Lightsabers and Colour

[CeeBod]

There'd be whole subcultures around it. People with nonstandard colours are the hipsters. People with curved lightsabres are the elitist preppies. People with purple lightsabres who aren't Mace Windu are wannabes (or possibly wiggers). Not sure what the double-bladed lightsabres would be, but you get the idea.

Now I'm imagining like a Jedi: High School spinoff with all the different lightsabre cliques. You'd have (using KOTOR terms) the guardians as jocks, the consulars as nerds and the sentinels as the non-conformists.

Those Jedi from Hammerfell, they've got curved lightsabers, CURVED LIGHTSABRES!

OT: It has to be purple really doesn't it? -

 

[Proto Taco]

I've always wanted two nice warm yellow lightsabers.

Playing off of the seemingly popular notion that all Sith are pole-dancers at a fetish strip club I've always said I wanna be a slightly deranged Sith named 'Darth Biscuits' who runs around butt naked with her two lightsabers named 'Honey' and 'Butter'.

In truth though, I'd probably end up a Jedi. I just care too much about other people. When a beggar asks me for money on the street, if I can usually I give some to'em. Plus people tell me it's hard to be negative around me in person, and I regularly get strangers walking up to me and laying life's troubles at my feet (it's why I go through the self-checkout at Walmart). Maybe it's because I listened to so much Bobby McFerrin as a wee lil' youngling...

 

[Something Amyss]

So now, I'm seeing it in my head as just chambers of white colored crystals, and it just feels a little less mythic and neat to me.

Honestly, the process of attuning a crystal so that it emits a specific colour seems more mythical, and possibly more personal as well. The only thing it arguably diminishes is the end result, which becomes a little boring but would ultimately fit with the Jedi's rather authoritarian streak.

Hutts strangely enough, who have energy conducting enzymes in their skin oils apparently.

It's kind of refreshing to know that the people behind Star Wars still can't science after all these years.

Which ironically wouldn't even be so much a deal if they didn't keep trying.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Personally I like the Purple Saber because its rare enough and seems like only certain types of Jedi wield it.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

Hutts strangely enough, who have energy conducting enzymes in their skin oils apparently.

It's kind of refreshing to know that the people behind Star Wars still can't science after all these years.

Which ironically wouldn't even be so much a deal if they didn't keep trying.

I'm not sure that it's they can't science, there are some real world animals who have more armored skin and specific kinds of skin oils that make them more resistant to electric shock. It's that they're playing such potentials to fantasy levels. Star Wars is very much soft science fiction, which generally means it has a pinch of real science, but plays by it's own rules with science too.

 

[Neverhoodian]

*Reads thread*

Speaking as a huge lifelong Star Wars fan, I think some of you may be over-thinking this juuuuuust a little...

I'd go with an orange blade. Why orange? I dunno, because it's distinctive and looks cool? Also, Kyle Katarn used an orange lightsaber for a while, and he's badass. I often change his saber color to orange for Jedi Outcast playthroughs; it complements his iconic Bryar pistol.

 

[FPLOON]

My lightsaber would be fucking RAINBOW-colored! Shit, when I going up against my foes using some of that Force Dash shit, I would be all like "Taste the rainbow, mother fucker!" before the final blow is struck...

Other than that, I would totally be a Jedi just to say that I "lack" the power of true perversion...

 

[Vicarious Reality]

Well if i have to pick one color, i go with red, it is rather hard to choose only one
Yellow is a nice dual color

Spoiler: xiphos

 

[StormShaun]

Most likely green.
Yes, I am going off my favourite colour, but...

If you factor in my favourite lightsaber, which are dual sabers, I'd probably have two kinds of green.
It's either that or a normal/weird blue.

 

[Darks63]

When I played Swtor my favorite was Pink with a black core it just looked awesome.

Spoiler: pink

AS did the Black core purple saber

Spoiler: purple

 

[Something Amyss]

I'm not sure that it's they can't science, there are some real world animals who have more armored skin and specific kinds of skin oils that make them more resistant to electric shock.

What you described in Star Wars in no way relates to how animals resist electricity and doesn't translate. That's the point. It's a pseudoscience technobable explanation. It's not even "soft science," it's magic. Which would be fine--if they freaking called it magic. But they try and come up with in-depth sciencey explanations, even for the freaking Force itself. This isn't soft science fiction--it's stupid science fiction.

By way of example: it's one thing to have hyperdrive. It's another to try and justify it in-universe using scientific concepts that you don't understand. One suspends disbelief. One is just dumb.

 

[happyninja42]

So now, I'm seeing it in my head as just chambers of white colored crystals, and it just feels a little less mythic and neat to me.

Honestly, the process of attuning a crystal so that it emits a specific colour seems more mythical, and possibly more personal as well. The only thing it arguably diminishes is the end result, which becomes a little boring but would ultimately fit with the Jedi's rather authoritarian streak.

Oh I agree, the process of building the saber is loaded with mythic potential, and some great roleplaying descriptions. I mean just check this bit out.

Timestamp 42:20 if it doesn't put you right at the scene.



