Discussions involving Katana vs Western Swords

Myrmidon

There are few things more tedious and nerdy.

InsanityAddict

Third option: Scimitars.

vacasama

I prefer knives and harden sticks.

TheConductor

It's silly. Cause everyone knows Broadswords are the best anyway. I mean, was Excalibur a katana? FUCK NO it wasn't. 

delta534

Don't forget pointless.

glennmagusharvey

No, they have a point.

Now, clubs, those are pointless weapons.

Forzare

I lol'd.

MillerCross

I prefer guns.

Forzare

I prefer naginatas.

MillerCross

-shoots Forzare-

Forzare

ow

All Nines

I prefer knives as well, though sword combat is pretty cool. I also hate guns, mostly because they don't allow for flashy, acrobatic, fluid combat as often as swords (when they do, it's cool, but I prefer watching melee), and they are more likely to take their opponents down in one hit (strictly speaking from a fiction perspective).

glennmagusharvey

I prefer tonfas, war-hammers, straight swords, polearms, and throwing-daggers.

And improvised weapons, such as chairs, tables, trash cans, durians, hoes, and d4s.

vacasama

@ Juan Carlos:

 So you think the gun is good?

glennmagusharvey

Also, this aspect of The Sacred Blacksmith bugs me.

As does Cecily's really stupid-looking breast plate.

MillerCross

 So you think the gun is good?

I'm a Western freak. I believe that six shooters beat everything. Even though I know that's utterly wrong.

I also hate guns, mostly because they don't allow for flashy, acrobatic, fluid combat as often as guns (when they do, it's cool, but I prefer watching melee), and they are more likely to take their opponents down in one hit (strictly speaking from a fiction perspective).

Watch a movie by John Woo and tell me that.

DYRE

I prefer swords, though it's very strange to see swordfights in settings that also have guns.  So sometimes I'd rather see gunfights than swordfights.

^^ Yes.  Her breastplate is ridiculous.

GuyInWhite

I kind of get the impression from most media that katanas are quicker but more fragile and do less damage.

evilneko

MillerCross

^ It really depends on the wielder and on the edge and on the craft and shit. You can't classify revolvers as a whole, you can't classify spears as a whole, you certainly can't classify katanas as a whole.

wannabeotaking

Give me a weapon that I can carry more than one of, and allows me to go all stealthy stabby on people and I'll be happy. So I guess knives... throwing knives preferably 

snowbull

That's it. I'm sick of all this "Masterwork Bastard Sword" bullshit
that's going on in the d20 system right now. Katanas deserve much better
than that. Much, much better than that.

I should know what I'm talking about. I myself commissioned a
genuine katana in Japan for 2,400,000 Yen (that's about $20,000) and
have been practicing with it for almost 2 years now. I can even cut
slabs of solid steel with my katana.

Japanese smiths spend years working on a single katana and fold
it up to a million times to produce the finest blades known to mankind.

Katanas are thrice as sharp as European swords and thrice as hard
for that matter too. Anything a longsword can cut through, a katana can
cut through better. I'm pretty sure a katana could easily bisect a
knight wearing full plate with a simple vertical slash.

Ever wonder why medieval Europe never bothered conquering Japan?
That's right, they were too scared to fight the disciplined Samurai and
their katanas of destruction. Even in World War II, American soldiers
targeted the men with the katanas first because their killing power was
feared and respected.

So what am I saying? Katanas are simply the best sword that the
world has ever seen, and thus, require better stats in the d20 system.
Here is the stat block I propose for Katanas:

(One-Handed Exotic Weapon)

1d12 Damage

19-20 x4 Crit

+2 to hit and damage

Counts as Masterwork

(Two-Handed Exotic Weapon)

2d10 Damage

17-20 x4 Crit

+5 to hit and damage

Counts as Masterwork

Now that seems a lot more representative of the cutting power of Katanas in real life, don't you think?

tl;dr = Katanas need to do more damage in d20, see my new stat block.

GLORIOUSLeader

Because why not.

Vorpy

Guns are better than swords.

MillerCross

^ See this girl? this girl gets it. 

Bee

I'd prefer a katana to most Western weapons on weight, but if my stage combat tendencies are any indication my most natural fighting style is defensive enough that I'm probably more suited to a saber.  Something with a better handguard, anyway.

Also,

IanExMachina

I don't really care for swords.

However the fetishisation of katanas is a little irritating.

I'd prefer a mace myself.

Bee

Games need more mace/axe protagonists.  If I ever make a game from scratch I resolve to have to protagonist specialize in a battleaxe and have no freaking clue how to hold a sword.

All Nines

If I had a protagonist in a fighting series, he'd be a knife nut, for sure.

Bee

Well, there was Johnny from Shadow Hearts, but he was kind of a wuss.

Come to think of it, he was one of the only cases I've seen where your primary dead weight was the protagonist.

Vivi

I'm trying to write something now, and I'm not sure how to have the protagonist fight, if at all