Introduction

Welcome to Jedi Academy Basic Training. This course is geared to familiarize you with the basic skills and knowledge needed to one day become a competent duelist or maybe simply brush up on your skills. Whatever your need this course will be centered on three important themes. These themes are: Patience, Practice and Knowledge. Look for these themes as you read this course.

Basic Moves

Note: Not all default moves are shown as some are just not useful in a duel or cannot be used in a regular duel (i.e: no force powers besides jump). Also the keyboard layout can change depending on country.

Movement:

(Note: These are default keys.)

• Forward: W
• BackPedal: S
• Turn left: A
• Turn right: D
• Jump: Spacebar
• Crouch: C
• Run/Walk: Shift + direction

General Commands:

• Attack or Primary attack: CTRL or MOUSE 1 (left mouse button)
• Alternate Attack or Secondary attack: ALT or MOUSE 2 (right mouse button)
• Lightsaber Style: L
• Scores: Tab

Weapons:

• 1: Melee/Lightsaber
• ]: Next weapon
• [: Previous weapon

Force Powers

• Spacebar: Jump (the amount of time you hold it down determines the height of the jump)

Evasive/Acrobatic Maneuvers

• Force Jump: spacebar + directional button (a,s,d,w)
• Roll: C + directional button
• Jump up from knockdown: hold spacebar from knockdown
• Jump kick from knockdown: hold spacebar + w (forwards) or spacebar + s (backwards)
• Roll from knockdown: after being knocked down hold left or right (s or d)
• Cartwheel (note: well saber is on): left or right + MOUSE 1+ Jump (*all at the same time though you may start it off with a run and keep the directional button held down)
• Backflip off wall: Run towards wall and when near it press Jump

Basic Attacks

: these are moves that every style can execute.

• The Hammer: w + MOUSE 1 or s + MOUSE 1
• Horizontal attack: a + MOUSE 1 or d + MOUSE 1
• Diagonal Slash Down: w + a + MOUSE 1 or w + d + MOUSE 1
• Diagonal Slash Up: s + a + MOUSE 1 or s + d + MOUSE1

Other

: Katas are NOT to be used against a skilled player or even semi skilled players unless you know what you are doing and even then it is not recommended. Specials have a little more value but it is a great risk when used against a skilled opponent so you better know what you are doing with it or you will feel your enemy’s blade.

• Katas: Primary attack + secondary attack
• Special's: In general w + primary attack + jump

Now you may or may not have noticed that some commands are missing. This is because you have to start at the beginning, master the basics first, and then go on to harder moves. Also some commands were not shown because they are not generally used in a JA multi-player duel.

Introduction to Saber Styles

In Jedi Academy there are many saber styles that one can use to win. On the most basic level they are the single blade, dual sabers and staff. Each of the styles has its strengths and weaknesses. One of the first decisions you will have to make in Jedi Academy is what saber style you will focus on. This is an important decision as you should try to master this saber style first. So let us talk about saber styles.

Single Blade: This is perhaps the most commonly used saber style in Jedi Academy. One of the many reasons so many people use this saber style is that it is far easier to learn. If you have ever picked up a staff or dual blades and try it out you will be immediately struck by how chaotic they seem. Single blade gives you much more control in this aspect.

Advantages:

• LOTS of combos and that is an understatement
• Three possible stances for variety and unpredictability
• Strong attacks
• Fast lunge move (C + primary attack + w)
• Cartwheel evasive move (available on all stances)

Weaknesses:

• Special attacks pretty much useless
• Powerful swings that deal a lot of damage are in the Strong Stance (Red) which take some time to master the timing of the slow swings.

The Stances

• Blue or Fast Stance

1. This saber style can be weak or strong, it depends on whom wields it. This is the fastest and most chaotic single blade stance. It has a limit of 7 consecutive swings for combos and has a rather deadly lunge move (shown above).
2. Unfortunately it does have weaknesses. The most prominent being that each individual swing does not do a whole lot of damage and it has a very short range. Additionally you can easily lose your saber if your opponent has a stronger stance such as red or yellow.
3. Overall this is stance very much like staff in that it is chaotic and takes a great deal of control to wield it efficiently but if used correctly you can get a good amount of consecutive swings in the time it takes for your opponent to swing again.

Yellow or Medium Stance

1. This is a good stance in that it is well balanced offensively and defensively. It is both powerful against a stronger stance and the weaker blue or fast stance. It requires a more extensive use of tactics than red and if you have been using red for a while the faster swings may be troublesome if you are trying to do combos. It has a limit of 5 consecutive swings for combos. Its range is farther than blue but it still has a decent attack speed to it.
2. Its weaknesses are that it is not all that good against dual sabers and staff and special moves are not always that effective since they leave you open just a tad too long. Also you can lose your saber to someone using red stance.
3. Overall it is a good stance to use against any single blade user.

Red or Strong Stance

1. This stance is used quite a bit. Actually it is the single most popular Single Blade stance used on the internet. This stance is like Pandora's Box. It has so many secrets and things you can do with it, it is powerful and deadly. It has an awesome range, sometimes you deal damage without the saber hitting the other person, and when one swing hits the chances you are going to take a good hit health and shield wise when you hit your opponent are better than if you were to use yellow or blue. This saber style has lots of combos that are deadly if all of them connect with a fair amount of damage.
2. But like Pandora's Box deadly can go both ways. This style is very slow. If you do not have the timing right people will cut you to pieces very easily because each swing leaves you open to be hit for a small period of time allowing yellow to sneak in a hit and leave your range unscathed. These hits can add up quickly.
3. Overall a very powerful stance but like walking along a steep and narrow cliff face it holds just as many perils for the wielder as his opponent and requires practice and skill to use it efficiently.

Dual Sabers: This saber style is rarely used online and it is hard to find a good master of it. But for those who like to use it there are advantages. Advantages: This saber style may have a limited range but it is one of the best defensive saber styles in the game.

1. It has yellow and blue stance so you can do a blue lunge if you wish.
2. You have never-ending combos as well.
3. This saber style is actually pretty good against a staff user if used well and can give a high percentage of one-hit kills if your opponent’s head happens to land where your dual blades cross.

Disadvantages:

1. It has a very limited range.
2. Single blade users can easily kill a duals user if they know what they are doing and the simple fact that there are few out there skilled enough to look up to in order to learn how the skilled duelists fight.

Overall this is a saber style that really is not good for someone who likes to charge the enemy with the idea of attacking relentlessly. This is a defensive saber style with few good teachers. Also the fact that one of its weaknesses are single blade users and they happen to be the most popular saber style. But if you can master its defensive capabilities its defense can be used as an offensive tool.

Staff:
Overall a very strong saber style. Actually one of the strongest saber styles but it is also the most controversial. There are two people who use it, the skilled and the noob. So this saber style can get a bad name; for example, the saber is often called a noobstick. In reality a truly skilled staffer is not anything close to using a noobstick but is a formidable foe. Advantages: This is a very powerful saber style because it has an amazing offensive capability.

1. Even when you attack someone you have similar defensive abilities, though not as powerful as duals, and you can attack at the same time without getting harmed often.
2. Like duals it has a never-ending combo limit. It has a staff yellow stance but you can also use the single yellow stance giving you a bit of variety.
3. Also the much stronger offensive capabilities are a plus.

Disadvantages:

1. This saber style though is weak against other staffers, and skilled single blade and dual users.
2. One of the biggest disadvantages is the reputation it has in many servers. This is mainly due to the inexperienced staff users giving it a bad name.

Overall a worthy saber style, one with some people you can look up to as guides but be prepared to face some people who will not face you just because you use this saber style.

Basic Combos - a How-To Guide

Any saber style can do a combo. The word combo in itself gives you a clue about how it is done. It really is not that difficult a move and with this in your arsenal you will find that your options increase quite a bit. If you know the basic combos not only will you become more unpredictable but you will find that you have just elevated your game a big step. This class will cover the basic combo patterns.

Note: That these basic patterns can be repeated in almost every saber style and can be added together sometimes to create longer combos. Now this may sound confusing but it will all be explained. The basic idea behind a combo is to start the next swing of the combo before the previous swing ends. So for example let us say you do a right horizontal swing. Before that swing ends you would start a right diagonal swing. This would result in a faster consecutive swing then if you tried to do each swing individually. For combos you do not have to release the attack1 button but it is held down throughout the combo's duration.

Here are the basic patterns of almost any combo:

Note: They will be listed using default button commands. Refer to this grid when the location of a swing is referred to. The plus sign is your center.

		W
	WA		WD
A		+		D
	SA		SD
		S

1. One type is where you do one type of swing twice and then one swing right next to it.

For example: d + attack1 (first swing) followed by sd + attack1 (second and third swing)

Another type is where you go down three consecutive areas on the grid. For example: wd + attack1 followed by d + attack1 followed by sd + attack1 The last type of an easily identifiable combo type is where you start at one point, go to a new one and then return to your starting point.
For example: wd + attack1 followed by w + attack1 followed by wd + attack1

These are the three basic patterns and they can all be applied to make a variety of combo's in the game. You will notice that only three swings were mentioned. These are examples well using the Red Stance but they can be used using all of the stances.

For example if one was using yellow style a combo one could do is:

1. wa + attack1
2. wd + attack1
3. wa + attack1
4. wd + attack1
5. wa + attack1

This consists of 5 swings and follows the third type of combo. You could do this same type of combo with blue and 7 swings.

Another thing you should note is you do not have to do every swing of a combo. You can choose to cut it off early.
For example: Take the combo shown as an example of the first type of combo pattern. Instead of doing:

1. d + attack1
2. sd + attack1
3. sd + attack1

You could only do two swings.

1. sd + attack1
2. sd + attack1

Or...

1. sd + attack1
2. d + attack1

Or...

