I’ve always thought a Jedi could do amazing things with a blaster. If they have to have a light saber, then just put the blaster in their other hand. Best of both worlds?
(Or just stop your enemy’s heart with your mind. Or use your super-fast running abilities to jab a fork in your enemy’s eye or something.)
In the semi-alternate reality of the original movie they sure seem like they do. I mean, Obi Wan King Kais from the afterlife specifically to tell Luke to use the Force to torpedo the exhaust port. And to be clear, that’s because the automated targeting system wasn’t getting a lock, so that’s some superhuman nonsense shot to freehand.
And he may find blasters “uncivilized”, but he claims Luke’s dad was a great combat pilot, so they clearly weren’t above a good ole strafing run.
Honestly, a big part of why Star Wars used to be fun is the lore makes no sense whatsoever and is mostly left offscreen to operate under sheer dream logic.
who fights exclusively with blasters and a saber, and you can utilize a blaster/saber hybrid stance. So if the game is Canon, then a jedi using a blaster combined with a saber is a new form of combat formed after the fall of the jedi
Edit: realized I put a spoiler in even though the game was released two years ago
That one fact might be what pushes me over to actually wanting to play Jedi Survivor, I played but didn’t finish the first one and thought it was neat but it didn’t really hook me.
I’m a sucker for a good sword-and-gun stance though.
Having just completed the game recently, I will say it’s flawed, as is to be expected from an EA game. But it is objectively a good game in my opinion and makes up for its flaws. Where the first game was really more of the “Jedi tries to survive” plot, this game is really “Cal comes into his own and works to make a difference against increasing odds.” Being able to choose between single/double bladed/dual wield/saber&blaster stances is really fun and they all feel thought out in their own way. I would never recommend to buy it at full price, but on sale it’s certainly a fun game to play through
One in-universe argument would be that you generally have more precision and striking force with two hands, as opposed to one-handing. This somewhat mirrors some of the “Longswords” that were designed to allow two-handed use, but could also be used with one. Using two weapons at once effectively isn’t quite as easy in real life as it’s made out to be in games and movies (not impossible, just harder to coordinate) but Jedi could obviously circumvent that issue by being space wizards.
Using a Blaster in the second hand would therefore sacrifice melee capabilities, where it seems their command of the force gives them a significant edge over most opponents.
Of course, the ranged capabilities might offset that, but I assume that, up to the Clone Wars, Jedi didn’t often deal with a large number of ranged combatants. Where their reputation wasn’t enough to deterr attacks, their premonition and weapon capable of deflecting shots will have dealt with most attackers, and if they’re ambushed in close quarters the sword would be more useful too.
My reasoning here is that both protections and weapons usually evolve in response to evolutions in the other. If Jedi often enough faced fire so heavy that deflection alone wasn’t enough and some kind of armor would have increased their chances of survival, I would assume they’d wear some (as you see it in the Clone Wars cartoons and the Old Republic games). Equally, if situations where a ranged weapon would have been desirable were a common occurrence, I would assume that the Jedi would eventually have adopted them.
Some degree of reluctance may be explained by religious adherence to their sacred weapon, such that they stuck with it even when the situations they faced evolved during the Clone Wars. Additionally, adopting new doctrines can take time even among less dogmatically rigid organisations.
As someone else replied, a survivor of the Jedi Purge did end up incorporating the Blaster into his arsenal. Without the Order’s dogmatic constraints or a lifetime’s worth of “This is what I’ve always been using”, the barriers of acceptance are much lower. Compounding this, the new threat environment features professional, highly trained soldiers that – memes notwithstanding – are genuinely dangerous marksmen. Under the circumstances, expanding your arsenal beyond the traditional is the pragmatic choice of “uncivilised” survival over dogmatically pure death.
Or just stop your enemy’s heart with your mind.
I have no source for this, but I believe there are some who can do that. It’s just that focusing your force to reach deep into a living creature’s body isn’t quite so trivial to do in the middle of combat.
Or use your super-fast running abilities to jab a fork in your enemy’s eye or something.
