How much Damage would a Lightsaber do in D and D?

[Sims]

If you ever watched StarWars, you've seen that it can cut through almost anything. I want my players to fight a villain from the future, and what better weapon haha! I wonder if I should make it automatically do Con damage or be Vorpal.

Im thinking 3d8.

[Kaeso]

If I'm correct a lightsaber penetrates everything except another lightsaber, so it should bypass AC and DR.

[Glav]

If I'm correct a lightsaber penetrates everything except another lightsaber, so it should bypass AC and DR.

It would be a longsword (or perhaps an elven longblade/curveblade) with:

* Adamantine (ignoring hardness less than 20)
* Throwing (+1)
* Keen (+1)
* Ghost touch (+2)
* Vorpal (+5)
* Brilliant Energy (+4) (ignoring armor and shield bonuses)

and probably +5.

So, you're looking at a +18 weapon there. :)

[The Rose Dragon]

In M&M, the most common depiction of lightsabers is Corrosion, which is basically Damage + Toughness damage. Basically, it reduces your current and maximum hit points, the maximum before the current, when translated into D&D.

One thing you should not do is make it Constitution damage, as it would make objects and nonliving creatures immune to a lightsaber. Also, it doesn't really seem like Vorpal would work, as a lightsaber does not decapitate people often in the movies (except as a coup de grace).

[Eldan]

Adamantine Brilliant Energy should probably be enough for most applications of light sabers.

And why throwing? I don't know much about star wars, but I thought they switched off when they leave the Jedi's hand.

[DrizztFan24]

Disintegrate stick!

[The Rose Dragon]

Adamantine Brilliant Energy should probably be enough for most applications of light sabers.

And why throwing? I don't know much about star wars, but I thought they switched off when they leave the Jedi's hand.

Brilliant Energy makes a lightsaber useless against anything without a Constitution score, such as doors and droids.

Lightsabers can be kept lit by a Jedi when thrown, though it is more the Jedi's Force powers than the lightsaber itself, so it should not really be made Thrown.

[Glav]

Brilliant Energy makes a lightsaber useless against anything without a Constitution score, such as doors and droids.

Lightsabers can be kept lit by a Jedi when thrown, though it is more the Jedi's Force powers than the lightsaber itself, so it should not really be made Thrown.

True. You'd need a way to shift it between brilliant energy and a regular sword; perhaps as a swift action and another +1 - +2 cost.

Otherwise, the effect would be almost exactly what you need.

[Gnoman]

It depends on the individual Jedi. Some built the lightsaber with a toggle switch, others used a dead-man. Lightsabers use the force in construction, but operate on pure technology.

[rayne_dragon]

I seem to recall there being a Star Wars d20 game that had stats for lightsabers in it. I don't happen to have my copy handy. Taking a quick look at a Knights of the Old Republic FAQ shows lightabers doing 2d8 damage (compared to a long sword's d12 and a light repeating blaster's d8).

[Morph Bark]

I seem to recall there being a Star Wars d20 game that had stats for lightsabers in it. I don't happen to have my copy handy. Taking a quick look at a Knights of the Old Republic FAQ shows lightabers doing 2d8 damage (compared to a long sword's d12 and a light repeating blaster's d8).

Comparing that to DnD's 1d8 longsword, I'd guess lightsabers in DnD would do 2d6 or 1d10.

[LOTRfan]

They should also always be treated as ignoring armor of all kinds, unless it is made with the cortosis or phrik special materials (which would cost a hefty price).

[jiriku]

A 2d8 weapon, with a 19-20/x2 threat range, that deals untyped damage or force damage, rather than bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing damage. It makes touch attacks (ignoring armor, shield, and natural armor) and deals full damage against objects, ignoring hardness. The only objects that seemed to slow it down are things like reinforced blast doors, which have hundreds and hundreds of hit points and thus would take some time to cut through.

[Dalek-K]

Wait so a weapon that can cut through anything with a mere touch does d8 damage? Um no...

It would have to at minimum have a property where any non-living/object it touches is sundered. Any living being touched by the lightsaber would have that part sliced through and rendered useless (arm, body, head).

With the current classes and abilities of 3.5 or 4.0 ... Lightsabers just won't work. Anyone that would have one would be over powerful and not much could stop the blow from being a killing strike.

About the only thing that could save someone would be wall of force armor.... Maybe...

[jiriku]

You're clearly confusing a lightsaber with a katana. Katanas are much more powerful.

When seeing badass characters do awesome things with lightsabers in movies, it's important to distinguish between weapon-derived badassery and character-derived badassery. The original Star Wars d20 game didn't even let you build your lightsaber until you were level 2. You weren't a real jedi knight until level 6. So in D&D terms, the lowliest jedi knight is more badass than all but the most elite special forces teams of the real world, and a jedi master could easily defeat classic swrds'n'sorcery heroes like Aragorn or Conan in single combat.

TL;DR Yeah, the sword is cool, but most of it is class levels and force powers.

[Solaris]

A 2d8 weapon, with a 19-20/x2 threat range, that deals untyped damage or force damage, rather than bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing damage. It makes touch attacks (ignoring armor, shield, and natural armor) and deals full damage against objects, ignoring hardness. The only objects that seemed to slow it down are things like reinforced blast doors, which have hundreds and hundreds of hit points and thus would take some time to cut through.

