Teräs Käsi/Legends



Teräs Käsi, or "steel hand" in Basic, was a weaponless martial art form. It was created on the planet Bunduki by the Followers of Palawa, refugees of the planet Palawa, which was devastated earlier in a war somehow involving the Jedi Council.

The Followers of Palawa created Teräs Käsi to keep the Jedi in check, and presumably, ensure that another world would never be destroyed by the actions of the Council. The Followers of Palawa are believed to be somewhat Force-sensitive, as they studied The Force and Midi-chlorians.

However, Teräs Käsi drew upon their own internal force power, whereas the Jedi draw from everything around them. Some lightsaber duelists used Teräs Käsi techniques in combat, most notably Darth Maul. Jedi Master Anoon Bondara was also a master of Teräs Käsi techniques, which he coupled with his lightsaber ability to duel. Jedi Knight Joclad Danva was also a Teräs Käsi practitioner. Jedi Master Plo Koon was believed to be a Teräs Käsi practitioner as well, since he was a master at hand-to-hand combat. It is not known how Jedi could have been trained in Teräs Käsi, as the Followers of Palawa did not appear to be on friendly terms with the Jedi.

Phow Ji was a Teräs Käsi champion who once defeated Joclad Danva. Arden Lyn was also a follower of this combat style. Nova Stihl had been a practitioner of Teräs Käsi for twelve years.

Known moves

 * Aryx slash was named after the aryx of Cerea.
 * Charging Wampa was named after the Wampa of Hoth. The move involved charging at your opponent, attempting to hit them in the jaw, followed by a simultaneous hit of both arms on the opponents neck.
 * Dancing Dragonsnake was named after the Dragonsnake of Dagobah.
 * Death Weave
 * Förräderi
 * Nexu Grin was named after the nexu of Cholganna.
 * Rancor Rising was named after the rancor of Dathomir.
 * Riding Bantha was named after the beast of burden of the the same name.
 * Shenbit bonecrusher blow was named after the shenbit bonecrusher.
 * Slashing Wampa was named after the wampa of Hoth.
 * Spitting Rawl was reputed to be the most powerful attack in the arsenal of unarmed combat techniques belonging to a Teräs Käsi Master. It consisted of a sideways flip, bringing one's feet down on the opponent three times before bashing with both fists at the same time in a vertical fashion.
 * Striking Sarlacc was named after the dreaded Sarlacc.

Practitioners

 * Phow Ji

Behind the scenes

 * The words teräs käsi are actually Estonian and Finnish, though "steel hand" would actually be translated as the single word "teräskäsi."
 * Teräs Käsi is based on/inspired by a real-life fighting style called Silat.
 * In Steve Perry's novel The Musashi Flex, a prequel to his Matador book series, Teräs Käsi is briefly mentioned as one of the fighting styles practiced by the novel's main character.
 * Förräderi is the Swedish word for "betrayal and Treachery."

Appearances

 * Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter
 * MedStar I: Battle Surgeons
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith video game
 * Death Star
 * Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided
 * Shadows of the Empire novel
 * Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi
 * Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse
 * Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse