The Evolution of Darth Revan’s Lightsaber

When we imagine certain personages in the Star Wars universe, it’s only natural to visualize them with their preferred style of the lightsaber. We think of Darth Maul and his double-bladed red lightsaber, or Mace Windu’s purple blade. With other individuals, this turns into a multiple-choice exercise due to the different sabers they wielded at different times. If you prefer, you can envisage Luke Skywalker either with his classic blue lightsaber or with the green blade he created later in his career as a Jedi Knight.

One of the more complicated examples of this phenomenon is Revan, the Jedi who turned to the Dark Side and then turned away from it. Over the course of his tumultuous life, Revan wielded a variety of sabers at one time or another in accordance with his shifting allegiances and personal development. What follows is a brief overview of this fascinating figure in Star Wars mythology and the lightsabers he used.

Revan as a Jedi

The history of the human being who would become known far and wide as Darth Revan begins with his birth around 3994 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin), during the Old Republic Era. He was a Padawan under Jedi Master Kreia (later Darth Traya) and showed great potential during his apprentice days.

After ascending to the status of Jedi Knight, Revan butted heads with the Jedi Council over the matter of the Mandalorian Wars. The Order preferred to stay clear of the conflict, but Revan had other ideas, founding the Revanchist movement against the Mandalorians. His efforts here—accompanied by his friend, Jedi Knight Malak—led to the defeat of Mandalore the Ultimate.

During this time, Revan wielded a single-bladed blue lightsaber with an alloy metal hilt as his primary saber. Some sources report that he also used a purple lightsaber to represent his independence from the dictates of the Jedi Council.

Revan as a Sith

Revan, along with Malak, fell under the influence of Sith Emperor Vitiate, who planned to use the mind-controlled duo for his own devious purposes. Revan and Malak managed to free themselves from Vitiate’s influence—but not from the influence of the Dark Side. Revan—now Darth Revan—established the Sith Empire with the intention of overthrowing and replacing the Galactic Republic. He also replaced the crystal in his lightsaber hilt, giving it the red blade associated with the Sith.

The ensuing Jedi Civil War nearly destroyed the Republic, but Revan’s efforts ultimately failed, and he was rendered comatose after a battle with a Jedi strike team led by Bastila Shan. Along the way, Darth Revan’s lightsaber was destroyed by a mutinous Malak.