Iaijutsu Dueling for Savage Worlds

 

 

 

This is primarily a fast and loose approach to

 having mechanically interesting formal samurai 

duels for those operating in similar genres to 

‘Legend of the Five Rings’ using Savage Worlds. 

 

It is possible for onlookers to engage in Support 

 actions during each of these phases, but interfering 

in a formal duel may have negative repercussions.

 

A new skill Iaijutsu, linked to Agility, is introduced. This 

skill is used for the first round attack of a duel, as it is 

literally focused on the draw of the sword when attacked. 

This skill may also be used in regular combat in lieu of

 Fighting to draw and strike without penalty, but it ONLY 

applies to Katana. If a practitioner also has Quickdraw, 

that translates to a +2 to strike with Iaijutsu.

 

If used in regular combat, this may not be used in successive

 rounds, unless the Bushi sheathes the blade as part of the strike

, in which case she is treated as unarmed for Parry purposes.

 

Dueling is broken into three turns, moving inside to out… 

Center Yourself

Each combatant centers themselves. Before controlling the 

outside world, one must control the inner world.

This is a Spirit check. A simple success will grant one Dueling

 Token, a Raise will grant two. A critical failure means that the

 duelist is DISTRACTED.

 

This roll is done in secret, and the tokens gained are not 

known to the other duelist.

 

Assess your Opponent.

 

In this phase, combatants either look for  weaknesses in their 

adversary, or  may seek to cow their adversary and undermine 

their confidence. 

If a duelist seeks to undermine their foe’s confidence, they 

may make Taunt Tests, or other non-physical Tests using the

 Creative Combat options. (Note that like onlookers using 

support actions, Taunt and other actions may be seen as 

unseemly or even in opposition to Bushido. Context, as 

always, is king.)

If a duelist chooses instead to understand her opponent, 

make a  Knowledge:Battle check. A simple success will 

grant one dueling Token, a Raise will grant two. A critical 

failure means that the duelist has gravely miscalculated

 his opponent, and is VULNERABLE.

 

Three Feet from Death

At this time, each duelist may trade in tokens for the conflict.

Each token may buy:
- An additional Action Card

- +2 to Strike

- +2 to Damage

Initiative cards are dealt as normal, with normal Edge bonuses.

As normal with multiple Action Cards, each duelist picks

 the one they want, and combat proceeds normally, however

 Iaijutsu is rolled for the first attack of the combat.

 

Notes:

1. Bonuses from the dueling Tokens are only for the 

   first round of combat. Generally speaking, most formal

    duels will only last one round.

2. In most Samurai settings, the formal duels will begin with 

   weapons sheathed, hence the Iaijutsu skill. 

Example:

Ichiro and Charlie are both aspiring Lion Bushi, full of the self

 righteous virtue that only the very young are naive enough 

to possess.

Both have developed a deep enmity of the other over their

 years in the dojo. Without seeking permission from his lord

 Charlie challenges Ichiro to a formal duel , and also without

 seeking permission, Ichiro accepts.

That night under the light of the full moon, they meet in a forest

 clearing with their seconds.

Neither Charlie nor Ichiro have any special clan edges yet, but

 both are mechanically ‘Wildcards’,and both have 3 Bennies.

Charlie

Novice Human

Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d4, Strength d8, Vigor d6

Skills: Athletics d8, Battle d4, Common Knowledge d4, 

Fighting d6, Gambling d4, Iaijutsu d6, Intimidation d4, 

Language (Native) d8, Notice d6, Persuasion d4, Stealth d4, Taunt d6

Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6; Size: Normal (1)

Hindrances: Arrogant

Edges: Brawny, Brute

Weapons: Unarmed (Range Melee, Damage Str), 

Katana (Range Melee, Damage Str+d6+1)

Language: Native (native, d8)

Current Wealth: $500

Charlie is a large Bushi… Some mockingly refer to him as

 ‘The Crab’, but they do so behind his back.

Ichiro

Novice Human

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6

Skills: Athletics d6, Battle d6, Common Knowledge d4, 

Fighting d8, Iaijutsu d10, Language (Native) d8, Notice d6,

 Persuasion d4, Stealth d4

Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 5

Hindrances: Ruthless (major)

Edges: Quick

Weapons: Unarmed (Range Melee, Damage Str),

 Katana (Range Melee, Damage Str+d6+1)

Language: Native (native, d8)

Current Wealth: $500

Ichiro is a schemer, and has no qualms about burning the tenets 

of Bushido for his own gain. He has had enough of Charlie, and 

wishes to use him as an example to others in the dojo of what 

will happen to those that get in his way.

