Darth Vader's lightsaber

"I knew Vader's lightsaber mattered to him&mdash;it was the only object toward which I had ever seen him demonstrate emotion of any kind. In meetings with Palpatine, on occasion, he would touch it, clearly unaware of his actions."

- Wilhuff Tarkin

Darth Vader's lightsaber was the personal lightsaber of Darth Vader, a Sith Lord who served as Darth Sidious' last apprentice and supreme military commander of the Galactic Empire. He built the weapon after he lost his previous saber during a skirmish on Cabarria.

The lightsaber was equipped with a dual-phase function, allowing the blade's length to be manually controlled and altered in combat.

Because of the modifications Vader made to his lightsaber over the years, its exterior also changed, somewhat, in appearance (though its design was based on his first Jedi lightsaber). As a Dark Lord of the Sith, Vader would often utilize his lightsaber during confrontations with Jedi, but also against other opponents, even though he sometimes preferred to use the Force to dispatch lesser victims.

The lightsaber would be used to destroy Obi-Wan Kenobi and cut off the right hand of his son, Luke Skywalker. During their confrontation on the second Death Star, Luke would return the favor, cutting off the hand of Darth Vader. The lightsaber then fell to its destruction in the same reactor shaft well in which Sidious perished.

Construction
"Yes. An improvement, I think. The hilt you took from Master Infil'a did not suit."

- Darth Sidious, upon inspecting Darth Vader's lightsaber

A short time after the formation of the Galactic Empire, the Sith Lord Darth Vader was tasked by his master Darth Sidious to kill a Jedi and retrieve their kyber crystal in order to power a new Sith lightsaber. Vader tracked Jedi Master Kirak Infil'a to the river moon of Al'doleem and confronted him, after a tense fight Vader was able to kill the Jedi Master and retrieve his lightsaber. He headed to Mustafar where he bled the saber's crystal, turning it the color red.

Vader used Infil'a's hilt in conjunction with his new red crystal, such as when he fought The Grand Inquisitor and Jocasta Nu in the former Jedi Temple. During a mission to Cabarria, Infil'a's hilt was destroyed by mercenaries hired to assassinate Vader. The destruction of Infil'a's hilt provoked Vader to build a hilt of his own design. During his journey back to Coruscant, Vader constructed a new hilt for his crystal while aboard his personnal starship.

Immediately after his new weapon was constructed Vader's starship was shot down and destroyed by a missile platform. Vader traveled to the former Jedi Temple where he presented the weapon to Sidious, who was most impressed with his apprentice's new saber.

Mon Cala Campaign
Around one year after the rise of the Empire, Vader was sent to hunt down and execute a Jedi hiding on the Outer Rim ocean planet of Mon Cala. Upon making it to the planet, Vader and the Inquisitorius saw great resistance from the native Mon Calamari and Quarren in Dac City. Eventually Imperial forces were able to secure the outpost, however the natives flooded the city in a massive tidal wave which plunged Vader into the depths of the vast ocean. Sinking deep into the Great Ungeness Trench, Vader activated his saber as a light source in the pitch black.

Eventually Vader was able to escape the trench and back to his Imperial forces. The Ninth Sister of the Inquisitorius informed Vader that they had discovered the location of the Jedi Padawan Ferren Barr and his disciples. While on route to the Jedi's location, Vader was contacted by Moff Wilhuff Tarkin who wanted Vader to capture the King of Mon Cala. Vader entered the King's Royal Command Bunker where he was met by several native soldiers. Vader used his lightsaber to cut a path to the King, who he was able to capture. Barr, who has escaped the Inquisitorius, confronted Vader in the Command Bunker. A duel broke out between the two, eventually Vader was able to cut down the Padawan, ending the occupation of Mon Cala.

Battle of Scarif
During the Battle of Scarif, Vader boarded the rebel command ship Profundity to retrieve the Death Star plans from the fleeing rebels. After boarding, Vader ignited the blade and proceeded to to cut down many Rebel soldiers attempting to escape with the plans to the Tantive IV. Vader's efforts ultimately proved unsuccessful, with the Tantive IV jumping to hyperspace before he could take back the plans.

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes
 * 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 Star Wars
 * William Shakespeare's The Empire Striketh Back
 * William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens