Lightsaber Building Do's and Don'ts

[Adonis Angelis IV]

Hey y'all, I've been around on and off since 2013, but this is probably the longest consistent tenure I've had on the site, and despite all that time, I've never really dipped into the Factory or Codex side of things. Always felt a bit like staring into the sun.

That said, I'm now faction staff with the Mandalorians and want to start engaging with Factory/Codex more, not just to understand it better, but to use it as a storytelling tool. I figured the best place to start is small: I want to build my first lightsaber!

So I'm throwing a few questions out there (in no particular order), and I'd love your thoughts:

1. Is it more fun to submit your own crystal, or just use canon/pre-existing ones from the site?
2. Are there crystal submissions that are open for others to use?
3. Do you actually enjoy writing threads about building your saber, or do they feel like filler?
4. Any tips or tricks when it comes to making a saber that feels unique, both mechanically and narratively?
5. Is there anything obvious I'm forgetting to consider?

I know a lot of this comes down to personal preference, but I figured I'd ask the community rather than DM folks individually. Seemed more fun to open the floor.

Appreciate any advice, or just wild opinions. I'm listening.

 

[Darth Prazutis]

I made a lightsaber for Darth Prazutis and part of the enjoyment for me was custom designing all bespoke stuff for his new blade, and that meant new materials, new crystal too! It's very fulfilling and I can show his alchemical and crafting skill, and make something great that fit him! I say go custom! A lot of people have made cool stuff, I'd definitely love to highlight Braze here too. They've made a TON of lightsabers!

 

[Braze]

Darth Prazutis
Aww, thank you!

Is it more fun to submit your own crystal, or just use canon/pre-existing ones from the site?

I think custom crystals can be a lot of fun. You just need to keep in mind how existing crystals work, what their limitations are, and how yours might fit into that framework. I'd be happy to share my FSS faction page with you. It has some great saber ideas and source references.

Are there crystal submissions that are open for others to use?

Yes, there are. They're marked as Open Market. A popular one is Entropite, which creates a non-lethal blade that puts opponents to sleep with a cooling lethargy.

Do you actually enjoy writing threads about building your saber, or do they feel like filler?

I do enjoy them, but I think a lot of writers aren't as into the more technical parts. It really depends on your style. You can be as detailed as you want. It might be hard to find others who enjoy that level of detail, but more casual threads are pretty common.

Any tips or tricks when it comes to making a saber that feels unique, both mechanically and narratively?

Think about what fits your character. What would they choose, and why? What feels symbolic to them? Try to put yourself in their shoes. That kind of perspective can help shape something really personal.


I've made a small handful of sabers over time and could give you a bunch of examples if you'd like.

Is there anything obvious I'm forgetting to consider?

I think you're already putting more thought into it than most. That's a good thing in my book. :>

 

[Braze]

Adonis Angelis IV
Force Forged Sabercrafts is a mini faction I have for storing saber tech / ideas and resources, you can peep this page: Saber Components and Charts for some sources / ideas

 

[Braze]

Adonis Angelis IV
I have some items on the Star Bazaar : Emporium of Everything for Sabers that are purchasable such as

Name
FFS- Refined Compound Lens - Vibration Dragite Lens
FFS- Refined Phobium Emitter
FSS Adapt Saber Mod Kit
FFS-ACV (Advanced Cooling Vents)
FFS-RIP-Cell : Power Cell

Here are some examples of different saber weapon's I've made and stuff I use with them or with saber threads in general :

Sabers:
Training lightsaber [Normal] |
Gauntlet Shield [Katar + Shield] |
Corsage [Dueling Foil +Gun] |
Calypso [Hand an a half + Board Saber] |
Sentry [Parrying Dagger] |
Requiem [Light Foil] |
Echo [Two handed with Crossguard] |
Resurgence [Two handed with Crossguard] |
Whirlwind [Chin Kama] |
Twilight [Polearm] |
Nightshade [Throwing Knives]
Hot 'n' Heavy Compensator [ War Maul]

Crystals:
Amplification |
Serenity |
Phantom Ghostfire |
Frostheart |
Entropite |
Tiger's Fang |
Mindshatter |
Echos |
Mestare |


Ranged:
Phantom |
FFS- Quiver Trigger - Grip / Stock |
FFS- I. S.P.Y. : Scope |
FFS- H.A.R.M. - Shroud


If you have any questions for me I'd be happy to help.

