Directorate Officer
Intent: To provide a versatile but compact blade for soldiers and other outdoorsy folk
Image Source: here
Canon Link: N/A
Restricted Missions: N/A
Primary Source: Phase-knife
Manufacturer: Lucerne Personal Defense
Model: LPD-16 Pioneer Phase-Machete
Affiliation: Directorate, Silver Jedi, Galactic Alliance, Closed-Market
Modularity: No
Production: Mass-Produced.
Material: Durasteel blade, spunplast grip covering, Phase-knife components, power cell, ultrasonic vibration generator, magnatomic grip
Classification: Vibroblade / Phase Machete
Size:Small
Weight: Light
Vibroblade: Most of the time, the Pioneer is a simple vibroblade that is little different in terms of basic performance than blades like the Treppus-2 or Talon vibrodagger. It's a versatile cutting tool that can be used as a back-up weapon.
Phase Machete: The Pioneer's includes low-grade phase-knife components which are visible on the upper edge of the knife just befores its crossguard. When activated, these components can project a weightless “phase blade” that can extend well past the Pioneer's physical blade to reach the length of a large, one-handed sword. As a cutting tool and weapon, it is actually less capable than most vibroblades: it's sole advantage is that it is much smaller when unpowered. While technically a type of molecular shield, the phase blade provides no protection from energy weapons like blasters or lightsabers: the energy from either of those weapons simply passes through the blade. However, this blade can make physical contact with physical weapons like swords or projectiles.
Magnatomic Grip Panels: The spunplast-covered hilt contains four, finger-shaped gription panels. These help keep the blade in the user's hand, especially in wet weather conditions and other inclement weather. These panels can also be used to attach the blade to objects, allowing it to serve as a bayonet on rifles or to form makeshift spears in survival scenarios.
Phase-Blade: The phase-blade setting allows users to suddenly have a large but lightweight blade that is well-suited to act as a machete. It is well-suited slashing through large swathes of light material such as foliage or unarmored opponents. The phase-blade setting can be adjusted in terms of size and shape just like the traditional philaxian design, allowing it to be wider or longer as needed. However, the more the blade is stretched, the weaker the blade is in terms of cutting strength.
Inferior Blade: The phase-blade setting is inferior to common vibroblades in terms of physical cutting performance and power usage. The molecular shield “blade” simply doesn't have the cutting power of vibroblades, and is actually equivalent to simple, unpowered blades in terms of cutting power. While a typical blade like the Treppus-2 can see continuous use for up to 10 hours, the phase-blade can last up to 1 hour.
DESCRIPTION
Most modern infantry fighting loads are a compromise between weight and performance. While it would be nice to carry every piece of gear that someone could conceivably need in the field, it is rarely possible simply because of weight. A person can only carry so much. Lucerne Personal Defense kept that experience in mind when they were designing their utility blade. A lot of soldiers and outdoorsmen wanted to carry a larger blade, but it oftentimes simply wasn't feasible with all of the other gear they were expected to carry. This led Lucerne Personal Defense to design another hybrid weapon.
At glance, the Pioneer appears to be a fairly typical vibroblade. It sports a conventional double-edge blade shape that is well-suited for a variety of tasks, whether it is simply whittling wood and peeling tubers to stabbing the Corellian sandpanther that got the drop on you in the woods. The ultrasonic vibration generators enhance the basic cutting ability of this blade, but it's indistinguishable in performance compared to other common vibroblades like the Treppus-2 or Talon Vibrodagger. This alone makes the Pioneer a solid if lackluster piece of gear. To get an edge on its marketplace competitors, Lucerne Personal Defense revisited an older piece of technology, the phase knife.
Lucerne Personal Defense incorporated phase-knife technology into the upper edge of the blade near its guard. These components work like the traditional Philaxian technology, forming a weightless blade made out of a type of molecular shield. This “blade” is actually worse than traditional vibroblades in terms of cutting performance and power usage, but it also means that instead of carrying a half-dozen blades for different purposes, a user only has to carry a single Pioneer and adjust the settings as necessary. Most of these settings simply turn the Pioneer's blade into the equivalent of specialized but unpowered blades, such as machetes or short swords. One common tinkering thought makes the blade wide and short. While this is a poor cutting shape, it is useful as a trowel or digging tool. This sort of versatility endears the Pioneer to its frequently overburdened users, and makes it the key selling point over its more well-established marketplace competitors.
