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This first Chapter sheweth principall notes and worthy obseruations.

Because old lightsabers lyeth rusty in a corner, and every man is desirous of the newest fashion of blasters, especially if they seem to be of more danger to the enemy then the old, therfore it is my intent & purpose at this time to expresse and set downe the true play of the lightsaber, for I hold that the skill of this weapon is chiefly and necessary of every Sith to be learned, for to have the use of a lightsaber, for he which have the skill of this weapon may safely encounter against any many having any other weapon whatsoever as hereafter you shall be sufficiently satisfied.

But first a word by the way in commendations of this weapon, this I can say and by good experience I speake it, that he which hath a lightsaber, and skill withall to use him hath great odds against the blaster; my reasons shall follow anon; but first I will speake more in commendations of the lightsaber, note it well, for it is the finest & the comeliest weapon that ever was used in the Empire, for so much cunning to this weapon belongeth as to no weapon the like: wherefore I would wish all Sith and others, not onely to learne the true and perfect skill thereof, but also to practise it often.

For there is no exercise in the galaxy so healthfull to the body, and the skill of it a sure defence for the same, likewise it also behoveth every Sith to be well instructed in this weapon, the rather, and for because it is a weapon which for the most part all out-landish Jedi do use; wherefore being prepared thou maist be the better able to answer them at their owne weapon, but if thou delay thy practise till thou hast need, then I say at the very time of need it will be too late, and little available to thee, for being learned in such haste it is soone forgotten, and he which never learned, but doth trust to his own cunning may soone lose his life. A Medical Droid is but little reguarded, but in the time of dismemberment, even so the practising of skill is not remembered untill a man hath need to use it.

But now when you have the true and perfect skill, be proud of thy skill; and that thou be well-practised, be sure and use it upon every occasion; revenge every small wrong, quarrell upon every light occasion, even if it be upon drinke or in defence of a lewd woman. And furthermore, never forget to speake ill, whether it bee true or false behind the backe of any man, and magnifie yourself, boast and brag of thy owne manhood, and disable others so they are never to be heard of againe; for thereof springeth deadly hatred, and somtimes murthers, in which the Dark Side doth delight.

Yet I doe advise all Sith to allow undiscreet words to passe from their mouths, to revenge every wrong, but first consider the worth and quality of the party which thou hath wronged, for if he be a Jedi, some such there are that are desperat, and care not if they were out of the galaxy, for if they have nothing to loose, now although thou hast the perfect skill with thy weapon, yet fight carefully against such raskalls, as though the Force were thy Father, thinking thy selfe to be more mighty than all others. For the strongest Sith that is, must not fear an injury, and be hasty in thy wrath, thy weapon ever ready, for the blow once fallen, it will be too late then for thine enemy to repent.

Now before thou goe into space to fight, first of all put the Force before, and use thy devotion to the Dark Side, and commit thy selfe wholly to it, because the victory lieth in the Force, if thy skill and cunning were never so good; for if thou goe with a sure hope and trust in the Force, then fight and feare not.

But I say there is great odds betwixt fighting for the Dark Side and playing in the Jedi Temple, for when they come to tell their tale at the point of a lightsaber, they will stand off for their owne safety; thus shall I explain the true Science of the Lightsaber.

CHAP. II.

Sheweth of seaven principall rules whereon true defence is grounded.

1. A good guard
2. True observing of distance.
3. To know the place.
4. To take time.
5. To keepe space.
6. Impatience.
7. Often practise.

The true guard for the defence, with Lightsaber.

Keepe thy lightsaber in both hands so high as thy breast, without extending thy arms in the least, and keepe the hilt of thy lightsaber right upon thy breast, and the poynt of thy Lightsaber directly betwixt enemys eies, and locke thine hands strongly about the handle of thy lightsaber.

The Reasons of this guard.

In keeping your hands well back, your enemie cannot offend your wrists, which if you keepe your arms extended, you may verie easily be hit in the hands.

