TEXT: Written by Daniel Bayn
  Loath Your Fellow Man
  www.Bayn.org
  
  Introduction
  What’s This All About?
  Cut-Fu is about kicking unholy ass with anything that chops, slices, or stabs. It’s about 
  cutting the cardinal’s men to ribbons with a bow and a flourish! It’s about swinging 
  from the rigging of your pirate ship while turning aside the blades of imperial soldiers. 
  It’s about dispatching your old nemesis with a single, lightning stroke.
  The first section of this Wushu guide covers the essentials: types of blades, basic 
  fencing maneuvers, and cinematic stunts. Next, we show you how to run one-on-one 
  duels with the Wushu system, for all your Nemesis slaughtering needs. Then, we give 
  you plenty of reasons to bring knives to gunfights, so you can incorporate blades into 
  modern and sci-fi games. Finally, you’ll get to see Cut-Fu in action via some detailed 
  (and extended) examples of play.
  When we’re finished, you’ll be a whirling dervish of steel of blood!
  How Do I Use It?
  As you may have discerned from the title, Cut-Fu was written for the Wushu role-
  playing system. That's why there are so many references to "Yang dice," "Chi," and 
  "Embellishments." However, since Wushu is so ridiculously rules-light, most of the 
  content is general enough to use with any game.
  The ancient art of the sword fight is informed by a fencing class I once took, a few 
  episodes of “Crusade” (on the History Channel), and many hours of wuxia action 
  movies. Go rent a few; they’ll help you visualize all this cinematic insanity and keep 
  you entertained for many glorious hours. Here’s the short list...
  • Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (CTHD) - Despite its length and inconsistent 
  pacing, this high-budget wuxia film includes a lot of excellent swordplay.
  • Hero - This wuxia masterwork hits the US in December 2003. The swordplay, 
  particularly the scene with Jet Li and Donnie Yen, is spec-friggin-tacular!
  • The Hunted - Amazing knife fighting, and from Tommy Lee Jones, no less!
  • Blade I & II - The first movie, in particular, has some excellent mook whompin’.
  • Highlander - Stylish sword fight choreography is the only saving grace of these 
  movies. Personally, I prefer the TV series.
  • (Almost) Any 3 Musketeers Movie - Yes, Even the live-action Disney movie, 
  which I rather enjoyed. You can safety skip “The Man In the Iron Mask,” though.
  
  Sword Fights
  Choose Your Weapon
  Wushu treats all weapons the same, as far as tactical issues like damage, reach, 
  and speed are concerned. That leaves you free to choose the weapon that best fits 
  your character. To do that, though, you have to know how various types of bladed 
  weapons are meant to be used...
  Knives & Daggers - These tiny terrors are as varied and numerous as all of their big 
  brothers combined. They range from pocket-sized utility knives to massive bowie 
  knives to slim sleeve daggers. Modern knife fighting techniques teach you to hold the 
  blade forward, like you would a steak knife, and attack with quick jabs and slashes. 
  Medieval techniques used an underhand grip, usually to stab downward through the 
  ribcage and into the heart. You can also use a dagger with a long sword, as an off 
  hand parrying weapon, and they’re easy to throw.
  Short Blades - There’s no clear line between a dagger and a short sword, but short 
  swords tend to look more like long swords. The samurai’s wakizashi is an excellent 
  example, as is the Roman gladius. They are faster than their larger cousins, meant 
  for quick thrusts and slashes. They are also easier to conceal beneath a coat or in a 
  gym bag. Their primary disadvantage is lack of reach; an opponent with a long sword 
  can hit you before you get close enough to hit them.
  Slashy Blades - Most of your traditional swords (broad swords, katanas, sabers, etc.) 
  fall into this category. They’re equally good at stabbing and parrying, but their weight 
  and length make them best for slashing attacks. They can hack off limbs, split open 
  abdomens, and lop off heads with relative ease. 
  Stabby Blades - During the Renaissance, long swords became lighter and faster, like 
  modern fencing foils. Rapiers are lightning quick, but lack the mass for slashing or 
  chopping attacks. Instead, they channel all of their force into the tip, which can deliver 
  extraordinarily precise thrusts. They are archetypal dueling weapons.
  Choppy Blades - Heavy blades like axes and machetes are far too slow to provide any 
  kind of defense. Instead, they must be wielded with such aggression that your enemy 
  cannot muster an attack. Screaming like a madman never hurts, either.
