The weapon of a Jedi

[tunewalker]

The Lightsaber is often called "the weapon of the Jedi" yet we see it used by sith just as often we see it used by Jedi. So what makes it the "jedi's weapon" and not just a "force users weapon". All of that can be seen in the stated goals and Ideals of the Jedi along with the properties of the weapon vs the goals of the sith and how the Sith's methods and Ideals dont actually line up with the properties of the lightsaber, making the Lightsaber not truly the best weapon for a Sith.

 

 

The Jedi's philosophy about using the force and fighting in general is "A Jedi uses the force for Knowledge and defense" so it would be prudent to show that the lightsaber itself is first and foremost a defensive weapon.

 

 

 

First the Lightsaber is obviously a Melee weapon and not a Ranged Weapon, by that distinction it is by default less efficient in killing or harming unarmed people, as it can not harm them with out getting the weapon within close range. By this fact the weapon is best used in close quarters, thus the person you use it against either has to be trapped with no where to go, which isnt likely and a ranged weapon would still be just as good in such a situation, or attacking you with a melee weapon themselves. If they are attacking with a melee weapon the best way to fight them off with out harming them would be another melee weapon, as it can provide defense while still risking offense, so in the star wars universe Melee weapons can be seen in some light as defensive, but not always defensive, after all in close quarters a Melee weapon can beat out a ranged weapon as its easier to strike with then to aim with at that super close range.

 

 

Second the Lightsaber Deflects blaster bolts. This is probably one of the most obvious "pure defensive" purposes, the lightsabers properties allow it to be of unique defense against the primary long range weapon that most people use. This allows it the distinct privilege of being a Melee weapon that perfectly defends against both Ranged weapons and Melee weapons. While this CAN be turned offensive, its not easy to do, so this makes it lean much more in the "defensive weapon" category as the blade LITERALLY acts as an energy shield against range weapons.

 

Third and Finally, while it is a weapon that can cut through almost anything, it instantly cauterizes flesh preventing the person from bleeding out. This is the final and probably biggest sign that the lightsaber is ultimately a defensive weapon. There are many arteries within the human body that when severed can have the person bleed out in minutes, even if the person who severed the artery were to be killed after the fact or at the same time, the person who they were fighting would still bleed out and still die, as such litterally any other bladed weapon would be more efficient as a killing weapon, but as stated before that's part of why a Lightsaber is a "defensive weapon."

 

With all of these combined the weapon is massively inefficient as an offensive weapon for a group of people wanting to oppress and rule over others, however it is the perfect weapon in this universe for defending oneself as well as others, as well as subduing the opponent with out killing them, allowing you to gain knowledge of the opponent, and as we see in star wars, not even lost limbs are technically "permanent damage" as for years they have had the tech to replace limbs with cybernetic limbs that still allow the person to feel with those limbs and dont hinder them at all in daily life.

 

These aspects can also be seen in several of the lightsaber forms.

 

Form 1 was the basics of lightsaber combat, and it focused, not surprisingly, on disarming your opponent. As stated before by disarming the opponent with a weapon that instantly cauterizes the wound the opponent has 0 chance of retaliating allowing you to end the fight, but at the same time they also have 0 chance of dieing from bleeding out, allowing you to end the fight quickly and permanently while still keeping as many people alive as possible even the assailant. Its no wonder that such a form became the basis for all lightsaber combat.

 

Form 2 was created by Dark Jedi to specifically counter Form 1, its only reason for existing was to "shame" another Lightsaber wielder, or to be able to subdue some one using the first form, essentially to counter fire with fire as the lightsabers defensive qualities were just so good they may have felt you need a lightsaber to be safe enough while trying to get around those defenses, but honestly a good vibro blade wielded in the same manner would be much more deadly to their opponents. This focus on pure saber combat, is why this form largely doesnt exist beyond a couple of people in the mythos, who are specifically duelists.

