Can I get a description of the surrounding countryside?
my ideas for training will depend on that.
Eli Can Tell You Ninjas Don't Exist
(377 posts) (4 voices)-
You're right in the heart of rice paddy country. The places with flat, level ground more than eighteen inches wide outside the town proper that don't have houses on them are few and far between. However, you have during the course of your trip here with Edge gotten pretty good at not stepping in them on accident, even in the dark of night when sometimes they can look almost like solid ground.
Thu Oct 7 2010 11:48 pm # -
Alright. Today marks two weeks since your arrival here, and the townsfolk have begun to become accepting of you; your hard work has paid off in that respect. Today the people are excited; apparently there is a well-known stranger (?celebrity?) of some kind passing through.
Fri Oct 8 2010 12:00 am # -
He nods, and smiles slightly. "As I thought," he says smugly. "Perhaps you might try to sell your services to the Emperor's Men; I hear he's been needing help to quell a small rebellion of sorts. Of course, there is the small matter of you not having a sword. A samurai without a sword is like an old man without an heir." He thinks for a moment. "Your dishonor and mine both weigh heavily upon our shoulders. I am in need of one to pass my craft on to, you are in need of a tool with which to ply yours."
Sat Oct 9 2010 12:34 am # -
Magnus
Member"I have a proposal that will solve both of our problems eventually.
How this? You set up shop here and take me as your apprentice.
You get an apprentice that is eager to learn and accustomed to hard labor.
I eventually get to make the sword of my dreams.
Does this seem like a good deal to you?"Sat Oct 9 2010 1:04 am # -
"To set up shop here would be difficult, to say the least. I have been wandering the countryside in search of an heir to my craft, and would willingly accept you, rurouni Eli. However, you would have to travel with me to my forge; it is three days' travel to the north of here. Lodgings are comfortable and rice is plentiful, as long as you provide a hard day's labor for me."
Sat Oct 9 2010 1:50 am # -
That would be the hope, wouldn't it. (haha I said wooden tit. nevermind. I'm tired.) Honda and you begin your journey through the farmland. You break for the evening, and he gives you a riceball for dinner. The night passes uneventfully. He is a silent travelling companion, but if you have any questions for him, he may answer them. (I'm off to bed, continuing in the morning.)
Sat Oct 9 2010 2:58 am # -
He tells you, "I make all forms of swords, but I am well-known for my katana and their sister wakizashi, both of which are considered meitou. I have also made tanto, nodachi, and the occasional zanbato. We have long had a saying in my shop, which is called Mei's after my master; it was not said first by myself; 'if it is a sword made by Mei's, it is a meitou.'" Any other questions?
Sat Oct 9 2010 12:33 pm # -
Magnus
Member"My teacher had a saying 'A Warrior should use all weapons available to him, to leave one unused is a dishonor to your master and you ancestors.' I agree with him, But I always had a preference for the nodachi and zanbato. Speaking of which, it's been so long since I held a sword, My ability with them has decayed to almost nothing. Do you have one your willing to let me practice with in my off time?"
Sat Oct 9 2010 1:44 pm # -
He responds, "We have enough scrap metal around my forge that you no doubt will be more than able to craft a practice weapon for yourself. Crafting one worthy of wielding in combat will take some time, yet; but for training, all you will need is a heavy scrap." He speaks with the confidence of experience.
Sat Oct 9 2010 2:24 pm # -
You climb a footpath on a mountain with him, and eventually reach his forge. He lives moderately well, with a house with paper walls, a low stone table in one room with a wood stove beneath it, and he owns two futon. Seeing the futon, your back begs you for a real rest, but Honda has other plans for your back. You spend a tough day lifting raw ores and being taught the very basics of the art of Japanese sword making. This begins a course only a fool would call easy; add 1@1 Honda's Ninja-do to your sheet, slow defensive, rf1, weapon-adverse, +30 defensive SM. In-character you do not realize the practical combat applications of the motions he insists you use while assisting him, and therefore do not recognize this as a martial art at this time.
Sat Oct 9 2010 9:42 pm # -
Magnus
MemberI work diligently on the tasks assigned to me. I knew what I was getting into when I asked to become his apprentice.
Should we start the training calender?
OOC:Haha! I would have never guessed that the swordsmith was a ninja.
Note: Styles can't have Sit mods in higher than 20 points
(the damage mods can go up to 40 since they cost half as much).
He probably put the 10 extra points into a defensive damage mod which results in -20 def DM.If this is correct it would look like;
1@1 Honda's Ninja-do B7@1, slow defensive, rf1, weapon-adverse, -20 defensive SM,-20 defensive DMSat Oct 9 2010 11:44 pm # -
((Get used to the curve balls, there will be a lot of them ;) I see nothing like that in the materials I'm looking at; what I see is that fast styles should have between ten and twenty points to distribute, and slow styles should have between 25 and 30 to distribute. I will look it up later.. there will be more skills he will be teaching you, so the calendar does not begin yet. I will post greater detail later. Closing ritual at work begins now.))
Sat Oct 9 2010 11:55 pm # -
((Thanks, I'll look it up and take it under advisement... now that I think back, I'm thinking you're probably right, so record it the way you have it)) After a week passes, he has completed a katana he was already working with; a few practiced swings to test the weight of the blade, and it is clear that he is more than a simple weaponsmith. He notices you watching him, and says to you, "I see the time has come to begin teaching you my art in earnest. Remember, as I have told you, a sword is a tool, not to end life, but to protect it." He gives you a sword and begins teaching you some basic maneuvers; (the roll is 56; a few crunches later and you have learned the style 1@2 Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, weapon-dependent, slow defensive, 15 defensive sm, +30 damage mod B7@1 (that's right, I went there, what are you gonna do about it now, "rurouni" =p))
Sun Oct 10 2010 1:02 am # -
((ok, coming back to you tomorrow with the skills -- I've got the list, I just need to assign biases and we're good to go after that; I should ask whether you want the English translations of the style and skills or the more Japanese sounding transliterations))
Sun Oct 10 2010 2:18 am # -
OK, add (Flying Heaven Honorable sword style) to the skill description for the style. Also add 1@1 Do Ryu San (Ground Dragon Flash) base annoying area attack 3':6':9':12':+20/1 B7@9, 1@1 Ryu Sui Sen (Dragon Mallet Flash) base weapon +DC B7@3, 1@1 Ryu Kan Sen (Dragon Wind-up Flash) base weapon RS/2' B7@3, and 1@1 Ryu Sou Sen base weapon, lethal damage rider B7@3. The master is pleased with your ability to pick up the skills so quickly, and says to you, "These abilities are at the heart of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu." He reiterates, "A sword is not to be used to take life; it is to be used in the defense of life."
Sun Oct 10 2010 1:16 pm #
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