Post by Arya Vexa on Apr 6, 2011 23:08:01 GMT -5
~~Mandalorian General Information~~
Early Mando’ade culture revolved around battle and conquering, war was a source of honor and of pride within their community. It was not until their later years, that the Mandalorians moved away from their war and conquering obsessed ways. Most became bounty hunters and mercenaries. The Mando’ade sold their skills to various individuals and factions around the Galaxy. It was basically a warrior for the hire, and only to the highest bidder.
Mandalorians were known to wear a very distinctive battle armor, known as beskar’gam, or translated “Iron skin.” This armor is central to a Mandalorian’s life, and is prized by its owner, especially if forged from the nearly indestructible metal beskar. Beskar was extremely expensive, and rather rare, so many Mandalorians, including Boba Fett (up until 40ABY) chose to make their armor from durasteel or duraplast, a less durable, but more cost effective option. Beskar’gam came in many styles and forms throughout history, and was often passed down through generations. The armor was highly customizable, and included a full helmet, with a T-shaped visor, known as a buy’ce. These helmets typically included a heads-up display or a HUD. Whether or not they used their weapons, a Mandalorian seldom ever crawled out of his armor on the battle field.
Warriors were known to decorate their armor to reflect their personal accomplishments, clan, or simply to make it look how they preferred. The armor could be repainted whether to reflect rank, clan, or even their current terrain. Sometimes, though not always, the Mandalorians would decorate their armor in traditional colors that signified whatever cause they might be currently undertaking. Other times, they were simply colors the warrior liked. Due to their clan/familial loyalty and love, a Mando’ad could be known to wear certain pieces of armor to honor and remember relatives, both living and deceased. Color traditions were as follows:
1. Gray—Mourning a Lost Love
2. Red—Honoring a Father
3. Black—Justice
4. Gold—Vengeance
5. Green—Duty
6. Blue—Reliability
7. Orange—A Lust for Life
Though known as a society of war mongers, and considered some of, if not the best and strongest warriors in Galaxy, the Mandalorians held no interest in rank, and would work in cooperation on the battle field. They believed in focusing on the common goal. When put into a Military situation, Mando’ade would easily find an informal command pattern, and focus on their priorities as a group, rather than individuals. This is believed to be what made them such a success as Mercenaries.
Whether or not they used their weapons, a Mandalorian seldom ever crawled out of his armor on the battle field. Being that it was so central to their lives, it was considered as an extension of themselves, and they rarely left home without it. As was stated before, it was highly customizable, and could be upgraded in many ways. Since the buy’ce or helmet was the control center for the suit’s abilities, a range finder that could scan up to 30 targets was a common upgrade. A built in computer in the helmet served as the control center for the armor’s weapons, sensors, and jet pack. All of which were voice commanded. The helmet also offered a macrobinocular view plate, which gave the warrior many different types of vision, including infared, and 360-degree sight. Motion sensors, an encrypted internal comlink, and a broad-band antenna completed the helmet's devices, all of which could be linked to the wearer's weapons or their personal starship. The helmet could also act as an environmental filter system, with a two hour reserve tank providing breathable air to the Mandalorian warrior.
As for weaponry, there are many options for a Mandalorian, many of which can be customized to their armor. There are a few weapons that are exclusively Mandalorian, however :
1. Atomic Compression Bomb—(One I would not typically see in an RP setting) – Powerful nuclear weapons used by Mandalorian Crusaders at the time of the Great Sith War. They had to be carried into position by Basilisk war Droids.
2. Beskad—an ancient Mandalorian sword made of beskar. A beskad could also be made from durasteel, but Mandalorians preferred to use beskar in their forging, because it gave them a natural strength and resistance to lightsabers. The blade is typically 45cm long and nearly 6cm thick. The blade is only sharpened on one edge, and curved upwards to a point. The hilt is typically wrapped in leather and felt similar to a well-balanced hammer. In fact, the weapon can be used as a hammer like instrument thanks to its weight helping to overcome an opponent.
3. DE-10 Blaster Pistol—mass produced during the New Order, this weapon was a Mandalorian favorite because of its heftiness.
4. Mandalorian Ripper—an energy propelled slug thrower pistol that was common with Mandalorian officers during the Mandalorian Wars. This weapon was highly versatile and upgradeable. When in the right hands, could be devastating to opponents. Even though it is a slugthrower, it was legally classified as a disruptor weapon, and thus banned for civilian use on most Republic worlds.
5. Mandalorian Assault Rifle—a weapon considered almost overpowered for their size. This however did not bother the Mandalorians, who were not known for war time subtly. This weapon was short and had a thumb through stock with a small scope.
6. Mandalorian Blaster—a slightly more powerful version of the common blaster pistols used in the Galaxy.
7. Mandalorian Disintegrator—(Another one I don’t typically see in RP)—One of the most deadly and ruthless disruptor pistols. The weapon was considered a violation of Republic Code, which banned it from any civilian use. This pistol was extremely powerful, and could blast straight through any energy shielding.
8. Mandalorian Heavy Blaster—an improved version of the regular heavy blasters around the Galaxy. The Mandalorians produced this weapon to be both superior and upgradable. Mandalorians boasted that a shot from this weapon could bring down a star cruiser.
9. Mandalorian Heavy Repeater—Not designed for subtly, this weapon was used by Mandalorians that believed the only thing better than a big weapon was a fast firing one. These were mainly used on the frontlines due to their very high firing rate combined with firepower.
10. Mythosaur Axe—A weapon used by the Mandalorian Crusaders, named after the extinct Mandalorian monster, the Mythosaur. The axe is made of overlapping blades of mythosaur bone. The blade was on both sides of the handle making it an extremely deadly weapon.
11. WESTAR-35 Blaster Pistol—a model of blaster pistol capable of firing blue or yellow bolts of plasma. This was the favored weapon of several Mandalorians.
Other typical Mandalorian weapons included:
1. Dur-24 Wrist Laser—a portable wrist laser manufactured by BlasTech Industries. It was comparable to the standard BlasTech blaster rifle in terms of power and had a range of 50 meters.
2. Shuk’orok—A crushgaunt designed by the Mandalorians. The armored glove used a reactive fabric to exponentially enhance the natural hand-arm strength of its wearer. The gauntlets gave the wearer the ability to crush bone, metal, or any other material with relative ease.
3. Flamethrower—a weapon which fired a burning stream of liquid or gas. They were useful in close-quarters combat and attacks against caves and bunkers.
4. Grappling Hook—a device used by individuals in order to mount large objects, swing across chasms, or ensnare others.
5. Knee Dart Shooter—an enhancement to the Mandalorian Beskar’gam, these were typically on the warrior’s knees. Each knee would hold three darts, typically explosive tipped darts. Each dart would be fired when the command was spoken into the buy’ce.
When it comes to individual fighting styles, specifically unarmed martial arts, the Mandalorians were as varied as their armor. Each warrior would hone their individual skills, and act how they saw fit in whatever situation. Their attacks and parries were very pragmatic. They felt no desire to be flowery or frilly in their battle scenes. Much to the contrary, they would focus on their opponents moves and mistakes, being trained from a very young age to watch their opponents every motion. The Mandalorians would find the simplest of openings or flaws within an opponent’s move, and use them to their own advantage. Their moves would be solid and leave little room for block or counter by an opponent. They were trained to keep movements subtle and quick, not to mention powerful. There were no fancy kicks or twirls as you would see with many Jedi. It was very simple, goal oriented, and to the point. The culture was very logic minded, so wasted energy or attacks were wasteful. Their job was to be concise and effective, and to keep one step ahead of their opponent at all times. This is likely why there really was no set martial arts form, like the Echani had, but instead basic training that the individual perfected to their own needs and desires.