1. d + attack1
2. sd + attack1

So a good example is with the saber styles that are not limited to 3 swing combos. A yellow combo could be only two swings. It could be one of those combinations just mentioned. A staff could do that same combo. Dual sabers could do that same combo. You get the point.

Another important thing to point out is that combos can be reversed or done on the opposite side. Take the three examples listed of two swing combo's listed above. Those could easily be done with switching all d's to a's. What is the difference? In general attacks done on the left side of the body are quicker but do not take away as much damage. Attacks done on the right side of the body are slower but take away more damage than the left.

On a final note on combos you should note that while they are useful in surprising your enemy with a swing they did not expect they do leave you open at the end of it. This is painfully obvious with the Red stance. Yellow and Blue stances are not really affected that much but remember that if your opponent knows what combo you are doing they can hit you while you are open (perhaps in the midst of executing a swing) so keep your wits about you.

Note: The best way to learn a combo is to practice them. Try to figure out new ones while in a private or public server or a created game. There are so many combos you can do that sometimes you inadvertently stumble on one. Write it down. Practice it and you may be able to use it in your duels.

Basic Tactics

This is probably the most important concept you must get down to be considered a competent duelist. Consider two people fighting each another. One loses brutally each time to his/her opponent. The opponent relies solely on luck alone and perhaps has a better timing and execution of his/her attacks yet the duelist who keeps losing thinks about tactics and how he/she must use them to defeat his/her opponent. In the long run who will become the better duelist? The one who uses tactics will eventually find the opponent’s weakness and get the execution and timing down with practice and then the tables will turn with the former loser beating his/her old rival again and again.

So what are tactics in Jedi Academy? What do they do? Tactics are simply goals. They are small individual goals that when put together can lead to the overall goal of dueling in any competition: winning that duel or match. There can be many goals or simply only one. Note that one tactic is not inherently better than another. It is all in how that goal is accomplished. Often you will hear that someone has a style of dueling, which is related, but if it pertains to tactics it is called a tactic style.

A tactic style is comprised of the following:

• the core tactics you employ
• how you execute those tactics (i.e jumping as preferred to running)

You will notice that it seems like this involves a lot of thinking. This would be the mental side of the game that does involve the use of your brain floating inside your skull. Methods of thinking may be different but in general as long as you are thinking the results usually are better. Now there have been occurrences when it seems like it is not needed to defeat your opponent but that is pretty rare as every victory involves some sort of goal used in order to win and in order to accomplish that goal you need to know how you are going to do it. But do not worry with practice and patience you will become proficient at using tactics and you will not have to think as hard to get a win. It will become more natural.

Now one thing you must keep in mind is that mental superiority in a duel does not guarantee a win. You must be able to apply the knowledge and tactics or you will lose. Now if both opponents are of equal skill and patience yet one has mental superiority then that duelist will win most of the time.

In general tactics are gained through experience. For example if you are using blue stance with a single blade and are facing a staff user and you die to a certain combo you should avoid attacking when he/she does that and wait until it ends. So this you must learn yourself but basic tactics will be provided as to the three main tactic styles a duelist can use that seem to be the most popular. There may very well be many more but these are found to be the most prevalent and recognizable. The rest you may observe may just be a mix of two or more of the three basic tactic styles.

1. Stalker- This tactic style requires great patience. Think of a predator hunting down prey and waiting for it to make a mistake so that it can kill it. It is a rather effective style and you will often see that they use an opponent's missed hit or their attempt at hitting them against them and hit their exposed back or maybe the legs, whatever the open spot of the opponent is at the time. Because of this particular trait they often know the other styles as well so that they can identify when their opponents will leave openings. They can be tricky to hit as they often are good evaders. It is a solid style. The only thing you should avoid is getting hit while waiting for your opponent. One can often describe this as a form of silent domination of a duel. In the end they can take down even the strongest foes if you give them the opportunity.
2. Jumper- This can be a very explosive and lethal style. Masters of this tactic style often can be impossible to hit yet kill you efficiently. They will often get their opponents out of position and make them pay for it. Often the duelist who uses this tactic is described as too quick to hit yet they deliver a lethal attack. This can also lead to making your enemy a bit pissed off sometimes causing them to make mistakes that the user can take advantage of. On the other hand this style can become too predictable if you jump the same way over and over again and then your opponent can time it rather easily. It also requires some accuracy with your attacks as a miss will hurt you if you are facing someone who has timed you or is waiting for you to attack for their own reasons (i.e a stalker can be one example).
3. Basher- This tactic style’s main strength seems to rely on the overwhelming number of attacks they pound on their opponents in an effort to force them to panic and make a mistake or perhaps just get overwhelmed by the onslaught of attacks. This style has merit as well and is a much more forceful way of dominating a duel. In that respect it is often like the Jumper tactic yet they tend to stay on the ground usually. Duelist's who use this tactic often get very close to their opponents in the hope that they can hit their opponent more often then the opponent hits them. This is also another reason why they constantly attack. Overall it is a good style but it can lead to some bad habits if the duelist does not evade when they should. Staff users often use this style as the staff’s superior blocking ability allows them to take more risks.