  Wacky Blades - In the Middle Ages, most soldiers carried pole arms; these spear-like 
  weapons could keep swordsmen at a safe distance and even take out knights on 
  horseback. There are countless Martial Arts weapons with blades of one type or 
  another: the hook swords seen in CTHD, the sickle-like kama, and so on. Oh, and 
  don’t forget the scythe, official melee weapon of the grim reaper!
  
  Fencing 101
  In a Wushu game, the key to victory is creative and exciting narration. To embellish a 
  sword fight, you need to know the basic vocabulary. This is not meant as a technical 
  glossary, only as a way to give you terms more colorful  than “attack” and “defend.”
  Thrust - A direct, stabbing attack. A particularly long-distance thrust is called a “lunge.” 
  This is the most efficient form of attack for most sword types. The key to embellishing 
  a thrust is in the peripheral details: your target (hand, heart, leg, eye), the speed of the 
  attack, your footwork, the way the sun glints off your blade, and so forth.
  Slash - I use this as a general term for any swinging attack. You can make long, slow 
  slashes to sever limbs, quick slashes designed to exploit momentary weaknesses, 
  and fancy-looking, spinning slashes that resemble dance moves more than combat 
  tactics. As with a thrust, the key is in the peripheral details.
  Parry - Any move that blocks an incoming attack. This is usually done with your own 
  sword, but there are other options. Shields are always popular, from tiny bucklers to 
  the full-body shields preferred by the Romans. You can also parry with a weapon in 
  your off hand, usually a dagger. There are even fencing techniques that use a cape or 
  coat in the off hand to parry attacks and blind opponents.
  Feint - A fencer is always most vulnerable when they’ve committed to a move, whether 
  in offense or defense. A feint is a fake attack designed to get your enemy to commit to 
  a particular defense, creating vulnerabilities elsewhere. The attacker then switches 
  the direction of their attack, striking where it will be most difficult to parry.
  Riposte - An attack made after parrying an enemy’s attack. Many times, skilled fencers 
  will intentionally leave themselves vulnerable in order to bait their opponent into a 
  particular attack, then executing a particularly fast or clever counter-attack.
  Lock - This one’s a cinematic favorite, because it can be used to bring two fighters 
  together for a dramatic close-up! You can take control of an enemy’s blade by trapping 
  it in a wall, grabbing it with your off hand, tangling it up in another enemy’s ribcage, 
  pinning it with your own blade... the possibilities are endless. In the movies, both 
  combatants lock each other’s blades at the same time, drawing them face-to-face so 
  they can trade snappy one-liners.
  Disarm - Any attack that is designed to take an opponent’s weapon away from them, 
  rather than injure them directly, is a disarm. In a Wushu game, an unarmed opponent 
  is just as dangerous as any other, so you might not get much mileage out these little 
  maneuvers. Still, it’s something to keep in mind, especially if a gun is involved. Take 
  Batman’s typical response to gun-toting thugs: disarm via bat-a-rang.
  
  Cut-Fu Stunts
  You have your weapon, you know how to fight, now it’s time to cut loose with the kind 
  of over-the-top stunts that Wushu does best! The key to Cut-Fu is not to integrate your 
  martial arts with your swordplay, it’s to integrate a sword into your martial arts.
  The Slippery Disarm - A sleight of hand trick for stealing your adversary’s weapon. It 
  requires a little grappling, either unarmed or with a parrying weapon. A deft twist of the 
  wrist later, you’re stabbing them with their own blade! (You can pull the same trick with 
  thrown weapons by grabbing them out of the air and throwing them back.)
  The Monkey Parry - This classic anti-mook maneuver redirects an enemy’s attack to 
  another target, usually one of their fellow mooks. You know the drill: Duck a swing and 
  the guy behind you gets his head lopped off. Sidestep a thrust and he gets impaled. 
  Grab the knife arm of a guy on either side and pull their blades down into each other’s 
  stomachs. Plus, you can always throw mooks into a bunch of their friends.
  The Lock & Load - This coup de grace is a lock that sets up an attack. First, get your 
  opponent’s blade trapped against their body or throat. Then, pull out of the lock and 
  bring their blade with you, slicing them up with their own weapon! Make sure to send 
  them spinning through the air like a hemorrhaging ballerina (See the end of Jet Li’s 
  “Fist of Legend” for a spectacular example.)
