Build Your Own Droid and a Custom Lightsaber When Star Wars Land Opens This Summer

Disney’s new Star Wars Land has already promised a wealth of cinematic experiences, from piloting the Millennium Falcon, to escaping an army of Stormtroopers, to petting a taxidermied Wampa. The new theme park experience will also fulfill the ultimate fantasy of their fans: When Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens at Disneyland this summer and Disney World this fall, visitors will be able to build their very own robotic droid and customized full-scale lightsaber.

Planet Batuu is an entirely new expanse created for Disney theme parks, so Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is set around the time of the current film trilogy. Still, that doesn’t mean relics of the past haven’t made their way to this once-thriving trading post. Collectible “legacy lightsabers,” including those of characters from Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series and the Star Wars prequel trilogy films will be for sale.

Here, however, the experience is all about visitors. At Savi’s Workshop — Handbuilt Lightsabers, guests will choose a story that aligns with them — options range from Peace and Justice, modeled after the Jedi Republic area sabers, to the Sith-inspired Power Control — select a kyber crystal (red, purple, blue or green) to power their blade, and proceed into the Chamber of Guardians to build. Details of the 20-minute experience are still under wraps but it’s intimate, allowing only 14 parties at a time, and quite literally magic; the process features a surprise finale and reveal of an “old friend” who visits the shop.

These heavy-duty products with weighty hilts, reinforced plastic blades and crystals interchangeable between sabers and holocrons are much more advanced than the make-your-own sabers currently being sold at Tatooine Traders at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and pricing will reflect it. All in, a trip to Savi’s will cost around $160, with the hilt priced at $109 and the blade at $49.99.

Bypass a line-up of beeping bots to enter the Droid Depot, a haven of recycled metal parts where guests can build and customize their own shrunken version of an R2-D2 or BB-8-type droid. The entire shop, which is littered with pieces, parts and the robots themselves — some animated, some in disrepair — from all eras of Star Wars films, leads guests to a conveyor belt filled with equipment. Once guests choose their bits, the work begins, customizing programming chips, panels and parts with a mechanical screwdriver before infusing droids with life via an “activation station” — like Build-A-Bear on space steroids.

Once complete, a remote control will allow your pet-sized robot the ability to move about, but within the theme park lands, their most impressive skill is communication. Personal droids will respond to other hand-built droids, full-sized droids and even experiences throughout Galaxy’s Edge, supposedly sputtering about when Stormtroopers pass.

Anticipation for the rides are high, but with Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge twisting the idea of a souvenir shop into an interactive experience, Droid Depot and Savi’s Workshop are sure to be an attraction all their own.