Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

[FenrisUlf]

Got a question here. Just saw the recent _Batman's Guide to Crimefighting_, which I think is a fun book (as well as a very helpful one), and it listed the 'ten must-know martial arts for crimefighters'. I'm curious to see if you folks agree or not with the author, and if so, why.

 

They are:

 

1) Aikido -- presumably for the flexibility of the art.

 

2) Boxing -- because the 'sweet science' is as useful on the streets as inside the ring. I had an uncle who could swear to that.

 

3) Capoeira -- if you ever get your hands tied, you'll be glad you know it. And the emphasis on dodging and acrobatic training isn't bad either.

 

4) Hapkido -- hard/soft Korean style devised for fighting, not sport or show, by a man who was a lifelong fighter himself. Versatile and well-rounded.

 

5&6) Judo and Jujutsu -- Aren't they the same thing? I'm guessing listed for the grappling skill they teach, as well as the knowledge of weak points and the like.

 

7) Karate -- Nice, straightforward fighting art for putting that guy down fast.

 

8) Krav Maga -- the IDF martial art. I can really see this one as useful; it was devised for combat and nothing else, has maneuvers specifically for disarming gun or knife toting opponents, and has been used in close combat recently (like last week, probably).

 

9) Kung Fu -- No substyles listed, though I'm thinking that Chin Na and Hung Gar (the former a system of grappling, the latter devised by and for streetfighters) would be the best.

 

10) Savate -- The training is tougher than a lot of other martial arts (you wear padded armor and take full-strength strikes), and the feet have more striking power than the hands.

 

So, any commentary from you hoplologists out there? If 'used in actual combat' is a particular criteria, then I'd add Escrima, Kuntao, and Pentjak Silat to the above.

[Arkham]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Lucha Libre. Nothing else comes close...

[fbdaury]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

An Ch'i- because what superhero doesn't want to be able to beat people with any object they can get their hands on?

[Blue]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Not sure I have an opinion, not having done any Martial Arts in real life. But I'd consider Tae Kwon Do an iconic Martial Art (For the high spinning kicks)

[Dauntless]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

1) Aikido -- presumably for the flexibility of the art.

Not sure if Aikido would belong here or not in the superhero sense. Aikido is as much a way of life as anything else. Aikido is an amazing and beautiful art, and one that requires scores of years of practice to truly understand. One time, Morihei Ueshiba saw some advanced students trying to execute a technique and they were quibbling over how to properly do the technique, at which point O-sensei said, "I'm not training you to move your body, I'm training you to move your mind!". Aikido is at its core entirely non-violent (some offshoots notwithstanding). When I say non-violent, it is within the mindset of an Aikidoka that he must not harm or even have intention of harming anyone. If one is not mindful of this, one is not truly practicing Aikido and is really just doing the outer form of aikijiujitsu (the ancient styles which samurai learned, and from which Morihei Ueshiba learned to derive Takemusubi Aikido)

 

However, outside of Japan (and even within Japan unless you visit authentic bujutsu ryu), you probably won't find more authentic feudal era swordsmanship (Iaido concentrates on cutting rather than duelling, and kendo has become sportified), albeit only with a bokken instead of a live shinken.

 

5&6) Judo and Jujutsu -- Aren't they the same thing? I'm guessing listed for the grappling skill they teach, as well as the knowledge of weak points and the like.

Not quite the same thing. Jigoro Kano took some of the ancient aikijujitsu techniques from the samurai and made them a bit safer (for example, some of the throws in Judo were, in their aikijiujitsu counterpart, intended to break joints). It also for the most part took out any atemi (striking techniques) that jiujitsu had.

 

So it sounds like Judo is a watered-down jiujitsu? Not really. It just has a different concentration. The key is in looking at the difference between -do arts, versus -justu arts. The 'do' is literally 'the way', and 'jutsu' is 'art of' or 'technique of'. Do is a way of life and its intended to be taken outside of the dojo. In a sense, it's more spiritual. That's not to say that jutsu forms can't be spiritual, but rather, the individual himself must discern the key principles himself.

 

 

9) Kung Fu -- No substyles listed, though I'm thinking that Chin Na and Hung Gar (the former a system of grappling, the latter devised by and for streetfighters) would be the best.

Chin Na is in and of itself not a martial style, but rather a class of techniques. Classical Chinese arts have three categories of techniques: kicking/punching, chin na (grasping/seizing), shuai jiao (wrestling/throwing). All wuyi (kung fu means 'hard work', wushu means martial art, wuyi means war art) will have elements of all three categories in them. For a style that concentrates on Chin Na, I'd suggest either Eagle Claw (which also has a lot of aerial acrobatics) or Tai Chi Chuan.