​

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[Adonis Angelis IV]

Braze Thank you so much! This is an amazing place to start!

 

[Kivah]

I've made three saber subs myself, dual sabers, a saber staff, and another pair where each are different but complimentary.

• Is it more fun to submit your own crystal, or just use canon/pre-existing ones from the site?

I like to use cannon/preexisting ones. There's generally enough out there that I don't have to make a unique sub myself.

• Are there crystal submissions that are open for others to use?

Yup, Braze has your back there. You can also drop a request to use other's, I've done that and been gifted a crystal in the past.

• Do you actually enjoy writing threads about building your saber, or do they feel like filler?

Nah, but then I can spend months working on a submission before putting it in the Factory. Writing its creation after that seems like it's just redoing the same work, and I'd prefer to put that effort towards writing with other people. That said, I did like threads where we would discover materials or make deals back when there were dev threads for certain things.

• Any tips or tricks when it comes to making a saber that feels unique, both mechanically and narratively?

What makes sense for your character thematically, what's their concern and how do they envision using it in character? Kivah made hers with ghostfire crystals to be sneaky, but also built in tricks for dueling. Their hilts are wrapped with Tuk'ata leather from the one she killed during her acolyte trials.

• Is there anything obvious I'm forgetting to consider?

Probably, but that's what hindsight and editing is for. You can fail, take the hit IC, and then modify and add to the history of the lightsaber submission as Adonis learns and modifies his weapon.
Something I've learned over years of making stuff in the Factory is that the more complex you make something, the less likely people are to read through it all or understand the intricacies of it. Just a part of being on a forum, people want to write and will look over something just enough to get a quick understanding before going back to the Dom or Invasion. Some of my best submissions were the simple and fairly straightforward ones.

Adonis Angelis IV

 

[Valery Noble]

I've made a few but I enioy the RP before it more than making the actual sub. I especially want to touch on the crystal part.

With Padawans, whether it's my own character or a Padawan I'm training, I enjoy doing the crystal gathering. If you've seen the Clone Wars animated show, there are episodes about a group of Padawans facing their fears in the Ilum caves to collect their first crystal. It's super fun RP to do with a student level character. Doesn't have to be just Jedi either!

With Knight or Master level characters, I just turn the heat up a little and make the gathering more of a challenge.

This way, even if you choose an existing crystal from canon/Legends, you have your own little story and lore to it.

 

[Tilon Quill]

Haven't read any of the replies but here are my opinions.

Is it more fun to submit your own crystal, or just use canon/pre-existing ones from the site?
Just as a function of coming from RPG lists and +1 game trinkets, most of the canon ones are stubs without much character. IMO the MUCH better way is no sub or Wook page, and instead handle it the way the Young Jedi Knights books did: go out and acquire a crystal through RP in a meaningful/memorable way. Don't even bother giving it special powers or whatever. I found a random Codex saber crystal that grows inside a plant and I use that for Tilon due to a couple of IC things.

Are there crystal submissions that are open for others to use?
Fun fact: any Codex species is completely fair game for anyone. I often skip the Factory permissions stuff by just finding a Codex way forward. I bet there's a bunch of crystals in Codex species. Here's the one I mentioned: https://www.starwarsrp.net/threads/rose-amanecer.157172/

Do you actually enjoy writing threads about building your saber, or do they feel like filler?
I've enjoyed threads about saber construction as long as they're also about other things. Go do something batshit to get your crystal or components and skip the boring parts.

Any tips or tricks when it comes to making a saber that feels unique, both mechanically and narratively?
Less is more. One nifty feature at most. Go for a sensory experience around the grip, the sound, the weight, the scars on it, whatever.

Adonis Angelis IV