Lightsaber fighting styles and techniques

Hi guys, dunno if this is the right place for this post, but i wanted to know if someone knows somewhere where I can find information on learnign the basics of swordfighting styles in star wars (like internet sites, books, documents and stuff).
If you know something, let me know.
Thanks!

 

From what I understand lightsaber fighting in the movies is based on a lot of different styles. Darth Maul = whushu staff, Luke/Old Obiwan = kendo/broadsword, OT Vader = singlesword/swashbuckling, Most OT Jedi = Jedi Majorettes with glowing batons . . . sorry, I'll stay off of my soapbox.

my advice would be to find a local fencing school or college that teaches stage combat. It's hard to learn the basics of any fighting style from reading about it, or even watching videos. Any competitive or combative style of fighting would also be good training, but those things are "too real" for lightsaber play, and just won't have the flash of flourish of movie fights. The other advantage of stage combat training is that you'll learn a number of different styles and weapons, so you can become more versatile and learn to develop your own style.

Assuming you're in the US, you should checkthis link to the Society of American Fight Directors to find someone in your area who might take you as a student. If you're not in the States, I'm not sure where to start, but I'm sure the most countries have similar organizations.

Good Luck!

 

Thanks alot Phayze!
I'm not in USA, I'm in Italy... allthough i'll take o lookaround to some organization like that, i hope there will be something similar here.
If anyone else have information, they will be really welcome...

 

Issue #62 of SW Insider is a good place to start. It goes over the 7 forms.

 

Here are the explanations for the 7 forms:

http://swg.stratics.com/content/gameplay/professions/jedi/lightsaber_combat.php

From what I've seen everywhere else, it's accurate.

Here is my own interpritations of the 7 forms:

Form Zero - Trying to work out problems without violence.
Form One - The Basics
Form Two - Fencing
Form Tree - Defensive
Form Four - Acrobatics
Form Five - Aggresive
Form Six - Talking the opponent out of fighting anymore. I like Shadowen's explaination, and I beleive it suits the Form well.
Form Seven - Broken Rythem, as taught by Bruce Lee. That's what it sounds like to me.

 

At the moment, I'm teaching a friend of mine medieval swordsmanship with lightsabers.
A selection of good books that will serve well in the abscence of a teacher:

Medieval swordsmanship by John Clements
The Swordsman's companion by Guy Windsor
Fighting with the German Longsword by Christian Tobler

Overall, I am very happy with these books, as they make the subject easy to understand and are well illustrated. I reccomend the John Clements book as a first choice, because it's aimed at beginners, and goes into common mistakes to avoid, and has several good essays including one on the problems of stage combat.

At least two of these books also contain guidelines for free play/sparring, which is what many of us want to do. Once you know the basic techniques, you can choreograph a pretty decent fight with those. And I am pretty sure that there are books out there dealing with stage combat and choreography. Not everyone has access to a teacher.

But I strongly reccomend practicing the techniques and getting good at them before attempting to stage a fight scene. Practice will not only make you and your parter look better, it will also improve safety and control as well.

Good luck and I hope this helps!

 

A couple other good books are:

Bokken: Art of the Japanese Sword by David Lowery

This book has helped me out alot in my training. It shows the basic stances, cuts, parries, and some other stuff. It's one of my favorites.

Shimmering Sword: Samurai, Western, and Star Wars Sword Fighting by Nick Jamilla

I haven't read it yet, but I hear it's pretty good. I think Nick is the guy who did the choreography to the latest Revelations fan film. I think I saw his name in the credits.

You can find a ton of stuff like this at a book store.

 

As a kendo student, aikido student, and iaido/tameshigiri student (all of these are forms of japanese swordsmanship)I offer you a place as my padawan.

 

*grins*

As a Medieval Heavy Weapons Fighter with the SCA, and someone who adores his Bastard and Long sword. I can Very Much assure you that most of my fighting is in the Defencive Position.

I know it's not as flash as some of these other forms, but hey it works and just because your fighting defensively it dosn't mean that you cant attack when the right opportunity presents.

Form 3 (Defensive) is good, it allows the person your facing to think he is controlling the fight when all your doing is sitting there, biding your time, conserving energy and letting him make the mistakes.

It's at that stage, when he is starting to get frustrated and with substantually less energy that you strike. Generally it take one shot and the fight is over.

I would suggest that you find your nearest SCA (www.sca.org) and pick up some sword practice there. It's Free to train and they are some of the most experienced swords men out there.

(In fact there used in a lot of movies as stunt or extra's. The Gentleman who was using the two lightsabers in the Geno Arean was an SCA Knight and actually specialises in that style)

That's my Info... PM me if you would like something specific

 

Its true, even in hand to hand combat. Form 3 is shown very well (except for the twirling)in ep4. The Obi-Wan vs Vader duel. I just love that duel!

