Summary
Star Warsintroduced a new type of lightsaber in 2017 that went almost completely unnoticed, and it raises some serious questions about the Jedi Order. Lightsabers are one of the most well-defined areas in all ofStar Warscanon. The franchise is constantly addingnew lightsaber colorsand introducing new and inventive ways to use kyber crystals, which power lightsabers. New reveals about lightsaber lore are generally a pretty big deal, but there was one very subtle lightsaber introduction from 2017 that went under the radar.
There are plenty oftypes of lightsabers inStar Warscanon, from the classic double-bladed lightsabers used by characters like Darth Maul to the more unusuallightsaber whip used by Vernestra Rwoh. Most of those variations in the typical lightsaber design were quite obvious, but there was one introduced years ago that only had a small - but potentially very important - change to the most common lightsabers. There isn’t much information about this new type of lightsaber, but the most likely theories surrounding it could redefine huge swaths of the history of the Jedi Order.
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Star Wars Introduced A Lightsaber With A Knuckle-Bow Sword Guard
In “Star Wars: Darth Vader 2017 #10,” the Jedi librarian Jocasta Nu used a lightsaber that was only slightly unusual: it had a knuckle-bow guard. Her personal lightsaber was destroyed after it overheated whenJocasta used the kyber rifle, a secret Jedi weapon that could use a lightsaber’s kyrber crystal as the power source of a blaster. As she was fleeing from the Jedi archives,Jocasta used the Force to grab a unique lightsaber off a wall of relics, and the blade she chose had a guard that went over the user’s fingers, something never before seen inStar Warscanon.
Hand protection has been seen on lightsabers in the past, such as on Kylo Ren and Stellan Gios' crossguard lightsabers, but those were both part of the lightsaber’s blade, not made of physical material.
Why Would A Jedi Lightsaber Have This Kind Of Sword Guard?
Knuckle-bow guards are somewhat common in real-life swords, like cutlasses and rapiers. They’re meant to act as additional protection for a warrior’s hand and fingers along with a crossguard. Knuckle-bow guards work well in real life, where typical swords can’t cut through the steel the guard was made of, but they have a much more mysterious purpose inStar Wars.Lightsaber blades can cut through almost any material, so it seems like a knuckle-bow guard wouldn’t provide any protection at all in a lightsaber duel. Knuckle-bow guards had another function, though, that might reveal a secret about the Jedi.
Aside from protecting a warrior’s hand from their opponents, knuckle-bow guards also helped keep a warrior’s hand from slipping up the handle and onto their own blade when thrusting. Given that Jocasta Nu got this lightsaber off a wall in the Jedi archives, it’s possible that the knuckle-bow guard is ancient, from a time before the Jedi had developed advancedlightsaber combat forms.If it was that old, the Jedi might have used a knuckle-bow guard simply because they weren’t very experienced with lightsabers, and every time they used a thrust they may have risked injuring their own hands.
If Jocasta’s found lightsaber wasn’t that ancient, however, there were two other possibilities for its knuckle-bow guard. In real life, knuckle-bow guards were also very common for warriors who used shields, as shield bearers would often thrust more than they would slash. At least one Jedi was known to use akyber-powered light shieldduring the High Republic era, and a lightsaber with a knuckle-guard would have perfectly complimented it.Alternatively, the knuckle-bow guard could have actually functioned as protection if it was made out of a material that could block lightsabers, like Beskar or cortosis.
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What Does The Knuckle Bow Sword Guard Mean For The Jedi?
The three most likely explanations for Jocasta Nu’s knuckle-bow guarded lightsaber all present intriguing possibilities about the history of the Jedi Order. If it was simply a product of a less experienced time in the Order’s history, then it’s essentially tangible proof of the evolution of lightsabers and early attempts to help the Jedi use them more effectively.If it was used in combination with a light shield, then it’s evidence that light shields were once much more common than they were towards the end of the Order.
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Perhaps the most interesting potential purpose of the knuckle-bow guard, however, is the idea that the guard was made of either Beskar or cortosis. If it was made of Beskar, it could be evidence that the Jedi had a working relationship with the Mandalorians at some point.If it was cortosis, however, it may be a sign that the Jedi Order had fundamentally different values in its early days. More modernJedi didn’t use cortosis, partially because shutting down an opponent’s lightsaber was seen as a dishonorable advantage. If ancient Jedi used cortosis, however, they might not have had such notions of honor in battle.
No matter why the Jedi developed a lightsaber with a knuckle-bow guard, its existence is a glimpse into the Order’s past.
No matter why the Jedi developed a lightsaber with a knuckle-bow guard, its existence is a glimpse into the Order’s past. Though it’s only a glimpse, and it didn’t reveal much concrete information, it’s still quite valuable.Star Warscanon has generally avoided going very far into the past oftheStar Warstimelineand the history of the Jedi Order. Theupcoming movieDawn of the Jedishould give a much more in-depth look into that time period, but until then,Star Warswill likely leave the questions raised by Jocasta Nu’s temporary knuckle-guard lightsaber unanswered.
Star Wars
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
