In short: A Kensai is a sword saint. A Kensai gains -2 to starting armor class, +1 to hit and damage with his specialized weapon every three levels, -1 to speed for every four levels and the "kai" ability. Kai makes all attacks deal out maximum damage for a ten second period and may be used once per day, +1 time per day for every four levels. Kensai cannot wear armor, use missile weapons or be of chaotic alignment.

Requirements: Strength: 12, Wisdom: 12, Dexterity: 14

Description: Kensai means "sword saint" or "sword master" and is usually applied to characters who have perfected the art of fighting with the sword. In the Oriental AD&D game this is broadened to include almost any type weapon or fighting skill. Thus, there may be Kensai who use halberds, Kensai who use swords, Kensai who use unarmed fighting styles, etc. The player is allowed to choose the Kensai character's special weapon. In most cases, it is the Kensai's aim to become the perfect master of his weapon. For the man and weapon to become one, acting on a single thought, is the ultimate goal of a Kensai.

To achieve this the Kensai must master his weapon and himself, and must study and learn other arts. He must practice daily with his weapon, condition his body and purify his spirit through meditation and ordeal. He must acquire proficiencies in different peaceful arts as well as be absolutely dedicated to his goal. If both his Wisdom and Dexterity scores are 14 or higher, the Kensai earns a 10 % bonus on all experience points. The Kensai must be lawful, although he can be good, evil, or neutral.

Only human, hengeyokai, and spirit folk characters can be Kensai. Kensai use 10-sided dice to determine their hit points, gaining one die per level. They use the combat and saving throw tables of fighters. They can use any weapon but cannot wear armor. Gaining proficiency in an using weapons preferred by ninja causes the Kensai to lose honor, unless it is his chosen weapon. The player must select one weapon or unarmed fighting style for his Kensai character. The character automatically receives a proficiency (but not specialization) in that weapon or style without expending any proficiency slots. He begins the game with three proficiency slots. Only one of these can be used for a second weapon proficiency.

The remaining slots must be filled with peaceful skills. The Kensai does not receive the Reaction/Attacking Adjustment or the Defensive Adjustment for a high Dexterity score. Instead a Kensai begins with a natural armor class between 9 and 5. To find his armor class, subtract the character's Dexterity score from 23. The result is the character's natural armor class. For example, a Kensai with Dexterity 16 has a natural AC of 7. Thereafter, his natural armor class improves by one step for every three levels he attains (one step at 3d, another at 6th, etc.).

He also automatically has a +1 bonus on all initiative rolls, for both melee and missile combat. If the Kensai is fighting as part of a group, the bonus applies only to him. Thus, he may be able to act before the rest of the party. This initiative bonus rises to +2 at 5th-level and +3 at 9th level. Furthermore, the Kensai receives a +1 bonus on all saving throws. Through training with his particular weapon and his mental practice, the Kensai learns to focus his kai power.

This lets him cause maximum damage with a single attack when using his specialized weapon. The player must announce that the Kensai character is using this power before rolling the die to determine whether the Kensai hits his opponent. If the opponent is hit, the weapon automatically causes its maximum damage plus any other damage bonuses the Kensai has. The Kensai can use this power a number of times per day equal to his level. Thus a 5th-level Kensai can use his kai power five times in a single day.

When a Kensai engages in a psychic duel with a character who is not a Kensai, he gains a +2 bonus on his die roll when resolving the duel. When a Kensai engages in a psychic duel with another Kensai, only the levels of the characters are used. All Kensai are immune to fear.

A Kensai must train and practice for at least two hours a day. Any practice over two hours has no additional effect. Ignoring practice has no immediate effect, it comes into play when the character is ready to advance to the next level. Every two-hour practice session skipped must be made up before the character can advance. When catching up on missed practice, the character can practice up to four hours per day two hours for that day's practice and two hours making up for the missed practice.

For example, a Kensai misses six days of practice while on an adventure. When he returns home he has enough experience to advance a level, but he cannot advance until he practices for six more days, four hours per day, to make up for the days he missed. Each time a Kensai advances a level, there is a percentage chance equal to 10 times his new level that he will be challenged to a duel. The challenger is a Kensai of the same level that the character just attained.

