Form I: Shii Cho

Form I: Shii-Cho or The Determination Form was the first of the seven forms of lightsaber combat.

As the weapons technology of the lightsaber was developed, the need for a form of combat arose. Thus Form I, also called Way of the Sarlacc, was born. Shii-Cho was the most ancient style of lightsaber combat, developed by early Jedi Masters to incorporate key principles of ancient sword-fighting traditions. Existing as the simplest form even four thousand years before the Battle of Yavin, Shii-Cho was among the many forms known to the Jedi, including Kreia and the Jedi Exile. Due to its simplicity, it was often the first form taught, so almost all lightsaber duelists included some aspect of Shii-Cho in their swordplay.

Aspects of the style were adapted for the Medium style as well as the Strong style of the New Jedi Order.

Marks of contact

One of the marks of contact, sun djem, was a goal of early Form I duelists, as disarming or destroying the opponents' weapons could ensure victory without causing injury, which was always a Jedi objective. However, with the rise of Form II, sun djem became nearly impossible as Makashi duelists were well trained to prevent their own weapons being taken or destroyed.

Form I, like its succeeding forms, included the following basic techniques and concepts:

• attack, a set of attacks aimed at different body zones
• parry, a set of blocks to thwart any attack in the specified body zones
• body target zones (1 - head, 2 - right arm and side, 3 - left arm and side, 4 - back, 5 - right leg, 6 - left leg)^[1]
• training drills called velocities

During the Old Jedi Order, Younglings started out by learning Form I before beginning a Padawan apprenticeship with a Jedi Master. It was done so, because as Kreia commented, Form I was one of the easiest forms to learn, yet still powerful. Their training included learning to deflect plasma bolts from training remotes while being blindfolded or covered up by a practice helmet. Lightsaber instructors such as Yoda and Cin Drallig taught Form I to thousands of students during their Jedi careers.

Kit Fisto was a notable practitioner of Form I, but he could not defeat Darth Sidious with it. Form I was better served against multiple enemies, and one opponent as powerful as Sidious was able to find flaw in it. Obi-Wan Kenobi commented Form I as wild, raw, and deadly, requiring much emotional heat and Kit Fisto noted how hard it was to control the pull of Form I, disabling opponents rather then killing them; however, Kenobi sometimes did infuse elements of Shii-Cho into his swordplay, including the rematch with Count Dooku onboard the Invisible Hand. Dooku himself commented Shii-Cho swordplay as deliberate as a lumberdroid, moving step by step, cutting off the angles, clumsy but relentlessly dogged. Shii-Cho form was most effective in situations with multiple opponents and did not offer many techniques for blocking blaster bolts or dueling one lightsaber wielding opponent. Nonetheless, Shii-Cho was an effective form to fall back on when no other form would do to suit the current combat situation.

Shii-Cho was also one of the forms which Count Dooku taught the fearsome Jedi hunter General Grievous, who in turn taught his IG-100 MagnaGuards.

Stances:

Opening Stance (Basic Neutral) - The hilt would be held at hip height, the dominant foot was back with the tip of the blade pointing over the opponents head.

Neutral Forward - Same as the Basic Neutral but with the dominant foot forwards instead of back.

Offensive Neutral - The dominant foot would be forward with the lightsaber hilt held at chest height (the arms would be bent otherwise it would have been difficult to launch an attack) with the lightsaber blade aimed towards the opponents face.

Offensive Forward - The dominant foot was back with the hilt held above the head, the blade was pointing behind the user and angulated upwards at a 30° angle.

Offensive Back - The dominant foot was back, the hilt would be held at shoulder height with the blade horizontal to the ground and pointing towards the opponent (both hands), the hilt was held in line with the chest.

Defensive Neutral - The dominant foot would be back, the hilt was held at chest height with the blade vertical to the ground.

Defensive Back - The dominant foot would have been forward with the hilt held above the head (arms bent), the blade was pointing towards the ground on the dominant side.

Defensive forward - The non-dominant foot would be back, the hilt was held at hip height and the blade is diagonal across the body, the hilt was held in front of the user. The blades hilt would have been in line with the non-dominant foot and the point above the dominant shoulder.

As Shii-Cho had been in existence for many millennia, and was usually the first form taught, due to its simplicity, almost all lightsaber duelists included aspects and elements of it in their swordplay. One of the most prolific ancient practitioners of the style was the Jedi Exile^[2]. In more recent years, Cin Drallig mastered the style, along with the next five forms^[3]. Obi-Wan Kenobi also had some knowledge in the style, using it against Dooku during their duel on the Invisible Hand^[4]. Dooku also trained General Grievous and his IG-100 MagnaGuards in the style^[5]. A notable Clone Wars-era master of Shii-Cho was Kit Fisto^[6], whose proficient style earned him the label as one of the greatest swordsmen in the Jedi Order. However, even his skill was not enough to stand against the visceral intensity of Darth Sidious^[7].