Amount of time to create new lightsaber

[MattMartin23]

So I have a Force attuned, Jedi in training who lost his lightsaber in the last session. He only had 3 days of training in the Force with his Master before leaving on the next phase of the adventure. Additionally he has spent the last 24 hours in bacta after getting mortally wounded, physically scarred, and losing his left leg from knee down, left hand, and left hip.

His Master showed him how to build a lightsaber and gave him a lightsaber kit with the parts to build one. The Master stated, you must be in perfect alignment with the living Force to attune your lightsaber. The PC took the time to mechanically construct one then left. His Sense is 5D, Control is 4D+2, Alter is 4D.

After speaking to a fellow GM who also runs a PC in this game, he said it should take the character 1 day to construct a lightsaber and weeks to attune to it. That it should be a religious ritual that would need to take Force meditation, a clear mind and a steadyness in the Force prior to being able to will the blade to the character's initial beckoning.

That said, I have three questions:

1.) Since the lightsaber he constructed with his master was not attuned, wouldn't he have needed to get his first lightsaber from the Master?

2.) How long would it take for him to attune the constructed lightsaber and be able to use it without it sputtering or exploding?

3.) Would the character be able to recall all of the details of attuning hisself to the lightsaber in a rushed training?

[cheshire]

[vanir]

I also use Tales of the Jedi companion as a basic guide for lightsabre construction, then add a house rule of combining Scholar: Jedi Lore with your Lightsabre Repair skill in order to engineer a lightsabre from scratch.

Following the general RAW for item construction, as opposed to repair of an existing item or modification, you need an advanced engineering skill. For this you need a 5D in repair of that item, then build (A) engineering in the item. For Jedi instead we use 5D in Jedi Lore plus Lightsabre Repair.

Jedi are a special case since constructing a lightsabre is part of the Knight qualification. One wouldn't normally expect Padawan to go around constructing lightsabres, since a pivotal moment of Luke's qualification for Jedi Knight rank was construction of his own lightsabre.
So what I do is set a requirement of Scholar: Jedi Lore at 5D, then you can use Lightsabre Repair to construct a lightsabre from scratch. This represents enough knowledge as a Jedi to qualify.

Part of this Jedi Lore is knowing how to Quest for a focus crystal, which is the attunement process. The Jedi goes on a sidequest using periods of meditation to allow the Living Force to guide his way to finding a focus crystal, either an Adegan or Ilum crystal. This is the part he really needs that Jedi Lore skill for, I use rolls in this to guide the PC and assess his meditation efforts and travels for their attunement to the Force.

Then the actual construction uses simply high quality blaster parts and other mundane technological parts (mastercrafted parts, x5 normal cost), his Lightsabre Repair skill is used for the actual construction, with another Jedi Lore roll for periods of further meditation.

Total time is at least a month, or as described in Tales of the Jedi companion.

If a Jedi has some archives with Scholar: Jedi Lore of at least 4D stored on them, such as a datadisk or holocron, he might combine his skill with the library during research so could construct one with such an item from 4D Jedi Lore skill (combined for 5D total skill).

Generally in our game however, Padawan are given a lightsabre to use by their Master if they are to adventure out in the galaxy (rather than stay in the Jedi Temple training until Knight status). I tie this in with Obi Wan instructing Anakin about how vital it was not to lose his lightsabre "this weapon is your life" (because you can't build your own yet as a Padawan, and I can't go continually replacing them for you from the Temple stocks).

So if you're a Padawan in our game and you lose your lightsabre, unless someone gives you another one, you're out of luck until you get enough skill and knowledge as a Jedi to pretty much qualify Knight status and build your own. It's much more than just the skill to repair an existing lightsabre.

I also use optional rules of it costing a Force Point. Success means you get two back, very bad failure means you lose one, close but no cigar means you just get the spent one back. Sort of ups the stakes and keeps lightsabres in our game very special items and construction of one a real "Wow, now I'm definitely a full Jedi Knight" sort of a PC experience, complete with FP increase for doing it.

Our gaming style is pretty extreme though.