A duel is a one-on-one fight between two characters. Neither character can receive aid or support from anyone else. Kensai characters cannot use magical weapons or armor in a duel. The duel can be a very formal affair at a prearranged site and time, or an impromptu meeting of two characters. If the character refuses to duel, he forfeits his newly gained level, losing just enough experience points to place him at the bottom of his old level. In addition, he loses honor.
If he accepts the duel and loses, he also loses both honor and his new level, the same as if he had refused the duel. This duel doesn't need to be fought to the death, however, the duelists can agree on any conditions. Surrender, first blood, or first strike are common ending conditions even first draw can determine a victor, although this is rare. Note that when the character reaches 10th level, he must fight a duel to advance a level.

A Kensai may be challenged to duel an NPC at any time, not just when he advances to a new level. Refusing or losing such a duel costs the Kensai honor, but does not cause him to lose a level of experience. A Kensai need not be of high birth as the practices and techniques of the class are available to everyone. However family and honor are important. Until the Kensai develops a reputation for his skill, he is treated socially according to his birth.
Gaining and maintaining honor are a vital part of the Kensai's life. Any Kensai whose honor falls below his family's honor loses his status in the class. Thereafter the Kensai is treated as a bushi of the same level (experience points are adjusted accordingly) and advances in level according to the bushi character class. He loses none of the abilities he had as a Kensai, but he can never gain new Kensai abilities.

Special Benefits:

In addition to the above abilities, the Kensai gain the following powers when they reach the appropriate level: At 2d level he causes one additional point of damage when using his specialty weapon. This increases by one again at 5th, 8th, 10th, and 12th level, for a total damage bonus of +5. At 3rd level he gets a +1 bonus on his dice rolls to hit. This also allows him to hit creatures that normally can be hit only by magical +1 weapons. Both of these bonuses increase by one when the character reaches 5th, 8th, 10th, and 12th levels, for a total of +5 to hit and the equivalence of a magical +5 weapon.

At 4th level he can meditate like a shukenja. At 5th level he gains an additional +1 on initiative dice rolls, for a total modifier of +2. This increases by one again when the character reaches 9th level, for a total initiative bonus of +3. At 6th level the Kensai is surprised only on a roll of 1 on 1d6. At 7th level he can use two weapons simultaneously with no penalty. He also causes fear the same as a samurai. At 9th level the Kensai attracts 1d6 pupils, drawn by his great renown as a master of his weapon.
All pupils are 1st-level Kensai. These pupils stay at the school of the master, studying under and serving him. There is a 5% chance per level that a pupil ends his studies with that master and leaves to pursue his own course. In addition, should the master ever lose a duel to a lower level Kensai, there is a 50 % chance per pupil that the pupil will leave the service of the defeated master.

When a Kensai master defeats a higher level Kensai character in a duel, he gains 1-2 additional pupils. Again, these are all 1st-level Kensai. All pupils specialize in the same weapon as the master. At 11th level the Kensai can make a whirlwind attack. This is an additional kai power. The Kensai concentrates his bodily energy and bursts into a blurring whirlwind of motion. This ability requires all of the character's kai power for the day (i.e. he cannot have used any kai power previously that day). The whirlwind attack can only be made with the specialty weapon.

Using this power, the Kensai can attack all opponents within 10 feet of him once in the same round. Both sides must roll for initiative (the Kensai's initiative bonuses do apply) and the Kensai cannot use his kai power to guarantee maximum damage. However, all other to hit and damage bonuses apply. The Kensai can attack every opponent within range at the instant of the attack, regardless of the number of attacks he normally is allowed.

Special Hindrances:

Because of his dedication to perfecting his combat art, the Kensai must follow certain restrictions:

He can never use a magical weapon of the type he specializes in, since such a weapon is not a true measure of his skill. All types of armor are prohibited for the same reason. If a Kensai fights with a weapon other than the one he specializes in, he gains only one-half the usual experience for opponents he defeats with it. This applies even if only part of the fighting was done with a different weapon (unless the Kensai was fighting with his specialty weapon and another weapon at once). If he defeats another Kensai in a duel, he earns double the normal amount of experience. A duel can be fought with a particular opponent only once per level.