CRAFTING A LIGHTSABER

n the days before the purge of the Jedi Order, it was requiring the user to amass 300 credits worth of parts
I traditional for every Padawan learner to construct his without a check (the cost of a basic lightsaber hilt), or
own lightsaber. This was not a test of the would-be Je- making an Average Streetwise check to obtain
di’s aptitudes or skills, but a rite of passage hallowed by them instead. The majority of the cost lies in acquir­
countless years of tradition. Now, with the secrets and ing a suitable energy source, such as a diatium power
treasures of the Jedi purged from much of the galaxy, cell, but other components are also required. Notably,
those hoping to carry on their traditions must construct the actual housing of the lightsaber hilt is of negligible
their own lightsabers out of simple necessity. A few hilts cost unless the PC building it desires otherwise. Only
or even fully functional lightsabers can still be found in the internal workings of the lightsaber are of real sig­
private collections or aboard ancient vessels such as Val nificance, and a length of industrial piping works just
Isa’s Sanctuary, but these examples are incredibly rare. as well as an elaborate electrum-plated masterpiece
Gaining access to them is even more incredibly perilous. at housing the weapon’s crystalline heart.
Fortunately for the PCs in F o r c e a n d D e s t in y , charac­ Once the character obtains the materials, he can con­
ters may build their own lightsabers, even if they are not struct a lightsaber hilt by succeeding on an Average
technically gifted or learned in ancient lore—although ( ♦ ♦ ) Mechanics or Knowledge (Lore) check If the
such qualities certainly help. The following section de­ character does not have access to information on how
tails the construction process of a lightsaber. to construct a lightsaber (such as via a holocron or other
data archive) the GM can either decide that he may not
LIGHTSABER attempt to construct it, or he can increase the difficulty
to Daunting ( ^ ^ ^ ^ ) Assembling the hilt requires
CONSTRUCTION RULES three days of careful concentration and assembly.
Although lightsabers are true marvels of galactic tech­ & AND T
nology, part of their wondrous nature comes from the
A successful check indicates successful construction of
elegant simplicity of their design. Apart from the won-
a basic lightsaber hilt, as described on page 177 of the
drously rare crystals that create the weapons’ signature
F o r ce a n d D est in y Core Rulebook. Every additional #
blades, the rest of the construction relies primarily on a
beyond the first reduces the assembly time by four hours
power source, an energy emitter, appropriately rugged
(to a minimum of four hours). If the check fails, the char­
circuitry, and a hilt with basic controls. Constructing the
acter fails to construct the hilt. Fie can attempt to con­
hilt of a lightsaber is fairly easy—it’s obtaining and shap­
struct it again, although at the GM’s discretion, failure
ing the crystal that prevents most from fashioning one.
with ® may mean some or all of the materials are lost
To construct a lightsaber, first the character must con­ and must be acquired a second time.
struct the hilt. To do so, the character must first either
If successful, the character gains a basic lightsaber
obtain some basic information on the construction, or
hilt, as found on Table 5 -8 : Lightsaber Hilts on page
intuit the design through existing sources. Old records,
177 in the Core Rulebook. Plowever, for taking the time
a holocron, or being able to reverse-engineer an exist­
and effort to construct a hilt, he gains one additional
ing lightsaber hilt can all give the character the infor­
benefit. When the character adds his first attachment
mation he needs to build a lightsaber. Meditation and
(including a lightsaber crystal) to the hilt, he may auto­
attunement with the Force aid the aspiring lightsaber
matically install one mod on that attachment without
craftsman, as the wisdom of the countless generations
making a Mechanics check (he counts as automatically
of Jedi who have passed into its embrace guide him.
passing the check). This still counts towards the total
Even when the Jedi Order was at its peak, the Force was
number of mods installed on the attachment.
considered the ultimate teacher on the topic, and many
lightsabers were constructed while meditating with a Although this process describes constructing a ba­
"hands-free” telekinetic process. sic lightsaber hilt, at the GM’s discretion, a player can
use these rules to allow his character to construct any
BUILDING THE HILT hilt for a lightsaber. If he does so, the cost for materials
equals the cost of the hilt found on Table 5 -8 : Light­
Mechanically, a character constructs a lightsaber hilt saber Hilts on page 177 in the Core Rulebook, or the
by first amassing the proper materials and making a GM may increase the difficulty of the Streetwise check
check. Obtaining the materials is a simple process, to obtain materials.
o AND(£
Any O results on the construction check can be used UNIQUE LIGHTSABERS
to expedite the assembly process. The character may
spend O to reduce the cost of materials by 25 credits lthough building one’s own hilt does not di­
per O spent (to a minimum of 100), or add customiza­
tion or ornamentation to the hilt (this does not have
any mechanical benefit, but can make the hilt look in­
A rectly affect lightsaber crystals, it does give
the character the chance to tweak his crystal (or
another lightsaber attachment) upon installation.
teresting and unique at the player’s discretion). O O
As per page 23, when the character adds his
O may be spent to decrease the encumbrance of the
first attachment (including a lightsaber crystal)
hilt by one.
to the hilt, he may automatically install one mod
The character may spend ^ to increase the number on that attachment without making a Mechan­
of hard points on the hilt by one, and may do this mul­ ics check (he counts as automatically passing the
tiple times. check). This still counts towards the total number
® AND V of mods installed on the attachment. This means
that when a character builds his own lightsaber,
If the construction check generates © results, the as­ as long as the first thing he installs is the crystal,
sembly of the lightsaber hilt is more difficult and con­ it will be different compared to the "stock” ver­
sumes more resources than expected. Each © result sion of the weapon.
either requires 25 credits of additional materials to be
purchased to replace ruined components, or adds 12
If the character generates ^ during construction, he
hours to the construction process. © © <§> means that
decreases the number of hard points on the hilt by one.
the finished hilt is bulkier than expected, and its encum­
Multiple ^ are cumulative, to a
brance increases by one.
minimum of two hard points.