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SixOfSpades · 01-15-2003, 08:25 PM

Historically, samurai carried wakizashi so they wouldn't walk around unarmed half the time; it was considered rude and highly aggressive to wear your katana in someone else's home. Everyone else (who could afford one) carried wakizashi because it was the best they could get; only members of the samurai class were permitted to wear katanas. I have read that samurai would dual-wield katana and tanto (dagger) much more commonly than katana and wakizashi, although this may be only a question of ability--those who could efficiently use 2 good-sized weapons in duels may have been very few, and everyone else chose to use the katana proper.

Miyamoto Musashi may be considered the patron saint of the Kensai kit, as after all it was named after him. Musashi's fellows and followers admired his skill so much that they nicknamed him "Sword Saint," or Kensei. Musashi tended to prefer the single blade in combat, but noted that using two was frequently advantageous, particularly when one wanted to take a captive.

The ninja-to actually never existed. True, an effective weapon that could be used effectively and yet easily concealed would be a huge advantage to the assassins and secret agents of Japan, but they never had a specific type of weapon specialized for that purpose. The ninja-to was created mainly by modern films and TV, not to mention games. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Backstabbing with a Katana seems understandable, especially if you're hiding behind a tree, and the guy just won't wander close enough to you so you can hit him with your dagger. Nobody said that you actually had to *stab*--chopping his head off is just as quick, and just as effective. It makes less sense to me that Thieves can Backwhack with a Staff--and yet not with a Spear. I fail to see how Thieves (and Mages, for that matter) can't use a Spear just as efficiently as any old Quarterstaff.

For nonsense, though, nothing beats Hiding in Shadows while you're holding the Sword of Flame, or something like that. And what if you're Mirror Imaged? Do all of the illusions have to make their Stealth roll, too?

01-15-2003, 08:25 PM	#4
SixOfSpades Dracolisk Join Date: September 16, 2001 Location: Bellingham, WA, USA Age: 48 Posts: 6,901	Historically, samurai carried wakizashi so they wouldn't walk around unarmed half the time; it was considered rude and highly aggressive to wear your katana in someone else's home. Everyone else (who could afford one) carried wakizashi because it was the best they could get; only members of the samurai class were permitted to wear katanas. I have read that samurai would dual-wield katana and tanto (dagger) much more commonly than katana and wakizashi, although this may be only a question of ability--those who could efficiently use 2 good-sized weapons in duels may have been very few, and everyone else chose to use the katana proper. Miyamoto Musashi may be considered the patron saint of the Kensai kit, as after all it was named after him. Musashi's fellows and followers admired his skill so much that they nicknamed him "Sword Saint," or Kensei. Musashi tended to prefer the single blade in combat, but noted that using two was frequently advantageous, particularly when one wanted to take a captive. The ninja-to actually never existed. True, an effective weapon that could be used effectively and yet easily concealed would be a huge advantage to the assassins and secret agents of Japan, but they never had a specific type of weapon specialized for that purpose. The ninja-to was created mainly by modern films and TV, not to mention games. [img]smile.gif[/img] Backstabbing with a Katana seems understandable, especially if you're hiding behind a tree, and the guy just won't wander close enough to you so you can hit him with your dagger. Nobody said that you actually had to stab--chopping his head off is just as quick, and just as effective. It makes less sense to me that Thieves can Backwhack with a Staff--and yet not with a Spear. I fail to see how Thieves (and Mages, for that matter) can't use a Spear just as efficiently as any old Quarterstaff. For nonsense, though, nothing beats Hiding in Shadows while you're holding the Sword of Flame, or something like that. And what if you're Mirror Imaged? Do all of the illusions have to make their Stealth roll, too? __________________ Volothamp's Comeuppance Everything you ever needed to know about the entire Baldur's Gate series......except spoilers.