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Japanese stable. Ranked competitors must be able to speak
polite Japanese. All participants, including foreigners, use
Japanese ring names that feature the first kanji of their trainer’s
name.
Sumo is purely a sport; no “self-defense” schools exist.
However, the style favors size and strength, and its practice
and tournaments are full-contact. These factors make Sumo
potentially useful outside the ring if the stylist learns its
optional skills and techniques.
Skills: Games (Sumo); Savoir-Faire (Dojo); Sumo
Wrestling.
Techniques: Feint (Sumo Wrestling); Sweep (Sumo
Wrestling); Trip.
Cinematic Skills: Immovable Stance; Power Blow.
Cinematic Techniques: Springing Attack (Sumo Wrestling).
Perks: Power Grappling; Special Exercises (DR 1 with
Partial, Skull and Tough Skin); Special Exercises (HP can
exceed ST by 100%).
Optional Traits
Secondary Characteristics: Improved HP.
Advantages: Language (Japanese); Reputation (From
fans).
Disadvantages: Fat or Very Fat; Gluttony.
Skills: Brawling; Intimidation; Judo; Karate.
Techniques: Hammer Fist; Low-Line Defense (Sumo
Wrestling).
SWORD-AND-BUCKLER PLAY
5 points
Sword-and-Buckler Play was a popular means of selfdefense
among the European nobility and bourgeoisie from
about 1250 until the 16th century. It might have originated
even earlier – Germanic and Viking warriors were known to
wield the iron boss of a wooden shield like a buckler when
the shield was hacked apart. The style seems to have been
particularly fashionable with the urban upper classes, students,
and clerics. Infantry, missile troops especially, studied
it for protection when their formations were broken.
Sword-and-Buckler Play involved the broadsword, buckler,
and unarmed strikes and grapples, and emphasized
speed and mobility. Stylists faced their foe squarely with
both sword and buckler, to keep him at arm’s length. They
used the sword aggressively to cut and thrust, the buckler to
ward off blows and make shield bashes. Bucklers occasionally
had sharp edges for slashing, too; see Chapter 6 for more
on sharpened shield rims. A warrior who couldn’t bring his
sword and buckler into play would attempt kicks, punches,
grapples, and takedowns. Sword-and-buckler fighters tended
to fight defensively, using the Defensive Attack and Attack
maneuvers until the enemy was at a disadvantage, then moving
in with strong armed or unarmed attacks.
Few legends surround sword-and-buckler fighters.
However, larger-than-life stylists could certainly exist in a
cinematic campaign! Likely techniques are those that
enhance fighting with two weapons at once.
While primarily a combative art, Sword-and-Buckler Play
also had a sportive side. Fighters would sometimes put on
public displays or engage in friendly competition. The style
remained common across Europe until the 16th century,
when fencing became more fashionable. Fencing with the
buckler and rapier would continue for another century or so.
Skills: Brawling; Broadsword; Shield (Buckler);
Wrestling.
Techniques: Arm Lock; Armed Grapple (Buckler); Bind
Weapon (Broadsword); Counterattack (Broadsword);
Disarming (Broadsword); Feint (Broadsword or Buckler);
Kicking; Retain Weapon (Broadsword or Buckler); Trip.
Cinematic Techniques: Dual-Weapon Attack (Broadsword
or Buckler); Dual-Weapon Defense (Broadsword or Buckler).
Perks: Skill Adaptation (Bind Weapon defaults to
Broadsword); Special Setup (Brawling Parry > Arm Lock);
Sure-footed (Uneven).
Optional Traits
Advantages: Enhanced Block.
Disadvantages: Overconfidence.
Skills: Fast-Draw (Sword); Knife; Rapier; Shield.
Perks: Weapon Bond.
SWORD-AND-SHIELD
FIGHTING
4 points
Sword-and-Shield Fighting was the art of using the
broadsword and shield in combat. It likely originated in the
Dark Ages, although conclusive evidence is scanty. Its heyday
was the early Middle Ages, but it survived – even thrived –
well into the Renaissance. The Spanish used sword-andshield
troops until the 16th century, and the style vanished
from the battlefield only after the spread of firearms rendered
the shield obsolete.
Unlike bucklers, shields were distinctly military in character.
Civilians rarely carried them. After 1350, the shield was
primarily a tool of the infantry in Europe. Fighters used
shields of all sizes – from small to large – made of metal,
wood, and leather. Some even sported sharp spikes!
Sword-and-Shield Fighting required lots of room. It
stressed footwork, darting strikes, and fighting at arm’s
length. Stylists held the shield forward to repulse enemies,
and used more blocks than parries. They learned some
wrestling moves but largely avoided close combat (unlike
practitioners of Sword-and-Buckler Play).
The sword-and-shield fighter circled his foe and used
Wait and Evaluate to seek an opening, or a Beat (pp. 100-
101) with his shield to create one. He often attacked by
rushing in, striking, and pulling back quickly. Treat this as a
Committed Attack (Determined) with two steps – one in, one
out. He might instead launch a Defensive Attack in the form
of a jabbing thrust to a vulnerable location. If his attacker left
himself open on the offensive, the stylist punished him with
the Counterattack technique. If his enemy pressed the attack,
the sword-and-shield man responded with All-Out Defense
(Increased Block), and used retreats to open the gap. When
things got too close, he made aggressive use of his shield –
both to shove his opponent back to arm’s length and to bash
him.
STYLES 199