The The Mandalorian, whoever possesses the Darksaber is seen as the rightful ruler of Mandalore, and should they be bested in combat, the Darksaber is ed on to the victor, along with the right to rule all Mandalorian clans.
Over a thousand years before the Age of the Empire, Tarre Vizsla became the first Mandalorian to the Jedi Order. He built the Darksaber, which the Jedi kept in their temple after he ed away. During the Fall of the Old Republic, Tarre’s descendants stole the Darksaber, after which it became the revered symbol of Mandalorian leadership. The weapon was ed down House Vizsla for generations, and, according to Pre Vizsla, was used to kill countless Jedi throughout its history. Though traditionally, the Darksaber is acquired by a new owner when they defeat the previous one in combat, the weapon was given to Bo-Katan Kryze by Satine Wren without a duel taking place. This may have led Kryze to feel adamant about defeating Moff Gideon to reacquire the Darksaber decades later.
Functionally, the Darksaber is almost identical to all other lightsabers, but there are a few notable differences. Visually, the Darksaber is the only lightsaber to produce a black blade. Adding to this, the blade is thinner and jagged at the tip, making it appear more like a traditional sword than other lightsabers. The weapon also reacted to the ’s emotional state. While all lightsabers in canon and Legends are powered by Force-imbued crystals (making them all Force-powered weapons), the Darksaber has a stronger connection to the Force, evidentially, since mastering it required mastery of oneself, even for non-Force s like Sabine Wren.
Pre Vizsla vs Obi-Wan Kenobi
The Darksaber made its debut in the Clone Wars season 2 episode “The Mandalore Plot”. On the moon Concordia, Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla, during his brief partnership with the Separatist Alliance, challenged Obi-Wan Kenobi to a duel, hoping to add Kenobi to the long list of Jedi killed by the Darksaber. Though he managed to put up a decent fight against Obi-Wan (a feat in and of itself, given Obi-Wan’s legendary skills with a lightsaber), Pre Vizsla was overpowered, resorting to ordering his men to attack Kenobi, buying time for the Death Watch leader to flee. Vizsla survived the encounter and ultimately kept the Darksaber. The weapon was given mild exposition by Vizsla, but the custom of giving it to the one who defeats its owner was not mentioned.
Pre Vizsla vs Ahsoka Tano
In the Clone Wars episode “A Friend in Need,” the Padawan Ahsoka Tano and former Separatist Lux Bonteri encountered the Death Watch on Carlac, where Bonteri attempted to unite with them against Count Dooku. Pre Vizsla and the Death Watch were then betrayed by Dooku, and were no longer part of the Separatist Alliance. After Ahsoka revealed herself as a Jedi to the Death Watch, a brief but intense duel began between her and Vizsla, who once again brandished the Darksaber.
The two fought on roughly equal footing, but Ahsoka eventually gained the upper hand against the Mandalorian warrior; however, she quickly found an opening to leave so that she could protect the more vulnerable Lux and R2-D2. Since the fight had no real winner, Vizsla once again retained the Darksaber.
Pre Vizsla vs Glitch
The 2013 comic The Clone Wars: Defenders of the Lost Temple has Pre Vizsla duel an unlikely opponent for a lightsaber duel: a clone trooper. The trooper, Glitch, believed he could use the Force, despite not showing any obvious Force sensitivity. Nevertheless, he was a stalwart in his convictions like all other clone troopers. When Glitch’s squad ran afoul of the Death Watch on Draay 2, the clone took one of the lightsabers belonging to his friend, the Padawan Rennax Omani, and attacked the Darksaber-wielding Vizsla.
Like all clone troopers, Glitch was one of the most formidable warriors in the galaxy…when using conventional weaponry. The brave clone was no match for Vizsla, but he allowed his friends to fight back and defeat the Death Watch, seemingly sacrificing himself in the process. Though Glitch ultimately survived, this was a clear victory for Vizsla, who continued to wield the Darksaber.
Pre Vizsla vs Maul
The Darksaber was finally ed on to a new owner in the Clone Wars episode “Shades of Reason”. Having allied with the former Sith Lord Maul to create the Shadow Collective, Pre Vizsla and the Death Watch successfully overthrew Duchess Satine and took over Mandalore. It wasn't long before Vizsla and Maul betrayed each other, and Maul soon challenged Vizsla to a duel that would determine Mandalore’s leader.
Their fight was long and intense, with Vizsla having used the Darksaber, his blasters, and the veritable arsenal of weapons contained in his Mandalorian armor against the former Sith Lord. Despite this, Vizsla was gradually overpowered by Maul, and he accepted his defeat (and execution) with grace. This was the first instance of the Mandalorian tradition of dueling for the Darksaber and rule over Mandalore. Maul’s victory instantly caused the Death Watch to divide, with Bo-Katan leading a faction that refused to accept an outsider like Maul as a legitimate leader.
