"Now, release your anger.  Only your hatred can destroy me!"
                                                          -Lord Darth Vader
 
 Lightsaber techniques and maneuvers
Created and compiled by F.C. Wesel
(Please contact me, I have lost your email address)
 
DEFENSIVE MANEUVERS
 
Strong Defense 
Difficulty Modifier:  +5 
Description:  The strongest of defense stratagems when used correctly.  It is the middle guard with the saber's tip pointed at the opponent's throat. 
Effect: add +2D to parry, but take 2D from the first attack launched after the defense is used. 

Launching Defense 
Difficulty Modifier:  +5 
Description:  The most dangerous of the defenses, but many attacks launched from this guard are extremely deadly.  The weapon is held primary hand high, with the emitter near the head. 
Effect:  -1D to defensive dice. 

Hard Parry 
Difficulty Modifier:  +10 
Description:  This defensive maneuver is based in offense: the defender calls upon all his strength to knock the attacker's weapon out of the way, hopefully leaving him open to an attack. 
Effect:  If the parry succeeds the two combatants make a STRENGTH roll. For every five points the defender wins the parry by he gets +2 to his next attack roll.  If the attacker wins the strength contest there is no bonus other than a blocked attack.  If the roll succeeds by 20 or more, the attacker loses their grip.  Consult grenade deviation chart.

Sweeping Circle Defense 
Difficulty Modifier: +10 
Description: Circling the blade in a sweeping pattern, the defender throws the attacker's blade off-center.  This is the best defense against a thrust attack. 
Effect:  +3D to parry; -2D to next attack unless it too is a thrust. 

Retreating Parry 
Difficulty Modifier:  +5 
Description:  Defender falls back under a foe's assault. 
Effect:  This is part of the "full defensive" attitude where no other actions can be made.  For each move (maximum of two) the character retreats they get +1D to parry.  If they can only move a half-move they receive +2 to the full parry.  This can be tricky, though, and may cause the character to miss something behind them.  They could easily trip, or worse yet, get caught in a corner. 

Blade Flash 
Difficulty Modifier: +8 
Description: This maneuver is used to quickly escape a pin, even possibly allowing the defender to do a pin. 
Effect:  The defender quickly turns off his blade, escaping the pin, then even more quickly re-ignites the blade. If the user of this method beats his DN roll by 15 he may attempt a pin of his own immediately, at the normal dice penalties, even if this would push past his normally allotted four actions. 

Blindfighting 
Difficulty Modifier: +10 
Description: the martial artist is trained to use all his senses to combat a foe. 
Effect: If the required roll is made the combatant may ignore the effects of blindness for 1D rounds.. 

 
 
OFFENSIVE MANEUVERS
 
Belly Cut 
Difficulty Modifier:  +5 
Description:  A fast, viscous slash at the opponent's belly. 
Effect:  -3D to be parried from the high guard. 

Face Cut 
Difficulty Modifier:  +10 
Description:  This (most often) kill attack is launched from the high guard position, leverage and the target of the blade gives it added lethality, since head wounds suffer double damage. 
Effect:  Difficulty of the maneuver replaces the "called shot" modifier number. 

Joint Cut 
Difficulty Modifier:  +8 arm joints, +4 leg joints 
Description:  With this difficult maneuver the attacker twists the defender's blade around, than comes in at a strange angle hoping to remove or severe a joint.  This is most often done with wrists.  This attack works well after a hard parry. 
Effect:  Severs the joint on an attack that does 1/2 target's BP in damage after the defenders' soak roll.  The attack difficulty modifier replaces any "called shot" modifiers. 

Quick Thrust  
Difficulty Modifier: +5 
Description: This is a simple, yet elegant attack form is one of the hardest to defend from. 
Effect:  The attacker loses 2D to the damage roll but the defender loses 2D from the parry roll. 

Angle-Cut Swing 
Difficulty Modifier: +10 
Description: This high starting or low starting attack sweeps in hoping to slash from hip to thigh or vice versa. 
Effect:  only the strong defense aids in protecting from this attack, no other special parries can be used to defend against this.  All "normal" parries are at -1D, -2D when this form is started from the high guard. 

Pin 
Difficulty Modifier:  +5 
Description:  This fake attack is used to pin an opponent.  The attacker makes a fake attack, when the defender parries the attacker "catches" and holds the blades. 
Effect:  If the attack rolls is successful no damage is done, instead the two combatants make an opposed STRENGTH roll.  The attacker gets a +1D for surprise.  If the attacker wins, the defender's blade is pinned that round.  At the beginning of the next round the attacker may disengage or continue to make a STRENGTH attack.  Many times a brawling attack may be used after this maneuver, either by the pinned or by the "pinee" 

Disarm 
Difficulty Modifier:  +10 
Description: This attack attempts to disarm an opponent without causing him physical harm. 
Effect: If the attack is successful (not parried or dodged) and the skill roll is succeeds than the defender is disarmed.  

Feint 
Difficulty Modifier: Psychological Trickery 
Description:  Attacker lunges for one point then quickly moves to target another point, which was revealed in the defense of the opponent. 
Effect: Opposed PER rolls are made.  If the attacker beats the defender's roll, the defender's parry roll is ignored and the base difficulty is used. 

Feint: Brawling 
Difficulty Modifier: Psychological Trickery 
Description: Attacker makes the defender think he's parrying a lightsaber attack, but in actuality the attacker is just maneuvering his defense away from a brawling attack. 
Effect:  This basic modification of the normal feint allows the attacker to get an unopposed (12 DN) brawling attack on the defender.  In order to bonus from this maneuver, the attacker must succeed in an opposed PER.

 


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Last updated: 7/6/99