Thunderbird Style, the lightning legs (Kicking Martial art) (W.I.P.)

Style Name: Thunderbird style; The Lightning Legs

Type: Hard style, combination kicks

Description: The fundamental philosophy of this style literally could not be simpler; speed. If your opponent cannot touch you, they cannot hurt you; and striking them before they can strike you is perhaps the greatest defense of all. Speed of movement in humans comes from only one muscle group of the body; the legs, and so in this style that is all that the user trains. Though the hands are occasionally used to grab things, do handstands or to hold on to branches and such for leverage there is no punch or strike using other body parts in this style, only kicks. The practitioners of this style rely on acrobatic maneuvering, superior sprinting speed and rapid-fire combinations of kicks to overwhelm their enemy with a blistering offensive. When on the defensive this style prefers to rely on superior gymnastic skill and well practiced footwork to avoid all attacks and set up devastating counterblows with the legs. Though sprinting is important the user also trains for stamina, strength, flexibility and timing. Weight training as well as nearly endless running and drills are to be the daily life of anyone who hopes to master this distinctive, unorthodox style. Though as atypical as a style which refrains from grapples, punches, arm strikes and head-buts of all sorts may seem incomplete it is ideal for heroes, as the hands can be used to weave arcane gestures and cast spells while the legs are involved in the physical fighting and relying on kicks gives the user a decisive range advantage against people using arm-strikes. Masters of this style are said to be whirling blurs on the battlefield, sending opponents flying with kicks they often cannot see coming.

History: This style is a relatively new one with limited notoriety and less then a century of history, which makes it the butt of admonishment and criticism form so called ‘established’ styles. Thunderbird style’s precursor began sometime after the age of heroes overtook the era of soldiers as magic use often takes up the user’s hands for the arcane gestures which weave the mana, so a style using only legs became a fairly attractive proposition. This lead to the birth of many martial arts, which either incorporated, specialized in or indeed consisted entirely of kicks. One such style began in the cloud kingdom and employed superior jumping, flipping and gymnastic feats in to the kicking to gain higher ground on an enemy and land kicks over a wider range of areas on opponents, this was thunderbird style. Eventually this style made a name for itself in sporting events, as its flashy appearance and famous speed were natural crowd pleasers, gaining it the nickname of the ‘lightning legs’ due to its overhead strikes and rapid-fire kicks. This reputation came as a double-edged sword however as the style was considered the stuff of performers rather then warriors. Though few if any practitioners have ever really mastered the art this is namely because there is not any test or trial which exists to crown a practitioner as a master. Rather, the philosophy that the martial artist can “always get faster” is used to push practitioners to train ever harder for legs, which cannot be blocked, caught, or grabbed by an opponent in a fight.

-E rank-
At the beginning of learning this style the student begins with the simplest method of training known to martial arts, running. The user runs both sprints and longer laps to train in speed and stamina, developing the leg muscles in the most natural way possible. The user’s strength and speed at this time are not much different then a normal person their age and size but they possess training which gives them an edge over non-martial-arts users. The user makes simple front-kicks, push-kicks and back-kicks namely and possesses the balance necessary to hold any one mid-kick pose in any of those positions for a full ten minutes without faltering or wobbling. At this stage the dominant leg is preferred as the leg to stand on, the non-dominant leg used for the actual striking. The student also begins stretching and gymnastic training, learning simple tumbles, jumps and how to land or fall properly without causing injury.

Name: Three sections kick
Style: Lightning legs
Description: A very basic lighting-legs technique, the rudimentary most combination of kicks, practiced with great repetition until they can be performed in the time it takes untrained fighters to deliver single sweeping kicks. The combo consists of three simple forward kicks aimed at the side of three sections of the opponent’s body, low, middle and then high. The attacker uses each strike to push off the target and set up the next, striking the legs and torso before finishing with a kick to the chest. This technique demonstrates the core values of thunderbird style; speed, kicking technique and rapid-fire kicks to overwhelm an opponent. It is delivered all in one “sweep” as the user’s foot never touches the ground after delivering the first kick, using the opponents body to gain leverage with each of the three kicks in the combo.
Rank: E

-D rank-
After the user has mastered the rudimentary aspects of the style the weight training begins, weighted leg warmers are affixed to the user while they go about their cardiovascular workouts to begin toning their muscles but at this stage are only worn during training. The user’s striking gains new kicks for their repertoire, roundhouse-kicks, side-kicks and hook-kicks become routinely practiced along with the others the user has already learned. The user begins training the speed of their strikes in sparing and against training dummies or other such equipment. At this stage the user can perform many kicks without having to put ones foot down for balance and begins to practice combinations of kicks as single techniques. Jump-height and distance training is also increased with flips being added to the mix, students are also expected to be able to do and hold handstands.

-C rank-
Once the user is competent enough on the ground the user begins to train in flying kicks, learning to use all previous kicking techniques mid-air. Heavier weights are used and worn as long as the sun is out not to be removed otherwise. Squats, lateral lunges, leg presses and other isometric exorcizes are used to increase muscle density and mass. This is coupled with flexibility training and the practitioner can hold the knee of one leg to their shoulder while holding their spine and leg straight, as well as perform splits, even while doing handstands. Backflips as well as lunar summersaults become techniques in the practitioner’s arsenal, along with axe-kicks, butterfly-kicks and knee-strikes as well as knee-drops. The user’s speed and jumping prowess can no longer be considered normal, as they can easily clear their own height and great distances, able to land kick-combos from previous stages before touching the ground.

