Sic transit gloria mundi
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To sub Siobhan's lightsabre.
- Image Source: Here. Found on saberforge.com.
- Canon Link: N/A.
- Restricted Missions: N/A.
- Primary Source: Lightsabres, Crossguard lightsabres.
- Manufacturer: Siobhan Kerrigan
- Model: Dual Phase Crossguard Lightsabre
- Affiliation: Siobhan
- Modularity: Yes
- Production: Unique
- Material: Turadium hilt construction, Duravlex outer shell, Bronzium fixtures, standard lightsabre components, standard purple kyber crystal, Qixoni Crystal, Katak crystal.
- Classification: Dual Phase Crossguard Lightsabre.
- Size: Average to Large (one-handed or two-handed)
- Specifications: Hilt 25 cm, blade 110 cm - 146 cm.
- Weight: Average. 1. 4kg.
- Bifurcating Cyclical Ignition Pulse
- Dual-Phase Setting
- Adegan lens
- Trapped Grip
- Deionizer
- Faraday cage
- Crossguards
- Non-dimetris circuits
- Turadium hilt
- Standard lightsabre strengths.
- Cannot be shorted out by cortosis, only blocked.
- Dual-phase setting allows wielder to modify the blade's length in combat, potentially giving the wielder a reach advantage in duelling.
- The weapon has a number of gadgets that are a boon in duelling. Crossguards increase hand protection and provide an additional offensive ability. The Adegan lens increases the blade's power.
- The Qixoni Crystal provides both power and stamina when tapping in to the Force. This does not increase Siobhan's strength in the Force or affect her skill set, but it does contribute towards a greater connection to draw from, at a far less taxing cost. Katal Crystal can enable the user to siphon some of the life force of an opponent in close proximity.
- Hilt is tough, but can be destroyed or damaged by direct lightsabre strikes.
- Weakness at penetrating lightsabre-resistant materiels such as Phrik, Beskar, Vonduun crab armour etc.
- Lightsabres lack mass, which imposes a limit on the pressure one can bring to bear, compared to a physical blade.
- Lightsabres are weaker at defending against conventional bullets (slugs etc.).
- Lightsabres cannot block attacks from sonic blasters or particle beam blasters. Attacks from Ssi-Ruuvi ion paddle beamers can only be deflected if the lightsabre has been calibrated beforehand. Said calibration does not allow reflection though and makes the lightsabre incapable of deflecting conventional blaster bolts.
DESCRIPTION
Shortly before the Incursion Event, Siobhan Kerrigan suffered a stroke, brought about by stress, the myriad injuries and physical trauma she had sustained over two decades of fighting. Fortunately, Elpsis and Firemane doctors were able to stabilise her. However, when she awoke she was physically infirm and had been deprived of her powers. In addition, her memory had regressed to the day she conquered the Xioquo and defeated their dark queen Mystra in mortal combat. Her partial amnesia and ill health were quite shocking for her. Unable to continue her duties as leader of Firemane Industries, she was forced to retire from public life until she recovered.
The road to recovery was not an easy one. Siobhan was suspicious that her subordinates might try to sideline her and did not take her power loss well. For someone who was used to wielding tremendous power, it was inconceivable that something as 'mundane' as being sick could pull them from their pedestal. Alas, even 'Force gods' are mortal. Eventually, she was able to recover from the ordeal. With the aid of a Dathomiri Witch called [member="Maiev"], she regained most of her lost memories and managed to walk again. Later, Tylania, the Paragon of the Vashyada, and her sister Chesna performed a ritual, entering the Lady's mind. Siobhan was confronted with her own hubris and deepest fears, chief of which was her legacy not living on after her death. She was able to overcome these trials and emerge fully restored, having regained her connection to the Force.
However, new challenges soon awaited. One was the evacuation of Tygara, the other was internal strife among her Qadiri allies. Ever since she had been crowned Shahbânu of the Amikarese Empire, Semiramus had sought to unite the Qadiri under her banner. To this end, the ambitious ruler had entered an alliance with Siobhan, recognising that the outsiders possessed technology and know-how that could be beneficial to her. She had proved her usefulness as an ally by aiding Siobhan in her campaign against the Underealm and proved open-minded about the gradual abolition of slavery in return for Firemane helping the Qadiri catch up with the rest of the Galaxy.
