#lightsaber forms

EXCUSE ME MAUL??? NOT YOUR JUYO-LOVIN' ASS USING MOTHERFUCKING OBI-WAN'S BELOVED SORESU TO PROTECT THIS KID

Broke: Mace Windu uses Vaapad as the main mechanism to manage his anger

Woke: Mace Windu is cooler than everyone, and that’s why he can use Vaapad where other people can’t

Bespoke: Mace Windu spent many years learning to manage his emotions, including an especially complicated relationship with protective anger, before ever thinking about developing a new lightsaber form, and that’s why the council was willing to grant him the exception to study Juyo and why he was able to develop Vaapad and use it better than anyone else

Also,

Broke: the Jedi council is rigid and unwilling to make reasonable exceptions

Even more broke: Mace Windu and Ki-Adi Mundi were both the recipients of massive exceptions but this is because of favouritism. The reason the council didn’t want to give Anakin whatever exceptions he wanted is because they hate him

You can see his prequels training shining through it's an extension of his arm his emotions his acting

He's just so fluid with his lightsaber in a way that others in Ahsoka aren't. You can feel the power in his strikes - Djem So to Ahsoka's Ataru (though to be honest she's using more Shii-Cho and Shien than Ataru in recent episodes). Sometimes you can see Rosario Dawson perform each move seperately because that was the way it was taught to her. But not for Hayden. He flows.

also feel free to answer for any other force-sensitive oc you have, if you're in the mood!

hell yeah! this question is so juicy i'm grinning. sword lore and characterization let's gooooo

basic rundown of my take on lightsaber forms (in my headcanon the Sith use their own names for each form, and have altered them to reject Jedi traditions in favor of dark side philosophy, leading to similar but distinct styles):

Form I (Jedi: Shii-cho ("determination"), Sith: Qoshâsot ("way of passion")). the first form developed by the Jedi, a basic style with sweeping attacks and a focus on disarming one's opponent, renamed by the Sith after the first line of their code and approached as a harnessing of raw emotion. taught to all padawans and acolytes. (used by guardian/juggernaut and sentinel/marauder dps specs in SWTOR)

Form II (Jedi: Makashi ("contention"), Sith: Qoyun ("way of two")). dueling forms were developed simultaneously in mirror versions by the Jedi and dark side users who would later become the Sith; the styles are constantly evolving in a bid to surpass each other as a result. taught after Form I to students who show promise in one-on-one melee combat.

Form III (Jedi: Soresu ("resilience"), Sith: Qotaral ("way of protection")). first developed by the Jedi as a purely defensive style, with a focus on deflecting attacks for as long as possible. taught after Form I. (used by guardian/juggernaut tanks in SWTOR)

Form IV (Jedi: Ataru ("aggression"), Sith: Qotyûk ("way of strength")). first developed by the Jedi on the ideas of Forms I and II, but with more acrobatic and aggressive attacks, and suitable for both groups and single opponents. taught after Form III. (used by sentinel/marauder dps specs in SWTOR)

Form V (Jedi: Shien ("perseverance"), Sith: Qomidwan ("way of power"). first developed by the Jedi as a more retaliatory defensive style than Form III, using parries to launch into immediate counterattacks and sending blasterfire back at its source; taught after Form IV. (used by guardian/juggernaut DoT specs in SWTOR)

Form VI (Jedi: Niman ("moderation"), Sith: Qojidai ("way of the Jedi", used as an insult for anyone who fights poorly)). first developed by the Jedi to balance moves from all preceding forms into an easily mastered skillset without glaring weaknesses or great strengths, leaving one's focus free to pursue diplomacy or other Force abilities. taught to Jedi shadows and sages; not favored by Sith, except Exar Kun, who was kind of a dweeb. (unlike sages, sorcerers tend to be interested in pure Form II, or ignore the lightsaber nonsense altogether.)

