Chapter 1 - Non-weapon Proficiencies
Style Analysis Non-weapon Proficiency
(for Oriental area only)
This specialized proficiency gives the character knowledge about (not skill in) armed and unarmed combat. After watching someone fight for at least one round, a character with this proficiency can make a Style Analysis check to learn some facts about his subject's fighting style.
If the character makes his check by the given amount, he learns the facts following that number.
0 The general style used (e.g., karate, kenjutsu, fencing, etc.).
2 How good the practitioner is (e.g., a basic student, an expert, a grand master of the style, etc.).
4 Which school of the style is being used (e.g., Odo family sumo wrestling).
6 Superficial or transitory weaknesses that the practitioner is currently exhibiting (such as favoring an injured leg). The character with Style Analysis receives a +2 on all attack rolls when fighting the practitioner (unless the practitioner switches styles). The +2 wears off after one day.
8 Who the practitioner's teacher probably was (e.g., Odo Kusuke).
10 General weaknesses in the practitioner's learning (such as a tendency to favor left-side attacks over right-side ones). The character with Style Analysis receives a +2 on all attack rolls when fighting the practitioner. The +2 wears off after one year.
Naturally, there are limits to what the character can learn even at the best levels of success. For example, he cannot learn the true identity of a teacher who is not commonly known, though he might be able to identify a style as being the same as another character's, thus inferring a common teacher.
