One thing that has always bothered me is the design of lightsabers. They just don't seem practical.

 

First, let's start with the way they are carried. Most Jedi carry their lightsabers hanging from their belts, blade emitter pointing down. Ignoring the issue of how the lightsaber actually attaches to the belt, this position just seems awkward and impractical. Consider Luke, who just left his hanging freely from his belt. I carry my keys in a similar fashion, so I know this would be very uncomfortable, as every time I take a step, my leg hits my keys, causing them to swing. Imagine having a heavy metal tube swinging from your belt and hitting your leg, especially one with a push button that activates a blade. Not a good idea. While the Jedi in SWTOR and in the prequels seemed to improve this by firmly securing the lightsaber and moving it more to the side of the hip, it still seems awkward to quickly draw the lightsaber.

 

In such a position, it would be easiest when drawing the lightsaber to grab it on its bottom half, as this is the closest to one's hand. This theory seems to be supported by the fact that most lightsabers feature hand grips on their bottom halves. Furthermore, most lightsabers have activator buttons in the middle of their hilts, facilitating quick activation when holding the lightsaber on the bottom half. However, swinging a lightsaber one-handed with the hand on the bottom half of the hilt would be awkward as you would not have much leverage in that position. Lightsabers are meant to be wielded with the dominant hand on top (and the other hand below), as is shown in the movies.

 

This causes a problem, as the hand position with which you draw the lightsaber differs from the hand position with which you swing the lightsaber, meaning that you would have to quickly change positions between drawing and attacking/defending. Not a good idea in a sudden life-or-death situation, especially when you have a on/off switch in the middle of the hilt that you might accidentally hit while shifting your hands.

 

Thus, it seems that this poor lightsaber design starts from the poor carrying placement. Ideally, you would want your lightsaber in a position where you could draw, activate, and attack in one motion. Compare this with the samurai. Samurai carried their katana on the side of their hips, with the full hilt accessible to grabbing. When drawing, a samurai could grab the katana at upper half of the hilt and be already in attack position. The Jedi should do the same.

 

I believe that for a perfect design, the lightsaber should be carried in such a way that it facilitates grabbing the upper half of the hilt, and the activator button should also be at the upper half, where it can be easily reached but also out of the way of holding the hilt. Rahm Kota from Star Wars: The Force Unleashed comes closest to this ideal, by placing the lightsaber on his back. Though it looks funny, it is much more practical than the mainstream fashion. I would suggest combining Rahm's idea with the mainstream idea, having the lightsaber attach to the belt at the upper half of the hilt, with the hilt extending away from the body in a similar fashion to samurai. IMO, this change would benefit the Jedi immensely.

 

Tl;DR: Lightsaber designs in Star Wars are impractical, stemming from the way they are carried. I suggest an alternative that would improve upon this.

Edited March 7, 2012 by Freshtech

Lightsaber designs in Star Wars are impractical, stemming from the way they are carried. I suggest an alternative that would improve upon this.

 

It has been that way since 1977. Why on Earth would they change it now?

Lightsabers are weightless on the blades and the hilts are basically weightless also. The lightsaber is pulled into grip by the force if needed quickly. It's only grabbed when needing to move slow. Lightsabers are only held by town hands if its a specific jedi. There are differant forms and some of them only have one hand and some of them have two so you wouldn't hold them always like they do in the movies.

It has been that way since 1977. Why on Earth would they change it now?

 

My post wasn't a suggestion to the game designers, it was merely me commenting on something that seemed odd to me. I just was curious if anyone else felt similarly.

 

And throughout the years, lightsaber designs have changed. I already mentioned how the prequels changed the way lightsabers were carried. They also introduced double-bladed and curved-hilt lightsabers with very unusual designs.

Lightsabers are weightless on the blades and the hilts are basically weightless also. The lightsaber is pulled into grip by the force if needed quickly. It's only grabbed when needing to move slow. Lightsabers are only held by town hands if its a specific jedi. There are differant forms and some of them only have one hand and some of them have two so you wouldn't hold them always like they do in the movies.

 

Well you're right that the blade is weightless, but I highly doubt that a foot long tube of metal housing a power pack would be weightless as well. If I were wielding a flashlight, I still would prefer having my dominant hand on top.

 

Sure, pulling the lightsaber with the force would improve the speed of drawing the lightsaber, but it doesnt change the fact that you would have to hold the lightsaber with the right hand on the bottom before switching to the top.

