Lightsaber Forms

Ataru is an awesome saber style. With a high dex character, who ataru and weapon finesse, you can kick some serious ass.

 

Here's my D6 take. Thanks to MasterKazur for the inspiration to codify it (and I shamelessly used most of his descriptions). Specialists you haven't heard of are figures (current and past) from my long running TotJ era game with the most common moniker used on Ossus in quotes. Note that I renamed Adi Gallia's "Shien" into Chien. I also split Form V into 2 similar forms with Djem-So being the more rare Aggressive varient of the more common Shien.



Lightsaber Styles in the Galactic Republic, circa Republic Year 22,870

Over the millennia, the Jedi Knights of the Galactic Republic have learned many different styles in the technique of their famous lightsabers. These styles have been categorized by the Jedi Masters on Ossus into different ?Forms? or schools of similar usage. All Jedi learn the basic form and then typically learn their Master?s form. Upon attaining the rank and status of Jedi Knight, some choose to train under another Master or decide to seek instruction in another technique more suitable to their path to Mastery. The most advanced

Shii-Cho (Form I) ?The Classic Form?
Millennia before the Clone Wars, advanced technology replaced metal swords with energy-beam lightsabers. In this transition the first form was born. The ancient Jedi Masters created Shii-Cho from even more ancient sword-fighting tradition, since the principles of blade combat remained much the same. The basics of attack, parry, body target zones, and the practice drills called ?velocities? are all here. Mastery of Shii-Cho leads to great balance in swordsmanship. This is the standard Lightsaber skill, from which all of the rest were derived over the millennia. Specialists are masters of the ?fundamentals.?
Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Sense
Benefit: Specialists in Shii-Cho gain a +1D to opposed attack rolls regarding disarming / being disarmed
Known Specialists: Kit Fisto, Nomi Sunrider, Theman Ar-Tauri, Macen Diu Dantareen, Daron Fel-Nestir

Makashi (Form II) ?The Dueling Form?
The ultimate refinement of lightsaber-to-lightsaber fighting became Makashi, advancing the precision of blade manipulation to it's finest possible degree and producing the greatest dueling masters the galaxy has ever seen. Today Makashi is an archaic form studied by almost no one in the Jedi Order, since it's not relevant to currant tactical situations, as most lightsaber battles are now lightsaber-to-blaster. Even with the resurgence of the Sith, confrontation of an enemy with a lightsaber is an exceedingly rare prospect for a Jedi, so they continue to focus on more practical Forms. Sith expecting to battle a Jedi, however, find Makashi a powerful technique.
Prerequisites: Dexterity 3D, Force-Sensitive, Control, Sense, Lightsaber 5D
Benefit: A character with this specialization gains a +1D to all lightsaber attacks and lightsaber parries against another lightsaber.
Weakness: All energy deflections (and redirects) are 1 DM or +2D more difficult
Known Specialists: Count Dooku, Exar Kun, Alec Mest-Krym (after the Battle of Deneba)

Soresu (Form III) ?The Defensive Form?
The third great lightsaber discipline was first developed in response to the advancement of blaster technology in the galaxy. As these weapons spread widely into the hands of evil-doers, Jedi had to develop unique means of defending themselves. Soresu thus arose from "laserblast" deflection training. Over the centuries it has transcended this origin to become a highly refined expression of non-aggressive Jedi philosophy. Soresu maximizes defensive protection in a style characterized by tight, efficient movements that expose minimal target area compared to the relatively open style of some of the other Forms. True Soresu masters are considered invincible. This form is reactive and usually surrenders combat initiative. Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Sense, Lightsaber 3D, Dodge
Benefit: All lightsaber parries in a round are considered ?Full? parries, adding difficulty to parry roll
Weakness: Initiative on

 

Very nice job Master_Uxi.
Perfect for D6 campaigns. You have earned the right to be proud

 

Thanks.

A couple edits after some consideration:

Benefit of Form IV Ataru changed to +1D to all parries since characters might occassionally go to Full Parry themselves.

Change Chien's weakness to match that of Shien with the lack of mobility. Both are Form V with different technique. I also don't think that "ice pick grip" by itself is inherently less defensive than a more typical grip.

Juyo and Vaapad's bonus to called shots is cumulative with the normal skill bonus. Standard penalties to Called Shots per 2nd R&E still apply.

 

Having looked at the lightsaber forms in HG recently, I think that some of them are way off in terms of what mastery of the forms implies. I think that the following is more appropriate:

Form I Mastery (Shii-Cho):

Not seen in films and I haven't yet come across this in EU, so no comment.

