CT When was the term 'Sith' first used in the Star Wars universe

When was the term 'Sith' or 'Lords of the Sith' first used in the Star Wars universe. I know it was never used in any of the original trilogy movies (perhaps it was in one of the original trilogy movie novels). Was the term 'Lords of the Sith' an EU creation that came after the movies that Lucas just adopted for the PT. Or was the term already coined before the OT was finished.

 

It was in A New Hope novel and was first mentioned on screen in The Phantom Menace. And yes, it was a Lucas creation.

 

Ahh ok thanks. Wasn't sure if it was a case like that or if it was something thought up by an EU author and was one of the things Lucas adopted from the EU.

 

Additionally, it dates back to the original drafts of "The Star Wars." (E.g., http://www.scifiscripts.com/scripts/swd1_5-74.txt)

 

It's cool to see just how many of the original ideas Lucas had ended up making it into the universe that began in '77. People give Lucas crap sometimes for saying that he had it all planned out all along but he really hasn't completely thrown out a lot of his ideas. Sure he has changed some things around a bit or combined a couple different character stories together but many of his notes and thoughts that ended up making it into the Star Wars universe we are so familiar with were there from the very beginning.

 

I agree.

BTW browsing through the script I was reminded of something; I've seen people give Lucas flak for the word "lasersword" in TPM... yet in the early scripts (including the one I linked to above), the terms light saber and laser sword are used interchangeably.

 

lightsaber sounds better than laser sword.

 

Why? "Laser" is a cooler word than "light," and "sword" is a cooler word than "saber."

 

It rolls off the tongue a little better. And it's a bit more creative than laser sword. Laser sword is perhaps a bit more obvious.

 

I agree with that. But together I like lightsaber.

 

Lightsaber sounds less generic than laser sword.

 

that's subjective. Together Lightsaber sounds better...not to mention "Lightsaber" can actually be used to describe what it is in some way while "Lasersword" cannot...as it's not a "laser sword"....the blade is more like a plasma..it is -not- a "laser" blade.

 

I remember 'Dark Lord of the Sith' being mentioned on the record soundtrack of either TESB or ROTJ. can't remember which. Ah, vinyl...

 

The term 'Sith' pretty much appeared everywhere but the finished OT films, it was in the novels and the comics, was mentioned in various magazine articles - it was also in the shooting script, including one piece of dialogue:

Obviously the dialogue's not the same, but I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bit of footage from this scene decaying in a vault somewhere with 'Sith' mentioned.

It was actually my own curiosity about just what it meant that sucked me back into SW, when I spotted an ad for the Dark Horse Sith War comic series. I remembered Vader always being referred to as 'The Dark Lord of the Sith', but I had no idea what it meant.

 

Saber feels noble and a bit ceremonial, evokes princes and officers more than foot-soldiers. A Laser-Sword could be used by anyone, but a Lightsaber? That's a name for for a special, regal weapon.

 

I think the term Saber actually indicates a very long, very straight sword which would accurately describe the Lightsaber's seen in Star Wars. After all Lightsabers aren't short (besides Yoda's sword), or serrated or curved etc etc.

 

"Sith" appeared in the ESB comic adaptation.

 

"Lightsaber" rules over "laser sword" for me. But I do love how when Ben Kenobi says it, it's almost like two words -

"It's your fathers light saber." That makes me chuckle a little bit. Even HE couldn't grasp the fantastical sci-fi creation!


But I do remember the "Sith" being in the novel and found them even more mysterious with little known about them. I think with Lucas having the 'good' side as Jedi, he always had the 'bad' side named, but probably didn't use it as much to conceal their more darker, mysterious roots for a future revelation?

 

Some authors called it a "standing wave of massless energy" (since electromagnetic energy comes in waves, it could be a laser beam that is somehow "stalled in place").

In practice though, I think that makes less sense than the plasma version.

 

The new hope novel mentions sith a couple of times.

 

Actually, sabers are very often made with curved blades. The first real sword I ever owned was a replica of a US Civil War cavalry trooper sword with a curved blade. You know what I think would be cool? A lightsaber with a curved blade.

 

The book that used the phrase "standing wave of massless energy" was Complete Vehicles- I think copied from Revenge of the Sith: Complete Cross Sections.

 

Ah ok. A lightsaber with a curved blade would indeed be pretty damn cool. Light isn't supposed to be able to bend though but oh well.

 

IIRC, the in-universe technological explanation for how a lightsaber works is high-energy plasma that is on a loop and encased within a magnetic field. The blade takes the shape of the field, so if the field's dimensions were to be manipulated, I don't see why a lightscimitar wouldn't be a possibility. After all, a lightwhip was already used in the comics.

 

Didn't the lightwhip have a solid core that was encased in energy? That was my impression.

As for light not curving, sure it will, if you use enough gravity. We just have to build a black hole into the saber hilt to get the right curve. I may have to work out a little more if I want to lift it, though. The beach is... that way. Have you seen my beach ball? It's about... this big.