Electrostaff

"Let`s see what you can do with that staff."

―Obi-Wan Kenobi to Magnaguards^[6]

The electrostaff, also known as an electrostave, was a type of electrified staff weapon.^[3]^[2]^[1]

Description[]

MagnaGuard FDCR — A MagnaGuard wielding an electrostaff

"Resistant to the energy outpourings of a lightsaber, the phrik alloy staffs were potent weapons, but like any weapon they needed to find their target…"

―Mace Windu^[7]

Electrostaves required two standard energy cells to operate,^[3] and were lined with focusing rods along the shaft; these rods fed into an electromagnetic field generator that energized a power cycling coil.^[8] Energy was then released at either end of the staff by way of electromagnetic pulse-generating tips as intense electrical charges.^[1] These discharges could be set to a number of different outputs by the user; a shock setting used for crowd control; a powerful stun setting that could sideline even the toughest opponents; and a full-powered setting that could easily shear a sentient in half.^[2]

On lethal settings, even glancing hits could produce terrible burns, and a direct hit to the head, throat, or heart was instant death.^[4] A single quick jab to the chest on stun was enough to send Anakin Skywalker to the ground and convulsing for several minutes, though not to unconsciousness; afterwards he would suffer from severe aftereffects such as paleness, rapid pulse, inability to focus, pounding headache, and doubled vision.^[4] Electrostaves were powerful enough to bypass protective armor and bodysuits, and were used against Clone Troopers during the Clone Wars to great effect.^[1] Energy discharges aside, electrostaves were more than capable of lethal blunt-force trauma, and were equally used to club and shock targets to death.^[3]^[2]

Coming into vogue during the Clone Wars, many electrostaves were made out of Phrik alloy, and were Lightsaber-resistant as a result; combined with a length of over two meters, electrostaves made ideal weapons against force users as they allowed the wielder to strike outside of the reach of a lightsaber, and to deflect any blows that slipped inside their guard.^[3]^[2] Likewise, the electrostaff was incredibly versatile outside of combat; it allowed for crowd-control and subduing targets non-lethally, it could neutralize energy shielding,^[8]^[1] short out electronics,^[4] and was routinely used as a torture device.^[8]

History[]

Grievous estaff — General Grievous wielding an electrostaff on *Invisible Hand*.

Electrostaves became very common during the Clone Wars, being widely used by Separatist IG-100 MagnaGuards to kill numerous Jedi, and were used throughout the length of the war.^[3]^[2]^[4]^[5]^[4] These Separatist electrostaffs were manufactured by Baktoid Armor Workshop,^[8] and many - though not all, due to high costs - were constructed of phrik.^[8]

During the Clone Wars, the Dug Cavaliers of Malastare and the slavers of Zygerria made use of a unique variant that could fold out its end like an umbrella when in use, producing an electrical charge that could harm both droids and living creatures.

Around 1 and 2 BBY, riot troopers and heavy troopers of the Empire were known to use these staffs. They were able to resist lightsabers using Cortosis, as shown when they engaged Starkiller, Darth Vader's apprentice, as well as his clone. They were encountered by them on several planets, including Kamino, Felucia, Kashyyyk, and Cato Neimoidia, though failed to stop the apprentice and later his clone from reaching his objectives.

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Behind the scenes[]

ElectroguillotineElectrostaff — Two MagnaGuards prepare to execute a helpless prisoner.

The electrostaff was devised by George Lucas as a way of presenting a threat to the until-now unstoppable Jedi with a lightsaber.^[1] The dancing energetic charge emitted from the staff was to suggest a built-in shield mechanism that keeps a lightsaber blade from slicing through.^[1] When the animation of the energy changed to instead flow from the tips and not across the entire pole, it was decided instead that the pole was made of specialized materials.^[1]

In Grievous Intrigue, an episode of The Clone Wars, General Grievous and Obi-Wan Kenobi engaged in a battle during which Kenobi briefly makes use of an electrostaff; however, Grievous soon destroyed the staff with his sabers by cutting off both ends of it. It is unexplained whether he hit weak points on the staff or if this was a continuity error.