In the beginning there was only blue and red. As time went on green was added to the mix. But now there are many different colors. Some are legit and some are not. If you are wondering where this is going let me bring some clarity to the vagueness. Continuing on with Lightsabers let’s talk about the heart of these elegant weapons. Let’s talk about the crystals that give lightsabers their colors, and the meanings behind those colors. I will note that some of this will be based on canon and some based on Legends.
When Star Wars first hit the big screen back in 1977 we were introduced to the lightsaber. Obi Wan Kenobi’s was blue and Darth Vader’s was red. The one given to Luke, previously owned by Anakin, also being blue. At the time when George Lucas brought these to life it was made known that Jedi used blue and Sith used red. In the original script they were going to be yellow but due to the difficulty of making them pop on screen given the tech at the time they were changed. The release of Return of the Jedi gave us the first new lightsaber color in green. As time went on after Return of the Jedi we got books and games that started giving us new colors. In the books we got our first character with Purple as color in Mara Jade. In the original PlayStation game, Star Wars Masters of Teras Kasi, we got to see Mara Jade in action with her purple saber. The next new color to be brought to a game was Yellow in 1997’s Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II as we saw Kyle Katarn wield this color after his green saber was destroyed. Mace Windu’s purple saber was the first big screen new color in 2002’s Attack of the Clones. In 2003 the legend of lightsabers, their crystals, and colors were expanded greatly in one of the greatest Star Wars games ever made, BioWare’s Knights of the Old Republic. Ever since then the movies, novels, TV shows, and games continued to grow the knowledge of colors and meanings of lightsabers. Once Disney took the helm and retconned the EU to Legends we saw the colors drop back down to the big 3 (blue, red, green), though with Clone Wars still canon yellow and Pre Vizsla’s black bladed saber were still available. It wasn’t until season 2 of Star Wars Rebels when Ahsoka Tano dual wielded white lightsabers that a new color came about.
As stated in creating a lightsaber you need a Kyber crystal to create the blade. Depending on where you get your crystal from can determine the color the blade emits. In Legends it is noted that a green blade is a symbol of a Jedi Consular. Consulars are force users who believe in peace and put more of their training into their own force abilities than using lightsabers. For a Consular using a lightsaber is a last resort. For blue blade users they were given the title of Jedi Guardian. Jedi Guardians believe in Justice and train in lightsaber combat more so than their abilities. Jedi Sentinels wield yellow lightsabers. Sentinels are middle of the road in their training. Where Guardians will jump into a fight with their lightsaber and Consulars try to negotiate their way out of it, Sentinels land in the middle of those extremes. Due to this you see Sentinels dual wield lightsabers, where as Guardians can put focus on their training on a double bladed lightsaber, and Consulars focus on the Force. As for the Red blades of a Sith lightsaber, and Dark Jedi, kyber crystals do not create a blade like that. Sith synthesized their own crystals which created the red blade that is a trademark for a dark force user. The crystal that powers Mace Windu’s lightsaber was gifted to him from the crystalline beings on a planet called Hurikane. They were originally trying to chase down Windu, until one was injured and Windu helped save it. That act gained their trust and he received the crystal. Little is known about the creation of the lightsaber known as the Darksaber that emits a black blade. It was kept in a Jedi Temple before it was stolen by the House Vizsla Mandalorian clan. As time went on it was handed down from generation to generation in House Vizsla. In Clone Wars we first saw it being used by Pre Vizsla. Eventually he was killed by Maul and Maul claimed it and House Vizsla for himself. He even used the blade against Palpatine but was easily bested by his former master. Somehow Maul lost possession of the Darksaber, and it wasn’t until 15 years after the Empire rose to power that it surfaced again. It is currently in possession of Sabine Wren, who is a descendant of House Vizsla. Ahsoka’s white bladed sabers caught us all off guard in Rebels. There has yet to be any real information to come out as to what made the blades white. For all intents and purposes canon wise the color of the blades of any lightsaber is meant to reflect the personality of the wielder when they were first created. Given Ahsoka’s non-allegiance to the Jedi Temple, yet still staying on the lightside of the Force, the argument can be made that they are white because she is just a lightside user with no allegiances to any one teaching.
Regardless of what your favorite color saber is, whether it is canon or Legends, we all will always see them for how they speak to us. I, for one, love the idea of what Legends says that lightsaber blade colors have meanings and that there are many different crystals that can be used to power them (like a Krayt Dragon Pearl as an example). Obviously with canon it is a bit simplified where color of the lightsaber is a direct correlation of the creator’s personality and only Kyber crystals are used. I hope as Disney expands on the Star Wars universe they bring some of the Legends back into canon. Only time will tell. For now bring on the lightsabers, no matter what the color. May The Force be with you all.
Follow Randy Guiles on Twitter @giggityguiles
