The Sith used natural human emotions like fear and twisted it into negative traits like anger and hate.They also fought and killed without remorse, so it’s natural to believe they used blasters given their arsenal of superweapons. But the Sith used blasters as little as their Jedi enemies.
The Sith rarely used blasters in Star Wars. Instead, they opted for lightsabers and preferably the Force as their chosen weapons, plus numerous superweapons. Some Force users used blasters and other long-range weapons, but it was rare.
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Do Sith Use Blasters?
Blasters were synonymous with offense, and the Sith’s traits of aggression and anger would make one think they use blasters in combat. Especially since they liked their superweapons that included Death Stars and Sun Crushers.
Unlike the Jedi, where the Order wanted its members to remember each kill to avoid becoming numb to violence, the Sith killed without remorse. Take Darth Sidious, who killed his master before he ignited the Clone Wars and eventually purged the Jedi. Sidious took pride in killing.
The Sith, like the Jedi, was an ancient order. Throughout the millennia Darth Sidious wasn’t the only Sith Lord who enjoyed killing.
So if the Sith enjoyed killing or at least inflicting harm on their victims, why did they refuse, or rarely, use blasters?
Besides their expertise in weaponizing the Force, blasters provided no use against the Jedi.
Unless Darth Sidious ordered clone troopers to commit a quick kill on their Jedi commanders. But even during Order 66, the Jedi faced hundreds if not thousands of troopers. Given the numbers game, it was one instance where blasters overpowered the Jedi.
But when Jedi weren’t facing hundreds of clone troopers during a purge, they overpowered opponents who used blasters.
Blasters also did not personalize a kill. It is the same reason Jedi rarely used blasters unless it was necessary. It was one common denominator the Sith and Jedi shared.
However, while the Jedi wanted to prevent their members from becoming desensitized to killing, the Sith enjoyed killing as it personified aggression.
Lightsabers and the Force were also stronger than blasters for Force-sensitives. Both could deflect blaster bullets and, reflect them back at an opponent to a degree.
What Weapons Do Sith Use?
Like the Jedi, lightsabers were one of the Sith’s weapons of choice. However, unlike the Jedi, the Sith’s lightsaber blades turned red since their anger, hate, and negative emotions caused pain to their crystals, leading them to “bleed,” hence their red hue.
While the Jedi wielded the Force as a weapon, they forbade or frowned upon specific attacks like Force lightning. The Sith further weaponized the Force, and it was common to see them using maneuvers like Force chokes and Force lightning.
Throughout their existence, the Sith also used legendary weapons like the Darkstaff. This relic survived for thousands of years and it granted immense power to its user. However, the Darkstaff controlled its user, even if the user believed themselves to control the Darkstaff.
The Sith also had several superweapons at their disposal. The Death Star was their most prominent, and the weapon showed its prowess when it destroyed Alderaan within seconds.
Other Sith superweapons included the Executor, Imperial bioweapons, the Dark Reaper, Star Forge, Silencer, Starkiller Base, World Devastators, and the Leviathan.
Screen Rant argues the Sun Crusher was the Sith’s deadliest superweapon. While the Death Star destroyed planets, Sun Crushers transformed suns into supernovas that destroyed solar systems.
Even scarier, Sun Crushers were not large. It was easy to mistake them for starfighters. This allowed these nearly indestructible superweapons to hide in plain sight and evoke terror on any solar system it pleased.
What Was the Sith’s Most Overlooked Weapon?
Fear was an overlooked weapon the Sith used and perhaps the deadliest weapon in Star Wars.
Some argue this was not a weapon, but the Sith knew every being in the galaxy felt fear. And the more fear the Sith created, the easier it was for them to forge their victims into compliance, whether or not their victims were Force-sensitive.
The Sith knew the fear was a natural feeling, and they knew even Jedi as strong as Yoda or Mace Windu weren’t exempt from the emotion. They further knew the fear was a weapon the Jedi could never truly get rid of.
And it’s one reason the Sith stuck around for as long as they did. Even when they appeared extinct, they hid in the shadows, waiting to rise again. Because with their ability to feed on fear, it allowed them to grow in strength, slowly, while the Jedi looked the other way.
So many Jedi have attempted to rid the galaxy of the Sith, with Rey Skywalker being the most recent. But since it’s likely she didn’t rid the galaxy of fear, like her predecessors, odds are that the Sith will rise again.
Did Any Force Users Use Blasters?
While it was uncommon to see Force users use blasters, it also wasn’t unheard of.
Ezra Bridger built a blaster into his lightsaber hilt, making it the unique hybrid weapon in Star Wars.
Even after becoming a Jedi, Kyle Katarn continued to use a blaster. Katarn went beyond using just blasters, he used an entire arsenal of weapons that also included missile launchers and thermal detonators.
Luke Skywalker also used a blaster before his Jedi training. However, his use of blasters became less pronounced while The Original Trilogy wore on.
Laranth Tarak is perhaps the most unknown Force user to use a blaster. She belonged to the Gray Paladins, who preferred using long-range weapons to lightsabers, most notably her dual DL-44 blasters.
FAQs
Why Don’t Jedis Use Blasters?
The Jedi used blasters, but it was frowned upon. Ordinarily, they didn’t, and blasters were only used as a last resort, like when Obi-Wan Kenobi fought General Grievous during Revenge of the Sith.
Yet with so much technology in the galaxy, the Jedi still preferred lightsabers over blasters and a more natural way of doing things instead of opting for technology.
But they’re not opposed to using technology. With blasters, when a Jedi had no other option, they turned to them. We also saw Luke Skywalker use blasters in A New Hope, although he technically did not begin his Jedi training until Empire Strikes Back.
The Jedi also used long-range weapons like blasters during the Old Republic Era when they regularly engaged in combat with the Sith.
However, it was uncommon for Jedi to engage in combat with a blaster. When Obi-Wan killed Grievous, for example, he found a discarded blaster and used it. This was the case for most Jedi.
The lightsaber also symbolized the Jedi Order. While anyone could use a blaster and to some degree, a lightsaber, no one could handle a lightsaber like the Jedi. For non-Force-sensitives, lightsabers acted more like traditional swords instead of Force-powered weapons.
Jedi also used the lightsaber to their advantage because it further served as a symbol of intimidation to those looking to perhaps harm others while simultaneously providing relief and protection for the galaxy’s weaker souls.
Often, Jedi only needed to ignite their lightsaber to prevent a potential conflict. The blaster, or any other weapon, was incapable of diffusing tension but instead promoting aggression.
Since Jedi embraced non-aggression, the lightsaber took precedence over the blaster.
Conclusion
If necessary, the Sith would use blasters, but they preferred lightsabers, superweapons, and the Force. Their strongest weapon, fear, kept them around even when they appeared to be extinct.
While it was uncommon for Force users on both the light and dark sides to use blasters, it didn’t stop others from using, if not preferring them. Ezra Bridger and Laranth Tarak were the most prominent examples, and to a degree, they preferred long-range weapons.
Overall, Jedi did not use blasters because they believed in a more natural way of life. They also didn’t want to desensitize themselves from killing, given a blaster’s ability to kill large numbers.
Blasters also signaled aggression, which went against the Jedi Code. So they resorted to using lightsabers, which was not just a weapon, but an extension of the Jedi. A tool that allowed them to undertake their conservative, defense-first approach in combat.