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Message no. 1
From: BrotherJustice50@***.com BrotherJustice50@***.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 09:28:50 EDT
What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very similar to the katana?
Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by the "ninja" clans? Or am I way
off base here? I just remember somewhere hearing about a straight bladed katana type
sword.
Message no. 2
From: Scot Hayworth scoth@*********.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 07:33:59 -0600
What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very similar
to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by the "ninja"
clans? Or am I way off base here? I just remember somewhere hearing about a
straight bladed katana type sword.

not that I am a weapons expert or anything....but isn't it called a 'ninja
to'?

I just remember something about that.

Scot Hayworth
The Frontier of our minds,
is the last place we find,
but maybe the first place we should go.
Message no. 3
From: Grzegorz Ruminski gburus@***.univ.szczecin.pl
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 15:34:26 +0200 (METDST)
> What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very similar to the
katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by the "ninja" clans? Or
am I way off base here? I just remember somewhere hearing about a straight bladed katana
type sword.
It is called ninja-to.


--
And she comes down to me
And she offers me sleep
Under her black wings
Glenn Danzig
Message no. 4
From: Sommers sommers@*****.umich.edu
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 09:38:42 -0400
At 09:28 AM 5/11/00, BrotherJustice50@***.com wrote:
>What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very similar
>to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by the
>"ninja" clans? Or am I way off base here? I just remember somewhere
>hearing about a straight bladed katana type sword.

Ninja-to. Straight bladed sword, similar to a katana, but a little shorter
and usually much inferior in quality. Many also had several "tricks" built
into them, such as throwing stars forming the guard, throwing spikes inset
into the grip, and the sheath being used as a blowpipe.


Sommers
Aerospace engineers build weapon systems. Civil engineers build targets.
Message no. 5
From: BrotherJustice50@***.com BrotherJustice50@***.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 09:38:48 EDT
Thanks all for the speedy assistance. Anybody know a place I can find a decent picture of
it?
Message no. 6
From: One Ronin ronin@*******.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 13:43:37 GMT
>What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very similar
>to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by the
>"ninja"
>clans? Or am I way off base here? I just remember somewhere hearing about a
>straight bladed katana type sword.
>
>not that I am a weapons expert or anything....but isn't it called a 'ninja
>to'?
>
>I just remember something about that.
>
>Scot Hayworth
>The Frontier of our minds,
>is the last place we find,
>but maybe the first place we should go.

Yes Scot, you are correct. Ninja-to is the name of the straight-bladed
sword used by the Ninja in ancient Japan. The blade was straight for
utility purposes.....the sword functioned as tool as well as a weapon.

The tanto is the "knife" companion to the katana/wakizashi pair.

"There are very few personal problems that cannot be solved through the
suitable application of sharp edged weapons."

-Ronin
ICQ #: 11373195





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Message no. 7
From: Alfredo B Alves dghost@****.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 09:43:36 -0500
On Thu, 11 May 2000 09:28:50 EDT BrotherJustice50@***.com writes:
> What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very
> similar to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly
> used by the "ninja" clans? Or am I way off base here? I just
> remember somewhere hearing about a straight bladed katana type
> sword.

Ninjato.
Hishi, Tanto, and Kozuka are dagger like weapons used by commoners,
warriors, and ninja/geisha respectively.
The Wakizashi is equivelant to the short sword and only Samurai are
allowed to carry them with the Katana.

Need anything else?

--
D. Ghost
Profanity is the one language all programmers know best
- Troutman's 6th programming postulate.

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Message no. 8
From: Grey metis76@*****.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 08:59:10 -0700 (PDT)
<snip>
> Ninjato.
> Hishi, Tanto, and Kozuka are dagger like weapons
> used by commoners,
> warriors, and ninja/geisha respectively.
> The Wakizashi is equivelant to the short sword and
> only Samurai are
> allowed to carry them with the Katana.
>
> Need anything else?

What would the stats for the above five weapons be?

Grey

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Message no. 9
From: Paul J. Adam ShadowRN@********.demon.co.uk
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 17:02:46 +0100
In article <c3.535e657.264c11e8@***.com>, BrotherJustice50@***.com
writes
>Thanks all for the speedy assistance. Anybody know a place I can find a decent
>picture of it?

Try

http://store.knifecenter.com/pgi-Product%20Spec?UC702


--
Paul J. Adam
Message no. 10
From: Marc Renouf renouf@********.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 14:25:46 -0400 (EDT)
On Thu, 11 May 2000 BrotherJustice50@***.com wrote:

> What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese style sword, very
> similar to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a blade commonly used by
> the "ninja" clans? Or am I way off base here? I just remember somewhere
> hearing about a straight bladed katana type sword.