 

Hung Gar was made famous by one of the Ten Tigers of Canton...of which western audiences may be aware of from Jet Li's movies, "Once Upon a Time in China" series. Despite the famous "no shadow" kick, Hung Gar is a southern style and concentrates mostly on hand techniques (as the old saying goes; "Southern fist, northern leg"). It's an all around good art, as is Choy Lay Fut, both of which are relatively more recent arts.

 

As Bruce Lee once pointed out, ultimately, you have to forget the style to master the style. As he put it, if you concentrate on the techniques too much, then you see only the flowery branches and not the root itself. All martial arts ultimately share a common root, but you have to get past the idea of technique itself. Ironically, you have to master a technique in order to forget the technique. Once you've done that, you've made it a part of yourself.

 

As Bruce was a genius in trying to show us, we have something to learn from all arts, because ultimately, all arts share this same root.

[OddHat]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

In Champions? Anything with Sacrifice Lunge or Charge and Flying Dodge.

 

In Comics? Anything the writer likes.

 

In the real world? Buy a gun.

[AlHazred]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

In the real world? Buy a gun.

 

Scratch that. Buy a judge. Or a cop.

[Supreme Serpent]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Jeet Kun Do

 

Shinanju

 

Ninjitsu

[Koshka]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Just saw the recent _Batman's Guide to Crimefighting_, which I think is a fun book (as well as a very helpful one), and it listed the 'ten must-know martial arts for crimefighters'.

 

Stupid question incoming: is this a comic, or a RPG supplement, or something else? It sounds interesting, I just want to know where to look .

[Logan D. Hurricanes]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

I'm not so sure that Capoeira belongs on the list. I can't really say why, it just doesn't feel right. I think Muay Thai kickboxing would be better up there personally.

[lemming]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

I'm not so sure that Capoeira belongs on the list. I can't really say why' date=' it just doesn't feel right. I think Muay Thai kickboxing would be better up there personally.[/quote']

Not sure how many you really need. You get your hard & soft styles in, there's no need to add much more. Muay Thai, several forms of Karate, Krav Maga, and Savate have a similar driving force behind them.

It's really the mental game that makes the difference I think.

[Logan D. Hurricanes]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Not sure how many you really need. You get your hard & soft styles in, there's no need to add much more. Muay Thai, several forms of Karate, Krav Maga, and Savate have a similar driving force behind them.

It's really the mental game that makes the difference I think.

I can agree with that. When I first read the list I thought ten was too many, but it's food for discussion. For me, boxing is always at the top of the list. A couple of my characters use it.

[fbdaury]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

On a slightly off-topic rail, my character in Corven's New LA game uses a fusion of Savate and Tae Kwon Do, to maximize the striking potential of his super-strong legs. His top attack? A 16d6 Offensive kick attack. I like him.

[Logan D. Hurricanes]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

On a slightly off-topic rail' date=' my character in Corven's New LA game uses a fusion of Savate and Tae Kwon Do, to maximize the striking potential of his super-strong legs. His top attack? A 16d6 Offensive kick attack. I like him. [/quote']

I had a character like that, my only pure martial artist. He specialized in all of the kicking arts, as well as soccer and irish dancing

[Ki-rin]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Good list. Gracie Jujitsu should be added to it.

 

I agree with Dauntless' regarding Aikido on every point except one: I think it is very appropriate for a supers campaign. The MA in a supers campaign is constantly going to be dealing with overwhelmingly more powerful foes, and this is exactly Aikido's strong suit combat-wise.

[Kristopher]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Scratch that. Buy a judge. Or a cop.

 

 

Neither of whom can do a damn thing for you at 3:17 AM when the glass on your back door shatters, and the noise hopefully wakes you up...

[freakboy6117]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

the problem with gracie jujitsu is it doesnt appear super heroic (rolling on the floor with your arms and legs wraped around the arm of another guy in skin tight gimp suits just doesn't look terribly heroic).

It was used to great effect in an issue of stormwatch team achilles to beat the snot out of the midnighter but that issue really showed how strange the style looks in a comic.

compared to the more acrobatic styles popular in say batman it just looks a biit odd.

 

one style that hasn't been mentioned is wing chun. this is the style bruce lee started with and was originally designed by a chinese nun to protect her self.

 

it is designed to be used against much stronger opponants so is an excellent choice for martial artists in a super world.

[Chimpira]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

I have been a Krav Maga fan since way back. I try to give it to my characters that are not looking for something flashy. If I have an butt kicker in mind, that is not a 'traditional' martial artist, usually I give him Krav Maga.

