List of Star Wars weapons
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The following is a list of weapons shown in the Star Wars universe.
By type[edit]
Ship-mounted[edit]
Ship-mounted weaponry in the Star Wars universe is often found on combat craft, though some merchant vessels and other non-combat spacecraft may have armaments to deter pirates. Ship-mounted combat weapons such as laser cannons, turbolasers as well as missiles are used for offensive and defensive purposes, roughly analogous to their modern equivalents. Often the latter is used as a substitute for laser-based weapons due to opposing ships often being equipped with laser-deterrent energy shields.
Small ships, like the Rebel Alliance X-wing and Y-wing space-fighters are often armed with proton torpedoes, which deliver a devastatingly powerful blast, an example being those that were used to attack the main reactor of the Death Star.
Heavy ranged[edit]
The Star Wars universe makes use of fictional weapons that correspond in class to those of real-world armaments, those include mortars, grenades, land mines, missile launchers, shotguns, sniper rifles, and remote explosives.[1]
In Return of the Jedi, a disguised Princess Leia used a thermal detonator to help free Han Solo from his carbonite prison inside Jabba the Hutt's palace, by threatening to release the fail-deadly trigger if her demands were not met, impressing Jabba. The weapon has also been used in various Star Wars computer games, where it functions as a grenade. (i.e., Lego Star Wars II and Star Wars Battlefront II). Another weapon featured is the E-WEB heavy turret, a large, tripod mounted blaster seen in the Hoth battle, resembling a large machine gun. Other models of blaster cannons feature in the Star Wars Battlefront game such as the DLT-19.
Personal ranged[edit]
The ray gun, the standard weapon of classic science fiction, is also the most common weapon in the Star Wars universe under the name "blaster". There are many variations of blasters: pistols, carbines, cannons, assault rifles and even machine guns.[1] For example, Princess Leia wielded a sporting blaster when her ship was boarded by Darth Vader's forces,[1][2] while Han Solo prefers his heavily modified blaster pistol (a BlasTech DL-44).[1] One of the most common and well-known blasters is the E-11 blaster rifle, the standard weapon of Imperial stormtroopers. Several of the Star Wars films' fictional weapons are modified from real-life blank-firing prop guns: Han Solo's pistol is a customized Mauser C96, while the stormtroopers carry Sterling submachine guns or the World War II-era German MG34 general purpose machine gun, most easily seen in the detention center break-in in Episode IV.
The bowcaster is a crossbow-like weapon carried by Chewbacca. Canonically, bowcasters were developed by the Wookiees and were a favorite weapon of theirs; other races were generally not strong enough to operate the cocking mechanism. They purportedly fired an explosive magnetically energized metal bolt called a quarrell.
The Geonosians featured in Episode II use sonic blasters[3] as their main weapons technology: utilising both handheld and turret mounted (as the LR1K cannon) versions of this technology. These sonic blasters deal damage by resonating an object at a certain frequency.
A rarer weapon type in the Star Wars universe is the slugthrower, which uses a chemical reaction to propel a projectile out of the weapon's barrel. "Slugthrowers" work on the same principle as most modern and historic firearms and are used mostly by more primitive cultures, such as the Tusken raiders' bolt action and cycler rifles.[4]
Melee[edit]
The Star Wars universe also makes extensive use of melee weapons, such as staffs, swords, batons and whips. The most notable of those is the Lightsaber. The presence of those types of weapons allows for dramatic combat sequences such as lightsaber combat.
A Gaffii Stick or Gaderiffi is a durable bladed metal staff with a heavy end which appears similar to the medieval flanged mace. It is used as the primary weapon of the Tusken Raiders, and is known to non-Raiders as a "Gaffii stick". It is most often made of Krayt dragon horn or metal salvaged from space wrecks.
An electrostaff is a melee weapon which looks like a staff, but conducts energy fields at its ends which can cause severe damage to living tissue and inanimate objects alike. It is often utilized by General Grievous along with his bodyguards, the IG-100 MagnaGuards, and specialist stormtroopers in video games, such as Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. They are impenetrable to most weapons, including lightsabers, because they are supposedly made of the rare Phrik alloy. The appearance of this weapon in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith marked the first time a non-lightsaber weapon that could withstand the cutting power of a lightsaber in a Star Wars film was used. They range from simple staffs to complex weapons that can shoot mini-rockets out the end.
