h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Does anyone know why the lightsabers in Star Wars don't carry on for more than a metre or so?

Yes

If they carried on forever, they wouldn't be lightsabres, would they? They'd just be laser beams.

It's all done with mirrors. Probably.

In episode 1 they use them like oxyacetaline torches.

If only they could adjust the length and then they could have speared Darth Maul from a distance.

The length of some can apparently be adjusted - have a look at the star wars site for lots of spod-dom on the subject. If they really existed then they'd have to have a huge great magnetic field containing the plasma of the sabre to prevent it being a continuous beam. QV Empire mag no. 122.

The weapons are called light sabres. Sabres are a single edged sword, which strikes me as a bit inappropriate. You're not telling me that only one side of a light sabre is actually dangerous!

Lucas alone knows about the mass and balance of a light sabre, but when it comes to swords, a shorter weapon may not be well balanced, and a longer weapon would be less easy to wield.

Since light weighs so little (resisting the temptation to say its light weight) I think it's little to do with balance & far more to do with marketing & merchandising potential.


;^)#
the cynical

MMMMM, A SPOILSPORT WOULD YOU BE? SEE THROUGH YOU WE CAN, BRUCE.

Incidentally, if Yoda is 900 years old and so wise, how come he can't speak English properly. Ignorant dwarf.

It's because George Lucas just thought that Star Wars is just
A BLOODY SCI-FI MOVIE!!!!!

And by the way, size doesn't matter, the technique does...

Now go get a life and learn to separate fiction from reality

Mucking about on Internet forums answering silly questions about fantastical events is Fiction, not Reality. I do realise that. I find it an amusing passtime, as do many others. I am married with a son. I have a well paid professional job. I have a more than adequate social life, thank you. What angers me most is people who simply won't enter into the spirit of the thing. PISS OFF and stop bothering us.

Hmmm. I think we'll put something in the Terms and Conditions about use of the phrase 'Get a Life'

I am what you would call a star wars fan. I've read a lot of the novels. In Kevin J. Anderson's Trilogy, and before that in the West End Games RPG, it is explained that building a lightsaber is the final test for a Jedi in training. He/she must construct it using only natural elements on the planet they are training, and the actual sabre is created from crystals that, when put side by side in the barrel of the sabre, shoot out the energy blade, and the length depends on their spacing. In Anderson's trilogy, one of the jedi in training at Luke's Jedi Praxeum constructs a lightsabre, with the help of the spirit of a powerful Sith Lord, that not only can vary its length, but can even shoot energy bolts. The crystals do run out, though, and so this is not the best strategy for long battery life. And one last note: the crystals, spaced correctly, should curve 180 degrees at the tip of the sabre and come right back into the barrel, so that the crystals only lose energy when the path of the energy is impeded by a foreign object, such as Darth Maul's torso. I hope I've helped, although I have to admit that I doubt anyone will have read this far. MTFBWY, Always...

Aha. So the sith aren't wiped out when Palpatine and Vader cark it at the end of episode VI. Why, might I ask, are there two (no more, no less) when there are masses of Jedi, given the right conditions? Are they playing easy-to-kill despite the fact that they don't like the jedi? Although the sabres are made of light they must have some weight or Ewan wouldn't be able to do the fancy twirly shite of which he seems so fond.

Who you call ignorant dwarf hmmmmmmmmm! Strike you down I will, smite you with all of my powers! That will teach you, will it not, unbeliever!

Fancy Twirly Shite? I do a bit of weapons play myself, as a student of Chinese Martial Arts. Young Mr McGregor's swordplay isn't half bad considering. I want one of those double ended thingies that Darth Maul had. My staff work in real life is twirly shite in comparison to what he does. Incidentally, am I the only one who thinks that the character was sorely wasted in the film? I got no sense of his motivation, his history, or of what he did for a day job

Humble apologies, oh small green one. I offer you my thesaurus in penance. If I may be so bold, Master, how long is YOUR light sabre? I mean, you're only 18 inches tall, and if you had a normal length one you'd dig a trench every time you twirled it. Can you enlighten us (sic) in our deliberations.

Apology accepted oh ignorant one. size does not matter hmmmmmmmm. Give damn good kneecapping to palpatine I do. Not know what hit him he didn't hmmmmmmmmmm!

Complete pant was he hmmmmmmm! No background information was there. Could not build up hatred for character could you. But is good. Hate leads to suffering hmmmmmmmmmm.

Hmmmmm.
Learn the basics of grammar I did not.

Real Yoda am I. Charloten (check spelling) are you.