Seven Clans of the Samurai

SAMURAI (#22-28/31, #204-210/365) [POT]

SKILL: 8

STAMINA: 9

ATTACKS: 1

WEAPON: Katana (as per Greatsword) or Longbow

ARMOUR: Plate Armour

DAMAGE MODIFIER: None

HABITAT: Towns, Plains, Forests, Hills, Mountains, Rivers, Lakes, Seas, Marsh

NUMBER ENCOUNTERED: 1-6

TYPE: Humanoid

REACTION: Neutral

INTELLIGENCE: High

The SAMURAI is a knight from Hachiman, or other similar lands, an honour-bound fighter who follows the art of Bushido, the Way of the Warrior. To become a Samurai they must be masters of Kenjutsu, the Way of the Sword. Typical Samurai carry two swords; the Katana (a two-handed weapon as per a Greatsword) and the Wakizashi (as per a Shortsword). They are also accomplished archers and will have a long bow and a full quiver of arrows. Samurai wear an ornate form of Plate Armour comprised of laquered strips of leather, reinforced with wood and metal.

Other Special Skills possessed by a Samurai warrior include Etiquette, Acrobatics, Battle Tactics, Hunting, Leadership, and Martial Arts. Being a Samurai is a long process of creative discovery, and all Samurai have a special power they have uncovered during their voyage of self-actualization. Roll a die to determine what extra power a Samurai may have unleashed:

Roll Power and Effect

1 Archery: 'Kyujutsu' This skill indicates the Samurai is an accomplished archer. For every arrow in their quiver, they may roll on the table below to determine what type of arrow they have. They must keep a record of the number and type of arrows on their Adventure Sheet.

    Roll Arrow Type and Effect

    1 Willow-Leaf: This is the regular arrow type.

    2 Bowel-Raker: This broad, crescent-bladed arrow does an extra +1 STAMINA     damager per hit, but has a -1 penalty when firing due to its ungainly shape.

    3 Armour-Piercer: Against opponents with Heavy or Plate Armour, these            arrows cause +1 STAMINA damage per hit.

    4 Humming-Bulb: These only cause 1 STAMINA damage per hit, but make a        frightening noise that sounds alarms and spooks animals.

    5 Silver-Arrowhead: This is identical to the Willow-Leaf Arrow, but made of        silver and thus of use against Demons and the Undead.

    6 Flaming-Brand: This padded arrow head only causes 1 STAMINA damage        per hit, unless ignited into a flaming torch, in which case it causes normal fire        damage damage and may set hit targets alight.

2 Fast Draw: 'Iaijutsu' This skill enables a Samurai to draw their sword and strike all in one fast motion. This means that the Samurai will always hit their enemy, no matter what their SKILL rating, in the first Attack Round of combat only, doing 3 STAMINA points of damage.

3 Heroic Leaping: 'Karumijutsu' This enables the Samurai to make fantastic leaps and acrobatic jumps. Using this Talent will enable the Samurai to jump over a wall or across a pit at will, with no chance of slipping or falling. A Samurai can jump a horizontal distance equal to quadruple their height, and a vertical distance equal to twice their height. No run-up is required, and carrying a heavy load or wearing armour has no effect on the distance jumped either.

4 Two-handed Fighting: 'Ni-to-Kenjutsu' This is the skill of fighting with two swords, the Wakizashi (shortsword) and the Katana (Greatsword). All Samurai carry both swords, but not all have this special skill at using them simultaneously. With this skill, when the Samurai attacks an opponent and rolls a 9 or more, they may another attack, before the enemy has the chance to fight back. (If the Samurai rolls a 9 or more on their second throw, they cannot have yet another attack!)

5 Combat Reactions: 'Hayaijutsu' The Samurai is granted almost supernatural awareness and control when in battle, and actually grants two abilities. The first is that the Samurai cannot be ambushed by enemies. While they may not be aware of an ambushing enemy, their lightning fast reactions means that the ambusher receives no benefits to their combat totals. In addition, a Samurai with Combat Reactions suffers less penalties when outnumbered. If the Samurai is outnumbered by 1-, 2- or even 3- to one, the attackers gain no benefit to their combat total. If outnumbered by 4-to-one, the attackers gain a +1 bonus, 5-to-on grants +2 and 6-to-one grants +3.

6 Crack Shot: 'Shapujutsu' A Samurai with this Talent has an unerring eye with missle weapons, able to strike the most vulnerable part of a target. The Samurai gains a +1 bonus to all Damage Rolls made with missile weapons such as bows, crossbows, and slings.

Samurai are loosely divided into clans of warriors depending on the type of terrain they are initially trained in, which in turn determines their choice of accessory weapon in addition to the bow and sword. These clans number seven and are:

• Plains: Heigen-Bushi. Has Flatland Lore and Polearms Special Skills.
  
• Hills: Oka-Bushi. Has Hill Lore and Thrown (Sling) Special Skills.
• Mountains: Yama-Bushi. Has Mountain Lore and Axes (War-Pick) Special Skills
  
• Forests: Mori-Bushi. Has Forest Lore and Axes Special Skills.
  
• Rivers and Lakes: Kawa-Bushi. Has River/Lake Lore and Trident (Thrown and Polearms) Special Skills.
  
• Sea: Umi-Bushi. Has Sea Lore and Firepowder Weapons (Flintlock/Matchlock Blunderbuss) Special Skills.
  
• Marshes: Numachi-Bushi. Has Marsh Lore and Blowpipe Special Skills.
  

Samurai encountered in towns and other settlements will be from the clan represented from the surrounding terrain. 

Samurai are found throughout Hachiman, working directly for the Shogun or engaged as retainers by various regional nobles, as well as off-shore, on both Kyo-Kyara Island and the Yotakami Isles. They are also found further afield, as mercenaries employed with the frequently warring political factions of either the Isles of the Dawn or the Arrowhead Archipelago. Other enclaves of similar culture that include the presence of Samurai warriors number the Khulian micro-kingdom of Zamarra, the Glimmering Sea city-state of Bei-Han, and the coastline of the Sea of Pearls. 

Samurai have entered Deathtrap Dungeon as contestants, such as the warlord Zen-Kut-Sedatche, and joined the crew of the pirate Cinnabar Bloodbones, like Wu-Lin the Swordswoman. One of the more famous Samurai of recent renown is Ugetsu the Wanderer (see Heroes of Titan, p. 18) whose heroic exploits in eastern Allansia are legendary. The most epic Samurai however is the current Shogun's champion, Kensei the Sword Saint, who slew Ikiru, Master of Shadows, with the fabled sword Dai-Katana (or 'Singing Death'). 

Samurai are also well-represented in mythology. One of the most feared opponents to face in Hachiman is the Undead Samurai, while near-mythical Samurai heroes whose tales are told across the land number Tsunehara, Shinmen and the warriors of the Legion of the Seventh Seal. The guardian-hero of Hachiman is  the Silver Samurai, rumoured to have been immortalized in stone within the Enchanted Garden of the Scarlet Pagoda, while, further afield, the mystical Stone-Skin Warrior who guards the paths to the sacred volcano that is the Fangs of Fury in Zamarra, is clearly a Samurai of some description.