Similar to the electrostaff is the Z6 riot control baton, utilized by the First Order's riot control stormtroopers. These can also deflect and resist lightsabers in combat because the end of the weapon conducts a (non-lethal) energy field. The weapon can be spun in hand due to its rotating handle. It is shaped like a tonfa and colored white and black, much like the stormtroopers who wield them.
Other Star Wars media has extended the types of those weapons known to be used. The amphistaff is the primary anti-personnel living weapon of the Yuuzhan Vong. Amphistaff scales can produce an edge harder than a diamond's that can stop a lightsaber. In addition to its default staff/spear configuration, an amphistaff can be wielded as a whip or flail by selectively hardening parts of its body.[5]
Vibroweapons are a highly lethal class of melee weapon that utilises a generator, usually located on the weapon's hilt, to create supersonic vibrations.[6] Many variations of vibroweapon exist; due to the adaptable nature of vibroweapon generators, vibroweapons can be made out of axes, pikes, knives, and swords. At least as far back as 3956 BBY, vibroweapons have often been laced with Cortosis (a rare metal known to short out lightsabers). This allows the user of the vibroblade to defend their self against a lightsaber wielding opponent.[7] Vibroweapons have been used by characters in various media, such as Lando Calrissian[8] from the Star Wars movies and Mission Vao from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The Emperor's Imperial guards, as seen in Return of the Jedi, use Force Pikes. These not only have a vibrating power tip, but can be set to deliver an electric stun charge. In order to allow this conductivity, the shaft of the force pike is made of reinforced graphite. Not only does this allow the pike to flex to absorb impact rather than breaking, but also means the weapon weighs no more than 7 kg and can therefore be handled with extreme swiftness and agility for a weapon of its length.[9]
Lightsabers[edit]
Lightsabers were generally used by the Jedi and the Sith, along with most other Force users.
A standard lightsaber is a sword-like weapon that emits a plasma blade from its metal hilt. The blade is powered by a kyber crystal, commonly found on the planet Ilum, and changes colour due to your mastery of the force. The blade can be found in a variety of colors and can cut through virtually any solid material[9]. There are many different types of lightsabers, however, including double-bladed, commonly known as Darth Maul's Lightsaber, cross-guard, commonly known as Kylo Ren's lightsaber and foldable lightsabers, seen in the Clone Wars TV Show as well as Star Wars Rebels for a brief moment, used by the Jedi Temple guards. These usually have a yellow blade.
See also[edit]
Bibliography[edit]
- Sansweet, Stephen J. (1998). Star Wars Encyclopedia. The Ballantine Publishing Group. ISBN 0-345-40227-8.
- Slavicsek, Bill, Collins, Andy, and Wiker, JD (2002). Revised Core Rulebook (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-2876-X.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- Grubb, Jeff & Stephens, Owen K.C. (2002). Arms and Equipment Guide (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-2782-8.
- Stephens, Owen K. C. (2001). Starships of the Galaxy (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-1859-4.
- Star Wars.com (2008). "Databank: Lightsaber".
- Sansweet, Stephen J. (1998). Star Wars Encyclopedia. The Ballantine Publishing Group. ISBN 0-345-40227-8.
- Slavicsek, Bill, Collins, Andy, and Wiker, JD (2002). Revised Core Rulebook (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-2876-X.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- Grubb, Jeff & Stephens, Owen K.C. (2002). Arms and Equipment Guide (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-2782-8.
- Stephens, Owen K. C. (2001). Starships of the Galaxy (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 0-7869-1859-4.
- Grubb, Jeff & Stephens, Owen K.C. (2002). Arms and Equipment Guide (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 978-0-7869-2782-1.
- Stephens, Owen K. C. (2001). Starships of the Galaxy (Star Wars Roleplaying Game). Lucas Books. ISBN 978-0-7869-1859-1.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d Star Wars Battlefront II
- ^ Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, 1977
- ^ Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
- ^ Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005)
- ^ Sansweet, Stephen J. (1998). Star Wars Encyclopedia. The Ballantine Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-345-40227-1.
- ^ "Vibro-ax at the Star Wars databank". Starwars.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2008.
- ^ Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
- ^ "Vibro-ax at the Star Wars databank: Expanded Universe". StarWars.com. Archived from the original on March 31, 2008.
- ^ a b Smith, Bill (1998). Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Weapon and Technology. London: Boxtree. p. 62. ISBN 0 7522 2338 0.
External links[edit]
- The Parts of Star Wars - a detailed website on the weapons of the Star Wars saga
- 7 Star Wars weapons that were seriously overlooked
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