An analysis of my failure in sparring combat against Apprentice Valeus Horuset.

[Andnoa]

An analysis of my failure in sparring combat against Apprentice Valeus Horuset.
By Acolyte Tutam

Introduction
In the past few days I have engaged in combat against several others but only once been defeated. This was by the Apprentice known as Valeus Horuset. In this document I would go over the spar blow by blow in an attempt to find flaws in my own technique so that I might grow as a warrior. Obviously it was not expected of me as an acolyte to compare to the martial prowess of a Sith Apprentice of the line of Horuset, but by going into my technique I would hope to find flaws in it so as to better myself in combat with a view to gaining an advantage over the other acolytes in saber combat.
The fight
I had gone early in the morning to the training bay on the Th’Asidra to practice telekinesis with a hunk of metal from that same bay. I spent almost an hour attempting to hold this in place with naught but the force and my will. Despite frequently dropping it, I had made several improvements when Apprentice Horuset walked in. He would promptly have held the cube in place as I would turn to give greeting and submission to him which piqued a conversation between us. My lord asked about my time in the house of his ancestors and I in turn spoke of my amazement at his firm grasp of the object. From this a conversation ensued that was about my prowess as a fighter and the application of other force techniques for combat. At this point I was instructed to enter the ring against him. I suspect that was my first mistake.
Apprentice Horuset would then draw his Lightsaber. I must confess a slight dread at this, not understanding if my own training blade would even hold up to such a weapon but never the less I obeyed him. He would give what I now know is known as a 'Makashi Salute' (I was aware of Makashi before I arrived by reputation only, knowing it as a dueling form but having no knowledge of its velocities or such). New as I am and lacking in Sith support, I saw an opportunity for my own advancement if I would show some skill in combating him.
Drawing my own blade I would take a moment to study his stance, attempting to discern why he held the blade with only one hand and what the advantages of such would be. I also decided that it must offer disadvantages in strength so made a plan to attempt to overwhelm the Apprentice with a series of heavy blows, factoring in my own weight into them to maximize any advantage I could gather from this.
Next came perhaps my second mistake. Apprentice Valeus would offer me the first attack and in foolish pride I took him up on this. I lunged forward, attempting to bring down a heavy blow in ideal form to body target zone one (the head and shoulders). In an instant I gave away what my strategy in this fight would be. I should have held back more, exercised caution with this unknown foe, to test what his skill level was and how he chose to fight. Apprentice Horuset responded to this not by blocking my blade and subjecting himself to my own strength but by deflecting it, forcing me to one side and then swiping at my head with his Lightsaber. Only by sheer momentum did I avoid this attack, choosing to execute a roll forward to take me out of his attack, though leaving a sore shallow cut on one of my shoulders. This mistake ultimately gave my whole strategy away while allowing him to humble me and press the attack and is perhaps the biggest I made in this whole session.
From this I did however see some of his method. The one handed stance was to allow him flexibility and precision when fighting his foes. I decided to endeavor to find a away to neutralize this advantage he held. Having already show large swings as mostly useless without a way to counter this precision, I paused a moment to attempt to think on the subject when I was forced back by a force push from the Apprentice that nearly sent me sprawling out onto the ground. It was clear that he held the advantage at distance so I attempted to attack with speed this time, using force enhancement to bring a flurry of blows in live combat form onto body targets two and five (collectively the right side of the body). This would prove more successful, forcing the apprentice to directly block two or three of my strikes, but it would have the disadvantage that none of these taxed his stamina in any meaningful way as best I could tell due to their lightness.
Before I could formulate a different plan, Apprentice Horuset conjured electricity from his hands, blasting me back with what I suspect was a limited attack, having seen him conjure more potent lightning previously. At this point the folly of ever thinking I was yet his match was laid clear. I used a force barrier to limit the damage to my self but for most of the rest of the spar my body ached from this one attack. Standing up, next Apprentice Horuset would bind my weapon to the floor with his power, forcing me to expend effort wrenching it free. This burst of effort would weaken my concentration somewhat and my barrier would weaken without my notice. When next I charged at Apprentice Horuset, he had no difficulty in dodging the strike and hurling me at the wall with some force.
And now for my final mistake, I rose to my feet and charged again, keen to close the distance to him, I did not raise my barrier again and charged in, attempting to copy the thrusting technique of the Apprentice, with no success. He would have no difficulty this time blasting me with more of his electrical attack and leaving me sprawled onto the floor.
Analysis and Conclusions
I feel that from the beginning I stood no chance in this but defeatism is the way of fools. I do think this was not a total failure on my part however. I have gained valuable insight into how a more force focused Sith would fight as well as what not to do. I believe I was correct in my identification of the weaknesses in Apprentice Horuset's chosen form but I do concede I failed utterly in exploiting them. With the benefit of hind sight I should have aimed to break his focus as well as his form. Between each attack while i though I gained the advantage in thinking about his form, I in fact gave the advantage to him, reducing the pressure on Apprentice Horuset and giving him time to react with the force. If I were to spar Apprentice Horuset (or those who fight like him) again I should:

• Spend some time before the fight and not in it coming up with countermeasures for all possible avenues of attack against myself from him. This would be of use as it would remove the time I spent thinking about what I was to do and instead I will just act. Pressure would be maintained and there would not be an opportunity for any foe to formulate their own plans if they were unprepared for me.
  
• Not over-commit into an attack unless I am certain it will connect. This would be a poor opening move as there would still be many options for the foe. A over-committed attack should only be used when there is no hope of the foe dodging or blocking it, where a more conservative attack would fail.
  
• Use of a force barrier is a priority and I should endeavor to improve my own. I will always be at a large disadvantage against force using foes otherwise and this would leave me at a disadvantage with my preferred method of melee combat.
  
• I should not rely upon my arm-guards and metal plates on my body. Against other acolytes I have made use of the cybernetic arms and their respective metal plates against training blades. These would easily stop a training blade and because of my lack of pain receptors in them this causes me no discomfort. Against a Lightsaber I have not such advantage and any blow I would consider blocking with them would instead result in Cho Mai or Cho Mok against myself. These should still be used to block a punch, kick or other melee attack, but removing the muscle memory of using them to block bladed attacks should be a priority for me.
  
• I do believe this was a learning experience for me. Should I find other Sith to spar against I think this would be to my advantage if I feel I can learn from them. I am not a match for them in a real fight yet however and must remember obedience and respect for all who could destroy me without effort.
  
• I should write one of these reports for every spar I get into. Writing this has helped me crystallize my exact mistakes much more than just memory would. I would consider asking to set up a holocamera to record spars, but I will have to wait until I am Sith until I am worthy to have more possessions. Until now, I shall do this purely from memory.
  

I do feel that learning to understand the training blade and potentially one day the Lightsaber may be the future for me. Given my own limitations and strengths of my body. Let us hope this is the first step on a long journey to such.

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