Tradition Vogar (Suguraat)

Soverin

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The intention of this submission is to (try to) find a legitimate and practical home for crossguard lightsabers in the Star Wars universe, as well as to develop some story for my Jedi knight's choice of weaponry. In equal parts using my own knowledge (4 years) of HEMA/Western Martial Arts & stage combat training, lightsaber physics, and a kriff load of reasoning, I want to give an in-depth exploration of how the crossguard saber was a preferable alternative to the traditional saber for many Jedi and Sith alike. While the resources provided in this lore article may give a platform for the viability of the crossguard saber, it is purely for the purpose of characterization and world-building. Survivability in PVP is entirely dependent on one's ability to, well... write well. Both Vogar and Suguraat lightsaber forms are available to be studied and used by anyone with access to ancient Jedi / Sith combat data.

So we're gonna theorize and patch in a whole lot here, to figure out this admittedly super cool looking lightsaber design.
At the end of the day, this is a fictional weapon and can't be bound by "realism" and actual combat rules.
Personally, I've studied the longsword for nearly four-and-a-half years now, starting with medieval stage combat training that I grew interested in while I was pursuing film in LA, and continued to study with the Central Iowa Historical Fencing Guild since I've moved away from the coast. I follow the practice of Italian swordsmanship as taught by Fiore dei Liberi, but I started by practicing from the manuals of Jaochim Meyer and Johannes Liechtenauer. This is important to help explain decisions made in how the forms work and because, thematically, I'll be taking inspiration from Italian longsword combat for both the Vogar and Sugüraat forms.


ɢʀ
ON CROSSGUARD LIGHTSABER COMBAT


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ᴏᴠᴇʀᴠɪᴇᴡ
During the mid-years of the Hundred Year Darkness, forged in the brutal era of the first Jedi Exiles, the twin blade arts of Vogar and Suguraat were adopted by some of the most violent warriors in archival history. Originally theorized as a countering method by a group of Makashi duelists, the first of two forms arose: a fundamental manual designed for a once common weapon among warfaring Jedi. The ancient knights who practiced Vogar against their enemies brandished dangerous quillens on their lightsabers. When they emerged in battle with their cross-bladed lightsabers, their enemies mocked their added defenses—unfortunate that they assumed their weapons were created to protect.
sᴛᴀɴᴄᴇs & ғᴏᴏᴛᴡᴏʀᴋ
Nearly all the basic stances used in Vogar have the lightsaber pointed directly at the opponent, keeping arms and head tucked safely behind the weapon until an opportunity to strike is created. Though it lacks most of the acrobatics of it's sibling forms, Vogar demands full use of the body. Controlled, flowing movement of the wrists and hips to carve a path through oncoming strikes is vital. Footwork has always been an obscurity, but records suggest to be comfortably bent at the knee and light of step, pointing your leading foot at the opponent.
ᴀᴛᴛᴀᴄᴋ
From you to your opponent exists a metaphorical "line," the objective of the attack phase is not to move up this line, but around it. The act of stepping "offline," that is to say stepping off the line from you to your opponent, is crucial to composing an attack. Positioning oneself around the axis of the enemy will always reward the upper-hand in Vogar. Advance to the opponent and strike while stepping offline, this is safest done in a diagonal arc, or straight horizontal at the opponent's hip or neck. Such blows, say the teachings, are meant to cripple and weaken, and should not bring about an end but instead be the means to make the enemy open up and attack. An attack from the opponent is an opportunity to "bind," to disable your opponent's weapon with your own. This is usually done by initiating a bladelock, where two lightsabers clash and both warriors apply pressure until one is overpowered. It was in these struggles that the development of Sugaraat came into play, the art of betraying the blade.
ᴅᴇғᴇɴsᴇ
Calculated positioning of the opponent's lightsaber during a bind is the principle for defense in Vogar. While attacks meant to directly attack the opponent should be done with a slashing motion while stepping offline and forming a new line, Suguraat suggests thrusting into an oncoming slash (never into an opponent's thrust) is the best position to bind, with the goal being to catch the opponent's blade upon the quillens. From this position the basics of Suguraat are taught: manipulating the opponent's weapon and using the quillens during a bind. Carving in against an enemy's blade caught on the quillens, and carving in with the quillens while the enemy's blade is caught against your own are both the fundamental practices, implemented in different strategic methods. Simple blocks that lead to no reply are very uncommon, but dodging is not a rarity. It would be more taboo to see a a disciple of Vogar push an attack aside with their lightsaber than to use their agility to dodge it, in fact, dodging past an opponent's attack is a risky, but exceedingly common maneuver observed in the records.
■ ᴄʟᴏsᴇ-ǫᴜᴀʀᴛᴇʀs ᴄᴏᴍʙᴀᴛ
Additional training manuals to Vogar have explored some degree of close-quarters combat. Some of it's most noteworthy practitioners employed the use of tackles and kicks to disorient enemies and make them vulnerable to follow-up strikes. Kicks should be low, from the ribs to the ankles, and just as lethal as any lightsaber blow. Engage the enemy in hand-to-hand combat while flanking to minimize chances of retaliation.
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It was originally militant Jedi seeking to hunt their Exile brethren who assembled to create and teach Vogar, the fundamental rules of engagement for crossguard lightsaber combat. It was widely believed to be a patient form, but unmistakably aggressive, usually practiced in the ever-changing fields of war that engulfed the era of it's conception. It was a form of killing, there was no other purpose, it's practices meant to expose and strike true against evil. Knights of the Hundred Year interregnum period passed the knowledge of Vogar onto their apprentices and families, saving the legacy of the blade art that had saved them from death in the battle against darkness.
The fluidity for which Vogar and Suguraat are taught allows it to be learned by disciples of both the light and the dark side of the force.

Sugaraat, sibling to Vogar, was developed not to overshadow the original practices, but to enhance them. The ancient instruction of the form urges one to manipulate the opponent's weapon and use it as their downfall. There was a time where it was regarded as a treacherous discipline, emerging from the cunning tactics of Makashi dueling arts, but it's traction within the circles of more ruthless Jedi rewarded it a separate school of thought.
ᴇᴍᴏᴛɪᴏɴ
A notorious discussion regarding the twin forms is the portrayal of "raw emotion" within it's lessons. Some discern that the most accurate translations of Vogar saw it's practitioners unleashing battle screams in the midst of combat. Other records suggest that the ancient creators of the art recommended fighting with emotion in battle, always without being blinded by anger, to strengthen the spirit. Such instructions were, of course, heretical to the Jedi of old, leading many to believe that these beliefs played a part in the Jedi straying away from Vogar, and crossguard lightsabers as a whole.
ᴏɴᴇ-ʜᴀɴᴅᴇᴅ ᴠs. ᴛᴡᴏ-ʜᴀɴᴅᴇᴅ
While the form was originated as a two-handed practice, some have taken to adapting it for one-handed use. Those who choose to learn Vogar one-handed must only work that much harder to control their blade.
ᴀᴄʀᴏʙᴀᴛɪᴄs
More than a few jaded knights of Vogar have insisted that the acrobatics of the other lightsaber forms have no place in it's practice, but numerous duelists throughout history have accounted to the use of swift aerial flips to at least somewhat successfully reposition around the opponent. All acrobatics should be performed quickly and carefully, and usually following a bind when an opponent's melee weapon is disposed. While spinning or twirling is generally not recommended, as one should always practice facing their opponent, such movements can actually be pulled off beneficially in repositioning around the enemy or during passing slashes if it is the quicker option to returning toward the opponent.
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Logan

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Cool take on why people might want to use cross-guard sabers. I dig it a lot.

Approved.
 
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