-B rank-
By now the practitioner’s legs are dense stalks of incredible power, said to provide them with the speed of a thoroughbred, the balance and agility of a jungle cat, and are coupled with the cardio-vascular stamina of a marathon runner. The user can not only hold any position on one foot for extended periods of time but can do so balancing large weights on their raised legs. Stone, wood, brick, and even metal are used as targets to hone the user’s striking techniques. By now the user’s knowledge of kicking strikes is completely encyclopedic, containing even spinning heel-kicks, scissor-kicks, as well as reverse, flying, spinning, jumping and dropping versions of all previous kicking skills. This rank represents the plateau of “traditional” training, simple weights and running have now brought the user to “peak” physical condition as the speed of a martial artist of this rank is truly a spectacle to behold. Those who scoffed at this style before would be forced to admit its effectiveness now.

-A rank-
At this rank the practitioner has begun unconventional training, extremely heavy leg weights, never removed at all, save for an emergency, truly great long distance running, truly punishing sprints. The user can support the weight of a fully-grown and fully equipped man on one leg, even launch said man off that leg to great heights. The user trains by kicking at a very thin stream of water, the training is considered successful when the user can kick between the drops of water so quickly that the leg does not get wet even in the slightest. Once this training has been completed the user practices all known kicks against the trickle of water until they have mastered them all at this blistering speed, finally learning to do so with their weights on. This leads to a reflexive knee-jerk reaction, which cannot be taught that causes the user’s kicks to attain a seemingly impossible speed. The user also begins to take on the namesake of the style, as they can jump, kick off targets and rebound with such incredible grace and speed that ‘thunderbird’ becomes an appropriate title, not just a showy name.

-S rank-
The final stage of this marital art comes down to pursuit of a single distinction, the bras-ring to which all practitioners aspire for, the ability to have ones kicks cause the “thunder’s crash”. After years of training speed, timing, flexibility, acrobatics and balance the user trains to be able to have their kicks executed with such miraculous fluidity of motion and insane speed that they actually cause a loud, resounding cracking sound each time, not unlike a whip. Ordinarily the user’s legs would not escape this without extensive injury, but as a result of years of extreme training and conditioning the user’s ultra-dense bone and muscle can withstand the shock, as the muscular tension is pushed from the shoulders, down the back to the hip, knee, foot, and even toes to create this masterful trademarked sound. To one who can perform it, kicks that carry the thunder’s crash are devastating whips, blades and arrows that can break through stone as easily as flesh. Enemies can even be used as projectile weapons, simply by launching them in to other enemies with well placed kicks.




Name:
Style: Lightning legs
Description: (describe the entirety of the physical action taken to perform the technique, stances, body posturing, any and all movements ect. Also describe the benefits this technique has over a standard attack (since it takes up a more then an attack action) and any effects it might have on opponents)
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Name:
Style: Lightning legs
Description: An improvement on the three-sections kick, faster and far more precise, this kick-combo uses four kicks; aimed at the sacrum, solar plexus, chest, and neck. Striking four points down the midline of the body this is a devastating offensive barrage of kicks that lays waste to opponents if a clear shot at the center of their body. This technique uses only one leg meaning it can be done
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Name:
Style: Lightning legs
Description: A high grade offensive technique in which begins with a powerful front-kick to the solar-plexus, then pushing the foot deep in to an opponent the user literally pushes down on the target’s stomach and lifts the second leg to step on to the enemy’s shoulder and deliver a knee strike aimed at the chin of the enemy with the first leg. Then with the enemy beneath them and launched backward the user finishes by a dropping axe-kick mid air forcing both combatants to the ground. This technique is devastatingly powerful if performed completely and is not attempted in sparing or planned competition due to the lethality it is said to possess.
Rank:

Name:
Style: Lightning legs
Description: An incredibly simple yet surprisingly effective defensive technique in which the user launches a strait, forward front-kick against the thigh of an oncoming attacker, just above the knee mid-step. This dose no damage to the attacker’s leg as the user’s kick strikes the most ridged point on their adversary but the strike effectively locks the joints in the leg of the attacker keeping them from coming in range of the user for that critical second needed to launch a counter attack. This counter attack comes next as the user actually pushes off the knee of the opponent while moving forward with their other foot to deliver a strait kick to the center of the enemy’s body connecting with the side of the foot. This one-two kick is designed to break the flow of combat and force the enemy on the defensive.
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Name:
Style: Lightning legs
Description: A counter-blow, the user begins this technique standing normally with an attacker either in-front or behind them. Employing the style’s trademarked speed the user performs a standing flip, extending one leg to collide with the attacker’s head or upper body, either with the bridge of the foot for an attacker in front or heel for an attacker behind. The flip is an acrobatic dodge to avoid oncoming attacks and the following kick is used as a counter-attack to break the flow of combat and keep the enemy on the defensive. This technique typically ends in a handstand but can be followed up with a quick tumble back to a standing position.
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