Question Melee weapons

[Yaha-Kui ZaShunina Kitsune]

So I've had this thought that has bothered me... It appears to me that the only effective and efficient melee weapon, at all in Star Wars, is the lightsaber (and its various variants such as the staff/pike, etc).

So my question is.. why would anyone use something else? We see that gammons use axes, and a few others use melee weapons, but these things would easily be cut in two, by a saber.

The benefits of a saber outweigh kinetic melee weapons in every way. They are lighter, obviously stronger, can deflect shots, and are even more efficient to use. The only benefits I've found of a kinetic weapon could be a stun baton as its method is to stun...The only other benefit I've found is that a kinetic weapon such as a knife can "stick" into your opponent, for whatever reason you might want or need that.

Now, here's the second part. Assumed everyone started to use saber weapons instead of kinetic weapons. What exactly would be the point? The Jedi/Sith/Force users would simply be able to topple you since their force abilities actually can turn the tide and give them superhuman reflexes, abilities, and so on.

So really, if you use a melee weapon, why isn't it a saber?

Second, even if you used one, why would you use it if you couldn't use the force?

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

I think it's been stated that non-Force Users would seriously struggle to make use of a Lightsaber, and would do more harm to themselves than good by wielding one. Please correct me if I'm wrong though.

Also the ratio of Force User to Non-Force User in the Galaxy is staggeringly off-balance. The chances of an ordinary individual running into a Lightsaber are slim to none, so when you consider it in that way mundane melee weapon vs mundane melee weapon really isn't all that crazy a concept!

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

Lightsabres are rare, expensive and hard to use. It takes years of training to master them as a Force User. NFUs can't really utilise them in any meaningful way. They lack precog to block blaster bolts, and the lack of weight means it's a weapon which is hard to learn without the Force.

Vibroweapons are much more effective, cheaper and easy to find.

 

[Marus Saretti]

Lack of weight, balance entirely in the hilt beyond even the level of a real-life rapier (which is itself hard to use and has some of the most complicated systems of combat attached to it ever developed by European minds), and profoundly dangerous. With a sword, you can turn to the flat and minimize your damage, you can intentionally pull your strikes, hit places that have a lot of padding, you can do all sorts of things to minimize the lethality. With a lightsaber, that takes much more precision, because one wrong move and—

Oh, there goes Jonathan's left hand.

Beyond that, the lack of weight in the blade means that there's no momentum that you'll be feeling. Handle a staff, a bat, a hammer, a spatula, an actual sword, anything like that; even if you're gripping it right at the balance point, you can spin it around yourself and move it without needing to see it or think about it because you can feel the momentum, the way the balance shifts as it moves through space. With a lightsaber you don't really get that, barring holding it all the way down at the pommel so that you feel the entire rest of the hilt, and that's not much.

Without that ability to instinctively feel where the blade is in relation to your person or anything around you, it gets exponentially more dangerous; for the environment, for other people, and for you.

Lightsabers are fantastically powerful weapons in the right hands, they make tools with some definite unique uses in others. Without the profoundly enhanced senses of the Force, or some significant technological benefits on your side, you're really limited to the latter.

 

[Qae Shena]

First: the lightsaber just isn't a common weapon. Here at Chaos, everyone's a force-user, so we tend to ignore that, but in the vast majority of Star Wars media the ability to create lightsabers was dismantled - one by purging the Jedi and their history, and two by destroying the kyber crystals necessary. Canon-wise, they just aren't available very much. Here, well, most people have them.

For combative reasons: Strength is also a very deciding factor in melee combat, including a lightsaber - and let me tell you that a sword is not the best strength multiplier weapon in existence. While, yes, the sword is ideal as an all-around melee weapon, all other melee weapons are purpose-built for tasks that they can perform. Bearded axes, for instance, are able to pull down shields-- and we are now seeing a massive resurgence of handheld shields in Star Wars media. Spiked maces are wonderful for putting holes in armour. Really, it's about using the right tool for the job. A sword-type weapon is not always that tool. You could, quite honestly, overpower a lightsaber wielder by being strong.

Additionally, reach is a huge factor - there's a reason that the common spear is such a wonderful weapon used throughout history. Polearms, such as the oft-overlooked pike (which was gigantic!) tended to be the flavour of the day when it came to most combat simply because you didn't need to be near your opponent. This is why guns were so great - blasters absolutely apply, because bringing a sword to a gunfight is generally a bad idea. And, realistically, every PC is outnumbered by, what, a few million NPCs? They don't have glowbats. Fight to your opponents and what they carry.

