#form vi

التَّدَرُّج root: د-ر-ج / form V verbal noun / definition: gradual advance or progression I’ve gone straight from floating to hitting the ground running. And between that landing and my approaching take-off, things have progressed unexpectedly quickly in the space of a week. I could get used to this pace. But Arabic’s form VI verbs remind me of the power contained in gradual progress and—I…

AKA The Moderation Form or The Way of the Rancor.

“For superior balance, use the Niman form. This form has no specific strengths, but no weaknesses either.”

Also known as The Diplomat’s Form, Form VI is mainly the Form of those who do not want to specialize to lightsaber combat.

However, it does not translate into weakness or been unwilling to fight.

Niman is not about offence or defence. It’s about both and neither. Instead of focusing on special ways of blocking, dodging or slashing, Form VI deals with easy to learn but still effective moves - while at the same time not being too restrained to them.

The main reason being that the Niman users intend to focus on their learning on the Force just as well.

That gives a boost to the practitioners, that can easily adapt their own fighting style into Niman, their own quirks and Force skills into the battle.

To compensate for the relaxed focus on bladework, Form VI encourages integrating Force powers into combat, like adding grabs, shoves, chokes and/or lightnings to one’s repertoire.

Also, Niman is the Form that most easily integrates dual lightsaber into its moves - meaning, it’s not the only style to use two lightsabers at the same time, but it is the one that makes it easier to learn from.

Positive Aspects: Form VI is focused on moderation, so, though it doesn’t grant any real advantage at first glance, it lacks the flaws most other Forms have, such as strike zones exposure or weaker lightsaber swings.

The practitioner’ skill was said to be his/her own limit. Niman’s success in combat was dependent on a practitioner’s intuition and creativity in combat, rather than the rote responses common to the other forms.

Negative Aspects: There’s an old saying, “ A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one”. Many view Form VI, though practical, lacking the subtleties of a more specialized array of moves.

Which, in a certain way, it is.

It is the most disadvantageous style in an open battlefield, lacking the practicality of Form I and the defensive stance of Form III.

Form VI, or Niman, was a lightsaber combat form. A general form, Niman combined the strengths of other lightsaber forms an adapted them, making it extremely flexible. Niman therefore had no significant strengths, but few weaknesses as well. Ahsoka Tano used Niman, as training with an off-hand shoto was often part of the form.

Source: Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force (Art: Tommy Lee Edwards; 2007)

First Appearance: Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace (1999)

Form VI (Niman, the Way of the Rancor, the Moderation Form, The diplomat’s form) was the sixth lightsaber form created for combat. Niman incorporates elements from all previous lightsaber forms, covering many of the basic moves. The result creates a fighting style that does not give a significant advantage, but does not have any significant drawbacks. Niman uses a fairly relaxed focus on bladework that could be mastered relatively easier compared to the other forms. This would allow Jedi to focus on other skills like studying and diplomacy. To compensate the lack of specialization in Niman, the incorporation of chaining Force-based attacks are encouraged. Another advantage practitioners would use was the study of dual-blades. Niman’s success was dependent on the user’s intuition and creativity in combat, rather than the root advantages brought by the other forms. Notable practitioners were Exar Kun, Revan, Starkiller, and General Grevious.

“The Jedi Council maintains that Form VI best suits the role of contemporary Jedi Knights. After all, a Jedi Knight who is overly trained in martial combat might be at a loss to resolve a complex conflict or a sensitive trade disagreement” - Cin Drallig

Appears in:

Knights of the Old Republic

Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords

Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War

Labyrinth of Evil