Sword Of The Samurai FAQ/Walkthrough

Sword Of The Samurai FAQ/Walkthrough
Copyright 2004 Gary McEnroe
Email: [email protected]
AIM: darkelfgazza
Version 1.11

========
CONTENTS
========
INTRO
VERSION INFO
CONTROLS
WALKTHROUGH
SWORD LIST
SKILL LIST
'Ko' Attack Skills
'Tai' Parry Skills
'Ken' Break Defense Skills
CHARACTER LIST
Araki Matemon
Chiba Shusaku
Higuchi Sadatsugu
Horibe Yasubei
Kondo Isami
Morooka Ippa
Miyamoto Musashi
Okada Izo
Oishi Susumu
Sasaki Kojiro
Sakamoto Ryoma
Tsuji Gettan
Takayanagi Matashiro
Togo Shigetaka
Yagyu Hyogonosuke
Yagyu Jubei
THANKS TO
LEGAL STUFF

=====
INTRO
=====
Welcome to my Sword of the Samurai FAQ/Walkthrough! ^.^ This is my first
attempt at something like this, so bare with me. Anyway, my main reason
for writing this was the fact that every other game I've played already
has plenty of stuff on GameFAQs, and this game is pretty unknown.
Apparently, it's unavailable in the US, which is a rarity. But hopefully
some of you will have had this game imported from the UK or Japan, and
if you haven't I'd suggest you try to import it, or get a copy from a
friend who has it. It's a really good game.
Anyway, enough intro, onto the other stuff!

============
VERSION INFO
============
v.1.00
Guide started, added most of the content. Still need to add the walkthrough,
'Tai' and 'Ken' skill lists, sword list, and Kengo Original Form lists

v.1.10
Added the swords and the beginning of the walkthrough.

v.1.11
Fixed the layout
========
CONTROLS
========
Ok I suck at ASCII art so I'm going to give that a miss and go for text
only, sorry ^__^'

MENU SCREENS
D-Pad Select Option
L-Analog Select Option
X Confirm
Triangle Cancel
Start Skip Messages

BATTLE
D-Pad Movement
L-Analog Movement
Circle 'Ko' Attack
X 'Tai' Parry
Square 'Ken' Break Defense
L1 Hold to Run
R1 Draw/Sheathe Sword
L2 Change Forms
R2 Change Forms
Start Pause

===========
WALKTHROUGH
===========
Character Creation:
If this is your first time through, you won't have many parts avaliable to
create your samurai. You should have 6 heads and 6 bodies, and you can put
them together any way you wish really. When you have selected the head and
body, you will then have to name your samurai, and when that's done you will
be shown your samurai and given a list of his stats. Press X to continue.

Now then, I'm going to be talking about four different types of oppenent
throughout the walkthrough.

Kengo: Any of the samurai you get the change to duel with once you reach
Edo. These guys are the cream of the crop, and it may take you many attempts
to defeat one. Also, the Kengo are all historical samurai, two of the most
well known are Yagyu Jubei and Miyamoto Musashi.

Samurai: There are five samurai you will fight many times. When you created
your character, the five characters left will become your samurai rivals.
The female samurai, S.Rin, won't show up until later though (unless you
chose her as your character).
The samurai are;
S. Hyoma
I. Jurisho
A. Sakyo
Y. Gen'nojo
S. Rin
H. Yunosuke

Swordsmen: These are your basic opponents when you're not dueling with
Kengo or Samurai. These guys come in many different forms, from peasants
to soldiers to ninjas.

Students: Each Dojo has it's students, and when you train at a dojo, you
can engage in a bout with one of these students. The students aren't really
much better than the Swordsmen, but the students of the Edo dojos will use
specific 'Ko', 'Tai' and 'Ken' forms from their own dojo, whereas the other
students tend to use moves from the Mu-Ryu forms.

