Poisoned Shadows - Swordsman Schools

Description: Savate is a relatively new fighting style which is gaining popularity among Montaigne sailors and others who are not welcome in the salons of the Valroux School. It combines a variety of kicks with aggressive punches and an assortment of street fighting techniques to create a surprisingly graceful fighting style. However, because most of its practitioners are lower class sailors, and it uses kicks as its main focus, the school is not welcome in the Swordsman’s Guild, and practitioners of Valroux hold it in particular disdain.

The creator of this fighting style is a man named Jean Tireur, a sailor whose journeys took him as far away as the Crescent Empire. He refuses to say exactly where he learned his fighting techniques, only that he perfected some very poorly conceived ideas he encountered in the East. The style takes its name from the Montaigne word savate, or “slipper,” after the traditional footwear of the common Montaigne sailor. Monsieur Tireur still wanders from city to city, teaching his fighting style on the docks of Montaigne to anyone who wishes to learn.

Basic Curriculum: Dirty Fighting, Pugilism

Swordsman Knacks: Leg Sweep, Scissor Kick, Thrust Kick, Exploit Weakness (Savate)

New Swordsman Knacks: Leg Sweep. This Knack (called a Coup de Pied Bas in Montaigne) involves whipping one’s own foot into the side of an opponent’s feet or ankles, throwing him off balance. Use this Knack in place of an Attack Knack. If the kick connects, the Savateur inflicts an 0k1 attack and knocks his opponent prone.

Scissor Kick. Using this Knack (called Ciseaux Figure in Montaigne), a Savateur can attack two opponents with a single action (provided they are standing reasonably close to one another) by leaping up and striking in two directions at once. You must declare that you are using this Knack before you make your attack rolls, then roll once (using this Knack) to hit each opponent with an 0k2 attack. The TN to hit each opponent is raised by 10.

Thrust Kick. This is an aggressive, leaping kick (called a Chassé Lateral in Montaigne) aimed at the opponent’s midsection, and leaving the Savateur open for a moment as he regains his balance. Use this Knack in place of an Attack Knack. If the kick connects, the Savateur inflicts a 2k2 attack on his opponent, but his TN to be hit drops to 5 for that Phase only, and he may not attempt any Active Defenses until the end of the Phase.

Apprentice: The traditional stance of Savate places the Savateur’s left side closest to his opponent, and his attacks are always launched from the leading hand or foot. As a result, a Savateur receives the benefit of the Left Handed Advantage, but only while using this style. In addition, the Savateur learns a maneuver called a Décalage: a defensive movement to the left or the right that translates into extra momentum on a follow-up attack. After successfully performing an Active Defense using Footwork, a Savateur receives a free Raise on his next Attack, provided it is made within a number of Phases equal to the Savateur’s Mastery Level.

When this School is purchased, the Savateur does not gain membership in the Swordsman’s Guild. Instead, he receives a free Rank in the Kick Knack of the Dirty Fighting Skill.

Journeyman: The Journeyman Savateur has learned to put his full strength behind his kicking attacks. All attacks using the Kick Knack or this school’s Swordsman Knacks inflict an extra unkept die (+1k0) of damage.

Master: The Master Savateur has learned to launch a devastating offensive combination (or, in Montaigne, an Enchainement). On his first Action of any Round, he may make a number of Attacks equal to his Panache, using any combination of Attack Knacks found in the Pugilism or Dirty Fighting Skills, as well as this School’s Swordsman Knacks. This flurry of attacks uses all of the Savateur’s Actions for that Round.