Why Kylo Ren Has A Red Lightsaber, Even Though He Isn’t A Sith

The villains of Star Wars are often accompanied by red lightsabers, which is normally the sign of a Sith – but Kylo Ren is not a Sith, despite wielding an iconic red lightsaber. Ever since the original Star Wars film, this color lightsaber has been largely associated with evil. Sith like Darth Vader, Maul, Count Dooku, and even the Emperor himself, all wield these deadly red blades. But the secret to creating one is not strictly a Sith one.

Kyber crystals, which power and determine the color of lightsabers, cannot naturally be red in Star Wars canon, meaning every red lightsaber must be created by the user. The way this is done is that the dark side user pours their own hatred, fear, and dark energy into a normal kyber crystal. This “bleeds” the kyber and turns it red, something that distinguishes dark siders from everyone else. This technique was usually taught by Sith masters to their apprentices, but again, not all who wield red lightsabers are Sith.

Kylo Ren Was No Sith – But He Was A Sith Fanboy

Ben Solo Learned The Secrets Of The Sith

It’s pretty clear in the sequel trilogy that Kylo Ren idolizes Darth Vader, making him quite the Sith fanboy – and he knows his lore. In fact, in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker he is the one who figures out the Dyad in the Force before even Palpatine. The Dyad is an ancient Force concept revered by the Sith, so presumably Ben Solo studied old Sith texts due to his fascination wiith the dark side. This also explains why he knew to “bleed” a kyber crystal, as told in Charles Soule and Will Sliney’s The Rise of Kylo Ren miniseries.

After the deaths of his former fellow students and friends, Ben Solo bled his kyber crystal, pouring his fears and anxieties into it and cracking it. The remarkable thing, though, is that Ben does this even as he falls to the dark side, claiming the name Kylo Ren – meaning that Ben had to have read about the concept of bleeding kyber sometime during his training with Luke. This suggests Ben really had been falling to the dark side well before the fateful day Luke sensed darkness within him, and had even learned Sith techniques.

Sith Have Never Been The Only Ones With Red Lightsabers

Anyone Using The Dark Side Can Do It

Kylo Ren isn’t the first to do this, however, as bleeding a kyber crystal is not a Sith exclusive technique. Those who are associated with the Sith, like the Empire’s Inquisitors, and those who are affiliated with the dark side differently, like the Knights of Ren, have also been seen with red lightsabers. The inquisitors definitely bled their own lightsaber crystals, but Ren of the Knights of Ren may not have, as the saber seems to be passed down in that group. Nonetheless, anyone on the dark side can create a red lightsaber in Star Wars.