Your First Duel:
The game will begin with your samurai crossing a bridge at a small village
near Edo called Chiaraijima, and observing two swordsmen fighting. One will
be an ordinary run-of-the-mill swordsman, and the other, the victor, will be
one of your samurai rivals. You will fight these guys at the Governor's
Tournament, the local Tournament and the Outdoor Tournaments, and when you
reach Edo, you will also be able to compete with these guys for their swords
in the Betting Match. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
You will challenge the samurai to a duel, and your first duel will commence.
You will only have two forms to begin with, and I recommend staying with the
first form. When your oppenent is near, keep an eye on him. The instant you
see him start to attack, hold the X button on your controller. If your
timing is right, your bokken (wooden sword) will block his attack and
send his sword back, leaving him open to an attack from you. Tap the
Circle button to attack, but be careful. If your foe locks weapons
with you, move the analogue stick in any direction to dodge away from
his upcoming counter attack. 3 times out of 4 you will dodge it, but
if he moves in the same direction as you, chances are he'll hit you and
take a hefty chunk out of your health.
Whether you win or lose the battle will be down to your luck and skill.
People playing the game through for a second time will no doubt handle
this fight easily.
If you win, you will be approached by the local Recruiter, who will
invite you to stop by his offices at some point.
If you lose, the head master of the Muraoka Dojo will approach you and
offer you to come train with him and his students.
Either way, you'll end up at your house after resting. This concludes Day 1

Chiaraijima Village:
When you are at home, you are in a menu screen of sorts. You can choose
to go out into the village and visit the dojos or the recruiter, or one
of the Tournaments. You can also check your samurai's stats and what forms
he has, and set up your existing forms. I won't bother trying to explain
it, as it's easy to learn, although it may look complicated at first. Be
sure to create a third form. Chances are you learned a new stance from your
first duel, and a couple of new forms, so try setting up your third form.
You can also save your game or exit to the title screen. And you can rest
for a day to recover your strength.
When you are ready, select the top option, Movement, to go visit the village.
If you won the battle, visit the Recruiter to learn of the Muraoka Dojo.
If you lost the battle, the Dojo will already be on your locations list.
Either way, pay a visit to the Dojo.

Muraoka Dojo:
You are given two option. Join the Dojo, and challenge the students and
head master to a bout. You'll have to join the dojo if you want to be able
to advance to Edo.
If you are a first time player, I highly recommend you go through the
boring lessons. It'll earn you new forms and teach you the basics of gameplay.
If you are already familiar with all the basics of gameplay, then just go
straight to the advancement tests.
After the long process of completing the lessons, you must then go visit
the two other local dojos and defeat their students and the masters in bouts.
It may take you several tries to defeat the masters, but it's fairly easy to
learn their attacks and to learn when to block them.

==========
SWORD LIST
==========
SWORD NAME OWNER
Normal Sword You at first, everyone after you collect all swords
Bizen Ichimonji T. Shigetaga
Hirosada
Ichimonji
Inoue Shinkai
Kanemichi
Kanemitsu
Kanesada
Kanesige
Kaneuji
Kiyomaro
Ko Ichimonji
Kotetsu
Kunikane
Kunimitsu
Kunisada
Magoruku
Masahide
Masamune
Masatsune
Meiju
Mitsutada O. Susumu
Munechika
Muramasa
Nagamitsu
Naotane
Raikunitoshi
Raikuniyuki
Samouji
Shigekuni
Sukehiro
Tadayoshi O. Izo
Yasutsugu
Yasatsuna
Yoshiyuki

==========
SKILL LIST
==========
'KO' ATTACK SKILLS
FORM SCHOOL SKILL NAME
Drawing Ohoha Itto Drawing Slash
Shinto Munen Soul Harvest
Tatsumi Drawing Shadow
Ta-Ryu Fan Flash

