Hawaiian Koa vs Shaolin monk: Introduction, Mission Statement and grading scale

 Get ready to meet the two  contenders  of my next match up, Hawaiian Koa Warriors  vs. Shaolin Monks. This match up will be one with a heavy martial art emphasis, where the Oriental East takes on the exotic Pacific, where steel weapons take on those that are "all natural" , all to find out WHO. IS. DEADLIEST!

  This will be just be brief summaries for each.
First up are the knights of Ancient Hawaii, the little known Koa Warriors of Hawaii.

Koa

The Koa are named after the Koa tree, which is one of the most common trees to the island. 

    Much of the early history of Hawaii is subject to debate, but a good portion of historians and scholars believe that Human settlement began in 300 A.D. and that settlement of all the  islands was achieved by 800 A.D by settlers who emigrated from the Marquesas islands(it is worth noting at this point that Polynesians were excellent seafarers)  .  Not much is known about the progression of that particular subculture, as new , more warlike settlers from Tahiti displaced them in the 1300s. The newcomers divided the islands into many competing kingdoms, which were often at war with each other. As the centuries progressed a distinct new culture emerged, one that was more warlike and was split into castes:

• AliÊ»i, the royal class. This class consisted of the high and lesser chiefs of the realms. They governed with divine power called mana.

• Kahuna, the priestly class. This class consisted of the priesthood that tended the temples and conducted religious activities in the villages. Scientists and exceptional navigators also were deemed to have kahuna status.

• MakaÊ»ainana, the commoner class. This class consisted of the farmers, fishermen, craftsmen and their families. In a feudal society, they were charged with laboring for the overall economy.

• Kauwa, the outcast or slave class. This class consisted primarily of people who were considered to be of low birth and thus born without mana. They were not allowed to move up in the caste system or improve their conditions. The mingling of members from other caste groups with the Kauwa was strictly prohibited by kapu. This caste also included prisoners captured in times of war. These prisoners forced to serve the aliÊ»i or were more often used for sacrifice at the luakini heiau.
• All castes were bound by the Kapu system or Taboos that governed Hawaii way of life.

This caste system and rules, while effective in governing and establishing order, may have stopped the islands from getting unified until the 18^th century, when Hawaiian war chief later crowned King Kamehameha unified the isles, utilizing his own personal  talent and let’s not forget, imported European weapons.

 Prior to the rise of its most famous son, Hawaii was always at war, and the chiefs had organized their armies into three sections.

Warriors were split into three groups; the elite, massed infantry, and skirmishers.

Massed Infantry were equipped with12-18 feet long  Polou pikes , and were used in a similar fashion to Alexander the Great’s phalanx’s (reference here could be important in the future J).

  Skirmishers were basically given missile weapons like slings and expected to pelt the enemy until the main force had joined battle.

     The elite warriors, the Koa, were from the nobility and as such were more trained in warfare then a commoner could hope to achieve. They were equipped with their own unique weapons and their own martial art, the secretive and deadly Lua, which they practiced only  at night to prevent others from learning. Lua was split into multiple parts, many of which had lethal battlefield applications. The Koa weapon collection is vast and this article won’t go into detail about them(that will be the next articles job) but they included shark toothed weapons, trip cords, double sided daggers, slings and strangulation cords. The Koa were known to use weapons from other lowlier castes as well.  European influence may be present, but it will be marginalized to one category, nor will it be a game winner. 

     As my next article will show, these warriors are perhaps the deadliest the pacific has to offer. But how will they fair against our next warrior, China's legendary martial masters, the

Shaolin Monks

      Famous in the West for their portrayal in Hollywood, these passive monks have a long and magnificent history in China as well. 

Founded in 495 A.D. by a Buddhist monk from India, the Shaolin evolved from a peaceful monastery to one famed throughout China for their exploits. The Shaolin Monastery is a powerful symbol of Chinese history, and although it was destroyed and rebuilt many times in its history, the art known as Kung Fu has survived and flourished.  Over that time the Shaolin achieved their legend throughout China, once saving a future Tang emperor, Li Shimanm, who once emperor started a government policy of favoring the temple. This was the start of a long and harmonious affair between Shaolin and the various Chinese dynasties. The governments would often send generals, bodyguards or even future emperors there for training and monks were sometimes called upon for military action, their famous victories over Japanese Wokou pirates being an example.

     All good things must come to an end and in 1644 the temple was destroyed by rebels who hated the Shaolin for their connection and loyalty to the Ming Dynasty.  From  then on a history of collaboration became a history of oppression by the Chinese governments, first by the Qing, who distrusted them, and then by the aggressively atheist People’s republic, due to the religious background of the Shaolin.

   Having first caught the attention of Hollywood in the 70s, Shaolin Kung Fu has become synonymous with China, Martial arts and sheer badassery in the West.

 The Shaolin monks in this fight shall use weapons that they prior to the 1644 destruction of their temple, when warrior monks actually played a role in defending their country. The monk is going to be really hard to look up as ill need to find the techniques that they used in the middle of the millennium, not the ones adopted later(again with the exception of one category) . 

Grading 

Weapons:(Could be multiple weapons for all categories)

Long Range: /20

*NEW!* Roped weapons: /10

Mid Range: /15

Close Range: /10

Extremely close: /5

"Rare" or special weapons(only category which post contact weapons MAY be present) :/10

Armor : (expect this to be rather low for both so for once i'm evening out  the entire category)

Head: /10 (upgraded due to close quarter emphasis for both)

Body: /10

Legs: /10

Arms: /10

Blocking(could there possibly be a shield?): /10

Tactics:

Tactics:/15

Rules: /10

Motivations: /10

Training and active experience: /10

Martial Arts:/20 (this is a match between two martial masters)

Due to the presence of formations it will be 10 vs 10. 

And I will probably finish Dead Space vs LOTR while writing this. Don't worry its coming.