At that point, what’s the advantage of the fork over the lightsaber? But I’d assume improvised weapons are a part of their arsenal too, it’s just not as flashy as the bright lightsabers.
Sounds like if a lightsaber could also shoot blasts out the end, there wouldnt be a downside. Is there any lightsaber blaster combo devices in star wars history?
The only one that I’m aware of that uses them exclusively one-handed is Dooku, and he’s a bit of a special case. Otherwise, the cases I’m aware of switch between one- and two-handed strikes, which means they’d want their offhand free.
Ashoka famously dual wields.
Hence my point: Space Wizards can do that, but that still means there’s no offhand free for a blaster.
I think it more like how some samurai considered firearms dishonorable.
Samurai did use bows and other weapons beside their sword, so it’s not that they strictly adhere to one weapon like the Jedi seem to, but yes, Obi-Wan does describe it as “uncivilised”, so that is an element as well.
Since you brought up the analogy, I’ll point out that the Samurai diminished in power and importance as firearms spread, coming to a head with the Satsuma Rebellion that ended with their whole class being disbanded. To a degree, the Jedi being shot down by the newly formed professional army at the behest of the Emperor very much mirrors… well, the Japanese Imperial Army shooting down the Samurai that opposed the reforms (except the Jedi weren’t even given the chance to oppose and rebel, which probably would have gone quite differently).
I don’t know. There is a certain tendency in western media to overrepresent the significance of swords in pre-gunpowder combat (at least when they’re not treating bows like they’re guns and catapults like artillery).
On the other hand, with well-made swords often serving as a status symbol (due to being more expensive in terms of required material, labour and skill of the craftsman) it makes sense for the Jedi to wield them as a symbol of affiliation and the reputation that accompanies that affiliation. Everyone can buy a Blaster, but a Lightsaber?
Or maybe he just wanted to emphasize the mysticism around katanas.
It doesn’t have to be either/or, I think both are plausible.
I’ve always thought a Jedi could do amazing things with a blaster. If they have to have a light saber, then just put the blaster in their other hand. Best of both worlds?
(Or just stop your enemy’s heart with your mind. Or use your super-fast running abilities to jab a fork in your enemy’s eye or something.)
In the semi-alternate reality of the original movie they sure seem like they do. I mean, Obi Wan King Kais from the afterlife specifically to tell Luke to use the Force to torpedo the exhaust port. And to be clear, that’s because the automated targeting system wasn’t getting a lock, so that’s some superhuman nonsense shot to freehand.
And he may find blasters “uncivilized”, but he claims Luke’s dad was a great combat pilot, so they clearly weren’t above a good ole strafing run.
Honestly, a big part of why Star Wars used to be fun is the lore makes no sense whatsoever and is mostly left offscreen to operate under sheer dream logic.
In Jedi Survivor, Cal Kestis basically mirrors
Tap for spoiler
Bode Akuna (a fallen Jedi turned imperial agent)
who fights exclusively with blasters and a saber, and you can utilize a blaster/saber hybrid stance. So if the game is Canon, then a jedi using a blaster combined with a saber is a new form of combat formed after the fall of the jedi
Edit: realized I put a spoiler in even though the game was released two years ago
That one fact might be what pushes me over to actually wanting to play Jedi Survivor, I played but didn’t finish the first one and thought it was neat but it didn’t really hook me.
I’m a sucker for a good sword-and-gun stance though.
Having just completed the game recently, I will say it’s flawed, as is to be expected from an EA game. But it is objectively a good game in my opinion and makes up for its flaws. Where the first game was really more of the “Jedi tries to survive” plot, this game is really “Cal comes into his own and works to make a difference against increasing odds.” Being able to choose between single/double bladed/dual wield/saber&blaster stances is really fun and they all feel thought out in their own way. I would never recommend to buy it at full price, but on sale it’s certainly a fun game to play through
also my library has it so maybe yours does too
One in-universe argument would be that you generally have more precision and striking force with two hands, as opposed to one-handing. This somewhat mirrors some of the “Longswords” that were designed to allow two-handed use, but could also be used with one. Using two weapons at once effectively isn’t quite as easy in real life as it’s made out to be in games and movies (not impossible, just harder to coordinate) but Jedi could obviously circumvent that issue by being space wizards.