  The Meat Locker - If you don’t have any kind of regenerative abilities, you might think 
  twice before trying this one. Execute this unconventional lock by trapping your enemy’s 
  blade in your own body, either by taking a thrust to a non-vital area (like the shoulder 
  or between the bones of your arm) or, for shorter blades, impaling the palm of your 
  hand. Thus locked, your enemy is left vulnerable to counter-attack. Make it count!
  Keep Moving! - The key to winning against hordes of mooks is to never let them get 
  organized. Always keep moving, making hit-and-fade attacks that keep you out of their 
  reach. By pushing back one flank, then another, you can stop them from closing in.
  Don’t Forget the Props - Since Wushu lets you place props in the environment as you 
  see fit, there’s always a chandelier around to swing from or to drop on unsuspecting 
  mooks. Other sword fight props include banisters to throw people over, chairs to use 
  as parrying weapons, and moving vehicles to stand on while you duel. You can also 
  invent trick weapons on the fly, like knives or guns hidden in the hilt of your sword.
  Stances & Styles - You can always grab extra dice by slapping wacky names on any 
  of your moves. Samurai types may call a maneuver “Fox Ducks Under the Fence” or 
  “Angry Monkey Stance.” Western sword masters may use “The Montoya Defense” or a 
  “Parisian Gambit.” You might want to write a few down between sessions; it can be 
  hard to improvise good ones during a game.
  
  Duels
  Sword duels between masters of equal skill (like a PC and a Nemesis) have a style 
  all their own. Understanding that style, and how to reflect it in Wushu, is essential for 
  running truly classy, climatic sword fights.
  Pacing - Whereas the spotlight is held on one character at a time during most Wushu 
  rounds, a sword duel requires much faster back-and-forth between combatants. Each 
  side (usually a player and the GM) should limit themselves to 1-3 Embellishments at 
  a time. That’s enough to describe most feints, ripostes, and other maneuvers. You 
  may need to increase the maximum dice pool to avoid stopping too often to roll.
  The Duel Is In the Mind - it is said that two samurai masters can fight an entire duel 
  without ever drawing their swords. If you’re familiar with the principle of the psych-out, 
  you’re half way there. You can spend the entire first round of a duel just circling your 
  opponent, measuring their skill, and/or intimidating them into submission. For a more 
  artistic approach, you could fight a “shadow” round that takes place in the characters’ 
  minds. (See “Hero” for the quintessential example.)
  Advantage, Not Injury - A good duel can go on for quite some time without either side 
  scoring a solid hit, but that’s not to say no one’s winning in the meantime. In a duel, 
  the first few hits on each character should be considered losses of tactical advantage, 
  not necessarily wounds. The attacker has moved into a better position, pushed their 
  opponent into a worse position, put them in a lock, disarmed them, whatever. The 
  victim then spends Chi to stay in the fight, not to avoid the lock or keep their weapon.
  Witty Repartee - Most duels are not just about physical confrontation. At their core is 
  some deeper conflict between the characters themselves, perhaps a philosophical 
  difference or some personal rivalry. The resolution of the duel should reflect the 
  resolution of this conflict, and the way you do that is through dialogue and snappy 
  one-liners (which get you bonus dice, naturally). Usually, the dialogue goes 
  something like this: 1) Villain taunts hero into making the first attack, then counters. 2) 
  Hero defends himself, then refutes the villain’s position. 3) Villain tells Hero why they 
  are wrong, and either gains the upper hand or makes a fatal mistake. 4) Hero sums 
  up their belief in a snappy sound bite, then delivers the coup de grace!
  The Coup de Grace - This is the “stroke of mercy” that ends a victim’s suffering. Duels 
  are often decided by a single stroke of the sword, so you should save your ultra-sweet 
  finishing move for when you know the fight is won. In other words, a Wushu duel is 
  fought for the right to narrate a coup de grace. There’s no need to roll the dice. Your 
  opponent has already been defeated.
  What this means in game terms is that the loser has over-spent their Chi. If both 
  duelists go negative in the same round, the loser is the one who went below zero the 
  
  most. If they’re tied, fight one more round to break the tie. (This could be one of those 
  dramatic finishes where the hero, seemingly defeated, turns the tables on his 
  adversary at the last possible moment!)