Now if you were a non-Jedi and you wanted to construct a lightsabre, firstly it would be a Lightfoil, and secondly you'd need 5D in Lightsabre Repair, and (A) Lightfoil Engineering advanced skill, which is the skill you'd roll for actual construction.

[Naaman]

I like that house rule Vanir. I will be adapting my own version.

[garhkal]

Sparks has detailed rules for making and attuning lightsabers.. all revolving around an advanced skill lightsaber construction. if you wish i can pm you those rules.
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Confucious sayeth, don't wash cat while drunk!

[Fallon Kell]

Lightsaber built over the weekend=nuclear reactor built over the weekend.

It will explode and kill you.
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Or that excessively long "Noooooooooo" was the Whining Side of the Force leaving him. - Dustflier

Complete Starship Construction System

[cheshire]

Only once have I ever ruled that a lightsaber exploded. Of course, it was a series of horribly improbable situations. The player was way too highly inspired by KotOR and started looking for lightsaber crystals under every rock in the universe. So, one day he was doing a search roll in a Jedi's abandoned domicile. Since a Jedi owned it, he naturally left valuable things behind like lightsaber components. And he rolled a 1 on the Wild Die for his search roll. I let him find a crystal. The dialog went something like this:

Player: Really!?!?"
GM: Well... you're character THINKS it's a lightsaber crystal anyway.
Player: Uh-oh.

I didn't really plan on much bad happening, but when he rolled his lightsaber construction, not only did he just barely fail, but also rolled a one on the Wild Die. I told him that it's okay, it just means that we'll see how badly this will go, and to determine how badly, I'm just going to ask him to roll the Wild Die again. On a six, it just won't start up and maybe fracture the crystal. On a one... then things'll get interesting. But, yet another one. So, the thing blew, doing 5D damage to the character. To this day it's one of the things he laughs the most about in the whole two-year campaign.
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Before we take any of this too seriously, just remember that in the middle episode a little rubber puppet moves a spaceship with his mind.

[vanir]

This caption always made me lol

[MattMartin23]

Thanks to all!

Based on all of the responses I think this is how it will go down.

Being attuned with the Force, the Jedi Master has a vision of a human coming to him on a quest to become a Jedi. He immediately starts forging a lightsaber for the trainee. He takes over a month putting it together. Suddenly the day comes and the character comes into audience with the Jedi Master.

The Jedi Master hears the young man's wishes to seek out his Sith Lord father to confront and destroy him. Smiling the Master agrees to train him to become a Jedi Knight and to have the power to confront and redeem his Father. The PC accepts the terms and begins training with the master. The master offers a sparring blade then PC watches as the Master meditates over the lightsaber for the PC.

PC receives the lightsaber and becomes familiar with the feel of it. It is almost perfectly balanced to the PC. Just a few adjustments are made to the handle and it is ready for use by the PC. His master gives him an orientation in how to repair the blade. Training ensues. Because the world has been taken over by the Rebel Alliance the training is limited to only 3 days. The master provides a satchel to the apprentice which includes all parts necessary for constructing a new blade, including the crystal.

Thanks again All,

Matt

[Fallon Kell]

[MattMartin23]

[garhkal]

[MattMartin23]

[Fallon Kell]

[MattMartin23]

So the Jedi-in-training PC went a full session without his lightsaber. It was more of a story-telling session than a combat heavy session so it was not super challenging for him to be without his blade. After being jacked up and losing a hand, his left hip and part of his left leg due to an explosion, he became mortally wounded and was in bacta for 1 day game time while the other PC did some investigation work. Afterwards he came out of bacta noting he now had a cybernetic left hip, cybernetic left hand and cybernetic left leg from the knee down - still recovering, getting used to temporary limbs as the permanent replacement limbs are still being constructed.

He then spent 2 days in hyperspace and 1 day on a new planet doing investigative work. He did have a chance to use the Force to heal his mortally wounded girlfriend which was cool - very Jedi like using the Force for defense instead of offense. Made me proud. He just might very well become a Jedi after all. Strangle enough though he was in armor. He selected a vibro sword as his primary weapon of choice and carried his blaster rifle but did not have to use either.

MM