Form VII (Jedi: Juyo ("ferocity"), Sith: Qojen ("way of darkness")). in contrast to Form VI, Form VII was first developed by the Sith from forms II and IV as a brutally efficient takedown style, used by assassins to eviscerate their targets. few Jedi have been allowed to study it, due to its violent dark side ethos. (used by sentinel/marauder DoT specs in SWTOR)

and how this applies to my SWTOR Force users:

Erin Kodan, Jedi Knight, sentinel. She's learned all the lightsaber moves she can, and practices the twin-saber disciplines of the first five forms relentlessly; training until exhaustion was the only outlet she had as a Padawan for her emotional issues. She's gotten good enough that she's circled around to favoring Shii-cho for knocking out groups of opponents fast and effortlessly, but dueling is where her full range gets to shine. She wanted to learn Juyo, to counter the Sith and fight them with their own style, but wasn't deemed mature enough for it by her masters... which may have been prophetic, as she's trained in the original Form VII during her time on the Emperor's space station, and uses it against the Republic to devastating effect. She swears it off after her return, but continues to study its strengths and weaknesses in secret, determined to face her fears and beat the Sith at their game.

Idris Arakh, Sith Warrior, assassin. He's trained in all six forms favored by the Sith, with one goal: to be the best at his job. He primarily uses Form VII adapted for double-bladed lightsabers (with all their spinning potential), and Form V for defense, especially when tanking. His fighting style is fast and vicious, using stealth to get the drop on targets and going for vital areas and gaps in their armor, clouding their minds with fear and dancing around their attacks if they live long enough to fight back. He often swaps his dualsaber from hand to hand, switching blades off and on again to throw his opponents off balance, while his free hand is either channeling lightning or crushing their bodies and stealing their energy through the Force. Later in life, when he's no longer able to run around quite as easily and can't risk leaving openings, he relies more on Form V as a compromise between offense and defense.

Zeria Sartrali, Jedi Consular, sage. She learned Shii-cho and Soresu for basic attack and defense, but wasn't interested in further exploration of lightsaber combat; as a legally blind Miraluka, she's able to sense the locations and intentions of organic beings and gets warning pings through the Force before most attacks, but she's at a disadvantage when it comes to droids and fast-paced melee combat, and prefers to study telekinetics and healing anyway. She uses Soresu to deflect incoming attacks as she senses them, but otherwise tries not to let her opponents within melee range, using her lightsaber crystals as a focusing aid while she calls up a storm of powerful ranged attacks to keep them at a distance.

Jinev, heir of Kallig, Sith Inquisitor, sorcerer/marauder. As an ex-slave acolyte who wasn't expected to go far, she was only taught the basics of Form I single-saber combat, but decided that she preferred two blades to one and looted a second training sword early on. Harkun undermined her efforts to train at a higher level, and Zash didn't see a reason to bother, leaving her relying on raw lightning and lacking more advanced swordfighting skills - but after meeting Ashara, she was very eager to spar with her and learn the ropes of dual wielding. Having an apprentice who was the best duelist in her class has its perks; she ends up learning more from Ashara than Ashara did from her. Her personal style is acrobatic, aggressive, and channels lightning along both sabers, using the Ataru moves she learned from her apprentice and dark side techniques she picked up from other Sith through the years.

(Kallig was a bit of a Form II snob who designed his curved saber hilt for elegant and refined dueling; he laments that it is now wielded with such brazen carelessness, but the flesh of his flesh is equally opinionated, insisting on using it as a portable lightning rod and abusing the hilt to bash in her enemies' skulls regardless.)

and a bonus guest...

Kass Copek, my prequels-to-original trilogy era Gungan Force user! :) She was briefly trained by a rogue Jedi Shadow, later discovered a Sith holocron belonging to one Darth Tacitus, but mostly just had to figure things out for herself. She favors stealth and telekinesis, using them to pull heists and generally sabotage the Hutts and Imperials alike, but she isn't half bad with a saber either.

Her Jedi Shadow master taught her Shii-cho, Soresu, and the basics of Niman, and her favored saber technique blends the more useful bits of Shii-cho and Niman with telekinesis; she's quick to adapt the classic Jedi moves to suit her current needs, and will often throw her saber or levitate it menacingly like Kreia. She technically owns two sabers - her former master's and the one she built during her training - and will use both to better deflect blaster bolts or pull out a surprise stab in a pinch, but she prefers to keep one hand free for chewing the scenery by yeeting shit around and, in rare moments of Dark Sidedness, channeling full-on Force lightning.