A Brief History of Star Wars’ Lightwhip

In the twirl of a lightsaber hilt and the flick of a wrist on The Acolyte past week, Jedi Master Vernestra Rwoh brought to surface a Star Wars thought astir 40 years successful the making: the Lightwhip. It’s acold from Star Wars‘ weirdest lightsaber, and adjacent with its surprising on-screen appearance, it’s not an wholly caller 1 either.

How Does a Lightwhip Work?

In existent continuity, we lone person 1 illustration of a Lightwhip: Vernestra’s lightsaber, wherever it is presented arsenic a modification to her accepted lightsaber alternatively than its ain explicit weapon. Little is known however Vernestra’s whip works successful existent continuity, but successful the Expanded Universe, Lightwhips operated by utilizing a bid of smaller emitters and crystals that featured nary cells astir the plasma vigor they formed, allowing for a flexible beam of vigor that could beryllium operated similar a accepted whip, implicit a longer scope than a modular lightsaber. Trading immoderate of the coherent beam spot of a accepted lightsaber for that flexibility and reach, lightwhips typically lacked immoderate of the cutting spot of a lightsaber, capable to beryllium rebuffed by much kinds of armor that a lightsaber would different cut. They could besides beryllium damaged much easily, and owed to the volatile quality of the blade, were prone to shorting out.

The unconventional quality of the lightwhip was arsenic overmuch an plus arsenic its flexible blade. Rare and hard to maestro compared to a lightsaber (also 1 of the weapon’s downsides, starring to its rarity), the lightwhip preyed connected an opponent’s unfamiliarity—especially Jedi, who were chiefly trained successful combat against accepted martial weapons. Lightwhips could onslaught a lightsaber wielder from a longer range, flex astir blocks and parries different lightsaber couldn’t, and successful immoderate configurations with aggregate tassels, could overwhelm an hostile with strikes from aggregate angles astatine once.

Where Did the Lightwhip Come From?

© Cynthia Martin, Bob Wiacek, and Glynis Oliver/Marvel Comics

In the Expanded Universe, the Lightwhip was introduced arsenic the limb of the Dark Lady Lumiya, a Sith and 1 of the Emperor’s Hands (an elite bid of the Empire’s apical agents and concealed operatives) from Marvel’s ongoing Star Wars comic. First appearing successful 1985’s Star Wars #95, Lumiya’s lightwhip operated somewhat otherwise to what the limb would yet go successful further interpretations—as good arsenic a singular, extended vigor beam, Lumiya’s whip had respective other tassels made from leather and studded with lightsaber-resistant Mandalorian Iron (better known successful some existent continuity and the EU by its sanction successful the Mandalorian language, beskar).

Lumiya’s limb pb to Luke Skywalker crafting different benignant of Lightsaber that would spell connected to person its ain storied past successful the Expanded Universe and beyond: the Shoto Lightsaber, a secondary limb with a shortened leaf that could antagonistic the lightwhip’s aggregate tassels, wrapping them up astir his superior saber’s leaf portion utilizing the shoto to sever the carnal extensions.

After Lumiya’s limb birthed the beingness of the Lightwhip, much accepted forms were codified arsenic past and highly uncommon weapons wielded by the Sith during the clip of the New Sith Wars, thousands of years earlier the events of the films. Unlike Lumiya’s limb however, much often than not earlier lightwhips had a singular vigor beam, similar the lightwhip wielded by the Sith Lord Githany.

Was the Lightwhip Canon Before The Acolyte?

As is the lawsuit successful The Acolyte itself, Vernestra is the lone known wielder of a lightwhip successful current Star Wars continuity. Her saber’s alternate signifier was introduced successful the 2021 High Republic mediate people novel A Test of Courage. There, the lightwhip modifcation came to Vernestra arsenic a imaginativeness successful the Force portion she was inactive a comparatively caller Jedi Knight. Once complete, she kept the modification a concealed from her erstwhile maestro and different elder Jedi, fearing that the Lightwhip’s past arsenic an unorthodox weapon—and their humanities relation with the Nightsisters of Dathomir—could beryllium looked down upon.

Want much io9 news? Check retired erstwhile to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s adjacent for the DC Universe connected movie and TV, and everything you request to cognize astir the aboriginal of Doctor Who.