  Unless you’re at the end of a one-shot game, or maybe if you’re running a true-to-form 
  samurai game, you should let the winner of the duel walk away regardless of how far 
  negative their Chi went. Just reset them to zero, so the speak. They’re still up and 
  walking around (barely!), but the next hit will knock ‘em out cold.
  Finally, note that these guidelines are not necessarily exclusive to sword duels. They 
  could also be used for sniper duels, wild west showdowns, those classic kung-fu 
  tournament fights, or a down and dirty battle to the death between drunken soccer 
  hooligans. Any dramatic, mono-a-mono confrontation is fair game.
  Bringing Knives
  to Gunfights
  Okay, so swords are cool. We can all agree on that. But there’s a reason that modern 
  armies and police forces don’t use them: they’re no good against guns. Fortunately, 
  the role-playing milieu allows us to take certain liberties with tactical reality. If you want 
  to use blades in a setting dominated by guns, just pick your favorite excuse...
  You Can Dodge Bullets! - Bullets are tiny and only threaten a particular point in space 
  for a fraction of a second. Characters with preternatural reflexes have no trouble 
  ducking or sidestepping them. In fact, most handguns and SMGs are inaccurate 
  enough that your average Mook won’t be able to hit a normal person at a distance... as 
  long as they keep moving. (That’s why gunfighters in John Woo movies jump around 
  so much!) Even trained soldiers will have a hard time drawing and firing at a target 
  who’s within a few dozen feet; rush them and get in close enough that they can’t bring 
  their gun to bear. Then, cut ‘em up!
  You Can Block Bullets! - Think of this one as the Jedi Principle. Bullets have very little 
  mass, so it’s easy to knock them out of the air with a decent sword blade, provided 
  you have the reflexes, precognition, or cybernetically-augmented senses to pull it off. 
  Kevlar armor also does an excellent job of blocking bullets, but a good knife (or arrow 
  head) will slice through it like warm butter.
  Hey, That Tickles! - Most gunshot deaths are caused by shock, not blood loss or any 
  kind of catastrophic injury. In the genres most beloved by role-players, many hostile 
  entities are not so easy to put down. On the other hand, even a regenerating soldier, 
  walking corpse, or killer cyborg will be averse to losing an arm, an intestine, or their 
  head. Again, possessing such a power will also make player-characters less afraid of 
  firearms, freeing them up to rely on their trusty axe or rapier.
  
  Bullets Are Expensive! - Okay, they pretty damn cheap in most modern settings, but 
  your average post-apocalypse is quite another story! You can also artificially limit 
  access to ammunition during an adventure by trapping your player-characters in a 
  remote wilderness, or just not giving them any spare clips. When bullets become a 
  commodity, a weapon that works as long as your have the strength to swing it starts to 
  look better and better.
  Bullets Are Traceable! - Modern forensics can match a bullet to a gun based merely 
  on the pattern of scratches the latter leaves on the former. In sci-fi settings, ballistics 
  might be even more traceable, and/or tightly regulated by the government. Assuming 
  your characters are engaged in some manner of illicit activity (gasp!), they may want to 
  avoid weaponry with so little discretion. 
  No Mojo for Bullets! - A key difference between bullets and blades is that the former 
  does its work when beyond the user’s immediate control, both physically and 
  mystically. The sword is an extension of the self, and therefore an extension of its 
  wielder’s will. Got superhuman speed? So does your sword. Know how to channel 
  lightning? Steel is notoriously conductive. Bullets pale in comparison.
  Bad Mojo for Bullets! - Conversely, bullets may also be easier for your adversaries to 
  work their mojo on, for the same reason. Telekinetics will have a much easier time 
  turning away bullets than wresting control of your broadsword away from you. A gun’s 
  inner workings are easily sabotaged by magic, but steel never misfires.
  Why Decide? - Blades and bullets... two great tastes that taste great together! Even if 
  one of the above excuses is in effect, there are many ways to use a gun and a sword 
  together. First, you could use the sword as a parrying weapon against bullets, as 
  described above. Second, you could save the gun as a hold-out weapon, either 
  because bullets are expensive or because bullets are traceable. Many pirates used 
  their flintlocks as parrying weapons after firing their single shot at point blank range. 
  Finally, there’s always the bayonet: a blade mounted on the end of a gun.