 

And as far as I know, only Shien form has a different hand position (blade held in reverse). Putting aside the fact that Shien form is stupid and impractical, all the other forms use an orthodox hand position which would be hindered by the mainstream design of lightsabers.

Well you're right that the blade is weightless, but I highly doubt that a foot long tube of metal housing a power pack would be weightless as well. If I were wielding a flashlight, I still would prefer having my dominant hand on top.

 

You cannot compare a fictional weapons, with a real world device. Given that Is is Fiction a lightsabers components, and building material are likely to be unlike anything we currently possess.

 

Obviously It cannot be entirely weightless, but taking into account that The Force would amplify the users strength, and stamina the weight issue Is quickly corrected.

The people who would use Lightsabers will have spent their entire lives using It. The idea that It would feel awkward due to weight, or which way the hilt was hanging Isn't valid, as It Is likely the user has chosen these things themselves, and are accustomed to that preference.

 

Sure, pulling the lightsaber with the force would improve the speed of drawing the lightsaber, but it doesnt change the fact that you would have to hold the lightsaber with the right hand on the bottom before switching to the top.

 

I don't understand where all this Is coming from. You've clearly watched the movies, and every single person (except Han) never have any problems using their lightsaber for defense, or attack even with these "awkward" and "impractical" ways to carry them.

While It may seem impractical, and seems awkward to you, that certainly doesn't mean whoever Is using It feels the same way.

If you look at how they hold lightsabers in the movies, they DO have their dominant hands on top.

 

The way the Jedi wore their lightsabers in the prequels seemed to eliminate the swinging. Having worn prop lightsaber hilts myself, I can attest that, if you hang it on the correct spot on your belt, it won't slam into your leg as you walk (which, yes, ranges from annoying to quite painful.)

ummm, i think the design problems go a little deeper than lightsabers?

You cannot compare a fictional weapons, with a real world device. Given that Is is Fiction a lightsabers components, and building material are likely to be unlike anything we currently possess.

 

Obviously It cannot be entirely weightless, but taking into account that The Force would amplify the users strength, and stamina the weight issue Is quickly corrected.

The people who would use Lightsabers will have spent their entire lives using It. The idea that It would feel awkward due to weight, or which way the hilt was hanging Isn't valid, as It Is likely the user has chosen these things themselves, and are accustomed to that preference.

 

I don't understand where all this Is coming from. You've clearly watched the movies, and every single person (except Han) never have any problems using their lightsaber for defense, or attack even with these "awkward" and "impractical" ways to carry them.

While It may seem impractical, and seems awkward to you, that certainly doesn't mean whoever Is using It feels the same way.

 

True, I am just assuming that the lightsaber would be made from comparable materials in real life. I'm not sure what the lore says but if George Lucas said "lightsabers are made of a mystical metal that weighs only 1 pound," I couldn't argue with that. However, it does seem like they have a reasonable weight to them, given the sound they make when falling to the ground.

 

I never said that lightsabers are too heavy, making them difficult to use. My whole post was about the transition in hand placement being awkward. To use your fiction argument against you, the way lightsabers are designed and carried comes simply from the idea of someone involved in making Star Wars (who probably gave this much less thought that I have), not from years of people actually wielding them. I'm just projecting that if the Star Wars universe were anything like the real universe, this would be awkward for an untrained person to operate. Sure, if someone trained for years with a poorly designed piece of equipment, he/she could become proficient at using it. But that doesn't change the fact that it is poorly designed.

 

Well of course the movies would not want to show their heroes fumbling around with their lightsabers. I tried observing how Jedi draw their lightsabers in the movies and while this was often difficult due to cuts in the editing, you can see that I am right that they first grab their lightsabers at the bottom before shifting their hands to the top. They do seem to do this quickly and effortlessly, but I am merely expressing my opinion that eliminating that shift in hand position would be more efficient. I don't see why I'm getting so much hate here; I was merely expressing my opinion on something that bothered me and was curious to see if anyone else felt similarly. Apparently I'm the only one.

A right-handed Jedi (or Sith) using a single Sabre should carry it on the Right hip, but draw with the Left hand. REAL Swordsmen always wear their blade on the opposite hip, and draw across the body, but that's primarily for one-handed weapons. If you're going to use both hands, you'd draw with the off-hand, and leave the upper section of the hilt open to great your main hand as they come together, and you "ignite" it with your main hand. Also, note that the animations for the Marauder and Sentinel show them cross-drawing both blades.

Hence the reason its called Sci-fi, its not real lol.

