Broom of the Dai Kiri
The Broom of the Dai Kiri, while looking like a normal broom, was a deadly weapon in the hands of a Dai Kiri Keeper trained to use it.
(P.S. If you have not read Purse of the Dai Kiri, Read that first. You don't HAVE to though. It's just me asking.)
Full Item Description
The broom of the Dai Kiri is a standard broom of good quality designed for sweeping up indoors. It is unremarkable in appearance, although it is unusually sturdy and heavy for a broom of it\'s size.
The Bristles of the broom are of an espescially nice quality. They are unusually supple and flexible for a broom of that size, and are therefore ideal for catching dirt and dust that other thicker bristles leave behind.
History
Many ages ago, in the country of Triand, peasants lived under a tyrannical and Martial Law. Under this Law, no Man, Woman or Child was allowed to carry weapon or armor unless they were of royal blood, or acted under the protection of royal blood. While the rulers of this land were not always corrupt, those Guards and Military Police who supposedly served them used the royal protection to abuse the Law.
It was in this way, that the Dai Kiri were formed. The Dai Kiri were resolved to fight the corruption present in the martial system of Triand, while still upholding the meaning of the laws under which it was founded.
Without access to normal weapons or armor, the Dai Kiri were experts at turning normal inconspicuous items into unique and powerful weapons and tools for fighting the rabid injustice that plagued the land.
Among these items was the Broom of the Dai Kiri. Although innocent in appearance, and indistinguishable from other common Brooms, this was a deadly weapon in the hands of a skilled Dai Kiri Keeper (a rank and position in the Dai Kiri order)
The Broom of the Dai Kiri was not only a deadly and feared weapon, but like many of the Dai Kiri weapons, it served to humiliate the corrupt officials who abused the power of their rights.
Special Properties and History
These brooms were rarely made of a simple wood. Metal could be too heavy to wield as a light weapon, however, these brooms usually had three very long, thin nails driven into the length of the wooden handle for support, insuring that they would not break in battle.
The first officer who encountered a man wielding such a broom, was so stunned that the broom had withstood the down-stroke of his sword, that he did not even react when the Dai Kiri Keeper swept his legs out from under him and incapacitated him with a heavy blow from the reinforced broom-head.
Mixed in with the supple bristles of the broom handle, were long needles about half the length of the bristles. These needled were loosely attached to the wood, and thinly feathered so that they would fly in a straight line.
The creation of the needles themselves was an ingenious process. First, they would make a tube, and then with pliers and a forge, they would heat up the the metal and pull, lengthening the tube and creating needles only a hair in width.
Adding the poison was especially dangerous, requiring a single person to literally such the poison into the needle. If the did not use enough pressure, then no poison was added, but too much, and they risked poisoning themselves.
Even more formidable, as noted above, several of these needles were often poisoned. The poisons often varied, but considering the large amount of needles that a single dose could coat, the needles could be pretty deadly if they pierced the skill.
The first move that a Dai Kiri would make was to swing the broom-head in a sure, fast motion, unleashing a spray of needles upon the guards. Although most of the needles were not poisoned, and the chances of being poisoned by one of the many needles was small, the few needles that had been poisoned had a profound effect on the course of battle.
The effect was two fold. One: when the poisoned needles did hit a guard, they could cause a number of effects from crippling pain, to a slow death. The second effect was fear. A guard never knew if the needle he had been struck by was poisoned or not. As a result, poisoned men would retreat to the nearest medical facility instead of fighting, or in some cases, they would just go still with fear of being poisoned. This gave the Dai Kiri Broom Handler a chance to land a blow that was actually dangerous.
Attached to the Broom handle, was a curved blade concealed within the reinforced broom-head. A special latch could quickly be released allowing the broom-head to fall free of the handle, turning a broom into an effective pole-arm. The wielders of these brooms were more than competent in the use of pole-arms as melee weapons.
The position of Keeper referred to those who defended or Kept an area from injustice. These men were often shop owners, and were therefore always handy when such an injustice occurred. The use of the broom as a melee weapon was truly a last resort. More often, the spray of needles was enough to scare the guards into behaving themselves, at least for a moment.
At one point in time, the use of these brooms was so feared by the military police, that a house to house search was made to find these brooms. The search stopped when they found what they were looking for, losing three police officers in the process.
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? Responses (23)
Ok, guys. I am extremely aprehensive about releasing this to the public. Notably, I feel like my Purse of the Dai Kiri has set the standard for such submissions of mine, and the only direction to go is down.
So, lots of constructive criticism. I feel like I put in too much flavor text, but I can't be sure, and I feel like I need more oddities, but I can't think of any. And well, im just plain nervous.
Anyway, hope everybody likes it.
I like this but I am not sure about a few issues and thus I question the need of the broom. For starters it's obviously a great camouflage, but soon everebody will be alerted about this new danger.
Then why allow brooms at all? Brooms would be outlawed just like swords and such. This is my only question about this post.
Otherwise I enjoyed it greatly, I will wait with my vote until after I am more enlightened in Broom Lore.
Actually, I am sure that the Dai Kiri would love that. Outlawing brooms. Not only would the military police look ridiculous, but they would look even more oppressive than usual.
Could you imagine the outrage of people everywhere if brooms were outlawed? Shop keepers would have to worry about dirty, dirt covered floors. Bakeries and Meet Markets would have HUGE infestation problems. In short, it would be outrageous for everybody.