  Guns are Despicable! - On the other hand, there are plenty of character types for 
  whom guns are simply too distasteful to wield in combat. Honorable samurai, 
  anachronistic  western duelists, luddites who refuse all modern technology, and 
  many others who commonly find themselves among the ranks of player-characters.
  
  Cut-Fu In Action
  Swashing Your Buckle
  (or Buckling Your Swash)
  While the crew of the Kraken is ashore, burying their booty, an Imperial boarding party 
  draws alongside the ship. It’s up to the cook and the cabin boy to repel the scurvy 
  invaders! The cabin boy rushes into the hold to grab his cutlass and pistol, while the 
  cook retrieves his favorite weapons from the galley: a pair of huge butcher knives. By 
  the time they’ve armed themselves, the Imperials are already climbing onto the deck!
  The Cabin Boy (Spunky 4) sails up from the cargo hold, pulled skyward by a severed 
  cargo line (+1). He fires his pistol at the closest Imperial (+1) and screams the wild 
  battle cry of his Gurka ancestors (+1) as he zips up into the rigging, safe from their 
  panicked return fire (+1).
  This boarding party is just the appetizer before the game’s main course (an all-out 
  assault by the Imperial battleship), so the GMs gives them a mild Threat Rating of 15. 
  The Cabin Boy rolls his 4 bonus dice for attack and keeps his default die for defense, 
  getting 3 Yang successes and 1 Yin success. He suffers no gunshot wounds for his 
  daring stunt and knocks the mooks’ Threat Rating down to 12.
  Now that the Imperials are out of ammo, the Cook (Slice & Dice 4) wades into battle, 
  swinging his twin meat cleavers with abandon (+1)! He hacks off a mook’s sword 
  hand (+1), rendering him helpless, and knocks another over the side with a well-
  placed kick (+1). Then, he quickly blocks a pair of sword thrusts on his left flank (+1) 
  and yells, “You look like a meaty one! I’d love to have you for dinner!” (+1).
  The Cook maxes out his dice pool at 6: 5 bonus dice plus his default die. He chooses 
  to roll 5 Yang and 1 Yin, getting 4 Yang successes, but no Yin successes! One of 
  those attacks on his flank must have been a little too quick; he loses a point of Chi. 
  However, he also brings the mooks’ Threat Rating down to 8.
  The Cabin Boy sees his friend take one in the ribs and rushes to the rescue! He cuts 
  loose some of the rigging and swings down into the fray (+1), lopping off a powdered 
  wig (and the head beneath it) with his cutlass (+1). He lets go of the rope and does a 
  quick back flip (+1) before landing on the deck. He grabs his pistol by the barrel and 
  uses the grip to parry a vicious swing (+1), then runs the brigand through (+1)!
  Six dice for the Cabin Boy, too! Still on the offensive, he rolls just one Yin die and rolls 
  the the other 5 for attack, getting 1 Yin success and 4 Yang successes. He loses no 
  Chi to the mook and drops their Threat Rating to a rapidly diminishing 4.
  
  The Cook’s had just about enough of these salty wankers! He goads one of the two 
  remaining mooks into a foolish attack by juggling his butcher knives, appearing to 
  leave himself undefended (+1). When the mook lunges forward, the cook steps to the 
  side (+1) and lets the mook stab his comrade (who is fighting the Cabin Boy behind 
  him) right in the spine (+1)! Then, the Cook snatches one of his cleavers out of the air 
  (+1) and buries it in the clumsy oaf’s neck (+1).
  The Cook knows the end is near, and he’s still got Chi to burn, so he goes on an all-
  out offensive, rolling 6 Yang dice! He  loses 1 point of Chi for not defending himself, 
  but nabs 4 Yang successes, which is just enough to send the last of those Imperial 
  swine to Davy Jones’ Locker! 
  Samurai Psych-Out
  Zi (Kendo 5) stares into the Black Heron’s eyes (Artist with a Blade 5) and watches the 
  entire duel play out in her mind. Every stance, every move unfolds before her. They 
  face each other on a silent battlefield of anticipation, where conviction and character, 
  not physical reality, dictate the course of events. Only when this psychic duel is won 
  will she deliver the real stroke. (In other words, this a handy excuse for wuxia stunts in 
  an otherwise mundane setting.)