Using a Blaster in the second hand would therefore sacrifice melee capabilities, where it seems their command of the force gives them a significant edge over most opponents.
Of course, the ranged capabilities might offset that, but I assume that, up to the Clone Wars, Jedi didn’t often deal with a large number of ranged combatants. Where their reputation wasn’t enough to deterr attacks, their premonition and weapon capable of deflecting shots will have dealt with most attackers, and if they’re ambushed in close quarters the sword would be more useful too.
My reasoning here is that both protections and weapons usually evolve in response to evolutions in the other. If Jedi often enough faced fire so heavy that deflection alone wasn’t enough and some kind of armor would have increased their chances of survival, I would assume they’d wear some (as you see it in the Clone Wars cartoons and the Old Republic games). Equally, if situations where a ranged weapon would have been desirable were a common occurrence, I would assume that the Jedi would eventually have adopted them.
Some degree of reluctance may be explained by religious adherence to their sacred weapon, such that they stuck with it even when the situations they faced evolved during the Clone Wars. Additionally, adopting new doctrines can take time even among less dogmatically rigid organisations.
As someone else replied, a survivor of the Jedi Purge did end up incorporating the Blaster into his arsenal. Without the Order’s dogmatic constraints or a lifetime’s worth of “This is what I’ve always been using”, the barriers of acceptance are much lower. Compounding this, the new threat environment features professional, highly trained soldiers that – memes notwithstanding – are genuinely dangerous marksmen. Under the circumstances, expanding your arsenal beyond the traditional is the pragmatic choice of “uncivilised” survival over dogmatically pure death.
I have no source for this, but I believe there are some who can do that. It’s just that focusing your force to reach deep into a living creature’s body isn’t quite so trivial to do in the middle of combat.
At that point, what’s the advantage of the fork over the lightsaber? But I’d assume improvised weapons are a part of their arsenal too, it’s just not as flashy as the bright lightsabers.
Sounds like if a lightsaber could also shoot blasts out the end, there wouldnt be a downside. Is there any lightsaber blaster combo devices in star wars history?
Not that I know of, but damn if I don’t want that to be a thing now.
They had that cool with saber where it had the little sabers coming out sideways like a hilt, maybe those could be rigged to fire blasts instead!
There’s plenty of one handed lightsaber usage. Ashoka famously dual wields.
I think it more like how some samurai considered firearms dishonorable.
The only one that I’m aware of that uses them exclusively one-handed is Dooku, and he’s a bit of a special case. Otherwise, the cases I’m aware of switch between one- and two-handed strikes, which means they’d want their offhand free.
Hence my point: Space Wizards can do that, but that still means there’s no offhand free for a blaster.
Samurai did use bows and other weapons beside their sword, so it’s not that they strictly adhere to one weapon like the Jedi seem to, but yes, Obi-Wan does describe it as “uncivilised”, so that is an element as well.
Since you brought up the analogy, I’ll point out that the Samurai diminished in power and importance as firearms spread, coming to a head with the Satsuma Rebellion that ended with their whole class being disbanded. To a degree, the Jedi being shot down by the newly formed professional army at the behest of the Emperor very much mirrors… well, the Japanese Imperial Army shooting down the Samurai that opposed the reforms (except the Jedi weren’t even given the chance to oppose and rebel, which probably would have gone quite differently).
Did George Lucas know that? Or maybe he just wanted to emphasize the mysticism around katanas.
But anyways, weapons and abilities are plot devices in Star Wars and hardly consistent.
I don’t know. There is a certain tendency in western media to overrepresent the significance of swords in pre-gunpowder combat (at least when they’re not treating bows like they’re guns and catapults like artillery).
On the other hand, with well-made swords often serving as a status symbol (due to being more expensive in terms of required material, labour and skill of the craftsman) it makes sense for the Jedi to wield them as a symbol of affiliation and the reputation that accompanies that affiliation. Everyone can buy a Blaster, but a Lightsaber?
It doesn’t have to be either/or, I think both are plausible.