clearstream
(He, Him)
Thank you for digging into that. It helped me recall that my main character had an okuden that permitted using iajutsu on opponents behind him. I have no idea now why that would be useful!? Maybe it allowed him to enter duels against multiple opponents (which sounds like suicide!)OK, so a bit of Googling solved the problem. There's an error in the printing, as discussed on this RPG.net thread: Bushido Iajutsu rules
Here are the rules:
1092.2b The Iaijutsu Duel
This form of duel is extremely dangerous. Participants receive enhanced On (see Section 1064.1c). The opponents face off, weapons sheathed, a mere yard or so apart. When the moment is right, weapons are drawn and strikes made. If both survive the first exchange, the duel proceeds normally.In the game, the Gamemaster rolls a D20 to determine the action phase on which this first strike will occur. If the roll is lower than a character's Base Action Phase, he will strike immediately. If it is lower or equal to the Base Action Phase of both combatants, the strikes will be simultaneous. Each character is allowed only one strike in this first turn of the duel.The first strike is made using the Iaijutsu Skill. If a character does not have Iaijutsu Skill, he may use 1/4 his Kenjutsu score to generate a Base Chance of Success. In this case the Base Action Phase for the first turn is halved.The effect of the first strike of an Iaijutsu duel are as follows. A roll within the character's BCS results in a Critical Hit. A normal failure results in a normal hit. Only a Critical Miss will result in a miss and will only be a normal miss. Normal situational modifiers apply to a character's Base Chance of Success.Iaijuts duels are fought only with swords and cultural sanctions tend to confine it to the katana.
Maybe why Bushido has proven memorable is that combination of lethal combat with social/political play.