Form II Mastery (Makashi):

This form was developed for lightsaber-vs-lightsaber combat. It is very elegant, powerful, and requires extreme precision. The form relies on parries, thrusts, and small, precise cuts?as opposed to the blocking and slashing of the other forms. The blade manipulation required for this form is very refined and requires much focus, but the results are extremely potent.

Prerequisites: Dexterity 15, Force-Sensitive, Control, Weapon Focus (lightsaber), Dodge, Weapon Finesse (lightsaber), Force level 13th

Benefit: A character with this feat gains a +3 dodge bonus to Defense against lightsaber attacks, and a +2 bonus to attack an opponent weilding a lightsaber.

Form III Mastery (Soresu):

The most defensive of all of the forms, it was originally developed to counteract the advancing blaster technology throughout the galaxy. Practitioners of Soresu comfortably remain on the defensive until their opponents tire or make a mistake, only then do they strike offensively. True Soresu masters are considered invincible, except against a Makashi Master (as shown by Dooku owning Kenobi).

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Lightsaber Defense, Knight Defense, Dodge, Force level 11th.

Benefits: A character with this feat gains a +4 bonus to defense when weilding a lightsaber. When using Deflect (defense), the dodge bonus increases by +2.

Special: The defense bonus granted by this feat does not apply against a Makashi Master.

Form IV Mastery (Ataru):

Think this one is OK.

Form V Mastery (Djem So):

This form focuses on strength and lightsaber attack moves. This Form exploits the ability of the lightsaber to block a blaster bolt and turns this defensive move into an offensive attack by deflecting the bolt deliberately towards an opponent. A dedication to the power and strength necessary to defeat an enemy characterizes the philosophy of Djem So, which some Jedi describe by the maxim "peace through superior power."

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (lightsaber), Force level 9th.

Benefit: A character with this feat gains a +3 bonus to Deflect (attack), and a +2 bonus to lightsaber damage. Additionally, the character may use Deflect (attack) on attack rolls that miss by 10 or less.

Form VI Mastery (Niman):

Note: This form is named Niman. The correct name for the form labelled as Niman in the Hero's Guide Web Enhancement #3 is Jar'Kai.

Think this one is OK.

Form VII Mastery (Juyo):

Intrepid, somewhat direct movements are used in combination with very advanced techniques involving Force-powered jumps and motions. Form VII does not appear as fancy as Form IV, but the technical details of it use very open movements resulting in a very unpredictable battle style. The staccato swings and flow of the form make it seem as if the attacks are not linked?but in reality, it is merely confusing the opponent.

Form VII demands the emotional and physical intensity of Form V, but it much more effectively controls it (if mastered). Form VII, when fully mastered, results in extraordinary power.

Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Force-Sensitive, Control, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Mobility, Improved Critical (lightsaber), Force level 13th.

Benefit: Your critical threat range with a lightsaber is increased by 1. When confirming a critical hit with a lightsaber, you gain a +2 bonus on the attack roll.

Form VIIa Mastery (Vaapad):

Vaapad borders on the edge of using the dark side, as it channels one's anger and darkness into the attack.

Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Force-Sensitive, Combat Reflexe

 

Great Write-Up from the last poster!

 

Thanks, but a lot of the descriptions were taken from Wikipedia and a post on the last page by MasterKazur, so I can't take all the credit!

Thanks MasterKazur!

 

I think i'm going to pick up Shii-Cho... got improved disarm already, i'm also going down the martial arts route... boom boom!

 

Can anyone point me to an example of someone using Shii-Cho apart from the 3 seconds of Kit Fisto in AotC and RotS?

(EU welcomed)

 

NAFC, possiby vader in ESB when he disarms luke, though that could probably also be form 2,

i assume there is more as kit fisto built that lightwhip, which i think may well have a bonus to disarm too... (therefore maximising the chances)

 

Lightwhip?

What's that from?

 

Lumiya had one too in the Marvel Comics, as the name implies its a lightsaber style weapon, except rather than being a sword, the beam is a whip.

It first appeared in the marvel comics, way before the prequels, Lumiya being a student of Vader, and as a result of that, kit fisto has since been said to have one after studying a sith holocron to get the schematics.

lumiya is the sole hope for the survival of the sith right now...

 

There are rumors that Lumiya may make an appearance in the Legacy of the Force series of Star Wars novels.....

As to the lightsaber forms listed here: very good!

I myself have been working on a netguide that details the different forms as Force techniques (meaning that although there will still be requirements for them, any Force-user will have access to them), rather than feats.

I've been working on it sporadically since SW Insider #62 came out....

 

i thought about that, but then realised the feats are more mastery, rather than proficiency or something. I think they should be more like martial arts feats, though i think it should be restricted to two... excellence and mastery


also... lumiya's appearance is confirmed

whether she'll be the major antagonist is yet to be seen

 

I think that basically everyone has altered the forms in the heroes guide to more accuratley portray the description of the forms in the SWinsider article Fightsaber.

