[MA] Southern Kung Fu, the Common Folk and Tong Hatchetmen

[aesir23]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Possibly. On the other hand, Shortsword Fighting is a very distinct way of using a sword and Wing Chun appears to be another way. Ideally, I'd like using weapons with various styles to feel as different as many unarmed styles already do.

Good point. I've actually tried to do something similar for Hsing-I, which is allegedly based on spear fighting techniques originally. But Hsing-I's not Southern so that's not helpful. Here's a take on a proto-Wing Chun with Hatchet fighting added on for good measure.

Proto-Wing Chun 3
The swords used in Wing Chun are short, even for shortswords. They are always supposed to be shorter than the fighter's forearm so that the blades can be rotated 360 degrees with bent arms.
Practitioners always train with two swords, so they may take the Off-Hand Weapon Training as soon as they have Style Familiarity, ignoring the usual requirements for Style Perks. However, this also means that Proto-Wing Chun lacks the grappling techniques of its modern descendent.
The style is designed to be effective in close quarters, such as on board a ship on in narrow alleyways. The style is fairly defensive with a focus on beats and counterattacks.
An typical tactic would be to wait until a successful parry and then counter attack with a flurry of Defensive Attacks launched as Rapid Strikes.
This style can be used with suitably light and short hatchets, as has become quite popular in some gangs. This is best reflected by taking Weapon Adaptation (Hatchet with Shortsword) (since the quick defensive style of Wing Chun is ill suited for most other Axe/Mace weapons).

Skills: Karate, Shortsword
Techniques: Close Combat (Karate or Shortsword), Counterattack (Karate or Shortsword), Feint (Shortsword), Stamp Kick, Targeted Attack (Karate Kick to Leg), Targeted Attack (Shortsword Swing/Face)
Cinematic Skills:Blind Fighting, Immovable Stance, Mental Strength, Power Blow, Sensitivity.
Cinematic Techniques: Dual Weapon Attack (Shortswords), Dual Weapon Defense (Shortswords), Timed Defense (Shortswords).
Perks: Naval Training, Off-Hand Weapon Training (Shortsword), Unusual Training (Dual Weapon Attack, both must have same target), Weapon Adaptation (Hatchets use Shortsword).

Optional Skills: Axe/Mace, Fast Draw (Sword), Judo, Knife, Seamanship, Staff, Streetwise, Wrestling.

[EDIT] I totally agree with you about the need for an armed version of aggressive parry.