Guardless Katana
Best grade: Meitou (made by Cross) — 2.2 cut and 0 blunt, 1 kg, needs 1 strength. The Guardless Katana is a katana that deals mostly cut damage.
Good against humans (+10% damage) and landing hits (+6 attack). Weaker at robots (-40% damage), armoured targets (-30% armour penetration) and blocking (-6 defence).
- Class
- Katanas
- Damage type
- Cut
- Reach
- 21
- Strength needed
- 1 (Rusted Junk) → 1 (Meitou)
- Weight
- 1 → 1 kg
- Value
- 1,131 → 62,956 cats
- Blueprint
- Katanas, level 2, 10,000 cats
- Crafted at
- Weapon Smith I, Weapon Smith II, Weapon Smith III
Guardless Katana stats by grade
Cut and blunt are damage multipliers. Str is the strength the weapon asks for at that grade — below it, attacks and blocks slow down, by up to 47.5% at 20 or more points short (Kenshi Wiki: Strength).
| Grade | Maker | Cut | Blunt | Str | Weight | Value | Atk / Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rusted Junk | Unknown | 0.385 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 1,131 | +5 / -7 |
| Rusting Blade | Unknown | 0.47 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 1,240 | +6 / -6 |
| Mid-Grade Salvage | Ancient | 0.499 | 0 | 0.7 | 0.7 kg | 3,729 | +6 / -6 |
| Old Refitted Blade | Ancient | 0.576 | 0 | 0.7 | 0.7 kg | 4,329 | +6 / -6 |
| Refitted Blade | Ancient | 0.652 | 0 | 0.7 | 0.7 kg | 5,165 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.1 | Catun Scrapmaster | 0.81 | 0 | 1.2 | 1.2 kg | 9,445 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.2 | Catun Scrapmaster | 0.895 | 0 | 1.2 | 1.2 kg | 11,655 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.3 | Catun Scrapmaster | 0.98 | 0 | 1.2 | 1.2 kg | 14,388 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk I | Skeleton Smiths | 1.15 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 21,000 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk II | Skeleton Smiths | 1.235 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 24,434 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk III | Skeleton Smiths | 1.32 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 27,610 | +6 / -6 |
| Edge Type 1 | Edgewalkers | 1.639 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 37,979 | +6 / -6 |
| Edge Type 2 | Edgewalkers | 1.732 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 39,960 | +6 / -6 |
| Edge Type 3 | Edgewalkers | 1.826 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 41,422 | +6 / -6 |
| Meitou | Cross | 2.2 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 62,956 | +6 / -6 |
Crafted (homemade) Guardless Katana: 13 grades
What you can make yourself at a weapon smithing bench — every grade up to Edge Type 2.
| Grade | Cut | Blunt | Str | Weight | Value | Atk / Def |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rusted Junk | 0.385 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 3,771 | +5 / -7 |
| Rusting Blade | 0.47 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 4,135 | +6 / -6 |
| Mid-Grade Salvage | 0.555 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 4,662 | +6 / -6 |
| Old Refitted Blade | 0.64 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 5,412 | +6 / -6 |
| Refitted Blade | 0.725 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 6,456 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.1 | 0.81 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 7,871 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.2 | 0.895 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 9,712 | +6 / -6 |
| Catun No.3 | 0.98 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 11,990 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk I | 1.15 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 17,500 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk II | 1.235 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 20,361 | +6 / -6 |
| Mk III | 1.32 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 23,009 | +6 / -6 |
| Edge Type 1 | 1.49 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 27,128 | +6 / -6 |
| Edge Type 2 | 1.575 | 0 | 1 | 1 kg | 28,542 | +6 / -6 |
Guardless Katana vs other katanas
Every one of the katanas at Meitou; a weapon that never comes in that grade shows its best one.
- Guardless Katana vs Katana: At Meitou, the Guardless Katana has needs less strength (1 vs 2).
- Guardless Katana vs Wakizashi: At Meitou, the Guardless Katana has more cut (2.2 vs 1.98), longer reach (21 vs 16) and a larger indoor penalty (0 vs 4).
- Guardless Katana vs Topper: At Meitou, the Guardless Katana has less cut (2.2 vs 2.42), less blunt (0 vs 0.2), shorter reach (21 vs 25), needs less strength (1 vs 8) and a smaller indoor penalty (0 vs -4).
| Weapon | Grade | Cut | Blunt | Reach | Atk / Def | Indoors | Str | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guardless Katana | Meitou | 2.2 | 0 | 21 | +6 / -6 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Katana | Meitou | 2.2 | 0 | 21 | +4 / -4 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Ninja Blade | Meitou | 1.76 | 0 | 21 | +2 / -4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Nodachi | Meitou | 2.64 | 0 | 25 | +4 / -4 | -4 | 8 | 8 |
| Topper | Meitou | 2.42 | 0.2 | 25 | 0 / 0 | -4 | 8 | 8 |
| Wakizashi | Meitou | 1.98 | 0 | 16 | +2 / -2 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
Where to get the Guardless Katana
Shops that stock it
| Shop | Stock chance | Found in |
|---|---|---|
| Flotsam Armory | Common | Flotsam Village |
| Mongrel Weapon Shop | Common | Mongrel |
| Noble House | Common | not listed |
| Ronin Weapon Shop | Common | Fishing Village, World's End |
| Scraphouse | Common | Black Desert City |
| Thieves Guild | Common | not listed |
| Catun Scrapmasters | Uncommon | Catun |
| Empire Weapon Shop | Uncommon | Heng, Stoat |
| Mercenary Smithy | Uncommon | Manhunter Base |
| Shark Smithy | Uncommon | Shark |
| Black Market Bar | Rare | Rebel Base, The Hub |
Blueprint
The Katanas blueprint (level 2, 10,000 cats) unlocks crafting it. Sold at: Bar of Mourn, Black Market Bar, Catun Scrapmasters, Empire Weapon Shop, Mongrel Weapon Shop, Ronin Weapon Shop, The Great Library. Also found at: Bark/Empire Peasants, Cactus Den, Flotsam Armory, Heft/Empire Peasants, Heng/Empire Peasants, Sho-Battai/Empire Peasants, Tower Of Ninjas.
Crafting
- Weapon Smith I: 7 × Iron Plates
- Weapon Smith II: 7 × Iron Plates + 7 × Fabrics
- Weapon Smith III: 7 × Steel Bars + 7 × Fabrics
Which race learns Katanas fastest
About the Guardless Katana
An uncommon katana modification sacrificing defence by removing the guard. It's more a psychological advantage than a physical one, knowing subconsciously that attack is your best defence promotes a more aggressive combat style. Gang bosses and Jonin tend to use them to equip their underlings because it makes trouble-makers on both sides more reluctant.In-game description
Katanas lean almost entirely on cutting damage and get a double-strike attack animation; most hit humans harder but do poorly against armour and robots. Source: Kenshi Wiki