Form 3, in my opinion, should give a +2 bonus to defense while wielding a lightsaber (like another line on the Lightsaber Defense, Knight Defense, Master Defense feat tree).

Form 4, as has been erratta'd, simply allows for Dex to damage instead of strength (instead of 1.5xdex for 1handed and 2xdex for 2handed which was an accident).

Form 5, i THINK, is the feat that was supposed to grant 1.5XStrength to damage with one hand and 2XStrength to damage with both hands, the extra range for deflecting a blaster really has no place in Form V and probably should be included in Form 3 (without the +1 bonus though)

Form 7 should be two feats. Juyo and Vaapad, as the earlier poster put up. I think he did a great job of showing that Juyo is Form VII and Vaapad is the Darkside Channeling version of Form VII (though I would say that the "Juyo" prereq be dropped in favor of sometihng like "must be trained by either Mace Windu, Deepa Bilba, Sora Bulq, or someone they trained to master vaapad(which is a short list)" That way Vaapad is limited in who can get it, but anyone can pick up Juyo, such as Palpatine and Maul or whomever.

 

Yeah i like your suggestion for forum five and forum three. I don't like what they did with forum 4. I think they should've left it the way it was and make the other ones less sucky and rasise some of the prerequisites accordingly.

 

I decided to revamp the feats and add a "special" ability to each one to make them more appealing and in line with the fightsaber article. Feats I leave alone will be in black, ones I highlight in blue are ones I changed.



Form I: Shii-Cho

Prerequisites: Force-Sentitive, Control, Attuned, Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: When wielding a lightsaber, you gain a +4 competence bonus on opposed attack rolls when disarming an opponent or when an opponent attempts to disarm you.
Known Practitioners: Kit Fisto.


Form II: Makashi

Prerequisites: Dexterity 15, Force-Sensitive, Control, Burst of Speed, Weapon Finesse (lightsaber), Jedi level 11th.
Benefit: A character with this feat gains a +3 dodge bonus to Defense against lightsaber attacks.
Special: A Makashi master must be facing a minimum of 3 opponents to be considered flanked.
Known Practitioners: Count Dooku, Exar Kun.


Form III: Soresu

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Lightsaber Defense, Dodge, Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: A character with this feat gains a +2 circumstance bonus to defense when holding an ignited lightsaber. This ability increases to +4 if choosing the Total Defense Combat Option.
Special: When using the Deflect (attack) ability, a Soresu master may deflect a blaster bolt that misses by 10 or less.
Known Practitioners: Obi-Wan Kenobi.


Form IV: Ataru

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Combat Reflexes, Control, Weapon Focus (lightsaber), Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: A character with this feat may add one times his Dexterity modifier (instead of Strength modifier) to his damage roll when wielding a lightsaber one-handed, and one and a half his Dexterity modifier (instead of Strength modifier) to his damage rolls when wielding a lightsaber two-handed.
Special: A number of times per day equaling his force-user class an Ataru master may make a single attack with a +2 circumstance bonus if it immediatley follows a jump or tumble action.
Known Practitioners: Yoda, Qui-Gon Jinn, (early choice of Obi-Wan Kenobi).


Form V: Shien (also known as Djem So)

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Control, Lightsaber Defense, Weapon Focus (lightsaber), Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: A character with this feat may add one and a half times his strength modifier to damage when wielding a lightsaber one handed, and two times his strength modifier when wielding a lightsaber in two hands.
Special: A jedi using Form V gains a +1 bonus to the Deflect (attack) action and may choose to use deflect (attack) on an attack that misses by 10 points.
Known Practitioners: Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker.


Form VI: Niman

Prerequisites: Force-Sensitive, Sense, Link, Combat Expertise, Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: When fighting with a lightsaber, you may use one of the following skills as a move action during combat: Diplomacy, Intimidate, Sense Motive.
Normal: These skills normally require a full-round action to perform.
Known Practitioners: Coleman Trebor.


Form VII(standard): Juyo

Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Force-Sensitive, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Mobility, Improved Critical (lightsaber), Jedi level 7th.
Benefit: A number of times per day equaling his force-user level, a Juyo practicioner, when using the full attack action, may add an additional attack at his full modifier bonus. He may give up this extra attack to gain a +2 circumstance bonus to defense.
Special: When confirming a critical hit with a lightsaber, you gain a +2 bonus on the attack roll. If you use this aspect of Juyo in the same round as its other benefit, you gain a darkside point at the end of combat.
Known Practitioners: Darth Maul.


