From:	Marc A Renouf <jormung@*****.UMICH.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Katanas
Date:	Wed, 28 Jun 1995 11:26:40 -0400

Aaaaaarrrgh. The katana does not do extra damage because of
superior craftsmanship, better edge, better balance, or any other of a
horde of pseudo-mystic "Japanese swords are just better" over-romanticized
crap. By the time 2050 rolls around, I'd doubt that there are very few
master swordsmiths still operating, so pretty much everyone will have the
cheap stuff.
There are two reasons a katana does more damage. The simplest is
because it is generally (though not always) wielded in two hands. The
other is in the way that it is used. European-style baldes are really
just edged bludgeoning weapons. You use its weight and your own brute
strength to try to hammer through their armor and bones (foil, epee, etc.
are obvious exceptions to this). A katana, on the other hand, is used in
an entirely different manner. The vast tissue-damaging potential comes
from the fact that most of the strikes are a sliding/slashing strike
rather than a chop or smash. Thus, by using the edge as it was
intended, one causes much more woundage. Tap your hand gently against a
razor blade. Nothing happens. Now slide your gently along that same
blade. Oooops. You're cut. Wow! it's deep, too! A katana works the
same way. In many cases, contact with the opponent's body is made only
6-8 inches from the tsuba (roundish guard), and the blade is then drawn
along its own length, letting the blade do its work. This is why Great
pain is usually taken to keep from hitting hard objects edge-on so as
not to chip the edge.
Sorry, I just had to answer this one. Everytime subjects like
the katana come up, people get all starry-eyed and say "gosh, they're so
cool" without ever really knowing the true reasons why.

Marc