Lightsaber

"This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. An elegant weapon for a more civilized age."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi A Lightsaber is a weapon in the Star Wars universe. It consists of a polished metal hilt which projects a plasma blade about 1.33 meters long. The Lightsaber is the signature weapon of the Jedi and their Sith counterparts both of whom can use it for close combat and to deflect blaster bolts and etc.

Usage
The Lightsaber's blade cuts through most substances without resistance. It leaves cauterized wounds in flesh, but can be deflected by another Lightsaber's blade, or by energy shields. Some exotic saber-proof materials have been introduced in the Expanded Universe. An active Lightsaber gives off a distinctive hum, which rises in pitch and volume as the blade is moved rapidly through the air. Bringing the blade into contact with an object or another Lightsaber's blade produces a loud crackle. The Lightsaber is designed as much for elegance in combat as for ceremony, the lightsaber was a distinctive weapon, the very image of which was inextricably bound with the mythos of the Jedi Order and their polar opposites, the Sith. The lightsaber also became synonymous with the Jedi Order's values to uphold peace and justice throughout the galaxy. This perception endured, despite the many conflicts with lightsaber-wielding Sith and Dark Jedi.

The weapon consisted of a blade of pure plasma emitted from the hilt and suspended in a force containment field. The field contained the immense heat of the plasma, protecting the wielder, and allowed the blade to keep its shape. The hilt was almost always self-fabricated by the wielder to match his or her specific needs, preferences and style. Due to the weightlessness of plasma and the strong gyroscopic effect generated by it, lightsabers required a great deal of strength and dexterity to wield, and it was extremely difficult—and dangerous—for the untrained to attempt using. However, in the hands of an expert of the Force, the lightsaber was a weapon to be greatly respected and feared. To wield a lightsaber was to demonstrate incredible skill and confidence, as well as masterful dexterity and attunement to the Force.

Lightsaber Combat Forms

 * Form I: Shii Cho, also known as the Determination Form. Roughly every Force User was taught this Form when first handed a lightsaber.
 * Form II: Makashi, also known as the Contention Form. Its design is based on Lightsaber vs. Lightsaber Combat.
 * Form III: Soresu, also known as the Resilience Form. Its design was based on pure Defense with either ranged or Melee attacks.
 * Form IV : Ataru, also known as the Aggression Form. Its design is based around high energy attacks and defenses.
 * Form V: Shien/Djem So, also known as the Perseverance Form. Their design is based on manipulating an opponent's attack.
 * Form VI: Niman, also known as The Moderation Form. Its design is a conglomeration of the preceding Forms
 * Form VII Juyo/Vaapad, also known as the Ferocity Form. Their design is based on Pure Attack, No Defense.

Development and Production
When developing the Jedi Knights, who were heroic and honorable peacekeepers, George Lucas needed a weapon that was more than just another weapon but also a symbol that matched their ideals as the whole premises of Star Wars was that it was a romantic fantasy in the great romantic traditions of mythology. Influenced by the romantic Pirate and Swashbuckling films of the forties which showcased the romantic side of fighting where there was chivalry and honor.

George envisioned that the lightsabers were really heavy and had to use both hands to wield it and never take a hand off because they were very powerful and had a lot of energy in them. The actors had to work with them as if they were heavy. As the saga went on, they began to slowly move away from the two handed form and sometimes using a one handed form as they made the fights more faster and more intense, and it progressed to being a both two handed and one handed form but still originally was meant to be just a two handed form because of the amount of energy that was being swung around.

Visual Effects
The original effect of the lightsaber was basically a rotating pole that had movie screen material applied to it, then using a compact motor within the hilt, the rod would rapidly rotate, reflecting the lights on set and creating an in-camera glowing effect. However the glowing effect was not absolute, whenever the actor moved it out of a certain area, the glow would disappear and the actual spinning rod could be seen. These props were also highly limited; they were cumbersome and fragile, often breaking them during fight scenes. In order to partially compensate for this, the blade was rotoscoped and an animated glow was added by tracing onto a blown-up copy of the frame with pen and colored ink, one frame at a time. It was at this phase that blades were given colours, as the props were simple white blades.

The lightsaber is both part real and part animated and filmmakers used the real poles to tell them where the sword blades were. Sometimes they used a short blade as the actors would be fighting so close that they would hit the set and sometimes they would use no blade because the blade would either turn on and off in a shot or what the actors were doing was so complicated they couldn't do with swords themselves and they would add in the blades later but took a lot of very careful tracking.

The sound of the lightsabers was turned over to Ben Burtt who was also working on the sound effects for R2-D2, the breathing of Darth Vader and the blasters. The sound of the lightsabers was the first thing Ben worked on for the films. His inspiration for what they sounded like was projector motors that produced these mysterious humming sounds when they weren't running. While searching for other elements, Ben had a tape recorder with a broken mike cable (the shielding had come off of it.) and when he walked past the television set in his apartment, it picked up the hum from the picture tube directly into the broken wire creating a buzz which became the clashing sound of when the lightsabers clashed against each other.