Form VII (special):Vaapad

Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Force-Sensitive, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Mobility, Improved Critical (lightsaber), Jedi level 11th. This feat is limited to people who trained with Mace Windu, Deep

 

The practictioners of this form all died in the Battle of Geonosis.

You're misreading slightly. It's not that every practioner of that form died on Geonosis, it's that all the Jedi who fought in the Battle of Geonosis and practiced that form died. Only a few hundred Jedi out of 10,000 or so fought on Geonosis. Most Form VI practioners weren't even at Geonosis - it's just that all the ones who did fight there died.

Another way of looking at it: What do all the survivors of Geonosis have in common? None of them practiced Form VI, which is why they're still alive.

This was what you might call a subtle hint that Form VI is kinda crap. It sounds like a great idea, taking the best of every form and all that, but what you end up with is a jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none scenario. Which is why when the poop hit the fan, all the Form Sixers got cut to ribbons.

 

Kinda like Tae Kwon Do and all the hybrid forms of karate that try to combine the best of Shotokan and GoJuRyu? (Oh, I am going to get so creamed for saying that, but from where I stand, it is true)

 

Hmm...

Is it me, or should Jar'Kai kinda be a subvariant of most other styles? After all, it could theoretically be applied to any one-handed style oh I see what you did there.

And why is there no doublesaber variant listed anywhere? Didn't Maul use Form VII?

 

Form I: Shii-Cho
Younglings, the Jedi initiate rank, first learn Form I before they begin a Padawan apprenticeship with a Jedi Master. Younglings are taught Shii-Cho first because of its simplicity and versatility. In Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, the Younglings that can be seen being taught by Yoda to deflect light blaster bolts are in the beginning stages of Form I. It is probably based on basic fighting techniques from Kendo.

Sometimes called the ideal form, Form I used horizontal side-swipes and parries made with the blade of the lightsaber held upright to push the point of an enemy's blade away during a side-to-side attack. If the attack is a downward slash aimed at the head, Form I simply reversed the motion, with a horizontally-held lightsaber being moved up and down to deflect a blow. All the basic ideals of attack, parry, target zones, and practice drills were created with the Form I style.

Form I, like the other forms of lightsaber combat, includes the following basic techniques and concepts:

Attack, a set of attacks aimed at different body zones
Parry, a set of blocks to thwart any attack in the specified body zones
Body target zones (1, head; 2, left arm; 3, right arm; 4, back; 5, left leg; 6, right leg)
Training drills called velocities
There was only one known master of Form I in the Star Wars Universe: Kit Fisto. Though Kit Fisto was a master of Shii-Cho, he could not defeat Darth Sidious with it in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Based on KOTOR 2 and the novelization of Revenge of the Sith, the Shii-Cho form is good versus many enemies wielding conventional blaster weaponry. Its simplicity is its strength, making it a very good style to use if all else fails.

Known practitioners: Kit Fisto, Jedi Younglings


Form II: Makashi
After Form I's proliferation as a saber combat technique, Form II came about as a means of lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat. It is described as being very elegant, powerful, and requiring extreme precision, allowing the user to attack and defend with minimal effort, while his opponent tires himself out. The form relies on parries, thrusts, and small, precise cuts?as opposed to the blocking and slashing of the other forms. The blade manipulation required for this form is very refined and requires much focus, but the results are extremely potent. However, as ranged weapons such as blasters come into play, or more than one opponent is present, the advantages of this form become obsolete.

Form II emphasized fluid motion and anticipation of a weapon being swung at its target, allowing the Jedi to attack and defend with minimal effort. Although many Jedi historians considered Form II to be the ultimate refinement in lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat, it was dropped in favor of Form III combat when blaster weapons became prevalent in the galaxy.


In the time near the Clone Wars, the Jedi Order seldom practices this technique. There is little lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat involved in a Jedi's life, so Jedi Masters have found it impractical.

Darth Tyranus (also known as Count Dooku), from Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, has mastered Form II to the highest degree, fighting with the precision built into the ancient technique. When he wields this form, it devastates the Jedi; the system of Jedi training at the time of confrontation between Darth Tyranus and other Jedi does not prepare the Jedi for the precise movements of a form bred for lightsaber dueling. Former Separatist general Sev'rance Tann was also a practitioner of Form II. It is also possible that General Grievous was also a practitioner of this form since he was trained by Count Dooku, although Mace Windu said to Obi-Wan Kenobi that Grievous was a practitioner of all lightsaber combat forms in the novelization of Revenge of the Sith due to his adaptive combat capabilities.

In the Star Wars Expanded Universe, Count Dooku mentioned that Master Tholme kept up his dueling skills better than most of the Order who switched to deflect blaster bolt

 

look for them in THE HEROES GUIDE