Phase One: Center Yourself.

Ichiro and Charlie take their places, wearing only Gi, as armor

is forbidden in a duel. Katanas sheathed, they both attempt to

 center and master themselves, before mastering their opponent.

Since they are both Wildcards, they will roll a d6 along 

with their normal Trait dice.

Charlie has a Spirit of d4, so will roll a d4 and a d6, taking

 the higher of the two:

Trait Die d4: 4💥1 = 5 Wild Die d6: 1 = 1

Charlie nets a simple success, so has 1 token.

Ichiro has a Spirit of d6, so will roll two d6, taking the better roll:

Trait Die d6: 4 = 4 Wild Die d6: 2 = 2

Ichiro also gets one success, so has 1 token.

Phase Two: Assess your Opponent

Charlie is going to Taunt Ichiro, as he has done for years… 

Which is what led to this illegal duel in the first place. 

The mechanics of Tests are detailed in the SWADE book on

page 108, but it is an opposed roll against the attribute the skill 

is linked to. Since Taunt is linked to Smarts, it is an opposed 

roll between Charlie’s Taunt and Ichiro’s Smarts.

Charlie makes fun of Ichiro’s small build and lack of allies in

 the dojo, repeatedly calling him ‘The Littlest Scorpion’.

Charlie rolls Taunt d6 and a d6:

Trait Die d6: 3 = 3 Wild Die d6: 1 = 1: Failure. 

He spends a Benny, dropping him to 2.

Trait Die d6: 6💥6💥5 = 17 Wild Die d6: 6💥5 = 11

His second attempt exploded dramatically. 

17 is now the TN Ichiro needs to beat…

Ichiro rolls Smarts d6 and a d6:

Trait Die d6: 6💥1 = 7 Wild Die d6: 4 = 4

He fails, and will not spend a Benny as it is unlikely at best to get a 17.

Charlie is now DISTRACTED, and since it was a 

Raise, Ichiro gets to roll on the Creative Combat table, 

and we find that Charlie is actually DISTRACTED and VULNERABLE. 

Charlie’s words hit home as Ichiro quivers with rage.

Ichiro is going to assess Charlie. He does not suffer the penalty

from the Taunt, as this occurs simultaneously. 

Ichiro has a Battle skill of d6 and rolls another d6 as usual:

Trait Die d6: 2 = 2 Wild Die d6: 4 = 4

Ichiro gets a simple success and gains one more Token.

At the end of the preparatory phases, Charlie has 1 token, 

Ichiro has two, but will start combat Shaken, DISTRACTED 

and VULNERABLE due to Charlie’s taunts.

Three Feet From Death

Charlie is Aware of Ichiro’s speed advantage, so will 

buy an extra Action Card with his Token.

Ichiro is going to rely on his Quick Edge and will spend 

BOTH tokens on extra damage. (+4)

Both Charlie and Ichiro receive two Action Cards for Initiative:

Charlie draws a 9 of Diamonds and a 9 of Spades

Ichiro draws a 4 of Hearts and a Joker… 

Ruh Roh Charlie… Jokers act whenever they want

 and add +2 to Trait and Damage rolls.

Ichiro acts first. He needs to unshake, fails his spirit roll,

so spends a Benny (2 left). The DISTRACTED condition is offset

 by the Joker, so Ichiro will roll Iaijutsu for his attack.

Trait Die d10: 10💥8 = 18 Wild Die d6: 6💥5 = 11: Exploded....

18 versus Charlie’s Parry of 5 is a hit and a Raise.

Damage is Katana damage of (D6+d6+1) + 1d6 for the Raise 

+ 2 for Joker + 4 for dueling damage…

Damage Die d6: 6💥3 = 9 Damage Die d6: 5 = 5 

Damage Die d6: 5 = 5: 19 + 7: 26 damage.

26 Damage vs a Toughness of 6 means Charlie is

 taking 5 Wounds and is Shaken… Humans cannot take more than 3.

Charlie is going to spend his Bennies to try to soak enough to stay alive…

Sadly he rolls a Critical Failure, which means he may not try again.

According to the Injury chart, this is a Gut wound, so Ichiro’s Katana

clears the scabbard, and in one brutal motion, disembowels Charlie,

who has just enough time to fall to his knees and look up at Ichiro 

to see him shake the blood from his blade, before face planting 

into the forest clearing.

Ichiro has ‘won’, but his Lord will not look kindly on this transgression…