 

 

Form 3 was created as blaster tech became more and more prevalent ,as a means to better defend against blaster weapons. It resulted in an even more defense orientated weapon, its flaw though would be highlighted by the need for Form IV and Form V

 

Form 4 was created because of how so passive Form 3 really was. While it was perfectly good at defending one's self and perfectly applying most of the defensive portions of the weapon, it forgot to apply 1 part of its defenses. The ability to end the fight quickly and "permanently" with out killing, which means the amount of collateral damage that can be caused by a prolonged fight thanks to Form 3 could be more then its worth. Form IV was on of the answers to this problem, with high speed and acrobatics the person can avoid the shots or deflect as needed, but its more focused on closing in quick and ENDING the fight quickly, we can see this in most peoples application of it from Yoda our primary practitioner who very much disliked fighting so always stove to end it as quickly as possible to even Quigon, each of the Jedi Practitioners that used this form seem to have done so not out of planning to fight equal opponents on a regular basis but rather to end fights quickly and ensure the least amount of collateral as possible.

 

Form V was created with the same Idea as Form IV however it built on Form III instead of going off in its completely different direction. However by one of its forms focusing on Blast deflection as an OFFENSIVE measure instead of a Defensive one, and the other focusing on hard downward chops and Dominating and subjugating your opponent the form risked moving away from the "defensive nature" of the weapon and Jedi philosophies as it risked KILLING the attacker rather than simply subdueing them. The idea for why it was created was sound, and even its use of its tools were sound, but the mentality that was often wielded with the form and the dangers of turning some of the most defensive and good natured portions of the weapon on its head and bastardizing the Jedi and Lightsabers purpose into a killing weapon was such a risk the Jedi felt another form was needed.

 

 

Form VI was created as an answer to the potential aggression of Form V, it focused on Moderation of all things and, truth be told, this is why I consider it largely a failure as a lightsaber form. One can not have Moderation of all things because the statement itself is an extreme of Moderation, thus by definition you have not moderated one thing. Its an impossible goal, and we can see this through out the forms history. The best practitioners of this form did not, in fact, have Moderation. The best practitioners all took this idea to an extreme, they utilized the tools the Form was designed with but rarely the philosophy. Those that did adhere to this philosophy were mostly diplomats and had some competence with the saber, but ultimately were not fighters, to me the form is marked by a good intentions and a good form, but an impossible philosophy that truly held it back.

 

Form VII this form was again to go the exact opposite of form VI, and is also often reffered to as the "Sith Form", with how aggressive it is, this is no surprise. This to me is also another "Failed lightsaber form" mostly because this completely forgoes any of the weapons defensive aspects, as such its no surprise that its the "Sith Form" and that it's so restricted to Jedi for learning. The Form is not a "failure" in my book because it's ineffective, but because it's a lightsaber form who's principles and ideals would be better served with litterally any other bladed weapon. With how aggressive it is, you would be better off in killing with a weapon that allows the opponent to bleed out, sure you wont have the "weaponized energy shield" but you could always just get an energy shield and drop the shield once you are in close range.

 

 

Any way those are my thoughts as to why the Lightsaber is call the "weapon of a Jedi" and how the forms even conform to this, save for the one form known as the "Sith Form"

[lukewarcriminal]

That is because Sith order emerged from Jedi order.

[BlazeTomahawk]

In the OT and PT , basically everything "true canon" (the movies) the Sith were an abberation. Specifically evil Jedi, not a race and empire apart. "Always 2" the Sith were more of a secrecy cult. I'd bet the average repiblic citizen had never even heard of the Sith. Even the Jedi council were skeptical that that a real live Sith was encountered by Obi wan and qui gon.

 

Edit: even in A New Hope Darth Vader is refers to as following an old religion, Imperial Moffs WHO ARE OLD ENOUGH TO REMEMBER don't distinguish the diference

Edited December 12, 2015 by BlazeTomahawk

[Kaedusz]