WEAPONS
The workmanship of Yamatese weaponry is known and admired throughout the world. Centuries of inter-clan warfare has developed a proliferation of weapon-types and a variety of martial arts governing their use.
The following are ordinary weapons. Anyone can wield one of these weapons using his regular Weapon Skill. In most cases there is a specific skill which characters could learn to hone their technique with a given weapon. For instance, the kenjut-su skill gives bonuses in the use of swords; however, you do not have to have kenjutsu to use a sword.
Aikuchi A dagger blade mounted for domestic use (ie, with-out a guard) - see tanto.
Dai Kyu This is the composi te bow used by the Buke. It can be anything up to seven feet long, and can be used equally well from the saddle as on foot. Yamatese archers use a selection of various arrow types - see the Skills listing for more de-tails.
Han Kyu A normal arrow-shooting bow.
Kama This i s just a sickle. Emphatically it is not a samurai weapon, having been developed as a weapon solely by rebellious farmers and the like. In game-terms it is treated as an improvised weapon.
Katana The standard, slightly curved Yamatese sword. Its blade varies in length from 24" to 30". Usually wielded as a standard one-handed sword, it can also be held in both hands for extra strength, in which case treat it as a hand-& a-half sword.
Kiseru Another improvised weapon, this time derived from a tobacco pipe. A smoker's weapon; Old World halflings would like it.
Masakari An ordinary one-handed axe. Sheaths for masakari blades are crescent shaped, fitting just over the cutting edge of the weapon.
Naginata Sometimes referred to as a halber d, this is really more like a cross between a spear and a very long-han-dled sword. It comprises a curved single-edged blade some 28"
long mounted on a 48"-60" shaft. Although not useful in a confined space, it can be wielded with great speed. Naginata-users often sweep the weapon in low, scything cuts, and many an ashigaru has lost his legs in this way.
Nodachi The two-handed sword with a blade up to 40" long.
Staff Ther e are two types of staff: the jo (about three feet long) and the bo (five or six feet long). Usually they are made out of hard oak, but some exponents of bojutsu prefer plumwood for its supposed magical properties.
Tanto The dagger. The blade is under 12" in length and, although straighter and of course shorter than a sword blade, is of comparably fine workmanship.
Tessen The tessen is the iron fan held by army commanders as a mark of office and for signalling to their troops on the battlefield. It would count as a conventional improvised
weapon in combat if not for the fact that it parries excellent-ly.
Tetsubo The name literally means "iron staff" but is some-thing of a euphemism, as the tetsubo is actually a massive iron warhammer. Usually the business end of the weapon is adorned with studs or spikes to further increase its damage potential.
Wakizashi The shortsword. Worn with a katana it consti-tutes the dai-sho ("short & long") which only members of the ruling classes are allowed to wear. The blade length is be-tween 12" and 17".
Yari The spear. It has a straight blade of typically high quality steel and (unlike Western spears) this is mounted on the shaft by means of pegs through the tang, in just the same way as a sword. Sheaths are often used to protect the yari blade, and these can be quite elaborately shaped and decorated.
Yari-nage The javelin, usually about three feet long and with a blade of lower quality than a yari (because in the thick of battle you cannot always be certain of retrieving a javelin once you've thrown it).
The weapons described below are specialist weapons. A charac-ter must have the appropriate skill to use one of these weapons with any real effectiveness. (Not having the right skill
forces a character using with a specialist weapon to fight with a WS or BS of 10 and to incur Risk tests as decided by the
GamesMaster.)
Jittejutsu The favoured weapon of Junsa (police). The jitte is like a long dagger with a strong tubular blade and a tine extending out from the guard. It gives +10% to the chance of disarming an opponent (assuming the jitte-user has the
Disarm skill). This is useful when dealing with drunken or unruly samurai whom the Junsa wants to capture without injuring them. It can also be used to break a sword; this requires a successful parry followed up by a test based on half the jitte-user's Strength.
Kakae Ozutsu A very primitive mortar subject to misfires.
Its major value is in frightening opponents (remember that few Yamatese know much about gunpowder weapons). Some sorcerers
are able to transform the kakae ozutsu into a very dangerous weapon, however. Each use requires gunpowder equivalent to six pistol charges.
Kusari A generic term for chain weapons. The most commonly used is the Kusari-gama, which consists of a sickle with a
weighted chain attached to the end of the shaft. The chain section can be swung as a flail or it can be used to entangle an opponent up to five yards away (treat as a lasso). Once the opponent is caught, the kusari-user can close and dispatch him with the sickle.
Kyotetsu-shoge A knife tied to the end of a length of
strong cord. A weight is attached to the other end of the cord.
The knife can be thrown and then retrieved by pulling back on the cord. Alternatively the weight can be swung so that the cord snares an opponent's legs. The opponent must be moving at the time for this to be successful, and a failed Initiative test means he falls prone.
Nekode Metal claws u sed in climbing which can also deliver a nasty wound. They consist of a leather strap which fits around the hand, attached to which are four sharp spikes which protrude out from the palm.
Nunchaku A wooden flail.
Ono A poleaxe nearly six feet i n overall length. It is
heavy and difficult to wield, but strikes for terrifying damage.
Sai Essentially the same as a jitte but with two tines on the guard. It is governed by the same martial skill (jittejutsu). Sai users usually fight with one in each hand (combing jittejutsu with nitojutsu). It is primarily a farm-er's weapon, but some ryu teach the skill. The kind of sai used by a martial ryu will have a sword-like blade rather than a blunted prong such as one finds on agricultural sai.
Shuriken These are small metal darts, knives or stars intended for throwing. (Properly speaking the exact term for throwing-stars in particular is shaken.) Shurikenjutsu has somehow come to be thought of as an occult art, but in fact it was originally developed by samurai for use with the small throwing-knives they carried as sword furnishings. Some still study it for that purpose, but on the whole this technique has now been usurped by assassin-sorcerers.
Sodegarami The "s leeve-tangler", comprising a long pole with criss-crossed spikes at the end. It is used by Junsa, as it is very effective in immobilising an opponent wearing ordi-nary civilian robes. After striking with the sodegarami the wielder gives a sharp twist; if he succeeds with a Dexterity test and the opponent fails an Initiative test, the latter's clothing is snagged and he can be held off at the end of the pole until he tires.
Tonfa Another farmer's we apon, consisting of a rectangular block of wood with a handle coming out of the side at one end.
It developed from a rice-flail in much the same way as military flails originated in the West. It is held along the forearm with the handle gripped firmly, allowing it to be used for strong punching-strikes or blocks.
Yawara T he yawara is a wooden or brass rod about four
inches long with a heavy studded bulb at each end. It originat-ed from the vajra, a Bukyo ritual sceptre, and is still carrioriginat-ed by travelling Bukyo priests. Use of a yawara automatically allows a surprise attack against someone who has never seen one in use before. Most yawarajutsu ryu also teach atemi waza
(nerve-striking), as the yawara gives +1 damage when used in combination with that skill.