Sith lightsaber

"A red saber is no different than any other except... it has been made to bleed."

- Darth Sidious informing Darth Vader about Sith lightsabers

Sith lightsabers, also known as Sith sabers and sometimes referred to as laser swords, were the lightsabers wielded by members of the Sith. They were constructed through methods similar to those used by other Force-sensitives, but the underlying philosophy was different. Unlike users of the light side of the Force, Sith couldn't establish a mutual bond with kyber crystals. This was due to the hate, fear and other emotions associated with the dark side that clouded their concentration.

Construction
In the construction of a Sith lightsaber, individuals partook in a process known as bleeding. By ways of the Force, they would pour negative emotions such as rage, hate, fear and pain into kyber crystals. The process would result in the crystals gaining a distinctive crimson or red hue. Any kyber crystal could be bled for use in a Sith lightsaber, though some Sith believed that the proper method to gain a crystal involved capturing one from a Jedi lightsaber.

Design
The materials, length and shape in which Sith lightsaber hilts were composed of varied. Darth Sidious's lightsabers had nearly indestructible phrik with a flat aurodium blade emitter and were finished with electrum due to Sidious having discerning tastes. The two hilts each had a length of 19 centimeters. Darth Vader's lightsaber was made out of alloy metal and carbon composite with a hilt length of 28 centimeters.

Sith lightsabers could be of various designs. They could be a standard-hilt like Darth Sidious's lightsabers, dual-phased like Darth Vader's lightsaber, double-bladed like Darth Maul's lightsaber, have a curved-hilt like Darth Tyranus' lightsaber or be cross-guarded like Darth Atrius' lightsabers.

History
The lightsabers of the Sith became a rare collector's item after the supposed Sith disappearance from the galaxy for a millennium. Thus, the Jedi Order sought out the surviving lightsabers such as Darth Krall's one, as well as other Sith artifacts and stored them in the Bogan Collection, located in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Private collectors such as Grakkus Jahibakti Tingi also sought to obtain this kind of lightsaber along with Jedi ones. The Galactic Empire hired out the smuggler Sana Starros to recover the lightsabers of the ancient Sith Lord Darth Atrius but both of the weapons ended up being destroyed by Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. After the fall of the Sith at the Battle of Endor, Sith lightsabers such as Darth Vader's one became objects of worship by the Acolytes of the Beyond.

Behind the scenes
Sith lightsabers were first introduced into Star Wars Canon through the Darth Vader's lightsaber article in the Databank. Sith lightsabers also existed in Star Wars Legends.

Non-canon appearances

 * Disney Infinity 3.0
 * William Shakespeare's The Phantom of Menace: Star Wars Part the First
 * William Shakespeare's The Clone Army Attacketh: Star Wars Part the Second
 * William Shakespeare's Tragedy of the Sith's Revenge: Star Wars Part the Third
 * Star Wars Epic Yarns: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Epic Yarns: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars Epic Yarns: Return of the Jedi
 * William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
 * William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga