, dedication to pure saber combat is apparent. You'll see they are less mobile than Vigi Guardians, for instance.

 

Which always bugged me. Shien is the choice form for lightsaber oriented combat, and Ataru is the jumpy-athletic Jedi style. It shhould've been Ataru for Vigilance and Shien for COmbat sents.

 

Hence, it may be true that sentinels are saber masters, but any sane warrior knows that it is about skill, not the number of sabers you hold.

 

Note: As a fencer, using anything longer than a dagger at offhand is simply stupid in my eyes. Dedication to a single blade yields more than some people here realize.

 

Besides, it always seemed stupid to me that a Jedi in Old Republic era not using blasters. I mean war is everywhere, and with Force on your side, you can rarely miss. You can defend with blade and shoot with blaster.

 

 

........ No practicality on either Jedi or developers.

 

They were probably replaced as investigators by the shadows. they are described as masters of/trained in Jar'Kai during the time of the game. They also have a jedi combat path for sentinels.

 

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