This made her useful, but also gave her bargaining power. As part of her bid to unify the Qadiri under her rule, she wanted to control the Kashari church. Kashara is the supreme goddess of the Qadiri pantheon, comparable to Ashira in the Eldorai religion. The church is headed by the Saoshyant, who is officially the religious leader of all Qadiri, though her actual power has fluctuated over the centuries. Semiramis tried to make her move and put her candidate in power after the previous Saoshyant had passed away.
However, her ambitions were well-known and so her rivals united against her. Calling themselves the League of Krolis, they elected their own Saoshyant. Semiramis mustered her armies and appealed to Siobhan for aid, invoking their old alliance. With some reluctance, Siobhan decided to support her - but on her terms, for she did not want her vassal to get too powerful. Thus war erupted. One of the most tenacious foes the allied forces of Firemane and the Amikarese Empire faced were the Sistren of the Eternal Flame, a respected Qadiri fire cult. The order's high mistress was a powerful Force Master who had gained renown for leading the defence of the holy city of Krolis against a Xioquo incursion many years before Firemane's arrival.
Her name was Lady Sahali Jai Bysara. Though lacking in high-tech weapons, the Sistren were formidable warriors and their command over fire was impressive. This enabled them to rain down destruction upon Firemane soldiers and their allies. Victories over the rebels demanded a considerable toll in blood. Together with their allies, the rebels waged a guerilla campaign, denying Firemane a battle where it could exploit its technological superiority.
Siobhan chose to enter the fray herself, partly to prove her own strength - to friend and foe, but also herself. When the allies were finally able to force the League to commit to battle, Siobhan and Sahali ended up engaging each other in a bloody duel. Siobhan unleashed her formidable telekinetic powers and wielded her lightsabre, while Sahali channelled fire and utilised a Force imbued blade, a veritable flaming sword. The fight took a toll on both combatants as they traded heavy blows, pushing each other to physical and mental exhaustion while destruction raged around them. Siobhan's lightsabre was destroyed during the duel, but she prevailed in the end, besting her opponent. Sahali got away and conducted a fighting retreat with her remaining forces, but the battle was a defeat for the rebels. Siobhan felt a grudging respect for her honourable Qadiri adversary.
However, the rebels found themselves beleaguered. Divisions appeared in the ranks of the League. A cabal of aristocrats, fearful that a protracted war would bring only ruin to them, conspired to end the war and seek terms with Lady Kerrigan. The scorched earth campaign had taken a toll on their holdings. Ironically, they had been the ones who had urged the League to meet the allies on the battlefield instead of continuing asymmetrical warfare. The conspirators deceived and murdered Sahali. Her head was presented to Siobhan, for they hoped to curry favour with her. However, the Lady was disgusted by the betrayal and personally executed the ringleader. The others were put in irons. Siobhan sent them back to the Sistren, along with the body of Sahali so that her foe could be given a proper burial. The Sistren would swear fealty to Siobhan, who pardoned them for their rebellion.
As the fighting came to a close, Siobhan laboured to build a new lightsabre. It would be both a new weapon to replace the one she had lost and a new chapter in her life. In battle Siobhan's focus has always been on using her preternatural powers. She has a strong affinity for the destructive aspects of the Force. This means that a lightsabre performs a support role for her, rather than being her main focus. However, she is a capable Soresu duellist.
First, she constructed a hilt out of turadium. Onto it she grafted an insulating shell of Duravlex. This would provide strength and weight. Duravlex would also boost the heat resistance and thereby enable the Dark Jedi to utilise the weapon without the risk of burning her palms. Thereafter, she picked an Adegan lens to increase the power of the blade, a bifurcating cyclical ignition pulse to enable its use whilst being submerged in water and a trapped grip to ensure that only her hands could hold it unmolested. A Faraday cage and a combat deionizer would protect it against EMP and ion discharges. Mindful of the fact that the traditional lightsabre design offered no hand protection, she chose to utilise a crossguard design. This left the most crucial components of any lightsabre: The crystals.
The first one she chose was a standard kyber crystal. It gave the blade its purple colour. Not only was this the royal colour, it stood between red and blue. One was the stereotypical colour of the Sith, the other that of the Jedi. Siobhan considers herself to be better than either. Lady Sahali had incorporated a rare Qixoni crystal in her enchanted sword. It was sent to Siobhan by the dead High Mistress' followers as a gesture of submission and respect. Siobhan deemed it fitting to add it to her lightsabre. Finally, she used a Katak crystal. Thus the weapon was complete. She called it Rebirth.
