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Anakin Skywalker utilizes Form V against Count Dooku's usage of Makashi.
To turn defense into attack, use Shien. To rely purely on strength and power and the ability to dominate, use Djem So. Both are strong; Soresu, however, is weak.
—Ancient Sith Blademaster
Form V: Djem So, The Way of the Krayt Dragon, or The Perseverance Form was the fifth of seven forms recognized as canon by the last Jedi Council for lightsaber combat. It was developed by practitioners of Form III: Soresu, who felt that the defensively-minded form would unnecessarily extend time spent in combat by forcing its users to wait for an opportunity to strike, rather than creating their own openings.
Description[]
Form V was the creation of a group of Form III masters who felt that Soresu was too passive to be practical, and Ataru was severely lacking in necessary kinetic energy. It addressed the shortcomings of Form III, in which a Jedi Master may have proved to be insurmountable, but was likewise unable to overcome a skilled opponent, and those of Form IV, focusing the attacks of strength as opposed to speed.
Utilizing a combination of blocks and parries, a Form V user had a proper foundation in terms of defense against both ranged and melee attacks, but while a Soresu user stayed on the defensive and only counterattacked when necessary, or when an opening appeared, a Form V practitioner was not nearly so measured. Immediately after defending against an opponent's strike, a Form V stylist would follow with an attack of their own, bringing the Force of the opponent's blow against them and seeking to dominate the duel.
Djem So was designed exclusively for lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat and placed a heavy focus on pure strength and power, with wide, powerful strikes and parries followed by a counterattack. However, it's obvious strengths were offset by obvious weaknesses. Due to the amount of force put behind it's blows and attacks, a Djem So stylist could not pull out of such an attack without considerable difficulty, leaving practitioners easily outmaneuvered. However, skilled practitioners could easily compensate for these weaknesses through sheer speed.
Shien[]
The Shien variant of Form V was a straight extrapolation of Soresu, so thusly focused mostly on blaster-deflection, though like Form III, it was easily applied to lightsaber dueling. Unlike the pure defensive applications of Soresu, which simply protected the user from blaster-bolts, Shien was more aggressive in that it redirected the bolts back at the shooter. In lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat, this strategy translated into turning a defensive move into an aggressive one, such as turning a parry against a vertical attack into a stab by slanting the opponents blade aside. However, due to it being designed for blaster-redirection, Shien was not the best choice for lightsaber dueling. This weakness led directly to the creation of Djem So, which, despite it's differences, was similar enough to also fall under the category of Form V.
Controversy[]
Peace through superior firepower.
—Maxim utilized by Jedi proponents of Form V.
According to Jedi, Form V led to an inappropriate focus on attack and the domination of enemies, which directly contradicted the pacifist Jedi views. However, many are quick to defend the style by saying that Form III leads to dangerously prolonged combat and Form IV lacks any necessary kinetic energy. Form V is an obvious Sith favorite due to it's strength in attack, though most other Force-using organizations remained carefully neutral about it.
These views led to the creation of Form VI: Niman, a combat style that was balanced and moderated; as opposed to aggressive and powerful.
Practitioners[]
Many Force-sensitives utilized this form in combat; including some of the most famous Jedi and Sith in galactic history. Here are some well known users of Form V:
- Darth Vader
- Scott Borek
- Darth Scyreus
- Darth Vatrir
- Anakin Skywalker
- Sona Cantari
- Jake Starkiller
- Shinai Stel-Ardak
- Darth Bane
- Dylaaan D' Verimo
- Lord Damnice
- Archon Kurist
Strength/ Weakness Ratings[]
Form V, being a powerful and aggressive form, obviously focuses on Power attacks. However this costs it speed and hampers its defensive capacity, although masters can capitalize on the moderate Speed training to compensate.
| Action | Standard | Speed | Power | Precision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attack | Weak | Moderate | Excellent | Weak |
| Defense | Weak | Moderate | Excellent | Weak |
See also[]