Re: [HoE] Katanas

[deadlander@juno.com (Templar Simon)]

On Fri, 9 Oct 1998 14:24:44 -0700 "Fuzyn9feet" <Fuzyn9feet@email.msn.com>
writes:

>>The katana was not a parrying weapon (regardless of how popular 
>>media>portrays it)
>
>The Katana was used as a blocking weapon by turning the blade side 
>ways or>backwards (6 years of Kempo) as  the edge was to valuable to be
allow 
>to be>damaged.
>
Apparently I have miscommunicated very poorly on this subject.  I was
referring to the Highlander-esqe style of parrying here.  Where the
opponents face each other off and slam their swords into each other (or
into the surrounding setting) until the director orders one to kill the
other. 

All responses are correct in stating that the katana could be used to
parry an opponents sword.  The most common parry is a sideways slap with
the blade to protect the valuable edge, not a metal-rending edge on edge
parry.  My Aikido instructor also teaches Kenjutsu (not Kendo, which is a
VERY different thing according to him, and he gets a little offended when
the two are mixed up, go figure).  Though I have never shelled out the
cash for the extra classes the Sensei had told us before (when someone
made the mistake of mentioning the latest episode of Highlander in class,
much to that student's later regret) that there are few parries in true
Kenjutsu because the match would usually be settled in one or two strokes
and that a katana is not meant for repeated blade on blade contact.

In Kendo (the sport, not Kenjutsu, the combat art) the contestants have
no trouble repeatedly slamming their shinai (a "sword" formed of split
bamboo) into each other in a flurry of blows.  Bamboo is flexible and can
take the strain.

I do not wish to get into an off-topic argument here so please retaliate
if you wish then let's drop the subject.  My original post was merely an
attempt to state that a person trained in Kenjutsu (probably rare in HoE)
will depend as much on the Dodge aptitude to avoid getting hit as he or
she will depend on parrying the opponent's blow with their katana.  Hence
I gave the katana a low defense modifier, especially if the weapon is
intended to parry the heavy european style blades.

Templar Simon


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