The lightsaber, one of the most iconic weapons in cinematic history. Not as clumsy or as random as a blaster, an elegant weapon for a more civilized age, a lightsaber was a deadly weapon in the hands of a skilled duelist. Wielded by the Jedi Knights as they stood in defense of the Old Republic, openly brandishing one during the Emperor’s reign was a sure way to draw the wrath of the Galactic Empire and its cadre of Jedi hunters.
But in the films and most other media, little attention is paid to one of the most critical components of a Jedi’s lightsaber: the focusing crystal. While the type of crystal used is generally referred to as a kyber crystal, as one steps outside the films and even the recent TV series, there’s a number of different types of kyber crystals, ranging from naturally-harvested crystals from the caves of Ilum that were favored by the Jedi to the synthetic crystals and their bloodshine blades favored by the Sith as a display of their dominance of the Force.
For this week’s installment, I thought I’d introduce a selection of new crystals to be used for lightsabers in Fantasy Flight Game’s Force and Destiny RPG, giving players a few alternatives when choosing what type of crystal to employ when it comes to building their first lightsaber.
Flawed Kyber Crystal
Not all natural sources of kyber crystals produce gems that are ideal for usage as the focusing crystal of a lightsaber, but in the dark times of the Empire some aspiring Jedi learn to make do with less-than-ideal components for their initial lightsaber. While there is little risk of the crystal causing an overload, they are far more fragile than a properly-formed kyber crystal.
Base Modifiers: Installing this crystal changes a lightsaber’s base damage to 5 and critical rating to 3, and the lightsaber gains the Breach 1, Inferior, and Sunder weapon qualities. If the crystal is ever removed, the lightsaber loses these qualities and reverts to its previous base damage and critical rating.
Modifications: 1 Damage +1 Mod, 1 Decrease the weapon’s critical rating by 1 to a minimum of 1 Mod, 1 Remove Inferior Quality Mod, 1 Item Quality (Vicious +1) Mod.
Hard Points Required: 2
Cost: 3000 credits; Rarity: 5 (Restricted)
Notes: This could very well be considered a “starter crystal” for a PC that wants to focus on lightsaber combat but the GM is hesitant to bring such a powerful weapon into the game. It is certainly inferior when compared to the standard Ilum crystal, and when fully modified isn’t that much better in terms of game performance, but the flawed kyber crystal is still viable, with the cost of failing a modification not being quite as harsh or expensive as failing to modify one of the better quality crystals.
Synthetic Kyber Crystal
During the time of the Emperor’s rule, most of the known sources for kyber crystals were either destroyed or kept under strict Imperial surveillance. In response to these draconian measures, those students of the Jedi looking to construct their own lightsaber rely upon the practice of growing synethic crystals. While they are easier to procure, the difficulties that come in properly forming a synthetic crystal often lead them to being of a slightly inferior quality to most varieties of naturally occurring kyber crystals.
Base Modifiers: Installing this crystal changes a lightsaber’s base damage to 7 and critical rating to 3, and the lightsaber gains the Breach 1 and Sunder weapon qualities. If the crystal is ever removed, the lightsaber loses these qualities and reverts to its previous base damage and critical rating.
Modifications: 2 Damage +1 Mods, 2 Decrease the weapon’s critical rating by 1 to a minimum of 1 Mods, 2 Item Quality (Vicious +1) Mods.
Hard Points Required: 2
Cost: 9000 credits; Rarity: 8 (Restricted)
Notes: There’s very little to suggest that a synthetic kyber crystal would be inherently superior to an Ilum crystal, so I wanted to avoid making the synthetic crystal be overall better. At its base, the synthetic crystal does more damage but has a higher crit rating, and when fully modified will fall just short of a fully modified Ilum crystal in terms of combat performance. I priced it the same as an Ilum crystal as it has roughly the same mechanical effects, just with a slightly lower Rarity to account for the Empire not being able to totally squash all means of growing synthetic crystals. As for why the Sith use them? Personally I see that as being a classic example of the Sith’s attitude towards the Force as something to be controlled, with the creation of a proper synthetic kyber crystal being just one more example of their control and dominance of the Force.
Unstable Synthetic Crystal
In the process of creating a synthetic focusing crystal, it is possible for impurities to creep into crystal. While this usually renders the flawed crystal unsuitable as a focusing crystal, this is not always the case. Such crystals produce an energy blade crackling with energy, one very capable of inflicting horrific injuries though it’s far more prone to short-circuiting in the heat of battle.
Base Modifiers: Installing this crystal changes a lightsaber’s base damage to 7 and critical rating to 2, and the lightsaber gains the Breach 1, Sunder, and Vicious 1 weapon qualities. A Despair result generated on a Lightsaber combat check can be spent to cause the weapon to briefly short out and requires an incidental to reactivate on the user’s next turn. If the crystal is ever removed, the lightsaber loses these qualities and reverts to its previous base damage and critical rating.
Modifications: 2 Damage +1 Mods, 1 Decrease the weapon’s critical rating by 1 to a minimum of 1 Mod, 3 Item Quality (Vicious +1) Mods.
Hard Points Required: 2
Cost: 10,000 credits; Rarity: 10 (R)
Notes: For many Star Wars RPG fans, the answer to why Kylo Ren’s crossguard lightsaber had such an unusual blade was “he’s using an unstable kyber crystal!” Mechanically speaking, a lightsaber using this crystal is going to be able to deliver some truly punishing critical injuries, especially if combined with a superior hilt customization for that free Advantage , increasing the chances of triggering a critical injury. But the user is going to have to be worried about a Despair suddenly showing up and depriving the character of his weapon at a time when they will probably most need it.
