Lightsaber

A lightsaber is a fictional energy sword featured in the Star Wars franchise. A typical lightsaber is shown as a luminous laser sword about 3 feet (0.91 m) in length emitted from a metal hilt around 10.5 inches (27 cm) in length. Introduced in the original Star Wars film, it has since appeared in 12 of the 13 theatrical Star Wars films, with at least one lightsaber duel occurring in each installment of the "Skywalker Saga". The lightsaber's distinct appearance was created using rotoscoping for the original films, and with digital effects for the prequel and sequel trilogies.

In the Star Wars universe, the lightsaber is the signature weapon of both the light side-wielding Jedi Order and the dark side-wielding Sith Order, though it can be used as an ordinary weapon or tool by any individual, regardless of their Force sensitivity. The Jedi use lightsabers of various colors, typically blue, green and—to a lesser extent—yellow, orange and purple, while the Sith wield red-bladed sabers to distinguish themselves from the Jedi. The color of a lightsaber's blade is given by its kyber crystal, which powers the blade and whose color is determined by the user's connection to the Force. A lightsaber's hilt is built by its wielder and is, therefore, unique in design. There are several variations outside of the traditional single-bladed lightsaber, such as the double-bladed lightsaber (most famously wielded by Darth Maul), the curved-hilted lightsaber (wielded by Count Dooku and Asajj Ventress), the crossguard lightsaber (used by Kylo Ren and occasionally by Jedi), and the Darksaber, forged by the Mandalorian Jedi Tarre Vizsla and primarily wielded by the non-Force-sensitive rulers of the planet Mandalore (including Pre Vizsla and Bo-Katan Kryze).

An active lightsaber gives off a distinctive hum, which rises in pitch and volume as the blade is moved rapidly through the air. As presented in the early films, the blade can cut, burn, and melt through most substances with little resistance. Lightsabers can deflect blaster bolts, allowing a wielder with Jedi reflexes to turn an enemy's own gunfire against them. It can be deflected by another lightsaber blade, which produces a loud crackle; by energy shields; or by the metals beskar (found in Mandalorian armor) and phrik (the metal used to create electrostaffs). Some exotic saber-proof melee weapons have been introduced in the Star Wars Expanded Universe as well as later episodic films. The blade has been used to weld metal, and has been shown to leave both cauterized wounds and bleeding wounds in flesh.

The lightsaber has become one of the most widely recognized elements of the Star Wars franchise. In 2008, a survey of about 2,000 film fans found it to be the most popular weapon in film history.