  She draws her katana like a lightning bolt (+1) and snaps it’s chiseled edge towards 
  her opponent’s throat (+1). The Black Heron shifts his weight back, just out of reach 
  (+1). He pulls his mammoth war sword from its scabbard (+1) and swings it straight 
  down, cleaving the air above Zi’s head (+1). She raises her blade and gently guides 
  the heavier weapon to the side (+1), then runs up her adversary’s chest (+1), kicks 
  him in his armored face (+1) and backflips out of reach (+1). The Heron leaps over a 
  dozen feet into the air (+1), covering the distance in mere moments (+1), and brings 
  his war sword down at a sharp angle across Zi’s body (+1). She kicks off the ground 
  and floats up to the lowest of the temple’s three tiered roofs (+1), well out of harm’s 
  way (+1). Her enemy snarls in frustration (+1) and follows her skyward (+1).
  That’s a whole lotta dice! Both characters get 8 bonus dice, plus their default die, for a 
  total of 9. Zi takes a balanced stance, rolling 5 Yang and 4 Yin. The GM is on the war 
  path, so he devotes 7 dice to attack and rolls just 2 Yin dice. Zi gets 4 Yang successes 
  against the Herons 2 Yin successes, so he cashes in 2 of his 3 Chi. However, the GM 
  rolls a much more impressive 6 Yang successes against Zi’s 3 Yin successes, wiping 
  out her Chi with 3 hits. In this instance, that means that Zi has been driven onto the 
  defensive; the Black Heron is intimidating her back in the real world.
  Now atop the roof, Zi slips into “Lunatic’s Revenge,” a wildly offensive stance (+1). Her 
  nemesis adopts the “Wu Shan’s Relentless Onslaught” (+1). Zi swings wide, striking 
  at the Herons left flank (+1). When he moves to parry (+1), Zi drops her weapon (+1), 
  grabs his sword arm (+1), and twists the blade into his stomach (+1). He bellows in 
  agony (+1), pulls a concealed knife out of the hilt of his sword (+1), and stabs down 
  
  into Zi’s chest, aiming for her heart (+1).
  Two evenly matched combatants, both near the end of their Chi. They know victory will 
  be a matter of chance, so both hedge their bets , rolling 3 Yang dice and 3 Yin dice. It 
  all comes down to the roll: Zi gets 3 Yang successes for her spectacular feint, but only 
  2 Yin successes. The Black Heron slips up with 2 Yang successes, not enough to get 
  through Zi’s defenses. He rolls only one Yin success, reducing him to -1 Chi. Zi has 
  turned the tables by exploiting her adversary’s over-confidence. Now, she gets to 
  narrate a coup de grace...
  Back in the real world, Zi glimpses defeat in her enemy’s eyes. She springs forward 
  like a striking snake, whips her katana up from its sheath, and slices his neck open. 
  Arterial blood sprays behind her like a crimson fan. Her blade is back in its scabbard 
  before his body hits the ground.
  Defending a Lady’s Honor
  The Earl of Saint Nazine (Duelist 4) has recently suffered a most egregious insult at 
  the hands of a Spaniard (Swordsman 5). The blackguard had the gall to say, in public, 
  that the Earl’s female companion had an “inviting smile.” Well, you can imagine the 
  Earl’s outrage at such a vulgar insinuation! Why, the mere idea that she would willfully 
  “invite” men’s attentions is so ghastly that the Earl drew his saber on the scoundrel 
  right then and there. However, as dueling is forbidden within city limits (by the Earl’s 
  own decree), he had to settle for the Spaniard’s promise to meet him outside the city 
  gates at sunset. Now is the appointed hour...
  “So,” the Earl says as the Spaniard dismounts. “You are a man of your word, after all. I 
  would have thought you’d be aboard the fastest ship in the harbor by now.” (+1)
  “And I would have thought a man with such a beautiful woman on his arm would 
  spend his evenings in bed” replies the Spaniard. (+1)
  “I shall cut that foul tongue from its moorings!” (+1) The Earl draws his saber and 
  lunges forward (+1). The Spaniard parries with his rapier (+1), then draws a dagger 
  and slashes at the Earl’s throat (+1). Ducking under the riposte (+1), the Earl spins 
  around, getting close enough to smell his adversary’s fetid breath (+1), and delivers a 
  punishing elbow smash to his face (+1). The Spaniard disengages with a quick step 
  back (+1) and removes the Earl’s powdered wig with the tip of his sword (+1).
