Weapon Types

[Umeko]

Hiya, just want to clarify my doubts on Tokugawa era weapons.

Long weapons

Spear - as used by Harada Sanosuke. 'Nuff said.

Naginata - weapon of choice of samurai womenfolk. Umeko favors this weapon. Similar to the Chinese halberd but with a blade at the tip. Supposedly, a trained naginata-wielding woman is capable of holding a doorway against most samurai. Do u know that naginata-training was part of pre-war Meiji gym class in the 1920's for girls?

Staff - Long pole, no explaination req. Made of wood or iron. Used by the warrior monks. A variation has a heavily weighted end so it is more a club.

Jutte - actually a two prong staff. Used by the non-samurai policemen (who don't have the right to wear swords). The prongs can be used to break an opponent's sword if caught. Recommended for use in modern Japan by teachers against increasing fears of schoolyard violence against children.

Samurai Swords

Katana and Wakizashi - Long and short swords worn by most samurai.

Taichi - Long ceremonial sword, longer than a katana.

Ninja Weapons

Shuriken - pointy star-shapped darts.

Kunai - short dagger-like blade, can be used as a projectile or for close combat

Needles - as used by that blond 'Akesato' kunoichi

Kenpo/ Tessan (hope I get the name right) - a fan basically, often with blades on the edge.

Extra: The Chinese have a similar traditional weapon in the 'Unusual weapons' class. Others include the flute, bench and umbrella. The umbrella is still taught as a practical means of self-defense to incapacitate would-be muggers.

Others

Bow and arrow- Used in siege warfare against attackers during the warring era of Japan. More a peasant's weapon.

Musket - introduced to Japan by the Portugese. Use of musket infantry helped establish Tokugawa rule. Also a peasant aka non-samurai weapon.

Another woman's weapon is the tanto or dagger as carried around by Tomoe in RK. Actually, I doubt it qualifies as a weapon given the reason girls wear a tanto in their obi is to end their own lives in the event of getting kidnapped by bandits etc. rather than face potential humiliation and dishonor.

Any corrections or additions?

[choshumember15]

Wow! Your like a mind reader, I was just searching the web, becuase I forgot what kunai's are, and i needed them for a fanfcition i was wrting. Thankies! =^-^=

[Umeko]

Oops, missed out a side note on archery. Although a peasant's weapon in warfare, it was a part of essential samurai training. Kryuudo as it is called, is a sport for nobles in the feudal Japan. Contestants try to hit a target from horseback as they gallop past. In the past, failure to hit the target equals seppuku. Thankfully, they eased up the rules later.

It is still a Japanese sport today.

Other weapons that I missed out:

Tonfa- As used by Okina against Aoshi in RK. Made of bamboo.

Kodachi- Short sword, as used by Aoshi.

[Otemba]

wow ur like a freakin' walkin' weaponry dictionary...that's a lot of info! Freakin' awesome!

[Umeko]

Aw, shucks... I just happen to know a bit about classical weapons.

Oh yes, the bokken and shinai (made of wood or bamboo) are more used for training purposes although a master can use a wooden sword to disarm an enemy with an actual sword.

[Gentatsu]

I own a jutte and I can say it is not a long weapon. A jutte has one arm on it kind of like a sai's. It is about 15 inches long. Jutte literally means power of ten hands because it can be used for disarming the sword. Samurai police did use them in conjunction with the katana. The jutte techniques were very much like jujutsu techniques.

[Mibbie.]

n______n Thats cool....I can't wait, someday I'm going to get my own sword set! I Loooooove pointy objects!! *___* and cuz all my favorite characters from PMK uses a katana!

[Otemba]

Katanas Rule! That's very useful info u got there Okita! thnx!^^

[Flame]

I've heard of female ninjas hiding poisoned weapons in their hair, but for the life of me I can't remember what its called. Can you help a fellow weapon afficianado out?

[Pendance]

No sure what its called but it was practiced oftern by female Ninjas known as Kunoichi, ill have to figure it out, i never new it had a name for itself

[Flame]

it was probably just the throwing needles. But if anyone finds something out let me know

[Umeko]

Another potential candidate is the hairpin-dagger. It is favored by female assassins for dispatching their victims close up and personal . Normally, they are long, sharp needle-like hair accesories. They can pass as an ordinary woman's hairpin. Poison is sometimes used to ensure certain death.

Side note: In China, there is a swordstyle derived from the use of such hairpin-like daggers by women. I believe it was developed by the Emei Sect.

So it is possible that the weapons you are refering to are hairpins. Kunoichis often go undercover as geishas, prostitutes or ordinary women. Carrying their weapon (a hairpin) in their hair was definitely less attention-calling than carrying their kodachis.

[Umeko]

More ninja weapons.

Since the ninjas were mainly of peasant/ farming backgrounds, their weapons of choice are borrowed from farming tools. Like shears, sycthe, sickle and chain etc.

The weapons tend to be compact and easy to hide and carry on person.

A common weapon is a length of iron chain with a small weight at the end. This weapon can be hidden in a sleeve. Another weapon is the claws used for scaling castle walls. These claws are worn on the hands. Can be used as weapons.

In RK, when the ninjas tried to kill Kenshin, they used a claw-like weapon attached to a chain. I find this very fascinating as there is an equivalent weapon used by assassins in popular Chinese wuxia movies. Instead of a claw, they have a basket with retractable blades for the base.

It is called the Flying Guillotine. The plot often runs: assassin waits for target to make mistake (like opening window for fresh air), sends the guillotine sailing onto the vic's head, yanks on the chain with a flick of the wrist, ripping off vic's head in the process, collects basket and head, runs off along roofs to collect on payment with head as proof of success.

P.S. Pre Crouching tiger, Hidden Dragon Chinese wuxia scriptwiters are devilishly cunning. They have an alternative ending when assassin meets hero. Hero will merrily brave the sea of flying baskets in mid air, kicking them back at the assassins, then he will land on the criss-crossed chains and behead all the assassins in one slick move. Once the assassins are out of the pic, hero either goes off to drink, or sends the heads back to their employer with a challenge to duel. (Sometimes it's the heroine who gets the fun)