Maul vs Darth Sidious
With his own machination threatened by Maul’s unexpected reappearance, Darth Sidious himself traveled to Mandalore to deal with Maul personally in the Clone Wars episode “The Lawless”. Sidious outclassed all Force s, aside from the Force-wielders of Mortis and the Legends universe’s Luke Skywalker, so his duel against Maul and his brother, Savage Oppress, was little more than Sidious toying with the two Dathomirians. The Dark Lord easily killed Oppress and overpowered Maul, gleefully torturing his former apprentice before taking him into custody. Sidious, caring little for Mandalore’s customs in regards to the Darksaber, simply confiscated the weapon upon capturing Maul.
Maul vs General Grievous
2014’s Star Wars: Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir was a four-part comic series that adapted unaired Clone Wars episodes after the show’s cancellation. The first issue revealed Maul had escaped Sidious’s captivity and reacquired the Darksaber, thanks to the Death Watch. Later in the issue, Maul wielded the Darksaber against General Grievous in a brief duel. With no clear winner and Maul’s Death Watch warriors being gradually overrun by hordes of Separatist droids, Maul escaped Grievous, using a Death Watch bombing run as cover. The battle was a draw, and thus, Maul kept the Darksaber.
Maul vs Mace Windu and Aayla Secura
Republic and Death Watch forces clashed within a Mandalorian asteroid base in the third issue of Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir. While the clone troopers finished off the Death Watch warriors, Maul and Dooku formed a brief alliance and challenged the four Jedi leading the attack. After Maul attracted their attention by murdering a clone with the Darksaber, he faced off against Mace Windu and Aayla Secure while Dooku fought Obi-Wan and Tiplee. Maul’s fight was short, staggering Secura and proving little threat to Windu, but the two Jedi were knocked unconscious by a Death Watch explosive rocket, which allowed Maul to once again escape during the confusion. Like his fight with Grievous, this was a draw, and Maul continued to possess the Darksaber.
Maul vs General Grievous (Rematch)
In the fourth and final issue of Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir, Maul and Dooku’s alliance was over, but Dooku’s body was possessed by the Nightsister leader Mother Talzin. On Dathomir, the two faced off against Sidious and Grievous one last time. Having learned the futility of fighting his former master the hard way, Maul fought Grievous once more, this time easily overpowering the Separatist general. Although Talzin was weakened by Sidious and killed by Grievous, Maul fled Dathomir with both the Darksaber and his Death Watch soldiers.
Ezra vs a Nightsister Spirit
In the Star Wars Rebels season 3 episode “Visions and Voices”, Ezra Bridger followed Maul to Dathomir in the hopes of discovering a way to defeat the Empire’s Sith. On Dathomir, he discovered the Darksaber among Maul’s possessions. Kanan Jarrus and Sabine Wren, having trailed the two, arrived soon thereafter, but were possessed by the spirits of two Nightsisters. Armed with the Darksaber, Sabine attacked Ezra; Bridger then defeated the spirits by destroying a Nightsister altar, freeing his friends. With Maul having left Dathomir with only his own lightsaber, the Darksaber was then given to Sabine, aware of its significance as a member of Clan Wren (a vassal of House Vizsla).
Sabine vs Kanan
Though she never truly fought Kanan Jarrus, Sabine Wren spent time training with the Jedi Knight in the Star Wars Rebels episode “Trials of the Darksaber”. In this episode, Sabine (and the audience) learnt about how lightsabers, especially the Darksaber, are more than just a type of sword. They connect the weapon to the wielder through the Force, using the Kyber Crystal as the middleman. Coming to with her past service to the Empire and her endeavors to protect her family, Sabine eventually mastered herself, and thus the Darksaber, preparing her for its return to her people and, if need be, her own use of the weapon against the Empire.
Gar Saxon vs Sabine Wren
Sabine’s lightsaber training was put to the ultimate test in “Legacy of Mandalore”; Gar Saxon, an old ally of Maul’s who was serving the Empire, took the Darksaber from Sabine without defeating her in a duel. Armed with Ezra’s lightsaber, Sabine and Saxon fought, with Wren proving victorious, though she chose not to execute the Imperial Mandalorian. Like “Shades of Reason”, this episode explained the Mandalorian custom of dueling the Darksaber’s current owner for both the weapon and the right to rule Mandalore. Though now the rightful owner, Sabine later gave the Darksaber to Bo-Katan in the final season of Star Wars Rebels, allowing Kryze to, for a time, unite the clans of Mandalore.
Moff Gideon vs Din Djarin
The Mandalorian season 2 finale saw the long-awaited confrontation between Din Djarin and Moff Gideon. In “Chapter 16: The Rescue”, Din infiltrated Gideon’s light cruiser to rescue Grogu from the Imperial Remnant faction. Armed with a beskar staff, Din fought Gideon, who was, at the time, the Darksaber’s owner. With difficulty, Djarin was able to disarm and capture Moff Gideon, taking him to the cruiser’s bridge to Bo-Katan.
It was then that Djarin learned the hard way that his victory ruined Kryze’s plans to rule Mandalore with the Darksaber. Despite having accepted the weapon from Sabine Wren decades ago, Bo-Katan wouldn’t accept it from Din without defeating him in a duel. Their conflict was interrupted by Gideon’s Dark Troopers, but Din and Bo-Katan’s dilemma will likely be a major plot point of their next appearance in Star Wars canon.