Aaaaaaaaarrrrrgggh! No. A ninja-to is *not* straight. And you
don't wear it on your back unless you're climbing. And the ones that have
all the little "goodies" in them are made for tourists.
Yes, a ninja-to is shorter than a katana. Many times, they were
made from broken blades scavenged off battlefields (if a katana breaks at
the habaki (just above the tsuba or "guard") and you grind a new tang and
put a new tsuka (or "hilt") on it, you end up with a weapon that (since
the blade is shorter) tends to have less apparent curvature than a katana
or tachi. But it is *far* from straight.
Furthermore, ideally a ninja-to is indistinguishable from a katana
when sheathed. In orther words, it has exactly the same kind of saya (or
"sheath") as a katana, even though it's much shorter. Often the sageo
(which is the silk cord used to secure the sword in your belt) is actually
longer, but that's hard to tell just by looking at it.
The major advantages of a ninja-to are two-fold. First, since it
is much shorter in overall length, it can be used much more effectively in
close quarters. Also, since it has the same length hilt as a katana, the
hilt makes up a higher percentage of the sword's overall length. This has
some interesting effects on the amount of leverage you can generate with
the sword.
Second, since the blade is so much shorter, it comes out of the
saya like lightning. In the time it takes to draw a katana, the ninja-to
is already out and cutting.
Where it gives up advantages is in the open. Against a katana you
have a serious reach disadvantage, and most of the techniques that one
learns for using the ninja-to are designed to compensate for that
disadvantage as best as they can.
Basically, forget all the Hollywood fluff. Think of the ninja-to
as a shortened version of the katana (with everything that entails), and
you'll be set.

Marc

P.S. - a tanto is a knife with a blade typically in the 8-12 inch range.
Like its bigger cousins, the blade is slightly curved and sharp only on a
single edge.
Message no. 11
From: Raveness Ravensbane ravenessravensbane@*****.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 11:59:07 -0700 (PDT)
> > What is the name of the straight bladed Japanese
> style sword, very
> > similar to the katana? Isn't it called a tanto, a
> blade commonly used by
> > the "ninja" clans? Or am I way off base here? I
> just remember somewhere
> > hearing about a straight bladed katana type sword.
>
> Aaaaaaaaarrrrrgggh! No. A ninja-to is *not*
> straight. And you
> don't wear it on your back unless you're climbing.
> And the ones that have
> all the little "goodies" in them are made for
> tourists.
> Yes, a ninja-to is shorter than a katana. Many
> times, they were
> made from broken blades scavenged off battlefields
> (if a katana breaks at
> the habaki (just above the tsuba or "guard") and you
> grind a new tang and
> put a new tsuka (or "hilt") on it, you end up with a
> weapon that (since
> the blade is shorter) tends to have less apparent
> curvature than a katana
> or tachi. But it is *far* from straight.
> Furthermore, ideally a ninja-to is
> indistinguishable from a katana
> when sheathed. In orther words, it has exactly the
> same kind of saya (or
> "sheath") as a katana, even though it's much
> shorter. Often the sageo
> (which is the silk cord used to secure the sword in
> your belt) is actually
> longer, but that's hard to tell just by looking at
> it.
> The major advantages of a ninja-to are two-fold.
> First, since it
> is much shorter in overall length, it can be used
> much more effectively in
> close quarters. Also, since it has the same length
> hilt as a katana, the
> hilt makes up a higher percentage of the sword's
> overall length. This has
> some interesting effects on the amount of leverage
> you can generate with
> the sword.
> Second, since the blade is so much shorter, it
> comes out of the
> saya like lightning. In the time it takes to draw a
> katana, the ninja-to
> is already out and cutting.
> Where it gives up advantages is in the open.
> Against a katana you
> have a serious reach disadvantage, and most of the
> techniques that one
> learns for using the ninja-to are designed to
> compensate for that
> disadvantage as best as they can.
> Basically, forget all the Hollywood fluff. Think
> of the ninja-to
> as a shortened version of the katana (with
> everything that entails), and
> you'll be set.
>
> Marc
>
> P.S. - a tanto is a knife with a blade typically in
> the 8-12 inch range.
> Like its bigger cousins, the blade is slightly
> curved and sharp only on a
> single edge.

Man, I don't know about shadowrun, but this is going
to make me look smart next time I play Legend of the 5
Rings... Thanks Marc!

Do they actually have a source book in SR for say the
Oriental areas like China, Tiwian or Japan? (I don't
think they do or I'd have it) If anyone has any ideas
of what it might be like...it might be an interesting
stop for my gaming group, something they wouldn't
expect... *evil gm grin*

====~Raveness

http://www.sova.net/trish/roleplaying/shadowrun/pocketsecretary/

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Message no. 12
From: Alfredo B Alves dghost@****.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 15:28:49 -0500
On Thu, 11 May 2000 11:59:07 -0700 (PDT) Raveness Ravensbane
<ravenessravensbane@*****.com> writes:
<SNIP>
> Do they actually have a source book in SR for say the
> Oriental areas like China, Tiwian or Japan? (I don't
> think they do or I'd have it) If anyone has any ideas
> of what it might be like...it might be an interesting
> stop for my gaming group, something they wouldn't
> expect... *evil gm grin*

Wait ... you GM too? Someone clone this woman quick! ;)

IIRC, there is a net.book on Japan called something like Imperial Japan.