  That’s a pretty good opening bout. The Earl gets a total of 7 dice; he chooses to roll 4 
  of them in offense and 3 in defense. The GM takes the Spaniard’s 6 dice and splits 
  them evenly into Yin and Yang. The Earl rolls 3 Yang successes and 2 Yin successes, 
  while the GM gets 3 of each. The Spaniard is just getting warmed up, but the Earl must 
  cash in one of his 3 points of Chi. His anger has put him at a disadvantage.
  
  The Earl, his bald head flushed with rage (+1), rushes forward and swings savagely 
  for the Spaniard’s left leg (+1). The Spaniard moves his parrying dagger to block (+1), 
  but it was a feint! The Earl’s saber has already pivoted up to strike at the Spaniard’s 
  head (+1). He is forced to parry with his rapier (+1), stopping the saber just inches 
  from the tip of his nose (+1). The Earl leans hard on his weapon, driving it through the 
  block (+1). The Spaniard whips his parrying dagger up from its lowered position (+1), 
  slides it into the saber’s crossguard, and rips the sword out of the Earl’s grasp (+1). 
  This time, it’s the Earl’s turn to jump back, out of reach (+1).
  The Earl was definitely on the offensive this round, so he rolls 4 Yang dice and 2 Yin 
  dice. Once again, the Spaniard splits his 6 dice evenly. This time, he rolls a couple of 
  sixes, resulting in 2 Yang successes and 2 Yin successes. The Earl gets lucky, rolling 
  all 4 Yang successes, and one Yin success. The GM gives up 2 of the Spaniard’s 3 
  Chi, and Earl loses one more of his, leaving both characters with a single point.
  “Rendered impotent, once again,” the Spaniard gloats (+1). The Earl pulls a knife from 
  his belt and rushes forward (+1). The Spaniard intercepts this wild attack with the 
  point of his rapier by stabbing into the Earl’s sword arm (+1). Pain flows into the Earl’s 
  mind, clearing it (+1). He leans into the sword thrust, pushing the rapier clean through 
  his forearm (+1) and trapping it between his ulna and radius (+1). The Spaniard 
  brings his dagger to bear (+1), but the Earl impales his off hand on its blade (+1) and 
  twists it up against the Spaniard’s throat (+1).
  The GM is so impressed with the Earl’s mettle that he calls the round then and there. 
  The Spaniard only gets 4 dice, which he splits evenly once again. The Earl takes his 7 
  dice and rolls 5 Yang dice and 2 Yin dice. He gets an impressive 4 Yang successes 
  and 1 Yin success. All of the Spaniard’s dice turn up successes, but it’s not enough to 
  save him. The Earl loses his last point of Chi, but the Spaniard loses 2, dropping him 
  to -1 Chi. Now, the Earl gets to execute his coup de grace...
  The Spaniard struggles, but cannot liberate his blades from the Earl’s body. He begs 
  for mercy. “You can only push a gentleman so far,” replies the Earl. “Let this serve as 
  a reminder.” He draws the dagger up the Spaniard’s cheek, drawing a ragged red line 
  from chin to temple. Then, he rides back to his mansion and the virtuous woman who 
  awaits him there.
  
  Butchering Some Gunbunnies
  A trio of super-powered vigilantes finds themselves under siege! Their nemesis, the 
  Insidious Doctor Fang, has tipped off the cops as to their hide-out. A small army of 
  kevlar-coated SWAT guys surrounds their derelict warehouse, seals off the exits, and 
  fills the place with a hail of hot lead!
  The Reaper (Bringer of Death 5) just walks towards the nearest mob of goons, letting 
  their bullets tear through his regenerating flesh (+1). He drinks in their sweet, sweet 
  fear (+1) as raises his wicked scythe (+1) and lops off three consecutive heads (+1).
  The Blind Man (Perfect Aim 5) dodges to the side (+1) and knocks bullets out of the air 
  with his wakizashi (+1). His scarlet blindfold trails behind him like a parade streamer 
  (+1) as he pulls his desert eagle from its holster (+1) and plugs most of its bullets 
  into a dozen mook’s unarmored neck (+1).
  The Savage (Hunter 5) leaps into the rafters above (+1), dodging a stream of bullets 
  as he disappears into the shadows (+1). Moments later, his twin machetes hurtle out 
  of the darkness (+1) and cleave both the kevlar and the sternums of two mooks (+1). 