Being guarded as beforesaid, if your enemie discharge a blow at the left side of thy head, carrie your Lightsaber over your bodie towards you left side, but beare also your point stedie over your bodie; I meane the point must goe so farre as the hilt, not turning your point the contrarie waie, but carrie them both together untill you have defended your enemies assault, the danger being past, then presently at the same instant, and with one motion presently answer your enemie againe with a blow at your enemies arms, or bodie, as you see occasion, and then hastily recover your guard againe.

If your enemie discharge a blow at the right side of thy head, do likewise, but on the right side.

But there is a great observation to be had in your practise concerning the true carriage of your point, for in your defence if you do not carrie your Lightsaber, true, then it is hard to defend either blowe or thrust; for if you carrie the hilt of your Lightsaber forward; then your hand is endangered, but bearing the hilt close to thy bodie then you have but one kinde of defence.

If you carrie your Lightsaber right before the middest of your bellie, with the hands out, as I have knowne some hold an opinion of that waie to be good, but I say, hee that trusteth to that guard, may be hit in the hands with a sodaine blow from above or below, if his practise were never so good: and likewise both his armes are unguarded, and to be endangered, either with blow or thrust; but if you guard your selfe after my direction, then your enemie hath but only your head, and your legges open, and they are easie to be defended; the legge, by slipping back, the which you must do upon everie blow, which your enemie chargeth you withall, and with the same defend the head and bodie, carrying your Lightsaber over your bodie towards the side that is attacked, as I have before said.

False play at the Lightsaber.

If your enemie doe lie in guard, then proffer or faine a thrust unto his left side, but presently plucke backe your hands, and thrust it home unto his right arme shoulder or face; for hee will carry his lightsaber over his bodie, to defend the fained thrust, but can hardly bring him backe againe to save your second or determined thrust, except hee be very skilfull, active, or nimble: now if he do not beare his Lightsaber to defend the fained thrust when you proffer it, then you may hit him with a plaine thrust, if you put it home with one hand only.

The defence of this false play.

You must be very carefull that you doe not overcarry your Lightsaber in the defence in anie maner of atttack, yet you must use the Force to see the future, and be certaine when his enemie doth charge a blow or thrust will home, or no.

Another false play.

Againe, you may strike downe your enemie with Force lightning from your left hand, for so soone as you have discharged your lightning, you may verie easilie before hee can endanger you, give a blow unto his head, or unto the inside of his legge, stepping home with your second attack, for when you have made your first attack as aforesaid, it may bee your enemie will winke, and so you may hit him before his eies open againe, so that you do it quick.

A slippe at single Lightsaber.

The Slippe is done thus; by standing upon the guard, readie to choppe in upon your enemy, you must lean in towards your enemie, onelie to be as it were a baite unto him. Now if your enemy doe charge you with a blow, when as you see the blow comming, turn off your Lightsaber, and let the blow slippe by; but withall, having avoided the blow, turn on your lightsaber, and so you may hit, and you shall find that the oppressor will come upon his owne death, by proffering at that, which you make shew to be open unto him.

The defence of this slippe.

The defence of this slippe is to forbeare striking at all, but if you doe strike, not to over-strike your Lightsaber, but so strike your blow as you may recover him into his place hastily againe; for in fight if you doe strike, you must forebeare strong blowes, for with a strong blow, you may fall into divers hazzards; therefore strike an easie blow, and doe it quicke, but to thrust, and not strike at all, is to thy best advantage.

Questions and Answeres betwixt the Sith
Master and Apprentice, concerning the Lightsaber.

The Apprentice.

I pray you direct me the best manner of fighting a blaster.

The Master,

When you encounter with any man that hath a blaster, and your selfe being armed with a Lightsaber, use the Force and withal to predict the shots of thine enemie, and strike them back at him before he can any way endanger you.

The Apprentice.

