Now that we have stances, postures, and both striking and blocking techniques, it is time to move into the building blocks of the Jedi Staff Form. To help with this, I have broken down the more detailed footwork, and staff sequences, so that they can be better trained in focused pieces before moving into stringing them together into the Staff Form.
Footwork 1
This drill addresses the methods of turning and shifting found in the first part of the form. Stepping out into a Front Stance wit the right leg, this position is relatively stationary. The first turn is a 90 degree turn to the left, at which point the left leg does not change position, merely turning the foot. The lead leg is drawn in towards the back leg to maintain stability in the turn. The second turn is a 180 turn, shifting into a back stance. In this case, the front foot rotates, and the back foot is moved to become the leading foot of the back stance. Moving forward into another Front Stance, the left foot is once again planted, and the right foot is drawn in close through the step to maintain stability. The feet should be kept in light brushing contact with the floor through all these movements, but if starting out, you have to lift your foot up, keep it as close to the ground as possible.
Footwork 2
This footwork drill shows the side-to-side movements of the second part of the Staff Form. This is the introduction of the crossing step. In this, the goal is to get the knee cap of the back leg nestled into the back of the knee of the front leg. This will take some practice, so adjust as needed. The sinking and rising motion of the body caused by this stance sequence is important to the Forcework inherent in the movement, which will be discussed more fully later.
Drill 1: Overhead Strike
This drill is shown by itself because it is the most common strike in the Jedi Staff Form, and one of the most powerful controlled techniques one can do with a staff. Pay close attention to the twisting of the right hand as the staff reaches its striking point. This adds a rotation to the end of the staff, making it a much more effective strike that merely the straight blow with the staff end. The staff used here is to demonstrate relative hand position, as previously in the training.
Drill 2: Blocking Sequence
This drill is done from a right Front Stance. It begins with an overhead strike, as demonstrated above. From this, the staff is moved to a left side lower block, and then shifted over to a right side lower deflection as it is reloaded into another overhead strike. This is demonstrated as three movements, to show each as their intended purpose, and then as a more fluid transition between steps 2 and 3, to show the flow of the staff.
Drill 3: Rising and Falling
This movement set, coupled with the Footwork 2 sequence above makes up the second section of the Staff Form. The staff is used to the side in this drill. It is first jutted towards the opponent as a warning, or stop. The staff is then raised high, and then jabbed down into a foot, or knee, of your opponent. Notice that the grip position does not change, and is still a polearm grip. This should be maintained.
Drill 4: Advance and Retreat
This drill is presented as a forward and backward movement. In the Staff Form, these techniques are both done with a retreating motion. That is changed here to demonstrate the importance of protecting the legs. In both retreat and advance, the block is from the back leg. This shows the tactic of removing the exposed leg from a strike, either by moving forward or backward.
Drill 5: Sweep and Chop
This drill shows how to utilize the upper Back-mounted staff position, and how it leads into strong, sweeping strikes. Moving forward with this sequence should be done as two parts at the start, moving after the sweep and with the chop. As the technique becomes more natural, the movement can be blended together with the movement following the momentum of the sweep.
Drill 6: Side to Side
This drill shows how to roll the staff along the torso to generate power in the strikes. This drill utilizes a Staff Grip, rather than a Polearm Grip. Pay close attention to the sliding of the hands on the markers on the staff. The strikes are not performed from a centered grip. This sliding grip can be most difficult to adjust to. The technique is also shown from a Horse Stance, as that is how this type of shifting strike is most often utilized. Advanced application of this movement (not shown) can even include shifting from a right Front Stance to a left Front Stance, utilizing the hips and legs to generate more power.