AIKIJUTSU

2 points

including the ability to dodge bullets with ease. In a cinematic game, these
might be a set of secret techniques passed on to exceptional students.
2 points
Aikijutsu (also called Aikijujutsu) was the
Skills: Judo Art; Savoir-Faire (Dojo).
grappling art of the Japanese bushi. Samurai
Techniques: Acrobatic Stand; Arm Lock; Breakfall; Finger Lock;
used its techniques when disarmed, and to sub-
Ground Fighting (Judo Art); Low Fighting (Judo Art).
due foes in situations where using weapons
Cinematic Skills: Immovable Stance; Invisibility Art; Mental Strength;
was forbidden – such as in the presence of one’s
Pressure Points; Push.
lord. Famous schools include Daito-ryu
Cinematic Techniques: Dual-Weapon Attack (Judo Art); Roll with Blow.
Aikijujutsu and Ueshiba Morihei’s Aikijutsu. At
Perks: Power Grappling; Skill Adaptation (Acrobatic Stand defaults to
least one school claiming to date from the 11th
Judo Art).
century still exists today.
Optional Traits
Aikijutsu assumes that the enemy will
Advantages: Cultural Familiarity (Japan); Enhanced Dodge; Inner
resist, and doesn’t wait for him to take the ini-
Balance; Language (Japanese).
tiative. Stylists use few All-Out or Committed
Disadvantages: Delusions.
Attacks, and prefer to avoid directly con-
Skills: Breath Control; Judo; Knife Art; Staff Art; Theology (Omoto);
fronting force with force. A typical move is to
Two-Handed Sword Art.
grapple the opponent, throw him, and then
place him in a painful or crippling lock. Some
schools teach fighters to attack or feint to pro-
voke a reaction, and then take advantage of the
foe’s movement to grapple or throw him. These schools would
add the Karate skill and Feint (Karate) technique, or teach
Jujutsu (pp. 166-168) alongside Aikijutsu.
Historical Aikijutsu schools, especially prior to the
Tokugawa era, assumed that both attacker and defender
would be armored. They taught techniques for grappling,
locking, and disarming an armored opponent on uneven
ground. Even modern schools routinely teach how to defend
against swords, staves, and knives. Faced with an armed
adversary, a stylist would let him attack, then use Disarming
or Arm Lock to take away his weapon or cripple his limb.
Japanese culture regarded rising to one’s feet in the pres-
ence of one’s lord as rude, so a samurai would learn to grapple
with and disarm an assailant attempting to harm his lord
without rising from his knees. For this reason, Aikijutsu teach-
es techniques for use while kneeling.