"Katanas are two-handed swords" = Dude, do you even kenjutsu?

[nephilimnexus]

Myamoto Musashi[www.historyoffighting.com] his own bad self would disagree.

Yes, it can be used with both hands, just you like you can ride a motorcycle in the rain with no helmet. But as stated in the Book of Five Rings[www.johnstuart.biz], the katana is a one-handed weapon meant to be paired with a wakizashi. The daisho[www.militaria.co.za] is what was taught and exemplify how it was meant to be used.

Maybe you were actually thinking of the no-dachi[www.hyoho.com]?

Please do just a little homework[ratracegrad.com] next time, Funcom. Thanks!

(Seriously, you're trying to sell to people who like fantasy RPGs. We eat this kind of stuff for breakfast. Now to sit back and watch the trolls roll in, as always.)

[Reverend Belial]

Serious question here: I thought the point of a wakizashi was to be a backup weapon, not paired like a main gauche?

[MeTaLAnGeR]

And I thought the Wakizachi was meant to be a "only" close-quarters combat weapon. :/

[Ave]

who cares, their damage sucks and charging up the weapon takes too long, its just another useless adition.

[Crv0z]

Its easy on the marketing to just call it katana...

[Lupin III]

99.99999999e% of samurai were not Musashi, and used the katana as a two handed sword.

[Azrad Al'Azif]

Originally posted by Lupin III:

99.99999999e% of samurai were not Musashi, and used the katana as a two handed sword.

99% is exaggerated. But Musashi was writing a lot about why the other styles suck. So I guess his fighting style was not that common.

[CAV]

The Wakizashi, was to be used in confined environments. Miyamoto Musashi stated, that he would only use two swords, against multiple opponents of lesser skill. Against skilled opponents, the Katana is used with two hands, always.

[Kameraden]

I see this thread and I'm already face palming. It's like arguing over a Colt 1911 and P08 Luger on which is more reliable when it's completely situational.

Only game I can recall that provides a two sword and one handed fighting styles for the Katana are the Way of the Samurai games, and only for specific styles, that do have major cons for using them that way.

It's pointless to complain, unless you're a die hard shield user that just wants to use a Katana with a shield. They would have to make a Katana set that comes with an additional weapon similar to Daggers, as there isn't an option currently to make it so you can carry and use two swords at once. So I don't see why this thread exist.

[ULTRA]

Originally posted by Lupin III:

99.99999999e% of samurai were not Musashi, and used the katana as a two handed sword.

lol

no

the katana is a sabre, which means it's for use from horseback against mostly unarmored opponents (i.e. one-handed)

you can see from the curve that it's meant to be swung at an oblique angle, like off the side of a horse

dueling weapons tend to have more of a thrusting action because it has more penetrative force

none of this matters because a katana would never cut through any competent armor, it's obviously just in the game as a ninja weapon for use by video game ninjas

[Lupin III]

Originally posted by Mountain Man:

Originally posted by Lupin III:

99.99999999e% of samurai were not Musashi, and used the katana as a two handed sword.

lol

no

the katana is a sabre, which means it's for use from horseback against mostly unarmored opponents (i.e. one-handed)

you can see from the curve that it's meant to be swung at an oblique angle, like off the side of a horse

dueling weapons tend to have more of a thrusting action because it has more penetrative force

none of this matters because a katana would never cut through any competent armor, it's obviously just in the game as a ninja weapon for use by video game ninjas

The katana was not a cavalry weapon. Mounted samurai used a spear.

[Elvis Prime]

I appreciate the back and forth geekiness in this thread. I approve.

[Commisar Jon Fuklaw]

VEGETA! WHAT DOES THE WEEBER SAY? IT'S OVER 9000!

[Ragnarök]

Originally posted by Mountain Man:

lol

no

the katana is a sabre, which means it's for use from horseback against mostly unarmored opponents (i.e. one-handed)

you can see from the curve that it's meant to be swung at an oblique angle, like off the side of a horse

dueling weapons tend to have more of a thrusting action because it has more penetrative force

none of this matters because a katana would never cut through any competent armor, it's obviously just in the game as a ninja weapon for use by video game ninjas

The Katana is a two-handed short saber that is relatively heavy for its length. The grip length is all you need to look at to determine how it's used. Does that mean it can't be used single handedly? No, it's just less ideal.

The curve in the blade has nothing to do with being used by cavalry, but rather it's a byproduct of the lower quality steels used that contract during the quench. The cooling warps the sword because the core is made of pig iron or soft steel. The curvature of most katanas isn't even all that pronounced, the Indian Tulwar and the Afghan Pulwar are both curved far more and both were infantry weapons as well as cavalry sidearms.

Yari, Naginata and Yumi were the main weapons of the Samurai. The Katana was just a sidearm.

[Ragnarök]

As an aside, the Katana should not have the same armor penetration as the Great Sword at any phase of its combo. It's unbalanced given that the Great Sword is only able to apply a cripple effect, which is practically negated by a perk that just about everyone geared for combat will have anyway. Not to mention how already op bleed is as a condition.

[Tambam]

Originally posted by Ragnarök:

As an aside, the Katana should not have the same armor penetration as the Great Sword at any phase of its combo. It's unbalanced given that the Great Sword is only able to apply a cripple effect, which is practically negated by a perk that just about everyone geared for combat will have anyway. Not to mention how already op bleed is as a condition.

While I agree a bit about bleed and the armor pen - greatsword sunders, not just cripple. It's longsword that only cripples.
2 sunder hits on the last heavy combo for GS.