[Iuz the Evil]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Shorinjii Kempo should be on that list. Looks sweet, and frickin' brutal... as... hell. I agree with the majority of the ones listed, but there does seem to be a little bit of overlap on styles. Still, if you had black belts (or equivalent) in ten different styles of martial art, I don't see a lot of people arguing the point.

 

Yeah, that'd be a pretty convincing position to take... "Well, I think Capoeria will provide for greater acrobatic stylings and..."

 

Heh heh heh...

[AliceTheOwl]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Since you asked, the difference between judo and jujitsu is the lethality.

 

Originally, all martial arts in Japan were taught to be lethal. Then along came a big wave of political change, and people found the need to still learn martial arts without knowing how to kill anyone. So if it ends in -jitsu, it's supposed to be deadly. If it ends in -do, it's supposed to be the 'softer' form.

 

This only applies to Japanese martial arts.

[NeoSamurai]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

What? No Escrima?

[Kirby]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

I'd like to add my two cents on two of the arts talked about:

 

1) Capoeria - not only is it beautiful to watch, but it can be very deadly and quickly efficient; unlike most other martial arts, if the opponent isn't aware of it, the opponent will probably be at a loss on how to counter since it is so 'unconventional' compared to other martial arts. This is one of the few arts I've seen where the practitioners can practice at full speed and the experts can practice within inches of each other. However, a great drawback of it is that it requires room (which wasn't a problem in the fields in Brazil).

 

2) Ninjutsu - There haven't been many films I've seen that do this martial art true justice, but it is amazing to know the training that goes into it. When I was younger, in high school, my brother had these friends who were Japanese. Their father would teach them ninjutsu (though you weren't allowed to say the word 'ninja' around their father) a and sometimes they would practice with my brother (we took Praying Mantis Style Kung Fu and he was the equivalent of at least a 1st degree black belt). They had these practice nun chuks that had holes in them to place studs or small spikes. My brother would hold one end and swing them (yes, properly) at the Japanese friends and they would snatch them from him.

 

The other training they let him in on was wall crawling. They had to lie on their stomachs and then crawl across the room, with only their hands and feet touching the carpet, to simulate scaling a wall. They were supposed to practice this ten times a day in the room. Suffice it to say, I was never able to crawl across my room once like that.

[fbdaury]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Shorinjii Kempo should be on that list. Looks sweet, and frickin' brutal... as... hell. I agree with the majority of the ones listed, but there does seem to be a little bit of overlap on styles. Still, if you had black belts (or equivalent) in ten different styles of martial art, I don't see a lot of people arguing the point.

 

Yeah, that'd be a pretty convincing position to take... "Well, I think Capoeria will provide for greater acrobatic stylings and..."

 

Heh heh heh...

 

Having studued Shorinji Kempo while in Japan, I ma a big proponent of it's usefulness. I just wish I had been able to study it longer. It combined soft and hard, striking and atemi into one package that was geared for practical use above sport use.

[FenrisUlf]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

Stupid question incoming: is this a comic' date=' or a RPG supplement, or something else? It sounds interesting, I just want to know where to look .[/quote']

 

It's a regular book, but I saw it selling in the comics section of my local Waldenbooks. Goes for $15.95 if you're interested.

 

I should add, I've also seen _Batman's Guide to Forensics_, which I thought was pretty good for those who want more on the science and equipment used to hunt criminals. Also has a good short fiction piece on Batman's hunt for Mister Zsasz, the knife-wielding psycho.

 

PS -- To Dauntless: Most of what I *know* about martial arts comes from the UMA by Hero Games, as well as a few books I've read on Western Martial Arts. So if I sounded like a total moron on the subject -- it's because I am one.

 

Thanks for a very well-done piece there on real-world martial arts.

[sbarron]

Re: Ten Best Superhero Martial Arts

 

I agree that we need to define what it is we are talking about here.

 

For movies, TV, and most RPGs, flying kicks and acrobatic jumps are awesome. But in a real life fight these techniques are incredibly, incredibly dangerous. I think the same thing is true for most ground based marital arts. The real world realities of weapons, multiple opponents, and no rules makes a ground focused competition MA very dangerous.

 

Not that these arts and skills can't be valuable. They just shouldn't be focused on the the exclusion of other fighting skills. Because sometimes you'll fight 3 guys with bats, sometimes you'll fight in a phone booth, and sometimes you'll get tackled from behind. Combat is too unpredictlable to rely on any one "style" or "art." IMHO anyway.