The Swordsman is a wily and nimble rascal, quick to react to an opportunity or threat. In combat he is extremely fast with his sword and with his feet: against individual Light, Medium and Heavy opponents his speed makes him a deadly antagonist, and he can run away when he faces Tremendous monsters, armored Heavy monsters and enemies who outnumber him.

Chits

Stats

Weight/Vulnerability: Light

Equipment: Thrusting Sword

Starting Gold Value: 16

Special: Barter (roll one die for Trade rolls), Clever (choose when to take turn)

Start: Inn

Ally: none

Friendly: Company, Rogues, Warlock

Unfriendly: none

Enemy: Patrol

Strategy

The Swordsman is the ultimate treasure-hunter. Fast enough to run away from any monster except the Octopus, the Imp or Bats, he doesn't even need to Hide most of the time. It would be possible to get away with VPs only in Treasures and Gold - although if he amasses enough Gold, it may be worth hiring the Company, which will give him another agent to search with, and some staying power against monsters. He can inflict Heavy damage against unarmoured monsters, but more slowly than against those that only require M damage to kill. Bats are the Swordsman's nemesis. They are too fast to run away from, and too fast to reliably inflict H damage on. They will quickly wear him down to nothing. And they're annoyingly ubiquitous.

You may wish to start the game by Hiring a couple of Rogues. They are cheap and expendable. You probably won't be able to get as far as R4, but if there is another character Hiring Rogues (like the Magician or the Berserker), make sure you go immediately after him to increase the chances of getting R4. With an Archer at your side you can be almost invincible. On the other hand, if you are confronted by a monster you can't hurt and forced to run, you will leave your hirelings behind.

If Fame is your thing, then get enough treasure to hire the Company, and lure the monsters yourself. The pikemen and crossbowman of the Company should easily be able to kill most monsters before they get the chance to attack you. But Fame is not really the best thing for a Swordsman to go for. Notoriety, or especially Gold are the Swordsman's forte. Sneak into treasure locations, Loot as much as you can, then return to the Inn. Sell any treasure you get other than the Lucky Charm, Deft Gloves, Shielded Lantern, Elven Slippers, Shoes of Stealth, Lost Keys, Cloak of Mist, any of the three Maps, or the Living Sword. If you're careful you can amass quite a large amount of Gold this way. It will depend on how far away the treasure locations are. If you want to be nasty, the Swordsman can eliminate most characters effortlessly. Wait until the endgame to try this though, so you get rewards in Noto and belongings for your assassinations.

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