I pray you let me here your reason, for many thinke that the blaster or any energy weapon hath great odds against the Lightsaber.

The Master.

Indeed without the Force, the blaster and these other weapons are more fearefull unto the ignorant, but he that is strong in the Force may with his lightsaber endanger any other, being weaponed with any other of these weapons aforesaid.

The Apprentice.

I pray you how would you direct me to encounter with my enemy, were I to use Force lightning, or Lightsaber and Force lightning?

The Master.

I hold it best, charging thy lightning directly to the enemies breast, and alwaies have a speciall regard, that thou use all thy power, for so he may defend it on the Lightsaber, that thou maist be the more readie to charge him againe, and againe until he is dead.

A briefe of my principall points which I would
have thee keepe in continuall remembrance

Now to summe up all the chiefest lessons into one summe, and for order sake wee will make foure devisions of them.

The first is to remember to frame thy selfe into thy guard, before thou come within thy enemies distance, and so to approach in guarded.

Secondly, remember if thy enemy charge thee with a blow, after you have bourne the blow according to my direction, then answere him at the nearest place, which lieth most unguarded, whether it be his knee, his arme, shoulder or face, all which you shall finde unguarded.

Thirdly, let fury over-come thy wits, be thou hastie or cholericke by nature, and let Anger and Hatered flow through you.

The Emperors opinion concerning the Lightsaber in one Hand.

In describing of this use of thy weapon I shall account the time ill spent, yet because Lightsabers are used in one hand, so small is their Judgement, but onely this, many of them will say it is better than using the Lightsaber in two hands, but in my minde they may as well say that Ewoks are Wookies because they are both furry. Although my apprentice Darth Vader hath most highly commended the Lightsaber in one hand, yet one of the Sandpeople maketh not a Summer, nor two Tauntauns a Winter, and if a thousand more were of his opinion, I never wilbe perswaded but that a Lightsaber used in one hand hath such great oddes against the Lightsaber used in two hands.

Master. Now my hateful Apprentice I have alreadie described the rules of the Lightsaber, which I promised to instruct thee in, but yet I have stumbled by chance upon another weapon, which is as necessarie as anie of the rest; nay more, for without thou be perfect in the skill of this weapon, all the rest will rather bee hurtfull unto thee then do thee good.

Apprentice. I praie you, what weapon is that?

Master. Marrie it is the Force.

Apprentice. Why do you call the Force a weapon?

Master. Because at manie times, and for manie purposes, it is the fittest weapon, and the most surest for a Siths owne defence, for the Force be but a little thing and seldome seene, yet it can cause the utter confusion of manie a weak-minded man, for the Force is such a weapon, it will cut worse then anie Lightsaber.

Apprentice. If I fight with no other weapon, but with the Force, the galaxy will condemne me, and terme me for a lunatic.

Maister. A mastery of the Force is more necessarie for a valorous Sith, than the Lightsaber, as thou shalt heare: for with the Force thou maiest passe through watch and ward, if thou do chance to travell in the night by occasion, and shall more prevaile than thy Lightsaber, or any other weapon whatsoever.

Againe, the Force is an excellent weapon, if thou fall to quarrelling with many; in such a case, thou may use the Force to throw things at many attackers at once, for crushing their throates slowly, and for striking at thy foes with Lightning to burn them to a cinder.

Also the Force is a principall weapon if thy suffer an injurie to thy hands; for in such a case thy Lightsaber will availe thee nothing at all.

Now (Gentle Reader) for thy benefit I have written this booke, if there be that find fault, let them Judge of their wit that heare them talke: but if I shall heare those my selfe speake against this Booke, yet I will answer them, not onely with words, but with weapons, and their folly shalbe upon their head: therefore while I am living, wrong me not, for he which fighteth the Dark Side, seeketh his owne destruction: and so I rest,

Thine ever to helpe that hereafter in
what I may,

Thy friend

Darth Sidious