15

enter image description here enter image description here

In the Star Wars: Republic series, multiple Jedi have red lightsabers. Given the association between red lightsabers and the Sith, why is this? I'm looking for both the in-universe and out-of-universe reasons.

Improve this question
2

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
7

I haven't heard of the Star Wars: Republic series, but I do know that the color of the lightsaber doesn't necessarily denote whether you are a Dark side user or a Light side user. It depends on you. A Jedi could have a red lightsaber. That doesn't mean he is a Dark side user. He could have gotten it from a Sith he defeated in battle if the Sith was using a red saber. Just like you can take a blue lightsaber even if you are evil, like with General Grievous. Also, artificial kyber crystals usually are red and produced a red colored lightsaber blade, but a Jedi could use an artificial kyber crystal if they wanted, but still be a Light side user.

Improve this answer
13
  • 4
    Grievous wasn't a Sith or even a Force user. All his lightsabers came from Jedi he had killed. Do you have any other examples of a Dark Sider using a non-red saber?
    – DCOPTimDowd
    Mar 12, 2018 at 19:54
  • 2
    @DCOPTimDowd even though it's not officially considered canon, some of the Dark Jedi in Star Wars: KotOR use purple lightsabers.
    – Darth Vader
    Mar 13, 2018 at 0:05
  • 6
    @DCOPTimDowd Darth Vader pre-Mustafar used a Blue lightsaber.
    – psubsee2003
    Mar 13, 2018 at 0:24
  • 3
    @DarthVader that is wrong based on the movies, When Anakin Skywalker fell to the Dark Side, he became Darth Vader, but when he attacked the Jedi Temple and went to Mustafar, he still used his blue lightsaber.
    – psubsee2003
    Mar 13, 2018 at 0:39
  • 1
    @psubsee2003 Oh yeah. I forgot that bit of my past. I prefer not to remember... (WHY DID I KILL THOSE KIDS)
    – Darth Vader
    Mar 13, 2018 at 11:15
1

Star Wars: Republic takes place in Legends continuity, which is simply the name for the Star Wars Expanded Universe portion (comics, books, games, older cartoons, etc.) of Lucasfilm that was produced prior to Disney purchasing them in 2012 and prior to Disney rebooting the Expanded Universe in 2014. As such, the in-universe explanation for lightsabers will differ somewhat from what's been established in the current canon of the Star Wars Universe.

Both continuities have established that lightsabers blades are generated as a result of their internal Kyber Crystals, a rare mineral found on only a few planets that were kept a closely guarded secret by the Jedi. But in Legends, the concept of synthetic crystals was introduced to explain how people who didn't have access to Kyber Crystals could also build lightsabers and, ostensibly, to explain why Sith lightsabers were always red. The in-universe explanation was that the process of forging these crystals commonly caused a red hue, but that other colors were possible. This was also the explanation given for how Luke built his green lightsaber in Return of the Jedi.

Legends continuity also established that other types of crystals could be used to build lightsabers besides Kyber. However, after Disney's Lucasfilm started rebuilding the background information for the Star Wars Universe, naturally occurring Kyber Crystals became the exclusive crystal for lightsaber construction, with the canon explanation for red lightsabers being the near-sentient Kyber Crystals "bleeding" due to being forced to be in service to the Dark Side. Synthetic Kyber Crystals have also been reintroduced into canon, but are highly unstable and explosive.

I cannot find any explicit in-universe explanation for why Adi Gallia wielded a red lightsaber in Legends, but the implicit explanation is that she used a synthetic crystal because it was generally more powerful. In rare instances, a synth-crystal powered lightsaber could "break" the blade of another simply by overpowering it.

Improve this answer
4
  • 2
    At the time that Republic was being written in the late 90s, Kyber crystals hadn't been created yet (they wouldn't debut until season 5 of The Clone Wars some 13 years later). Lightsabers just used ordinary gemstones.
    – Cadence
    Aug 27, 2022 at 6:15
  • 1
    A solid answer. I just want to point out that the power source of a lightsaber is the energy cells in the hilt, not the crystal that focuses said power into a beam
    – Valorum
    Aug 27, 2022 at 7:43
  • @Cadence That is true. I was just approaching the question in a "what we know so far" kind of way, in the context of Legends, without going on too much of a tangent.
    – Digital Jedi
    Aug 27, 2022 at 22:55
  • @Valorum I believe crystals did power lightsabers in Legends continuity. Hence the rare probability of overpowering another blade. But I can probably make that more clear.
    – Digital Jedi
    Aug 27, 2022 at 22:56
-4

The Jedi believed that the Sith were defeated and the last of the Dark Jedi had fallen centuries ago. Some Jedi were beginning to carry red lightsabers because the Sith and Dark Jedi were defeated, and many Jedi thought it was acceptable to wield red blades, as depicted in Star Wars: Republic. Star Wars: # 14 Emissaries to Malastare 2 of 6.

Improve this answer
3
  • 1
    Do you have a specific source for this?
    – DCOPTimDowd
    Dec 20, 2019 at 17:20
  • Red lightsabers are seen in Star Wars: Republic # 14 Emissaries to Malastare 2 of 6 in many comic book panels.
    – cmac84
    Dec 29, 2019 at 19:47
  • 3
    @user67368: You're referring to the same source material as the question. We already know that some Jedi appear to wield red lightsabers. What we don't know is why, and the comic doesn't answer that. So, again, do you have a source for your answer? Or is this just a theory you've come up with yourself?
    – Ellesedil
    Dec 30, 2019 at 18:01

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.