The Dai Kiri aren't just around to beat up the bad guys. They also specialize in making them look bad. Nothing would please the Dai Kiri better than for the Military police to look like the tyrants that they really are by passing a ridiculous law.
It's not likely, but it could be that if the broom is outlawed 'the people' would turn against the Dai Kiri since it's 'their faulth'. I would not be to happy to see piles of dust, food etc gather up in my supermarked. Who to blame?
That depends on a lot of things, and the door can always be opened both ways.
Anyway, this is a very elegantly set up item with a nice execution.
In my opinion you should not worry about the flavor tid-bits, they portray the broom nicely. I still feel that something is missing though, but I just can't figure out what exactly.
Splendid work Nobody, I produce a 4.0
If the 'purses' didn't exist i'd give this a 5, but since they do, I cant help but think of them as I read this.
I'm picturing a 13th-15th century town in china. The emperor's thugs, are parading through the streets and sneering at the frail, fearful looking villagers. A few stop at an inn to pester the patrons, and get some free grub. Two or three inconspicuous workers(?) are sweeping the floors...'You there! some food and drink quickly, or I'll shove that broom up your #%&'
The sweepers innocently approach the soldiers....
Is there a 'Broom Master' (or 'The Sweeper'), a secretive teacher of the deadly fighting style, that the Dai-Kiri revere?
Aw c'mon, thats not fair. If it deserves a five, give it a five.
Nobody- look, I think the brooms are AWESOME! but the purses are just a hair better. I will be using both purses and brooms in my campaigns, so please dont think that I didn't like them. I love them both! besides I have no idea how to change a vote anway :)
I think I made a mis-statement when I said 'if the purses didn't exist...'. If they came out in reverse order, I would still go broom 4.5 purse 5.
In closing, I sincerely wish I made up both! Looking forward to more insidious Dai-Kiri items and lore!
Me likes. They can't ban brooms without looking idiotic in front of the people and in front of the royals, who would be angry if their palace filled with filth.
While I didn't vote a 5/5 I did vote 4.5/5. Where it lost the .5 points is rather difficult to say.
I for one enjoyed this a lot. Having studies marital arts for over a decade now and having had to study okinawan weapons I have use with common items turned ot weapons. From horse sturips to an oar.
This smacks of realism in our own history if a bit odd to say the least. I read where Mike asked about the guards banning brooms and I agree with Nobody that it would seem ludicris to the public and be an outright slap to anyone intelligent ot ban the use of a broom. For one, not only is banning a household item stupid (for lack of a better term) but civil services who clean and maintain the strets would have to find something else to clean with.
Now, why I reduced it down by .5. I did not feel the use of the needles within the broom, especially the poison. I mean, ok you add needles to an item you will be sweeping with that are designed to fly off. I don't see how they would stay attached when being used as well as the poison dripping out or getting clogged by dirt and dust. It is an interesting addition and the whole fear thing is perfect.
That is my vote and I think this is a wonderful submission that is both unique and fresh.
There's really not much that I can say here that hasn't been said before. I have not read the 'Purses' sub yet, and I will not read it until this comment is done. To my eyes, this was a great item, with a great description, story, and a well thought-out reason for existance as well as a well thought-out combat plan. Great work!
Great job, I loved it. Do they sell them at Wal-Mart?
No, buy smart, buy S-Mart:)
This! Is my BOOM stick!
Outstanding submission. Almost as good as the purse. The purse was just a smidge better because it was totally simple yet truly unimaginable. Nobody but Nobody thought of it before! (Sorry.) This broom is similar to the Japanese 'War Fan' concept (a folding metal fan that worked well as a nightstick) and is not beyond previous imagination. It also is more complex.
Still, the back-story is, as usual, top-quality, and it adds cumulatively to the previous submission. Can't wait for the next creation from Dr. No.
It has pretty much been said. The post has its own merits. While I am having a little trouble visualizing parts of it, I get the gist.
This weapon would also need martial training to be really effective. Of course, this could be done quite easily... Capoeira being incorporated into dances and most Karate-te (Okinawan ) peasant agricultural weapons (which were later folded into other Karate-dos in the region). So martial masters are hiding amongst the shop keepers.
Above ALL I would like to see a Dai Kiri Society Post, as well as some other related posts (martial arts system maybe?)
It was called Kobuto... the martial study of peasant weapons. Not the real definition but thats what it was.
It has pretty much been said. The post has its own merits. While I am having a little trouble visualizing parts of it, I get the gist.
This weapon would also need martial training to be really effective. Of course, this could be done quite easily... Capoeira being incorporated into dances and most Karate-te (Okinawan ) peasant agricultural weapons (which were later folded into other Karate-dos in the region). So martial masters are hiding amongst the shop keepers.
Above ALL I would like to see a Dai Kiri Society Post, as well as some other related posts (martial arts system maybe?)
Also Please Link this to the Other Dai Kiri post. (And link it back). Use the Suggest a submissions it is really useful that way.
? You voted twice?
I know that you all want the Dai Kiri Society Posted, but at the same time, I am not sure wether or not this is a good Idea. I think that some of the originality in my posts involves the fact that I also reveal something about the Dai Kiri with each Item.
Frankly, I don't have the Dai Kiri completely built yet, but even if I did, I would rather find ways to make each piece interesting, than to clump it into one interesting whole, and have each part lost it's novelty.
I don't know though. What do you guys think.
Write up who they were in a society submission. Then group everything together via the codex. It is a wonderful way to get all of your related submissions into one section but at the same time be individual submissions to gain their own respect.
