Directorate Officer
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To provide a general purpose combat knife in the Lucerne Personal Defense line-up
- Image Source: here
- Canon Link: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: Lucerne Personal Defense
- Affiliation: Directorate, Silver Jedi, Closed-Market
- Model: LPD-34 Cracken Combat Knife
- Modularity: Ammunition, mount/handling attachments, scopes, rail accessories
Production: Mass-Produced
- Material: Beskar blade and tang, spun-plast grip, vibroblade components, micro repulsorlift coil
- Classification: Combat Knife
- Size: Small
- Weight: Very Light
- Ammunition Type: blade / power cell
- Ammunition Capacity: 1 knife
Reload Speed: None
- Effective Range: Personal (up to 50 meters when thrown)
- Rate of Fire: Average
- Stopping Power: Low
- Recoil: None
Beskar Cast: The Cracken Combat Knife is formed by pouring liquefied Beskar into a mold. The blade blank is then tempered and sharped by automated ion fuser array. While these mass production techniques are non-traditional, they produce a blade as strong as the traditional beskad, which makes the Cracken fairly tough and even resistant to lightsabers.
Vibroblade: The Cracken Combat Knife can function as a basic blade, but it is more effective with the ultrasonic genenerator being engaged, which turns it into a basic vibroblade. Many often use this blade for basic utility tasks, such as opening up containers or for basic fieldcraft when in the wild.
Repulsorlift Assist: Inspired by the Rodian Throwing Razor, the Cracken includes a small repulsorlift motor that allows it be thrown longer distances than a blade can normally be thrown. Routinely using the blade often require its small powercell to be replaced.
Pommel Ring: The Cracken has an opening near the bottom of its hilt which is designed to accept lanyards for ease of use and to ensure that the knife is not easily lost. Some users have discovered that this ring is durable and large enough to be tied to the end of the rope, allowing it be more easily retrieved if thrown or used as an impromptu grappling tool.
Resilient: The Cracken is an exceptionally resilient weapon thanks to its beskar composition, making it a highly capable of withstanding abuse when used against most other materials to include other metals. Its blade can also noticeably withstand many lightsabers.
Extended Range: Thanks to the inclusion of a repulsorlift, the Cracken can be thrown for a longer range than most combat knives by even an inexperienced user.
Weaknesses:
What guard?: The Cracken does not have any sort of guard to its hilt, meaning that if used as a parrying weapon, users need to be careful that the enemy weapon does not simply slide down to wound their hand.
Power Drain: The Cracken goes through its powercell much quicker than a typical vibroblade, especially if its repulsorlift is activated, as it draws much more power than is typically used for cutting.
DESCRIPTION
Named after the famous Rebel Alliance general, the Cracken Combat Knife is designed to be a back-up weapon and tool for the modern soldier. While it has all of the utility of a normal vibroknife, the Cracken also has a number of carefully thought out features designed to make its user's life easier. The most immediately obvious of these features is its heavy duty beskar construction, which makes it surprisingly durable in the field. Users can not only eventually cut through small trees and other objects with it given enough time, but many have also used it as a prybar with no warping. This construction is also quite useful as a weapon, making it more forgiving when attempting to pierce through enemy armor or flesh, as well as making it resistant to enemy lightsabers as a last ditch parrying tool.
Perhaps the most unusual feature of the Cracken is its replaceable micro repulsorlift coil, which can be fitted into a slot in the middle of the hilt. When activated, this allows the knive to briefly levitate from the ground on its own. This means that it can be thrown for longer distances than most users can normally throw a knife. While this has obvious limitations as weapon when on a battlefield dominated by blasters and slugthrowers, when used in combination with a rope, the Cracken can also be a useful grappling tool in the right situation.
The Cracken has sold moderately well since its introduction, with the vast bulk of purchasers being private orders. Sales have largely been driven by the novelty of the repulsorlift feature, but a steady stream of sales has been growing in the outer rim, especially among scouts and other fringers who appreciate a hardwearing knife in the rougher patches of the galaxy. The Cracken is also a standard issue item to Directorate personnel, where it is more commonly considered to be a tool rather than a proper weapon.