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Since i started playing Star Wars Galaxies, I wanted to know more about it. After poking around with google, the only canon evidence I found was that the Teras Kasi martial art is briefly mentioned in a novel. I don't remember the name of the book, but it reveals that Darth Maul is trained in it.

The other non-verified information I read was that the Teras Kasi discipline was created by a people whose home planet was destroyed by a fight between Jedi and Sith. The whole point of the creation of the Teras Kasi fighters was, should the need arise, to keep the Jedi "in check."

And I can't remember, but to comic books count as canon?

Comic books which are not marked "Infinities" or "Star Wars Tales" are an official part of the Star Wars Saga insofar that they do not contradict the meaning or intent of George Lucas' films and screenplays (and presumably, the comic and novelisation depictions thereof, as well as encyclopedaic sources addressing the films belonging to DK Publishing's "nonfiction" Star Wars line).

It was also mentioned in Shadows of The Empire about two sisters that are masters of Teras Kasi.

Comics count as official unless they bear the mark of an Infinites Label(which Star Wars Tales do).

Correct. In the case of Dark Horse's "Star Wars Tales", the entire comic series is marked Infinities.

Thanks for the info. I was reading Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith and then I saw that KJA co-wrote the plot.

So basically the idea that the Teras Kasi are slightly force sensitive, and that 1 or 2 masters could take out a jedi isn't true?

It was also the main premise behind an unbelievably crappy fighting game for the PS1.

Lazy Raptor wrote:It was also the main premise behind an unbelievably crappy fighting game for the PS1.

who wouldn't want to play as Han and fight against Chewie?

jakez0r wrote:Thanks for the info. I was reading Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith and then I saw that KJA co-wrote the plot.

At Mike's suggestion and under SOD, events taking place in official literature which are sufficiently removed from canon events chronologically are more suspect in reliability inherently, by both precedents of historical analysis, and of simple falsifiability--that is, evidence in official sources taking place concurrently to canon can be checked against evidence, intents, and trends shown by canon evidence. This is much more difficult to nigh-impossible in sources of that age.

Fortunately, this gives us leeway to interpete sources of that age, for outright idiotic and absurd things.

Dr. Saxton has exercised this with the mathematical and sociological unlikelyness of space craft, technology, and culture being significantly retarded from the present (canon) time. An example of this would be the certainty that the Galactic Republic was probably galaxy-spanning from the beginning, which makes interpretation of stuff like the Great Hyperspace War iffy (the best fix is the Sith territories were perhaps located in galactic satellites, beyond that, one must contest the assertion that the Sith Empire and Galactic Republic were out-of-touch).

Teras Kasi (with dots about some letters), aka steel hands, was an extremely dangerous martial art technique. It is mention in Agents of Chaos II, Jedi Eclipse.

It's also mentioned several times in Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, although I can't recall any other details off the top of my head from that work.

Theres also an entire video game based on it.

I have it for PS1, its called Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi, and its a Tekken-style 3D fighting game with star wars characters.

I'm not sure how anyone trained in a barehands combat technique, regardless of how effective it is, could expect to stand much of a chance against a Jedi. Even if the Teras Kasi expert has some Force sensitivity, being unarmed and not really Force-trained vs a Jedi Knight (presumably with a lightsaber) seems to be a fast way to commit suicide.

Teras Kasi is also mentioned in several of the D20 sourcebooks as being a martial arts style.

and unless they're another jedi very few people can stand up to a jedi in actual combat. hand to hand or otherwise, as has been demonstrated in many occasions.

Master of Ossus wrote:It's also mentioned several times in Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, although I can't recall any other details off the top of my head from that work.

yea, that's the book that says that Darth Maul is Teras Kasi trained.

The reason i'm asking all this is because on the Star Wars Galaxies forums, the developers need canon sources that say that the Teras Kasi were force sensitive and what not if they're going to make the changes to the profession.

jakez0r wrote:

Master of Ossus wrote:It's also mentioned several times in Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, although I can't recall any other details off the top of my head from that work.

yea, that's the book that says that Darth Maul is Teras Kasi trained.

The reason i'm asking all this is because on the Star Wars Galaxies forums, the developers need canon sources that say that the Teras Kasi were force sensitive and what not if they're going to make the changes to the profession.

There doesn't seem to be anything that says Teras Kasi devotees must be force sensitive. In fact in Shadows of the Empire it mentions a pair of twins that are not.

Most likely it's the Galaxy Far Far Away's version of Karate.

Stormbringer wrote:Most likely it's the Galaxy Far Far Away's version of Karate.

A better analog is Aikido.

James Luceno, Agents Of Chaos II, p. 130 wrote: This form of hand-to-hand combat [not teras kasi] has its origin in a martial art developed by the Lorell Raiders when their chief preoccupation was the capture and distribution of female prisoners. While perhaps not as deadly or as mystical in nature as teras kasi- the "steel hands" technique taught by the Followers of Palawa in the Pacanth Reach star cluster in the Outer Rim-it is nonetheless...

What does the "mystical in nature" imply though?

neoolong wrote:What does the "mystical in nature" imply though?

probably something like how Shaolin monks can control "Chi," or something to that effect. Information from RPGs (which I don't think are cannon or official) say that Teras Kasi disciples drew their strength from within, as opposed to jedi who draw on the Force.

they may have been relying upon similar techniques that Jacen solo learned to use. turning his force abilities inward rather than using them for the traditional effects Jedi rely upon.

Or it might well be a more spiritually oriented martial art. Some tend to be all about the fighting, others it's as much a philosphy as well.

the majority of martial arts for the most part have at least some basis in spirituality. the only ones i can think of offhand that don't are the more modern ones, such as wushu, which was created during the communist regime.

other martial arts are divided into two types primarily, internal and external. the external martial arts seem to focus on hard attacks and power while internal seem to focus more on defense and soft attacks.

Aside from the Jedi/Dark Jedi/Sith, are there any religions in SW that are popular outside their original worlds?

there's a variety of force based religions mentioned in the sourcebooks. including force-sensitive shamans and witches.

Stormbringer wrote:Or it might well be a more spiritually oriented martial art. Some tend to be all about the fighting, others it's as much a philosphy as well.

I would hardly call philosphy mystical though. Especially in a universe with very real "mystical" stuff.