Skip to main content

star wars - Is Leia a better shot than Han and Luke?


The last time I watched the original trilogy, I noticed that, in the firefights, Leia will often shoot maybe 20% what Luke and Han shoot, but will almost invariably hit whomever she is shooting at. Mind, I'm just going by observation here, but it got me thinking.


So: is Leia canonically a better shot than Han and Luke? Or am I just seeing Girl Power thanks to my own biases?


If she is a better shot, what is the explanation for this? (That is, did Senator Organa take her skeet shooting in the summertime? Did she practice in the in-between times of the films? Or, do her Force capabilities manifest as sharpshooting?) I am wholly unfamiliar with the Expanded Universe, so pardon gaps in my knowledge.




Answer



In real-world combat, most fire is used to suppress the enemy, not kill them. Luke and Han also tend to take time to shoot 'on the move', firing blaster rifles (typically one-handed) or pistols while evading or running.


Leia is typically seen firing from cover, cooly and calmly, and taking the time to assume a proper stance and aim.


I found some stats from West End Games old D6 Star Wars game - this was officially licensed, so I believe the stats fall somewhere low in SW canon.


As of the end of the battle of Yavin, Luke Skywalker's 'Blaster' skill was 6D. Leia's 'Blaster' skill was 5D. Han's 'Blaster' skill was 9D+1.


Under the D6 system, you rolled x D6 (six-sided dice) for a skill check, and added up to 2 'pips' (the +1 in Han's skill) to get your total number. Higher was better.


Han, as you can see, was a considerably better shot than either of the others, and Luke was slightly better than Leia. Most of the time, though, Luke and Han were doing a LOT of things in a single combat round (under the WEG rules) which imposes 1D penalties per action (after the first). If Luke was doing a lot in a round, such as shooting 3 times and running for cover, while Leia simply shot once, she would, indeed, be shooting better than Luke for that round.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

harry potter - Do the Kwikspell courses work?

In Harry Potter we are introduced to Kwikspell course in The Chamber of Secrets (and never hear about it again). We see Filch taking courses, presumably by mail. The descriptions of Kwikspell make me think it is for people who are weak in magic (kind of like how Neville was supposed to be when he was younger), but had magic in them nonetheless. However, Ron's comments later in the chapter make it sound like it is mainly for Squibs to learn magic. However, it is strongly implied through out all the books that Squibs are essentially Muggles, and will never be able to do magic. How then is a Kwikspell course supposed to work? Do we have any information to know if it works at all? Is it a scam? An answer from any level of canon is welcome. Answer Kwikspell courses are (probably) useful to some wizards, but not to squibs. The Kwikspell course literature comes with two testimonials. Madam Z. Nettles of Topsham writes: ‘I had no memory for incantations and my potions were a family joke...
Post a Comment
Read more

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more