Thread:Silver-Haired Seireitou/@comment-18812574-20150508141004/@comment-2089817-20150508144216

Oh I see what this is, I'm your sloppy seconds; last kid to be picked for proverbial soccer! No sale, partner, no sale!

The thing you should remember about martial arts is that each of them are unique in that they reflect the essence and culture of their origins. It's not called "Snake style" because we shoot venom out of our fingertips or "Monkey style" because we scratch our bums and fling our poo at the enemy; although that would be the best move ever in the history of forever. Rather, you have to think about the essence of the animal that represents the martial art rather than the animal itself. The five animal styles of Kung Fu each represent a specific trait that reflects the essence of that animal. Tiger is aggression and hard force, Snake is fluidity, Crane is balance, Leopard is speed, and Dragon is about power. Of course, the arts have strayed in countless directions with different animals, but no matter what, it's about the essence; the idea that each animal represents.

For instance, if you were designing heilig pfeil based on the animals, I would create a Snake-based one as an arrow that can move quite fluidly, around nooks and crannies quite effortlessly, or a Dragon-based one that is explosively and creates a powerful punch in whatever it strikes, or a Leopard-based one that emphasizes speed; utilizing the idea of Hirenkyaku to speed up the arrow speeds. And so on and so forth. So, basically, focus less on the specific animals, and more about what traits and ideas they are meant to represent.