  The Savage’s wild howl echoes through the warehouse (+1).
  Everybody gets 6 dice this round. The GM gives the SWAT mooks a Threat Rating of 
  30 due to their armor and high-caliber weapons. The Reaper is an unholy bad ass, so 
  he rolls 5 Yang dice and just a single Yin die; he gets 4 successful attacks, but his Yin 
  die comes up a failure. Apparently, even the undead should fear a solid wall of bullets! 
  He cashes in a point of Chi. The Blind Man and the Savage both roll 4 Yin and 4 Yang; 
  they both get their obligatory 1 Yin success, plus a total of 7 Yang successes. That’s a 
  total of 11 successful attacks, reducing the mooks’ Threat Rating to 19.
  The Reaper lets the next rank pepper him with bullets until they run out of ammo (+1). 
  Then, he chops one off at the knees (+1) and continues his swing up into the skull of 
  the one next to him (+1). He pulls back the hood of his black sweater jacket, exposing 
  his rictus grin and milky white cataracts (+1). The last goon is on the run before he 
  even gets to say “Boo!” (+1)
  Now behind cover in the back of the warehouse (+1), the Blind Man senses SWAT 
  guys approaching from both sides (+1), so he leaps out into the open (+1). When the 
  mooks shoot, he uses his waki to deflect bullets from each side into SWAT guys on 
  the other side (+1), shattering their face plates... not to mention their faces (+1).
  Meanwhile, the Savage dives out of the rafters like a hawk, hits the ground in a forward 
  roll, yanks his machetes out of two corpses, and comes to his feet smack in the 
  middle of a crowd of four mooks. He drives his blades up into the jaws of the SWAT 
  mooks to either side, kicks the one in front of him square in the jimmy, and reverse 
  head butts the one behind him. By the time they hit the floor, only his howl remains.
  
  The Savage’s filibuster nets him 6 dice, same as his two compatriots. Everyone rolls 4 
  Yang dice and 2 Yin dice. The Reaper gets 3 Yang successes and 2 Yin successes, 
  much safer than last round. The Blind Man gets successes on all 4 Yang dice, but both 
  of his Yin dice come up sixes! He loses a point of Chi. The Savage scores 3 successes 
  to attack, and the obligatory one to defend. That’s a total of 10 Yang successes, which 
  leaves the SWAT team at a Threat level of 9.
  Sensing the end is near, the Reaper takes his time with the last two on his side. First, 
  he spins his scythe like a windmill (+1) and nails one mook to the wall with the back 
  swing (+1). Then, he reaches towards the second one with a skeletal hand (+1), sinks 
  his fingers into the mook’s chest (+1) and stills his beating heart (+1).
  Guided by tiny disruptions in the room’s feng shui, the Blind Man locates five SWAT 
  snipers in elevated positions around the warehouse. Holding his gun and this 
  wakizashi across his chest, the Blind Man spins out into the center of the room, using 
  his blade to block the snipers’ bullets. His desert eagle barks like a machinegun as 
  four rounds explode from its chamber and puncture the eyes of four different snipers. 
  As he finishes spinning, he extends his sword arm and whips his waki right through 
  the kevlar vest of the fifth. Smoke rises from his gun barrel as he comes to rest.
  The Savage leaps on one of the last goons like a snarling leopard (+1) and rakes his 
  chest with both machetes (+1). His partner rushes to the rescue, but the Savage 
  parries his kick with the flat of one machete (+1) and hacks his kneecap with the other 
  (+1). As the mook falls to the ground, the Savage brings the first machete up, burying it 
  deep in his skull (+1).
  Once again, everyone earns or filibusters the maximum dice pool. The Reaper puts in 
  4 Yang dice and 2 Yin dice. The Blind Man and the Savage both go in for 5 Yang and 
  1 Yin. Everyone gets their obligatory 1 Yin success. The Reaper contributes 3 Yang 
  successes, the Blind Man earns 5, and the Savage pulls in 4 more. That’s a grand total 
  of 12, which obliterates the mooks’ remaining Threat. Of course, our anti-heroes’ place 
  has been turned into a corpse-filled block of swiss cheese. Easy come, easy go.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Collections/Anime & Cartoon RPGs/3) Common Tropes & Themes/Wushu & Shoulin & Wuxia Action/Wushu/Wushu - Cut-Fu.pdf