--
D. Ghost
Profanity is the one language all programmers know best
- Troutman's 6th programming postulate.

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Message no. 13
From: Paul J. Adam ShadowRN@********.demon.co.uk
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Thu, 11 May 2000 23:24:28 +0100
In article <Pine.GSO.3.95.1000511140422.19768C-100000@******>, Marc
Renouf <renouf@********.com> writes
> Yes, a ninja-to is shorter than a katana. Many times, they were
>made from broken blades scavenged off battlefields (if a katana breaks at
>the habaki (just above the tsuba or "guard") and you grind a new tang and
>put a new tsuka (or "hilt") on it, you end up with a weapon that (since
>the blade is shorter) tends to have less apparent curvature than a katana
>or tachi. But it is *far* from straight.

Weren't many wakizashi and tanto from the same source? (broken katana?)


--
Paul J. Adam
Message no. 14
From: Simon and Fiona sfuller@******.com.au
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Fri, 12 May 2000 11:28:40 +1000
-----Original Message-----
From: Raveness Ravensbane <ravenessravensbane@*****.com>
To: shadowrn@*********.com <shadowrn@*********.com>
Date: Friday, May 12, 2000 5:01 AM
Subject: Re: Quick Weapon Question



>Do they actually have a source book in SR for say the
>Oriental areas like China, Tiwian or Japan? (I don't
>think they do or I'd have it) If anyone has any ideas
>of what it might be like...it might be an interesting
>stop for my gaming group, something they wouldn't
>expect... *evil gm grin*
>
Possibly Target: Awakened Lands will have a bit of the Pacific Rim. All
anyone seems to know is that it will be featuring Australia (which is enough
for me to buy it). Does anyone know where else will be included?
Message no. 15
From: Marc Renouf renouf@********.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Fri, 12 May 2000 10:33:51 -0400 (EDT)
On Thu, 11 May 2000, Paul J. Adam wrote:

> > Yes, a ninja-to is shorter than a katana. Many times, they were
> >made from broken blades scavenged off battlefields...
>
> Weren't many wakizashi and tanto from the same source? (broken katana?)

That is correct. What you made out of a broken blade was highly
dependent on where the blade broke.

Marc
Message no. 16
From: Brian T Sniffen brians@***.EDU
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: 12 May 2000 10:36:01 -0400
Marc Renouf <renouf@********.com> writes:

> Aaaaaaaaarrrrrgggh! No. A ninja-to is *not* straight. And you
> don't wear it on your back unless you're climbing. And the ones that have
> all the little "goodies" in them are made for tourists.

Do tourists normally require a sword, throwing stars, a spike, and a
blowgun to take out, or is that just in Japan? Gives whole new meaning
to the phrase, "invasion of Japanese tourists"...

-Brian
Message no. 17
From: Marc Renouf renouf@********.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Fri, 12 May 2000 10:41:35 -0400 (EDT)
On 12 May 2000, Brian T Sniffen wrote:

> > Aaaaaaaaarrrrrgggh! No. A ninja-to is *not* straight. And you
> > don't wear it on your back unless you're climbing. And the ones that have
> > all the little "goodies" in them are made for tourists.
>
> Do tourists normally require a sword, throwing stars, a spike, and a
> blowgun to take out, or is that just in Japan? Gives whole new meaning
> to the phrase, "invasion of Japanese tourists"...

Smartass. :)

Marc
Message no. 18
From: Alfredo B Alves dghost@****.com
Subject: Quick Weapon Question
Date: Tue, 16 May 2000 13:27:51 -0500
On Thu, 11 May 2000 08:59:10 -0700 (PDT) Grey <metis76@*****.com> writes:
> <snip>
> > Ninjato.
> > Hishi, Tanto, and Kozuka are dagger like weapons
> > used by commoners,
> > warriors, and ninja/geisha respectively.
> > The Wakizashi is equivelant to the short sword and
> > only Samurai are
> > allowed to carry them with the Katana.
> >
> > Need anything else?

> What would the stats for the above five weapons be?

Weapon Conc Reach Damage Weight Avail Cost St Ind Legal
Ninjato 5 1 [S+1]M .75 ?/? ? ? 6-B
Hishi 8 0 [S]M .5 ?/? ? ? 6-A
Tanto 7 0 [S+1]M .5 ?/? ? ? 7-A
Kozuka 9 0 [S-1]M .25 ?/? ? ? 8-A
Wakizashi 5 0 [S+2]M .75 ?/? ? ? 7-B

I'm sure these are wrong but oh well, they should suffice for the
non-purist. ;)

--
D. Ghost
Profanity is the one language all programmers know best
- Troutman's 6th programming postulate.

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