Thats not a flaw in the design. Swordsman and gunman have worn their weapons on the opposite hip for nearly as long as these weapons have existed. The only thing I can see to make it more accessible is if the saber hilt was turned at an angle and more a little more toward the center of their belt. That way the handle might be better oriented and the user might not have to reach so far across their body. Besides not all saber users carry their weapons the same way. Ventress for example wears hers behind her back, which I am surprised more Jedi/Sith don't do.

Adding to this lovely discussion: Aren't lightsabers powered by the force? which would explain why whenever you see a jedi/sith defeated his/her lightsaber always sheaths. So really there is no chance of it going off while on you belt.

 

(someone may have said this, didn't read all the posts)

Adding to this lovely discussion: Aren't lightsabers powered by the force? which would explain why whenever you see a jedi/sith defeated his/her lightsaber always sheaths. So really there is no chance of it going off while on you belt.

 

(someone may have said this, didn't read all the posts)

 

No, some are though but most have buttons. Otherwise Han wouldn't have been able to use Luke's saber to cut open the tauntaun on hoth.

Adding to this lovely discussion: Aren't lightsabers powered by the force? which would explain why whenever you see a jedi/sith defeated his/her lightsaber always sheaths. So really there is no chance of it going off while on you belt.

 

(someone may have said this, didn't read all the posts)

 

Incorrect. Virtually all lightsabers have a button, switch, or activation stud; however, they are almost always hung from the belt in such a way that the activator is less likely to be bumped to the "on" position. As to the second point about deactivation on death of the wielder, my theory is that most lightsabers require constant pressure on their activator to maintain the blade, or have a mechanism to "lock" the blade - for example, when the weapon is to be thrown.

Lightsabers are weightless on the blades and the hilts are basically weightless also.

 

The hilts are not weightless infact they have quite a bit of weight (the old Graflex flashgun's used for orginal lightsabers for example weighted a good bit, even more so after the extra cosmetics, The newer sabers weighed even more due to being machined from solid aluminum and steel.)

 

 

When active the blade it self is weightless but does have alot of inertia resistance due to the blades containment ie a gyroscopic effect (this was used to explain the weight of the metal rods used as the blade during filming, that was later retroscoped during production with the glowing blade)

A right-handed Jedi (or Sith) using a single Sabre should carry it on the Right hip, but draw with the Left hand. REAL Swordsmen always wear their blade on the opposite hip, and draw across the body, but that's primarily for one-handed weapons. If you're going to use both hands, you'd draw with the off-hand, and leave the upper section of the hilt open to great your main hand as they come together, and you "ignite" it with your main hand. Also, note that the animations for the Marauder and Sentinel show them cross-drawing both blades.

 

I'm not totally sure I understand your post, but I have considered drawing with the off-hand and then placing the dominant hand on top. However, it would be hard to quickly attack or defend by doing this, whereas if you only used one hand to draw, you could attack/defend in the same motion.

 

Incorrect. Virtually all lightsabers have a button, switch, or activation stud; however, they are almost always hung from the belt in such a way that the activator is less likely to be bumped to the "on" position. As to the second point about deactivation on death of the wielder, my theory is that most lightsabers require constant pressure on their activator to maintain the blade, or have a mechanism to "lock" the blade - for example, when the weapon is to be thrown.

 

I think having a locking mechanism would be useful, though it would mean one extra step when turning the lightsaber on/off. I personally wouldnt want to keep constant pressure on a button the whole time though. One idea I've had is to get rid of buttons altogether. Given the fact that Jedi are able to activate their lightsabers with the Force, they dont really need a physical external button to use them. Perhaps they could have an internal button that they could trigger with the Force when they need to, thus solving the problem of accessibility.

So ... your problem with the lightsaber isn't that it's some miraculous tube that creates a concentrated beam of light that only goes so far and requires practically NO power. Seriously, a couple double a batteries and you're set for like, a decade. No, instead, your problem with it is the belt.

 

Good sir, I mean this is in the friendliest, least cruel way I possibly can; That is *********** hilarious.

I don't really understand the point of this discussion, being that Lightsabers don't even exist. You know Sci-Fi can make up whatever the hell rules they want to... sci-fi can defy gravity (god that made me want to sing Defying Gravity from Wicked...).

this post is awesome and i look forward to the continued discussion

 

my 2 cents, just because it seems awkward or unweildly doesn't make it so. years of practice could make the most ludicrous motion seem fluid and simple

Adding to this lovely discussion: Aren't lightsabers powered by the force? which would explain why whenever you see a jedi/sith defeated his/her lightsaber always sheaths. So really there is no chance of it going off while on you belt.