Upper Ohoha Itto Dragonfly Strike
Twin Tiger Slash
Shinto Munen Triple Tiger Slash
Twin Tiger Slash
Tatsumi Serpent's Gate
Three Tigers
Ta-Ryu Trinity Slash
Tumbling Slash
Crazed Hilt
Phantom Cross
Waterfall Dance
Mad Gouge
Spirit Maker

Up-Left Ta-Ryu Trunk Split
Scarred Ground
Turning Wind
Fast Ground
Three Dragons

Left Ta-Ryu Cloud Cleave
Iron Wind
Kage Slash

Lo-Left Ta-Ryu Sitting Reaper
Dragon Grin
Sakura Whip
Tiger Strike
Sinking Blade
Tiger's Tail
Volcano Dance

Lower Ohoha Itto Triple Rising Slash
Rising Slash
Shinto Munen Triple Thrust
Tatsumi Break Attack
Ta-Ryu Blazing Axe
Pound Iron
Slow Reaper
Strafe Slash
Bursting Boar

Lo-Right Ohoha Itto Triple Needle Flow
Needle Flow
Shinto Munen Triple Climbing Clouds
Climbing Clouds
Tatsumi Triple Climbing Clouds
Climbing Clouds
Ta-Ryu Blade Rein
Sliding Stab
Rushing Water
Snapdragon's Kiss
Shooting Star

Right Ta-Ryu Break Plank
Kicking Hammer
Break Tile
Kicking Slash
Brush Stab
Coiled Snake

Up-Right Tatsumi Triple Spinning
Spinning Crown
Ta-Ryu Triple Spinning
Cold Rake
Sinking Hilt
Eel Split
Gaze Beyond
Triple Axe

Centre Ohoha Itto Ghost Blossom
Tiger Slash
Shinto Munen Heavy Hew
Strong Hew
Tatsumi Serpent Slash
Tiger Slash
Ta-Ryu Star Cannon
Slicing Silk
Lightning Gouge
Pouring Heaven
Creeping Blade
Heart Cleave
Kojiro's Path
Burning Torch
Forking Flame
Snake Charge
Hydra Dance

'TAI' PARRY SKILLS
Coming soon...

'KEN' BREAK DEFENSE SKILLS
Coming soon...

==============
CHARACTER LIST
==============
Araki Mataemon
Edo Yagyu School
Born: Iga Province (Nie Prefecture)
Style: Taiken
Bio: Calm and composed, he is known for carefully laid plans. A fencing
master of Yamato Province, he is beloved by his family for his big
heart and completely trusted by his Lord.

Chiba Shusaku
Ga-Ryu
Born: Rikuzen Province (Miyagi Prefecture)
Style: Seiken
Bio: Known as the Skilled Chiba, he is the owner of superior skill, and
also an incisive mind, a rare commodity among great swordsmen. He
attacks the '3 places' of the opponent's initial move, the opponent's
receiving a sword and exhausting his skills.

Higuchi Sadatsugu
Ga-Ryu
Born: Uemo Province (Gumma Prefecture)
Style: Taiken
Bio: Follows the philosophy of a style devoted to 'defense'. He has
enough physical strength to break through the enemy's defenses and
strike the top of his head, and also the agility to parry the enemy's
sword quickly.

Horibe Yasubei
Disciple of Higuchi Sadatsugu
Born: Echigo Province (Niigata Prefecture)
Style: Taiken
Bio: The epitome of the rustic bumpkin, in the narrow sense. He has
managed to defeat powerful swordsmen in acts of vengeance. He has been
a kendo teacher at many domains, so he is well known among the domain
samurai.

Kondo Isami
Ga-Ryu
Born: Musashi Province (Tokyo)
Style: Goken
Bio: His fencing is no great shakes, but he is a man of courage. He
does not fear losing his life under the sword. All is spirit (kiai).
Cutting is all courage: I use no subtle techniques.

Morooka Ippa
Ga-Ryu
Born: Hitachi Province (Ibaraki Prefecture)
Style: Seiken
Bio: He uses footwork and swordsmanship to control the enemy's sword
and win. His exquisite fencing and sharp swordsmanship are said to be
the 'second coming of Iizasa Choisai', founder of the oldest School in
Japan.

