[Wakshaani]

Street Samurai. We know 'em, we love 'em, they've been with us since day one (with 0.1 Essence!), and they're with us even today.

But I'm curious to see how y'all define 'em. Obviously, the default answer to every question that'll follow in here is "It depends", or "Well, THIS character is X while THAT one is Y..." but I'm hoping that you guys can nail it down a bit, grit your teeth, and give a definitive answer. Rather than slap all the questions in here at once, I was hoping for  more organic flow,as some answers might generate more questions.

So, I'd like to start with an easy-hard one.

1) What single weapon best defines the Street Samurai archetype in your mind.
a) Raw physical striking (punching, headbut, etc)
b) Retractable cyber-melee weapon
c) The Katana
d) Smartpistol (Ares Predator and friends)
e) Smartsmg (Ingram and friends)
f) Assault Rifles
g) Big Guns
e) Other (Fill in the blank, please!)

If you want to give a bit more detail on why you chose one answer over another, I'd be much obliged.

[Miri]

Street Samurai. We know 'em, we love 'em, they've been with us since day one (with 0.1 Essence!), and they're with us even today.

But I'm curious to see how y'all define 'em. Obviously, the default answer to every question that'll follow in here is "It depends", or "Well, THIS character is X while THAT one is Y..." but I'm hoping that you guys can nail it down a bit, grit your teeth, and give a definitive answer. Rather than slap all the questions in here at once, I was hoping for  more organic flow,as some answers might generate more questions.

So, I'd like to start with an easy-hard one.

1) What single weapon best defines the Street Samurai archetype in your mind.
a) Raw physical striking (punching, headbut, etc)
b) Retractable cyber-melee weapon
c) The Katana
d) Smartpistol (Ares Predator and friends)
e) Smartsmg (Ingram and friends)
f) Assault Rifles
g) Big Guns
e) Other (Fill in the blank, please!)

If you want to give a bit more detail on why you chose one answer over another, I'd be much obliged.

Yes.   All of those.

[psycho835]

b), d) and e).

[Hibiki54]

Answers in bold.

Street Samurai. We know 'em, we love 'em, they've been with us since day one (with 0.1 Essence!), and they're with us even today.

But I'm curious to see how y'all define 'em. Obviously, the default answer to every question that'll follow in here is "It depends", or "Well, THIS character is X while THAT one is Y..." but I'm hoping that you guys can nail it down a bit, grit your teeth, and give a definitive answer. Rather than slap all the questions in here at once, I was hoping for  more organic flow,as some answers might generate more questions.

So, I'd like to start with an easy-hard one.

1) What single weapon best defines the Street Samurai archetype in your mind.
a) Raw physical striking (punching, headbut, etc)
b) Retractable cyber-melee weapon
c) The Katana
d) Smartpistol (Ares Predator and friends)
e) Smartsmg (Ingram and friends)
f) Assault Rifles
g) Big Guns
e) Other (Fill in the blank, please!)

If you want to give a bit more detail on why you chose one answer over another, I'd be much obliged.

The Assault Rifle is ambiguous with many archetypes, but it is a class of weapons that are iconic for the Street Samurai. And by Assault Rifles, I am only talking about R-rating rifles such as the AK-97 and Colt M23. These are the staples for Street Sams of any level of the shadow community. From the grimy street level gangers to the top of the line prime runners, restricted level assault rifles are the go-to for all around effectiveness and reliability.

Not every Street Sam is cybered out or handy with the blades. But almost any Street Sam worth their weight can drek someone with an Assault Rifle. Automatics in general are the baseline of how all Street Sams are judged.

[Moonshine Fox]

For me, the pistol is the iconic weapon. It seems to be a symbol of the precision and economy of combat that Samurai are supposed to be known for. It also has the history of use in honorable duels, another Samurai trait. Not to say that a street sam won't use every weapon available, but a solid pistol has always stood out in my mind.

[Novocrane]

To my mind, there is no correct answer to the question posed; street samurai are not defined by weapon type, but that they are almost permanently weaponised and lethal in any situation.

Wired Reflexes would be the symbolic gear of choice; none other.

[Wakshaani]

Getting to that one, NovaCrane. One part at a time.

[PiXeL01]

b, c and e

Other  would indirectly be Wired Reflexes as their speed is their weapon

[Mr. Black]

The Katana. Any punk can use a gun, but carrying a katana says, "I am lethal but I follow a code," which is what separates a Street Samurai from the gun bunnies. Not that there is anything wrong with being a gun bunny, I have played them many times.

[NovaHot1]

To my mind, there is no correct answer to the question posed; street samurai are not defined by weapon type, but that they are almost permanently weaponised and lethal in any situation.

Wired Reflexes would be the symbolic gear of choice; none other.

I second this. Well put, Novocrane.

[Medicineman]

to me its all of the above and more
A Streetsam is a Char that is(should be) prepared for any kind of Combat
and with a Mindset that sets him apart (and above) from Gangers, Merceneries or Cyberclaws
To narrow him down to just one kind of Weapon ist the most stupidest thing I could imagine

@novocrane
That too
being fast is one of the Key Abilities of a Streetsam
(Being Tough, /hard to kill too, but being fast is ImO more important)

HougH!
Medicineman

[Xenon]

There are different flavors of street samurai (from wired lightning fast razor girl using light weapons at one part of the spectra to the heavy armored and cyberlimb cyborg tank that use heavy weapons in the other), but they are all generally depending on chrome and skilled in more than one mundane weapon.

In my view a typical outfit of a typical street samurai would probably include an ingram smartgun and a katana (plus an assault rifle in a duffle bag for when the shit really hits the fan).

[phydaux42]

When in doubt, check the source material.  The answer comes to us in one sentence:

"Molly was a razorgirl."

[PJ]

Option B.  A gun is very practical (and necessary for shadowrun jobs), but you need skill (and the will) to be up close and willing to go toe-to-toe with someone.  I think this is what separates a street samurai from his other teammates.  Any of them can shoot (and be good), but it takes a lot more dedication to be good at hand to hand.

I also think what makes a street samurai a street samurai is they have a code (and 'ware), but that wasn't this topic.

[Wakshaani]

The code'll come up soon. I've a handful of questions to toss in here, but this one's the starter one.

And the answers are getting better. Mind you, several people in different areas have given multiple answers, or "All of them", instead of focusing on a single one, but, we're getting there. There'll be more questions as it unfolds.