 

actually your best bet for coreography (good stuff, anyway) would be to study different styles of swordsmanship, then put it all into practice. for example: In aikido, there is no sparring with weapons, but the kumitachi and awase look great if done lightning fast. The best part is the fact that each person will always know what the other will do (thus, less injuries). I made a pretty hot fight sequence using yon no kumitachi and go no kumitachi followed by a shortened version of shichi no awase (I don't expect anyone to understand the Japanese involved there) If you can't get formal training, just make something SW like and film it. Chances are it will look decent after a few tries. Otherwise you'll turn out like the guys on the wedding duel...

 

Just as a tid bit when asked about the forms of saber combat at C3, Nick Gillard had no idea what that was. He replied, just the one.

He has 38 moves and then strings them together utilizing broadsword, epee and kendo.

 

Does anyone know if George Lucas is going to allow Nick Gillard to make an instructional video of the Jedi Lightsaber Arts?

 

that would be just awesome

 

I have a Martial Arts member who is also a 10th century Viking reenactor, and swordsman who has started an Association for Lightsaber fighting and training.

There are so many different styles implimented into the Star Wars films with lightsaber fighting.

I remember an interview with Gilliard when he stated that he even took the strokes and swings of ping pong into consideration when doing the fight scenes for certain jedi.

 

I studied fencing in college, and I can say without any hesitation that real fencing, even staged fencing (when done right) is one of the most atheletic and intellectually demanding sports / activities / arts one can asbsorb themself mind and body into.

However, when I first entered my querry into Google about light saber styles, I was hoping to find more (btw, that stratic site was great). But what are the actual names of these styles? If you read any of the novels for example, you will find very quickly specific terms for saber styles. For example, 'Shii-Cho' Is 'Form I'. What about the others? I understand as well, that there are actually 10 forms.

Anyone interested in responding to this question for more detailed names, will find this fencing student quite pleased and interested.

 

Well, I might as well put this up. Alright, I found this somewhere on the web last year, or the year before, or something like that. I've seen several versions, and also a couple copies of this one. It's all about the explainations of each form, and points of contact. Also the names.


Form Zero
Originally defined by Jedi Master Yoda to describe the lightsaber technique of Felanil Baaks, Form Zero became the basis for the instruction of lightsaber combat. In its simplest form, Form Zero is the art of wielding a lightsaber which had not been ignited. While it seemed silly to many padawan learners, the underlying message could not be ignored. In order for a Jedi to protect and serve the galaxy, they must know when to ignite their lightsaber for combat, and when to leave the weapon at his side. The understanding of another being's situation was key to the knowledge of right and wrong, and any student who could understand the necessity of Form Zero and use it to mediate a solution - without resorting to violence - was truly gifted with the Force.

Form I
Known as Shii-Cho, this was the simplest form of lightsaber combat techniques studied by the Jedi Knights of the Old Republic, and was generally considered the first form used by the original creators of lightsabers. 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 II
Known as Makashi, this ancient Jedi Knight lightsaber combat technique was developed when pikes and staves were more common in the galaxy. 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.

Form III
Known as Soresu, this was a lightsaber dueling technique developed by the Jedi Knights, after blaster weapons became the normal weapon of choice among criminals and underworld beings. Unlike Form II combat, which was developed to work against another lightsaber, Form III was most effective in anticipating and deflecting blaster fire. It stressed quick reflexes and fast positional transition, in order to overcome the rapidity with which a blaster could be fired. It was essentially a defensive technique, emphasizing the non-aggressive Jedi philosophy while reducing the exposed areas of their bodies. In the wake of the death of Qui-Gon Jinn at the hands of Darth Maul, many Jedi turned away from the Form IV style of open, acrobatic fighting and took up Form III in order to minimize the risk of injury or death at the hands of an opportunistic opponent.

Form IV
Known as Ataru, this was one of the more recent lightsaber combat techniques, developed by the Jedi Knights during the last decades of the Old Republic. It emphasized acrobatic strength and power in wielding the blade, attributes which were frowned upon by many traditional Jedi Knights and Masters. It found a niche among the eager padawan learners of the time, who believed that the Jedi needed to become more involved in rooting out crime and evil and eradicating it. This Form was practiced by Qui-Gon Jinn, although his death at the hands of Darth Maul exposed the weakness of Form IV in defending a Jedi's body. Yoda, however, practiced Form IV with such speed that, when coupled with his small size, left an enemy with no undefended parts of his body.

Form V
Known as Shien, this was one of the seven primary forms of lightsaber combat developed by the Jedi Knights of the Old Republic. Form V was developed by a group

 

Technically the most realistic saber fight in saga
is the first one. Episode four Vader vs Obi Wan.

Sure they could have done it faster but It still imitated real
swordplay.

If you are interested in the flash of the movies just watch them
over and over. Learn the chorography with a friend and show off
all you want.

My favorite saber fight was much too short in the movies.
It was Dooku vs Anakin in Episode 2
I love the over the head power stance

 

Quinten_JarVos mentions SCA sword combat. Here is a tutorial by the man many regard as the one who revolutionized SCA fighting in the 1970's and 80's with the inclusion of techniques from his martial arts training... Duke Paul's on line tutorial He is still teaching today.

It may have some use here.