Miyamoto Musashi
Ga-Ryu
Born: Banshu (Hyogo Prefecture)
Style: Nanken
Bio: The object of my strategy is neither technique nor form, but
victory in combat. 'With stance, without stance.' I do not care about
stances, but face all enemies without fear with a 'body of massive
rock.'

Okada Izo
Ga-Ryu
Born: Tosa Province (Kochi Prefecture)
Style: Goken
Bio: Known as the Killer Izo, he is a butchering murderer. His is a
peculiar fencing style that becomes courser the more it is mastered.
His blows are powerful but single strikes to but become a technique.

Oishi Susumu
Ga-Ryu
Born: Chikugo Province (Fukwoka Prefecture)
Style: Goken
Bio: Popularized the long shinai (bamboo sword) in the kendo world by
inventing the one-hanged shinai thrust and becoming the rage of Edo.
One anecdotal story tells of him using a one-handed thrust in an inter-
school match, shattering is opponent's steel mask and gouging out an
eyeball.

Sasaki Kojiro
Ga-Ryu
Born: Echizen Province (Fukui Prefecture)
Style: Seiken
Bio: Carries a 3-foot long sword called the Drying Pole on his back.
Uses the 'Kojiro's Path' attack consisting of a diagonal cut from one
shoulder to beneath the other, followed by a quick return and diagonal
uppercut to the left.

Sakamoto Ryoma
Disciple of Chiba Shusaku
Born: Tosa Province (Kochi Prefecture)
Style: Nanken
Bio: He may have good ability, but he has no deep attachment to the
sword. Rather than simply fighting a single combat, he tends to think
too much about his opponent's position. Such a man is unsuited to be a
fencer.

Tsuji Gettan
Ga-Ryu
Born: Echizen Province (Fukui Prefecture)
Style: Seiken
Bio: 'Zen lies in one's own sword.' He believes the true Way of the
Warrior lies in finding the divine path with the sword, and studying
the teachings of man. He can draw his sword three times at the wicks of
candles in the corner of the dojo, and put out the flames all three
times.

Takayanagi Matashiro
Ga-Ryu
Born: Hida Province (Gifu Prefecture)
Style: Nanken
Bio: Known for his Silent Stance, he never lets his opponent's sword
touch his own. A master of 'the sacrifice,' he himself rarely advances
to strike. Rather, he waits for his opponent to move but then gets the
win with a sacrifice.

Togo Shigetaka
Ga-Ryu
Born: Satsuma Province (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Style: Goken
Bio: Has a lighting-swift sword that can fell an enemy with one stroke
and has also handed down an advanced fencing theory. His innermost
secret is 'Do not withdraw. It is safer to finish without withdrawing.
The will of above is a single sword stroke. Never attacked and
injured.'

Yagyu Hyognosuke
Owari Yagyu School
Born: Yamato Province (Nara Prefecture)
Style: Taiken
Bio: Coercion to beat the enemy kills; working to beat the enemy lives.
He has a flexible strategy. We must reform the old traditions of the
Warring States period into ones to fit the new age. Said to be the
Owari Yagyu of Technique in contrast to the Edo Yagyu of the Heart.

Yagyu Jubei
Edo Yagyu School
Born: Yamato Province (Nara Prefecture)
Style: Taiken
Bio: A theorist, he excels at insight into his enemy's technique. His
strategy is 'strike when struck.' Exactly when you are in range of the
enemy, the enemy is in your range. There is only a hair's breadth
between victory and defeat.

=========
THANKS TO
=========
Genki and Ubisoft for making and publishing this great game

HIM for their Love Metal album, which I listened to through-out almost
all the entire process of making this walkthrough

Sony for making the PS2

===========
LEGAL STUFF
===========
This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for
personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or
otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use
of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display
is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright.