Darths & Droids VI: Thread title will appear here when received

[KillianHawkeye]

I always assumed they had a "only on when pressed" button. Turning them on was always a separate step from unsheathing them, which distinguished them from swords in a visually impressive way. I figured the button required constant contact, rather than being a toggle switch. (Some RL lightsaber toys work exactly that way, probably to save battery.) Now that I think about it, though, that would also mean a lightsaber could never be a thrown weapon - it would turn off in mid-air.

Thrown lightsaber is a staple maneuver in older video games, though, and Darth Vader did it at least once in the films (near the end of Return of the Jedi). I think the assumption there is that you have to use The Force to keep the dead man's switch held down; they're already presumably using The Force to guide the saber through the air anyway (and call it back to themselves, in the video games).