Katanapunk! ...blood, honour, steel...attitude!(LONG)

[Mike Holmes]

Drive: Personal Honor

Sounds simple enough to me.

And I would threaten to drop it on failures given the Japanese phyche. That is, Samurai would see failure as a personal inability to do what had to be done to motivate themselves to succeed. And as such there would be a tendency for self-fulfilling prophecy with the SA dropping as the Samurai lost faith in himself.

Hence the result of losing all Honor being the need to kill oneself as deficient. The Samurai has no self-worth at that point, no Honor, and can only redeem himself with an act that proves that he has the motivation to do the honorable thing. Not to say that all Samurai respond this way (or certainly that a PC would have to commit seppaku), but that it indicates that there is a psychological link between Success and Honor that would make one a requirement of the other.

This is very cool. Remember Honor would represent the character's own perception of himself. The question of how others percieved his honor would depend on what information they had on the Samurai in question. Thus if a villain had described how the PC had run from a battle (in order to claim the honor of defeating the enemy for himself), the PC would be percieved as Honorless by those who believed the story while the PC himself would still have the Drive for Honor. In fact it might go up in such a situation as the character would want to redeem himself.

OTOH, Honor is a social thing. That is, if a character was seen as honorless, he would in fact feel like he had less Honor. So perhaps the Trait would vary with perception, but the results would be different. That is, a Samurai who know he had acted without Honor should just lose the SA. For a Samurai who had lost his Honor because his reputation had been smeared would just have the points transfered to a new SA, something like Drive: Regain lost Honor. These are similar, but slightly different.

Anyhow, play fast and loose with it, and it ought to be a blast.

Mike

[Valamir]

I think perhaps that each style could have its own special SA.

One style might have KI as an SA that allows them to draw on inner mumbo jumbo.  One style might actual center on rage, and give a special effect to using anger oriented Passion SAs.  One style might be devoted to inner calm and actually lose access to special maneuvers if the character ever has a Passion SA.  One style might have "Spirit of Ancestors" SA which represents aid in battle from actual intervention of the spirits of their ancestors, which can only be increased through special ritual and communing with the dead.  Another style might have an SA that is tied to a sacred spot and is always at 5 if the character is in that location but declines the farther from it he goes.  This style might even have different circles of mastery with each higher level being a progressively broader spot (low level = this dojo is the spot, high level = this city, then this country, etc).

[Jason Lee]

Bushido Virtues:

Chugi: Loyalty/Devotion
Gi: Rectitude/Justice
Jin:  Benevolence/Compassion/Love
Makoto: Sincerity/Honesty/Veracity
Meiyo: Honor/Glory
Rei: Respect/Courtesy/Politeness/Etiquette
Yu: Valor/Courage/Bravery/Heroism

The traditional values don't seem like they'd quite mesh with the setting you've got.  This is just food for thought on SA's.

[Ben Lehman]

Style or "Coolness:"
Adopt Sorcerer style bonuses for stylish play:
-2 dice to generic actions ("I swing to region 4, left side.")
+0 dice for well-described actions ("I twist my sword around and slam it towards her left shoulder.")
+1 dice for cool action ("I parry with the center of my handle, letting the force of her blow spin my sword up down towards her left shoulder.)
+3 for REALLY cool action ("I deflect her blade off to the right side, pause for a moment in which our eyes meet.  Then, I smile and whip my sword down at her left shoulder.")
+2 additional dice for a good speech.  ("I say, 'This sword was forged with the flames of a dragon and the tears of a goddess.  It has both served and killed emperors, its wielders have known both honor and defeat.  It is hardly worth of your brigand blood.'  Then I sheathe the sword and punch him in the face.")

Honor:
This can be
Faith: Code of Bushido
Drive: Follow the Code of Bushido
Passion: Duty to the Code of Bushido

Qi:
Spiritual Attributes ARE your Qi.  You don't need a seperate, generic ability for it.  If you want a seperate attribute for mystics to emit glowing auras with, then call it "Qi" and have it use the same rules as luck, with a different descriptive flavor.

[Mike Holmes]

Cool ideas, Ben.

Jason, that's a great list for SAs. Just have Honor be the extent to which one is seen as being committed to the various elements. The character, however, will only be able to focus on some; likely those that fit into the game.

Don't forget the crucially important Drive: Serve Lord Honorably. Ronin will not have this, and, hence, have much less Honor. But Ronin are soooo fricken cool. :-)

Mike

[Thorsten]

When could we expect to have this cute baby in Germany?

