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HUMOR Do Lightsabers Weigh More When They're On?

Discussion in 'General Movie Discussion' started by SegNerd, May 20, 2020.

  1. SegNerd

    SegNerd Rebel Official

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    I meant this as a lighthearted question, but now that I've thought about it, I am really puzzled - do lightsabers weigh more when they're on?

    Most beams of light don't have any sort of measurable weight - but lightsaber blades really seem to have a lot more in common with physical objects (with mass) rather than light. For example, lightsabers can collide into other objects (including other lightsabers), and the blade also has a fixed size and shape.

    Having the lightsaber increase in weight might seem like it violates conservation of mass, but theoretically energy can be converted into mass, and the Kyber Crystals seen to draw some sort of energy from the Force.

    I don't really have any experience with any sort of swords or fencing, so I'm not sure if it would matter to the holder whether the beam has mass.

    What do you think? :D
     
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  2. Embo and His Pet Anooba

    Embo and His Pet Anooba Jedi Commander

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    Lightsabers are made of superheated plasma that is channeled from the Kyber crystal and focused by the force. So technically, it probably shouldn’t be that much heavier or heavier at all. That’s probably why people can swing them around like madmen at high speeds.
     
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  3. Stormagadon

    Stormagadon Cantina Court Jester
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    I'm not the most informed when it comes to the science of light and what-nots, but I think a key to understanding the science of lightsabers would be to not be pinned down by the term "light" in "lightsaber."
    The name could simply imply what it looks like, not the actual mechanics of how it works.
     
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  4. Desert Walker

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    Interesting question. I always imagined that they didn't weigh much if anything, yet they likely have some drag to it when swung so it wouldn't have a weightless feel.

    It's been a while, but pretty sure in the director's commentary for A New Hope that Lucas said that his original idea was that lightsabers were so full of raw energy that they were hard to control, like someone using it has to really hang on to it to control it properly, and that was apparent in his direction. He had Kenobi and Vader using both hands, and they weren't twirling around like marching band leaders using batons. Then of course it got changed in Empire, and all the rest of it.
     
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  5. Jaimz the Jedi

    Jaimz the Jedi Rebel General

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    I’m pretty sure I saw a round table discussion on YouTube once, with Mark Hamill, JJ, Kevin Smith, & Stan Lee.

    Mark Hamill said him and the stunt coordinators basically begged George to let them doing more one-handed lightsaber moves, but he refused because he said the lightsaber would be heavy when turn on.

    Then Mark talks about his outrage when he saw the prequels and they got to twirl lightsabers about for days :D
     
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  6. Andrew Waples

    Andrew Waples Jedi General

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    That's the point of the prequels. It shows what damage the Empire has done to the Jedi order.
     
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  7. DarthSnow

    DarthSnow Sith in the North
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    Heh, more like heavysaber, amirite??
    Okay I'll be going now.
     
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  8. eeprom

    eeprom Prince of Bebers

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    Star Wars: Rebels - S3:E15 Trials of the Darksaber

    Sabine: It's heavier than I thought.

    Kanan: Energy constantly flows through the crystal. You're not fighting with a simple blade as you are directing a current of power. Your thoughts, your actions, they become energy. They flow through the crystal as well, and become a part of the blade. The blades will be drawn to each other. There's pull. Can you feel it? That sword is old, heavy, but powerful. Respect its strength.

    Sabine:
    The blade feels lighter.

    Kanan:
    You're connecting with it. It's becoming a part of you.
     
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  9. borisroy

    borisroy Guest

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    Force is used to focus the superheated plasma channeled from the Kyber crystal and used to make noepixel eco lightsabers. As a result, technically it shouldn't be that much heavier or even heavier at all. They can probably do this because people can swing them like madmen at high speeds.
     
    #9 borisroy, Nov 12, 2021
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 12, 2021
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  10. Darth Phantom

    Darth Phantom Rebelscum

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    If they are heavy it must take alot of concentrations and muscle building to hold them in the effort that most Jedi and Sith do. Clone wars and revenge of the sith fight with lightsabers like they are broomsticks.
     
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  11. Noah Giove

    Noah Giove Clone

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    The darksaber gets heavier as time goes on, and as you swing it and stuff. But a normal lightsaber? I dunno. Maybe? I fenced once or twice, but that doesn't really help too much with answering this question. I think it just comes down to Star Wars lore.
    And Disney really doesn't have the new lore figured out yet. It's very inaccurate and unprecise. For example, how do Sith's make their lightsabers? In legends, there's a whole process involving a forge and meditation and stuff. But in Disney, the Sith has to make their crystal bleed.
    All in all, I think it just depends. Like, in the prequels and clone wars, it doesn't look like lightsabers have any weight at all. But OT blades look heavy. And Kylo's blade looks like it has weight. He's always heaving it around and slamming it down like a broadsword.
     
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  12. AkJackster

    AkJackster Clone Commander

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    Nothing to do with lightsabers, but this forum seems so dead lately
     
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  13. cawatrooper

    cawatrooper Dungeon Master

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    I know that's the phrasing used, but I'm wondering if it's actually a weight thing by "heavier", or if it's more about difficulty controlling the momentum.
     
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  14. Lock_S_Foils

    Lock_S_Foils Red Leader

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    @AkJackster I have been here for many years. It ebbs and flows here. Interest was at fever pitch when TFA came out . The Mandalorian drove it back up. I predict OWK will generate more activity here….
     
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  15. Embo and His Pet Anooba

    Embo and His Pet Anooba Jedi Commander

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    im still alive
     
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  16. The Hero With No Fear

    The Hero With No Fear Resident Sand Hater

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    Kyber Crystals are connected to their users. When Force users are attuned with the Force and are focused, the lightsaber is often described as feeling as an extension of themself. I imagine that this would mean that it feels lighter.

    Going off how the Darksaber has been described in Rebels and The Book of Boba Fett (which, granted, isn’t exactly a normal lightsaber but I imagine the same principle would apply to a degree), peace of mind and balance make the blade easier to wield. By trying to fight against your inner turmoil, or fighting against the blade, it’s going to be hard to use. By accepting your internal battle, you surrender to the blade and become one with it.
     
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  17. deadmanwalkin009

    deadmanwalkin009 Force Sensitive

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    Because there isn't anything new and exciting about SW right now. We're still 2 months away from the Obi-Wan show and we still know little next to nothing about it.
     
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  18. AkJackster

    AkJackster Clone Commander

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    K, thanks for clarifying
    --- Double Post Merged, Mar 1, 2022, Original Post Date: Mar 1, 2022 ---
    Good to hear
    --- Double Post Merged, Mar 1, 2022 ---
    Sounds gut
     
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