I think this is the most practical interpretation of it. Auto-sunder-everything is... well, wrong. If it worked like that, then the reinforced blast doors wouldn't have been a problem.
I also think damage reduction should continue to apply, if only the supernatural sorts. I could also see it doing fire damage, as it uses heat to damage things.

[LOTRfan]

Wait so a weapon that can cut through anything with a mere touch does d8 damage? Um no...

It would have to at minimum have a property where any non-living/object it touches is sundered. Any living being touched by the lightsaber would have that part sliced through and rendered useless (arm, body, head).

With the current classes and abilities of 3.5 or 4.0 ... Lightsabers just won't work. Anyone that would have one would be over powerful and not much could stop the blow from being a killing strike.

About the only thing that could save someone would be wall of force armor.... Maybe...

That's not true. There are many, many examples of people who have survived being slashed with a lightsaber. One of them, a Hutt, actually had a third of his head removed by the strike.

Turns out that example actually had one third of his head removed from a giant killer worm, never mind.

[CN the Logos]

Everyone is thinking too hard about this.

Brilliant Energy makes a lightsaber useless against anything without a Constitution score, such as doors and droids.

Lightsabers can be kept lit by a Jedi when thrown, though it is more the Jedi's Force powers than the lightsaber itself, so it should not really be made Thrown.

True. You'd need a way to shift it between brilliant energy and a regular sword; perhaps as a swift action and another +1 - +2 cost.

Otherwise, the effect would be almost exactly what you need.

They have this already. It's called wraithstrike. It's a 3rd level spell that says your next attack ignores AC, and it doesn't have brilliant energy's "can't hit nonliving things" clause. Figure out how much this lasting forever on an adamantine bastard sword would should cost.

Easiest homebrew ever.

ETA: Also, lightsabers have been deflected by non-lightsaber things multiple times. Even if we don't count the prequels or the EU, there's a bit in the original trilogy (Empire, I think), where Luke scores a glancing hit on Vader's helmet and it bounces off.

[Solaris]

Everyone is thinking too hard about this.



They have this already. It's called wraithstrike. It's a 3rd level spell that says your next attack ignores AC, and it doesn't have brilliant energy's "can't hit nonliving things" clause. Figure out how much this lasting forever on an adamantine bastard sword would should cost.

Easiest homebrew ever.

ETA: Also, lightsabers have been deflected by non-lightsaber things multiple times. Even if we don't count the prequels or the EU, there's a bit in the original trilogy (Empire, I think), where Luke scores a glancing hit on Vader's helmet and it bounces off.

Also in RotJ, where it bounces off the railing while he's wailing on Vader's helmet. Cuts, too, but there you have it.

And hey, hey, hey, quit trying to make stuff easy over here. We're third edition players, we make this stuff as complicated as it could possibly be! Complicated = fun, right?

[hamishspence]

Also, lightsabers have been deflected by non-lightsaber things multiple times. Even if we don't count the prequels or the EU, there's a bit in the original trilogy (Empire, I think), where Luke scores a glancing hit on Vader's helmet and it bounces off.

I thought it was shoulder rather than helmet- but yes- while they're good at cutting, they also bounce off things.

I think to get the full benefit, it needs to be pressed hard against whatever they're trying to cut through.

[FMArthur]

So really they're functionally the same as a sword but as superhot laserswords they deal enough fire damage to melt through things rather quickly. A +1 Flaming Corrosive bastard sword would be enough to emulate pretty much everything it's been seen to do.

[LOTRfan]

That part is... debatable. In some EU, the lightsaber doesn't give off heat at all, while in others it's hot enough to seal wounds.

[FMArthur]

That part is... debatable. In some EU, the lightsaber doesn't give off heat at all, while in others it's hot enough to seal wounds.

Maybe that's just... wrong, then? What was Qui-Gon doing with that door at the start of Episode 1?

[LOTRfan]

Once again, star wars writers were all over the place with that. It seems that Lucas prefers the version with lightsabers giving off heat (why on earth he'd allow other writers to say otherwise when it is clearly depicted in the movie is beyond me).

It seems that later writers have attempted to retcon this, saying that a containment field stops the blade from giving off heat, but does not stop heat transfer from physical contact. Let's go with that, as it explains how Qui-Gon did that.

[hamishspence]

In the novelization of Star Wars: A New Hope- (credited to George Lucas, but ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster) Luke holds his hand fairly close to the blade, and notices it gives off no heat.

So, it's been like that from very early on.

[Gnaeus]

If it only cut, and didn't cauterize, Vader cutting off Luke's hand would have been followed by a shower of blood.

[Morph Bark]

If it only cut, and didn't cauterize, Vader cutting off Luke's hand would have been followed by a shower of blood.

Special effects limitations?

Though what heat a lightsaber "gives off" could be more like the heat being contained as well, so being near it doesn't make you feel the heat, but touching it would.

[FMArthur]

On the other hand, they have jedi learn with the lightsaber while blindfolded... Maybe their eradication wasn't all clone troopers, but maybe lightsabers just aren't that dangerous unless wielded purposefully by a well-trained space wizard.

[Doc Roc]

1dBodyparts.

[LOTRfan]

On the other hand, they have jedi learn with the lightsaber while blindfolded... Maybe their eradication wasn't all clone troopers, but maybe lightsabers just aren't that dangerous unless wielded purposefully by a well-trained space wizard.

Training 'sabers. Not everyone is lucky enough to have those, though.