Further, as an example, the Japanese tradition held that the sword was only the sidearm - the spear, the bow, even the common staff was considered a 'battlefield weapon'. Swords came out only in very rare circumstances in large fights, such as duels. This is still true, depending on your application of combat - if you're a duelist, fine, go swords; if you're in bigger combat situations, there are other melee weapons that work so well.

Finally: sheer rate of fire beats reflex time. Put a hundred rounds per second down range into a glowbat and see how much they can deflect.

 

[Marus Saretti]

Further, as an example, the Japanese tradition held that the sword was only the sidearm - the spear, the bow, even the common staff was considered a 'battlefield weapon'. Swords came out only in very rare circumstances in large fights, such as duels. This is still true, depending on your application of combat - if you're a duelist, fine, go swords; if you're in bigger combat situations, there are other melee weapons that work so well.

True in the European tradition as well, for any of our readers who aren't as historically fightbrained as me and the fish are. It's easy to get caught up in the idea of duels and such, where swords were the weapon of choice, but on the battlefield? The only time a sword was the actual primary weapon, rather than a sidearm, was with the Landsknecht doppelsoldner wielding a zweihander. (don't sue me i don't remember all my alt key codes for the umlaut characters i only remember ü)

The other argument you could make would be the very similar montante and spadone, but those weren't used on the battlefield, they were used for guarding people inside a city and such, where swords were far more likely to be the primary weapon choice anyways. Otherwise? Like you mentioned, pikes, halberds, lances, anything with reach.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Lightsabres are rare, expensive and hard to use. It takes years of training to master them as a Force User. NFUs can't really utilise them in any meaningful way. They lack precog to block blaster bolts, and the lack of weight means it's a weapon which is hard to learn without the Force.

Vibroweapons are much more effective, cheaper and easy to find.

I write HRDs as being theoretically able to use lightsabres since they have superior reflexe and speed compared to organics.

However, they're limited since they cannot use the Force for precog (machine calculation helps, but is not a perfect substitute), and the lack of internal emotion means they cannot utilise lightsabre forms that draw on it (such as Juyo/Vaapad). Theoretically, they can block blaster bolts, but it's not easy and reflecting it is out.

So in essence they're limited to Shii-Cho, Makashi and Shien/Djem So.

In any event, anyone can acquire Phrik/Songsteel/Beskar to get a melee weapon that can resist a lightsabre.

Or use a war hammer. Handy when your opponent is wearing tanky armour a glowstick can't penetrate. No need for that when you can break their bones by pummeling them. Reminds me that Enyo needs to use her beskar hammer more.

 

[Pyeth Raffinki]

Disclaimer that everything below is a matter of opinion.

We could spend all day discussing the advantages and disadvantages of a Lightsaber and in a thousand different scenarios.

Jedi / Sith / Whatever make the lightsaber and effective weapon. The weapon itself isn't entirely that great, and given the choice without the Force I'd take a Vibroblade.

Why?

Well it's simply the fact a Lightsaber blade is weightless. It's far easier to block something that is only as strong as the wielder, than a heavy Vibroblade. Chances are the moment our weapons meet his will be thrown out of his hand or immediately buckles because he gets the full force of my combined kinetic energy and weight.

Arguably, the Force Imbued Blades of yore are more effective for this reason. Your only real advantage over them is the ability to deflect blaster shots and cut through material.

In all honesty, the lightsaber is probably used because the Jedi won. A Lightsaber is clean and quick, a civilised weapon that doesn't put your opponent through the pain of a slow death like a sword might. As the Sith derived themselves from the Jedi, it's likely they just inherited the current incarnation of lightsabers.

 

[Captain Scarlet]

So many Force users, so many lightsabers.

Write stories that don't include Force users, or where Force users don't control the outcome of the adventure because of their connection with the Force, and everything balances out.

 

[Darth Vehementi]

Well Beskar weapons like Beskcad and Beskar Spear can combat a lightsaber. So if your a Mandalorian, you stand a chance.

 

[Bohatei Chorva]

vibroknucklers my beloved

 

[Matt the Radar Tech]

The crystals also require Force connection, to locate and unify with (or make bleed, and turn red, like the new canon), and to go through that Force-specific process.

No crystal, no lightsaber.

That's probably a major hurdle, since I doubt there's many Jedi/Sith willing to part with their weapons if asked.