I love damn scene. And I especially love it for the different colored crystals in the background. It just adds an extra layer of wonderfulness for me. Now having them all just be white crystals, just, well whitewashes the variety of scenes. If I decide to stick to canon, I can't describe scenes with description like "You see a faint red light growing as you delve further into the cave, giving the tunnel a sense of being washed in blood. You feel a great disturbance ahead." Yes I know the red crystals are fabricated, so they (as far as I know, I'm sure some EU writer made them happen naturally at some point) wouldn't be naturally occurring, but that's just the first example that came to mind for me as a scene descriptor. Which I find a little sad. But, like I said, I'm on the fence on it, because on the flip side, I can incorporate the choosing of the color into a scene like the one in the clip I linked, which has it's own level of awesomeness to it. So there are some pros and cons about it for me.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

What you described in Star Wars in no way relates to how animals resist electricity and doesn't translate. That's the point. It's a pseudoscience technobable explanation. It's not even "soft science," it's magic. Which would be fine--if they freaking called it magic. But they try and come up with in-depth sciencey explanations, even for the freaking Force itself. This isn't soft science fiction--it's stupid science fiction.

That's actually the entire point of "soft science fiction" it's not that it's "soft scince" or actually science at all, it might dabble with real world scientific concepts on the surface. Still "soft sci-fi" is really more or less futuristic fantasy, no matter what dumb in universe handwaves the use to explain things that happen in the fiction. That's kind of the point, they play with basic face value concepts of science as magical fantasy in universe. It's dumb, yeah, but it's the fun kind of dumb. Basically just jargon as a thin vernier for fantasy hand wave.

As someone who can science, they can't science. Lowering your skin capacitance, and deflecting searing plasma that is many orders of magnitude greater than anything extant animals could survive, is like apples and cold fusion. Star Wars is really not science fiction, it's basically pure fantasy that happens to be set in space. Nothing that is allegedly technological has even a remote basis in fact. If you think that it does, that means two things:

First that the storytellers did a good job remaining internally consistent.
Second, that you lack the knowledge in the required fields to understand the fantasy for what it is.

I would assume that describes most people, and there's not a thing wrong with that. I don't appreciate you trying to claim that a work of pure and unrelenting fantasy is somehow made by people who "Can science". It wasn't, and they didn't even try. I respect your fantasy genre, why can't you show some respect for science?

First off, casting aspersions on someone who basically agrees with you isn't called for. Science Fiction snobbery against soft science fiction isn't constructive either, because the sub genre is basically fantasy.

I never said that there was anything honestly factual about how Star Wars misuses science, just that they take a real world concept on face value and bend it to their creative needs. In Canon blasters are essentially still lasers and we know lasers don't work the way blasters in Star Wars work. As I said before it's a basically fantasy, that's what soft sci-fi always is fantasy use of science fiction. That was never in question, I never said that they were being honestly accurate about things. I did point out that they take real world concepts and roll them into the fantasy for fantasy uses, that's all.

In the future please refrain from insinuating that someone is disrespecting science, that tends to drive a wedge into conversations. We basically agree it's fantasy in space, to me that's the epitome of soft sci-fi. All I said is that they take concepts that exist in the real world, breaking them to fit the in universe plot, thats all I ever meant.

 

[Linghu]

Dual Bladed Crimson saber ofc. Sith always had more style.

Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.

 

[Hazy992]

Anybody who doesn't say purple can get in the sea. It's the only colour wielded by Bad Motherfuckers, and it just looks cool.

 

[Barbas]

I used to be all about green lightsabers because seeing Luke's lightsaber for the first time in Return of the Jedi was the coolest thing! These days though I have to admit I've switched to the tried and true classic blue saber, something about it just looks right.

Never liked yellow or orange lightsabers though. Dunno why but they just look all wrong.

What about a nice minty colour? You know, the halfway, Oral B-approved colour perfectly placed between blue and green.

No, it's not cyan and I will fight you to the ends of the galaxy.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

Science fiction snobbery? No, I'm not trashing Star Wars, because it never claimed to be more than magic. I'm a little in your face, because you wanted to have it both ways. It has nothing to do with the medium itself, it has to do with what you've claimed here in regards to "Can science" and "Skin Oils". Lets be very clear about that, since you seem not to be.

All I said is that they take real world concepts and bend, or break them to make a story. Never counted it as being reality... Also you're not trashing the story, but you are equating science fiction to science fact, which as Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle would tell you, doesn't reflect reality. All sci-fi is basically fantasy.

I know. I know that's what you're saying, and I'm saying NO. No they do not. It's actually about as pure fantasy as it gets. I challenge you to point out three major elements that are not.

I'm not saying anything about the franchise is fact, you are, so you find those references that fit the canon. All I ever said is they bend a concept to fit their fictions. Like all of science fiction does, no matter it's actual accuracy.

I didn't insinuate about your insults to science, I told you to stop whipping the poor girl like a rented mule. If you're taking that as an insinuation, then I don't think we're really communicating.

Oh you didn't? Really?

I would assume that describes most people, and there's not a thing wrong with that. I don't appreciate you trying to claim that a work of pure and unrelenting fantasy is somehow made by people who "Can science". It wasn't, and they didn't even try. I respect your fantasy genre, why can't you show some respect for science?

Really? Emphasis mine, your whole statement about insinuating that I disrespected science is right bloody there in your own words. I call bullshit on that statement. When it comes right down to it, I can science, I can parse fantasy from reality, but apparently all you want to do is call me out on perceived injustices. No thank you, you put words in my mouth, so have fun being on my ignore list.

 

[Headsprouter]

Either dark green or salmon pink.

I also like grey, but a grey lightsaber? Areyouserious?