Dun Moch

Dun Möch was a form of combat that used distraction and doubt, usually through taunting, in conjunction with lightsaber battle.

The Sith aimed to completely dominate an opponent's spirit through whatever means possible by employing their own lightsaber combat doctrine. Dun Möch commonly involved spoken taunts, jeers, and jests that exposed the opponent's hidden, inner weaknesses and/or doubts, which had the end result of eroding the opponent's will. Such a thing can be quite deadly, especially against Jedi, since concentration was a must when using the Force. Doubts can easily break that connection. Other variations on Dun Möch involved usage of the Force to throw large, weighty objects at the Sith's opponent during combat, which both distracts the opponent from the battle and could potentially cause damage.

Dun Möch in use

"Make him doubt himself, his beliefs, or his intentions. Such things disrupt connections to the Force—and death soon follows."

―HK-47 to the Jedi Exile, on how to defeat Darth Sion^[src]

Darth Vader was seen to use Dun Möch against Obi-Wan Kenobi on the Death Star, but with little success. He used it again facing Luke Skywalker in their duel on Bespin's Cloud City to great effect, and again in the duel on the second Death Star. Darth Tyranus used it on Geonosis, taunting Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Yoda respectively. Tyranus would later focus this skill on Anakin during their rematch onboard the Invisible Hand. Darth Sidious also used this form against Yoda in his duel against the Grand Master.

Another incident of Dun Möch being used by a Jedi was the confrontation between Darth Sion and the Jedi Exile on Malachor V. Sion was not killable by conventional methods, as he was capable of healing his wounds in an instant. The Exile instead used taunts and arguments to erode Sion's will, Sion in the end sacrificing his own life to the Force.

Kyle Katarn was repeatedly exposed to Dun Möch during the Valley of the Jedi crisis against the Seven Dark Jedi. During Katarn's duel with Boc Aseca, the Twi'lek never ceased laughing and taunting with gibes such as "You're an angry one, aren't you?" and "Feisty!", combining them with his evasive jumping technique to frustrate Katarn into making a mistake. After their respective defeats, both Maw and Jerec attempted to goad Katarn into turning to the dark side by striking them down. Maw, in a sense, succeeded. By the time Katarn faced Jerec, however, his emerging maturity in the light side caused him to react uniquely to the Dun Möch: Katarn neither struck Jerec down nor spared him; instead, he rearmed the murderous Dark Jedi so as to kill him in honorable combat.

Desann's Reborn warriors utilized Dun Möch to frustrate the members of the New Jedi Order that they encountered in combat. Kyle Katarn once again exposed to Dun Möch, managed to ignore their taunts and emerge victorious in every duel he had with the Reborn. The New Reborn of Tavion Axmis's Sith cult carried on this tradition and were often heard taunting Jedi with expressions like "Do you fear me?" and "I thought Jedi were powerful."

Desann himself took Dun Möch to the level of plotting: by faking the death of Jan Ors and taunting Katarn about his powerlessness, Desann successfully tricked the enraged Katarn to reveal the location of the Valley of the Jedi.

Jacen Solo used a variation of Dun Möch by disguising his own face as his apprentice's with the Force to manipulate Mara Jade Skywalker's love for her son against her. The result was Mara hesitating during their duel and Jacen mercilessly struck Mara down.

[edit] Boomerang effect

If not carefully applied, Dun Möch could backfire upon the user, spurring the intended target to anger instead of overwhelming him/her with fear. Taunted by Darth Tyranus, Anakin Skywalker called upon the dark side of the Force to enhance his combat ability onboard the Invisible Hand and ultimately defeated the experienced Sith Lord.

Maw taunting Kyle Katarn

The same happened to Maw who, injured, taunted Kyle Katarn with details of his father's death. This resulted in Kyle giving in to anger and striking down the unarmed Dark Jedi.

[edit] Inverse Dun Möch

"Your thoughts betray you, father."

―Luke Skywalker to Darth Vader^[src]

In addition, Luke Skywalker used the very opposite of Dun Möch onboard the second Death Star. The young Jedi attempted to turn Darth Vader to the light by infusing love through spoken words. Luke was successful and Anakin Skywalker ultimately redeemed himself and brought balance to the Force. Around 4,000 years earlier, this method may have been used by Revan on the Star Forge to redeem Bastila Shan, and was used by the Jedi Exile to defeat Darth Sion, who could not be defeated by normal means.