Country of Origin: Montaigne
Salon: Paix (Large)
Founded: 1598

Description: As a young woman, Gabrielle du Châtelet wanted nothing more than to be a surgeon, like her father. She began assisting him in his practice at the tender age of twelve, and by the time she was nineteen, he had arranged for her to study at a small medical school in Charouse. Like all young men and most young women of her station, she had also been taught to fence, a skill which served her well when the snobbish old-money residents of the big city treated her poorly due to her small town upbringing and her father’s relatively modest wealth. As she continued her study of both the scalpel and the rapier, she began to marry the two pursuits and upon graduation, she gained experience as both a Swordswoman and a healer in the Montaigne army. Heaped with honors, she eventually left military service and relocated in Paix, where she founded L’Académie de l’Anatomie, which has gone on to become one of the most well-respected medical schools in Montaigne and the host to a flourishing salon run by Gabrielle’s son Gaston.

While not all medical students study the sword, all Swordsmen in training must study medicine, learning to place their strikes with precision to keep enemies at bay while seeking other ways to end a conflict. Slashing attacks are frowned upon, since they inflict more damage than is considered necessary to down a foe, but a Châtelet Swordsman’s thrusts are delivered with pinpoint accuracy to inflict pain while minimizing physical injury, and to target specific areas of the human body so as to stun an opponent or, if all else fails, inflict quick, clean kills. To accomplish this, they keep their sword arms fully extended and move in straight lines, bending their elbows while rotating their shoulders to draw their weapons back and thrust them forward.

Students of Châtelet are taught to seek non-lethal resolutions to duels, which means they tend to hesitate before pursuing a wounded opponent; feigning an injury can buy an opponent a few seconds to brace for another strike or launch an unexpected attack of his own. Furthermore, the School encourages its students to attack along one consistent line, which can make their movements predictable and their attacks easier to deflect.

Basic Curriculum: Doctor, Fencing
Knacks: Disarm (Fencing), Exploit Weakness (Châtelet), Pommel Strike (Fencing), Razor (Fencing), Tagging (Fencing)

New Swordsman Knack: Razor. You have studied basic anatomy, and mastered the art of blade control to take full advantage of your studies. As a result, when you strike with a weapon, you inflict precise, extremely painful wounds. For every Rank you have in this Knack, you may add one to your Damage Rolls with an appropriate weapon.

Apprentice: While slashing attacks are frowned upon by students of Châtelet, they have learned that a quick, stinging slap of the flat of their blades across an opponent’s fingers can weaken his grip and make it easier to strip him of his weapon. When attempting a Disarm, a Châtelet Swordsman automatically inflicts a number of Flesh Wounds equal to his Razor Knack against his opponent, and the Swordsman’s result on the Contested Roll to resolve the Disarm attempt is increased by his Rank in his Razor Knack. Note that this Technique does not work against an opponent with the Firm Grip Advantage, nor those with certain types of weapon modifications.

The headmasters at L’Académie de l’Anatomie prefer to keep Châtelet exclusive to their ranks, so it will not be submitted to either the Swordsman’s Guild or the Duelist’s Guild for sanction any time soon. As a result, Apprentices of Châtelet receive a free Rank in one of their Swordsman Knacks in lieu of Guild Membership.

Journeyman: Journeymen of Châtelet know that targeting an opponent’s existing injuries can inflict demoralizing pain and encourage that opponent to lay down his weapon rather than face more punishment. When attacking an opponent who has suffered at least one Dramatic Wound, the Journeyman’s Rank in his Razor Knack is considered one higher for each Dramatic Wound the target has sustained. If the target is Injured, the Journeyman’s Rank in his Razor Knack is instead considered two higher for each Dramatic Wound the opponent has sustained.

Master: Châtelet Masters have learned to focus their attacks on specific nerve centers which can momentarily disable an opponent, allowing a Master to disarm or possibly restrain him while he is stunned. To do this, the Master must make a Called Shot using Attack (Fencing), and he must take four Raises on the Attack Roll. If successful, the attack inflicts no damage, but the opponent is Knocked Out until the end of the Phase, and for one additional Phase for every extra Raise taken on the Attack Roll. An opponent who is Knocked Out drops anything he had been holding, falls prone, and loses any Held or Current Actions. An opponent who is stunned for multiple Phases will also lose any Actions which become Current while he is stunned. When the Phase ends (or when a future Phase ends, if extra Raises had been taken), the opponent wakes up, but he cannot regain his feet until he spends a legal Action to do so.