[6inTruder]

But Ronin are soooo fricken cool. :-)

"Cool" in that whole "Hobo with a sword" sort of way ^_^

[Malechi]

Hey guys,

Katanapunk! is kicking off in the development stakes, I've assembled a crack crew of keen writers and an artist who'll all be working with me to produce the mini-supplement (well..crack or cracked..  you decide!).

I can't really give you a date on this baby yet as it was an idea that was thrown together on Monday night.  However, I'm hoping to have something to send Jake (outline) soon.  

In the meantime, remember that Katanapunk! is all about the down-and-out, not the high-flying samurai.  Those who live under the footsteps of the high and mighty but have the hope and desire to rise up and challenge the lucky few in the later stages of Tokugawa Japan.  

Ronin and the rising "middle" and "lower" classes are the staple for characters.   Those with the lean and hungry, raw talent, passion and drive to get ahead.  The essential elements of a good Cyberpunk game and Katana Wielding kenjutsu students.  

Keep the ideas coming, and email me if you're interested in helping out.  All applications considered, but those with an eye for style, flair, daring and the "genre" we're trying to flesh out will be the ones given the second look.  Also, historical accuracy isn't the key here, just fun fun fun.. :)

anyway.. let me know if you'd like to help out..

cheers

jason king

manji @ bigpond.net.au

[Waiwode]

Honour?

The Big SA, in my opinion, is Duty.  Duty to Liege and Duty to Family form an excellent point for stories.  

Is it better to serve a poor master well, or ?

Compassion, Drive, Passions and Destiny all have to stack up against Duty.

Doug.

...Duty is a Mountain, Life is but a Feather.

[Jake Norwood]

I agree, actually. Duty is much more important. Hagakure, and the movie "Ghost Dog" are required for something like this. Preferably the book. It's a wonderful read regardless.

Jake

[Vanguard]

I genuinely love this idea.  If that makes sense, I can see it - the ways in which a system devoted to the vulgar coolness of rough, disenfranchised ronin-types might encourage that cool style of play. A game driven by the art of looking cool. The conflict between asserting presence / bravado and the desire to avoid confrontation. Its more akin to the blustery lifestyle of the criminal fraternity than the gruff, transparent Samurai we're used to.

I'd say SAs like Status (Maintaining an image), Asthetic (trying to pull off something cool, etc... might be more appropriate.

Perhaps a few people on this board have latched onto that more typical approach to playing a samurai; the inhuman machine devoted to their lord, an extension of a liege's will, that meticulous adherant to Bushido. Malechi's contribution sounds it concerns more those living in the shadow of that great ethos, unable to really conform or achieve those lofty ideals, or those who give the appearance of conforming only so long as it benefits them.

If I was not lazy ( hehe) I'd offer my services as artist (that assuming the art would be of a suitable quality, Malechi). In my head, I've got sum wicked pieces already ;)

Good luck on your endeavours,

Marc

ps. I've entertained the idea of developing something along similar-ish lines. Set in a more typical medieval European setting, it revolves around freelance mercenary adventurers. I was trying to get the richness of the high-fantasy D&D world but contrive some plausability ;).

I won't go on too long, nor elaborate on the mythos. What we have is a world repleat with all the trappings of conventional fantasy; wizards, demons, priests, warriors, magic and (more importantly) magic items, etc...  It is a highly institutionalised society. Practise of both magic and worship is highly controlled. These centres of civilisation are saturated with all of this. With channeled power. Beyond the borders, in the wild lands, ancient ruins and powerful beasts roam unmolested.

The cyberpunkiness cums in the form of bound spells and commissioned blessings. Everything is available for the right price, and the appropriate licenses. And should a particular license be out of reach, there is a wealthy and resourceful criminal underground by which more elusive contracts may be acquired. As long as the risk is worth it, and the contact is trustworthy.

A sort of melange of Gibson's 'Neuromancer' and Fritz 'Fahfrd and Gray Mouser' series. Hackers are effecively replaced with mages, corporates by churches and Guilds, drugs by psychics. It is a world where the equivalent of the twentieth level warrior can achieve that near-godliness. As long as the price is right. And he don't mind standing out like a lighting beacon to any passing mage.

It is the D&D style where play is driven by the desire to acquire. But in this respect, the benefits are neither aboslute nor pernament. Being paid-for services, they are susceptible to influence by society, by money, by the person conferring a new 'Trick'. They can be discovered and banished, and the PC reprimanded. 'That's twenty years in the oubliettes for that highly unsanctioned piece of enchantment on ya, mate'. They can be, in themselves, symbols of status. It is not the obligatory + 20 HP per level, +1 Thaco, and new skill.

PLagiarised on Shadowrun, I will admit. But they nicked theirs from Fantasy to begin with.

Oops. Sorry. Rambled on a tad just then.

Bye bye