Force Forging

Green Ranger

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Force Forging

Predating both the lightsaber and the Jedi Order by several millennia, the art of Force Forging was originally believed to have been conceived by the Guardians of the Whills on Jedha before becoming common practice with younger, newer Force sects as they came into prominence, such as the Jedi Order. Requiring a Kyber crystal embedded into the required crafting tools, and the materials required to create a martial weapon - whether it be dagger, sword, spear, axe or otherwise, Force Forging was the art of literally forging the Force into the very fabric of a weapon as it was being made. As metal was folded and beaten, or wood was shaven and carved, the crafter would imbibe the material with Force energy with every step, carving out the 'true form' of the weapon from the materials provided that only the crafter could see within their mind's eye. Truly proficient crafters, it was said, could even bend and mould white-hot steel with their very hands, and carve intricate designs with their bare fingers and nails, harnessing the latent power of a Kyber crystal by merely rubbing it in their hands.

In the hands of an attuned wielder, a Force Forged weapon would feel light, balanced and deathly keen - like the Jedi Lightsaber, the connection between weapon and wielder created a bond through the Force that made even the clumsiest of Jedi seem uncannily skilled with a blade. Furthermore, by accessing the latent Force energies flowing from wielder to weapon, the Force Forged weapon was innately lighter and harder than a common weapon - able to block even the blade of a lightsaber, a Force Forged weapon could be handled with the same finesse and dexterity of the energy swords as well. Some specially designed blades would also be imbued with other, uncanny properties - a blade could glow in low light, for example, hum with every swing, or be searingly hot to touch, but ultimately the lethality of the blade was in the hands of its owner. If a blade was stolen, they would find the weapon clumsy, unwieldy and utterly mundane until the blade was re-attuned.

As a technique, Force Forging was later replaced by the invention of the Jedi Lightsaber - however, for centuries afterwards, conservative and purist Jedi often found themselves preferring the classic and somewhat romanticised art of Force Forging their weapon instead. Among the Jedi Exiles, Force Forging remained popular as well - many of the Dark Jedi preferred the more visceral feel of a real weapon in their hands, and it was not uncommon for prideful Jedi, Dark or otherwise, to name their weapons and pass them down to their students and/or kin.

Eventually, the art would fall out of common practice, however the technique and traditions would be kept alive by the Guardians of the Whills for millennia afterwards until the ultimate demise of that monastic order during the Galactic Civil War.

LEGALITY

While technically fully legal across the galaxy, a Force Forged weapon is often a considered highly valuable collector's item, much like a lightsaber, and can be worth a considerable amount of currency on the black market - particularly if the weapon is associated with a particularly influential Force user. The Jedi in particular covet these weapons jealously, and try to ensure that these weapons do not fall into the wrong hands.

PROPERTIES AND REQUIREMENTS
  • Weapon is Lightsaber-resistant in the hands of its owner if appropriately attuned.
    • For all intents and purposes, the Force Forged weapon should handle like a lightsaber, except with physical damage as opposed to energy/burning damage.
  • Force Forging does not make large or impractical weapons suddenly usable ie No anime-style giant swords.
  • Force-forged weapons cannot reflect blaster bolts, but can block them - the bolt dissipates on impact with the weapon.
  • Force Users only. Both creating the weapon and using it require a deep connection to the Force.
    • Without the Force, the weapon will be completely mundane in the hands of the wielder.
  • A Force-Forged weapon will behave oddly if not attuned to the wielder - the weapon will seem clumsy, sluggish and unbalanced.
    • Attunement cannot be performed in the field - it requires a dedicated workspace and tools.
  • Completely unsuitable for armor.
  • Requires mundane materials. Lightsaber-proof materials such as Phrik or Cortosis are unsuitable.
  • Force Forging is Site Lore.
INTENT

I've had a few PMs asking if I'd remake this for the new timeline, so I've done so. Properties and qualities are more or less exactly the same as last timeline - it's basically just a lightsaber-resistant hardening technique for weapons with a more mystical feel for those who want something a little more space-fantasy styled for their Force using characters.

Particularly as this is about as ancient as the RP can get, the setting is ideal for more traditional and mystical-themed weapons and artefacts, and as a bit of existing site lore that members actively want to re-use, this isn't just a fluff piece - it's sought to be actively used by members. This can be further reinforced by the timeline technology stickies, which emphasise the relative commonality of lightsaber resistant bladed weapons, but traditional swords as well.
 
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Malon

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Okay, so, I am okay with approving this as backstory/site lore, etc., but not for use by actual characters. Reason being that the Jedi actually forbade the use of swords once lightsabers became a thing due to lightsabers being seen as more humane weapons. It also feels like a way Indie characters can get around the "no lightsabers at start" rule.

So, long and the short of it is: No for character use. Yes for background information on the site's universe. You can decide if you want to rewrite it to reflect a background-only article. If not, just let me know and I'll archive it.
 

Green Ranger

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Okay, so, I am okay with approving this as backstory/site lore, etc., but not for use by actual characters. Reason being that the Jedi actually forbade the use of swords once lightsabers became a thing due to lightsabers being seen as more humane weapons. It also feels like a way Indie characters can get around the "no lightsabers at start" rule.

So, long and the short of it is: No for character use. Yes for background information on the site's universe. You can decide if you want to rewrite it to reflect a background-only article. If not, just let me know and I'll archive it.

Can I get a source on this? It just seems a bit unusual is all, in the sort of 'unnecessarily restricting' kind of way.

I mean, canon aside (if that's the case), is there any chance of you being a bit more lenient on this? I posted this because of popular demand primarily, and it seems like a shame to disallow this when phrik/cortosis blades are commonplace and more or less functionally the same thing.

It's definitely not a way to bypass the no lightsabers at start rule for indies - like it says in the article, Force forging requires dedicated, specialized equipment, and an indie wouldn't have access to that.
 

Green Ranger

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Quick edit, added in a line about how it handles blaster bolts, since I forgot to mention them at all - they can only be blocked, not deflected.

EDIT: A few changes to bring it in line with the sticky's requirements.
 
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