 

(someone may have said this, didn't read all the posts)

 

Incorrect. Virtually all lightsabers have a button, switch, or activation stud; however, they are almost always hung from the belt in such a way that the activator is less likely to be bumped to the "on" position. As to the second point about deactivation on death of the wielder, my theory is that most lightsabers require constant pressure on their activator to maintain the blade, or have a mechanism to "lock" the blade - for example, when the weapon is to be thrown.

 

My personal theory on why lightsabers deactivate upon being dropped, either via being disarmed, killed or knocked unconscious is due to the forging of the weapon.

 

Each Jedi creates their weapon personally, it's a final test to determine if they can wield the force properly.

 

When a jedi creates their weapon, they have to meditate and focus on the weapon, often building it by using the force to lift and connect the pieces.

 

This is illustrated by the creation of lightsabers at the forge on tython in the JK/consular prologue, where they use the force to assemble their first lightsaber.

 

When this happens, the force "binds" the weapon to the jedi and it becomes more then a weapon or a tool, but a piece of the jedi themselves, and they it.

 

When in combat, the natural flow of the force being used by the combatant allows their weapon to be more accurate and powerful and the weapon becomes attuned to that jedi.

 

When the weapon is dropped, or the flow of the force from jedi to weapon ceases, so to does the weapons power supply.

 

Not necessarily that the weapon is powered by the force, cause it isn't, but the sabre has a built in fail safe with their connection to the jedi and will de-activate when the flow is stopped.

 

While jedi can use lightsabers belonging to other jedi, the jedi will always attempt to make a new lightsaber as soon as they are able to if their original one was lost - Luke created his own sabre when he became a jedi.

 

Vader made a new saber when his was taken by obi-wan, Jacen Solo made a new saber when his was taken by luke and Anakin Solo even rebuilt his saber when his was destroyed on yavin during the Vong War.

 

It even described in the book how while the components were there, a jedi was not truely ready to wield a saber until they had meditated in the force on it.

 

Anakin Solo's unique choice of a lament crystal and the meditation afterwards even allowed him to sense the Vong in the force by channeling his senses through the crystal int he heart of his weapon.

So ... your problem with the lightsaber isn't that it's some miraculous tube that creates a concentrated beam of light that only goes so far and requires practically NO power. Seriously, a couple double a batteries and you're set for like, a decade. No, instead, your problem with it is the belt.

 

Good sir, I mean this is in the friendliest, least cruel way I possibly can; That is *********** hilarious.

 

I don't really understand the point of this discussion, being that Lightsabers don't even exist. You know Sci-Fi can make up whatever the hell rules they want to... sci-fi can defy gravity (god that made me want to sing Defying Gravity from Wicked...).

 

Sigh...You do realize this is the Star Wars discussion forum, right? You know, the place where people discuss the most random ideas like "who would win in a fight between Vader and Revan?" Of course lightsabers aren't real. This is a place to throw out "what ifs" and think creatively. If that's not for you and you have nothing to contribute to the discussion, then leave.

 

What I've been trying to say has nothing to do with the fantastical technology that makes lightsabers work. We all accept that in the Star Wars universe, there exists such technology. But the point is that humans are the same in both real life and in the Star Wars Universe, and that way lightsabers are designed does not work well with human physiology.

You can't think too hard about sci fi. I mean, if I have telekinesis, I wouldnt throw rocks at you. I'd just move your internal organs around. If Scottie can 'beam' people up (involving saving their entire cellular structure) people are immortal assuming enough hard drive space (see some episode of DS9).

The best lightsaber setup/attachment was galen marek. How he attaches his lightsabers is wicked.

I would say Force Sensitive use the force to operate the switches / buttons / triggers on the lightsabers.

 

So the Lightsabers do not need necessary have outside visible buttons.

 

When you disarm them, they trained and learned to purposely let's go / switch /"press" the activation mechanism of a Lightsaber. (Maybe the switch needs constant focusing to operate and will disable with the break of focus)

 

 

That concept makes way more sense. Non force users can still operate Lightsabers if they got visible outside switches, and force users do not need to "touch" to change states of the Lightsaber.

 

 

I'd personally would make my lightsaber constat float next to my hand, instead of attaching it to my belt and let it swing, but then again i prolly wouldn't be a jedi.

Edited March 8, 2012 by -sasori