If the Manica is not actually a weapon then the Description needs errata:
Quote:
This armguard was designed for use among Coryani gladiators and used as a combination of weapon and armor.
As for the Manica penalties, it seems like it should be mixed (based upon the images and descriptions I can find). It should affect some skills (climbing et al) much less than any held shield but might affect other skills (swimming?) more (hard for me to say if a heavy weight all along your arm would affect swimming more or less than having a hand occupied). However, given that Arcanis only has the single SM to cover all skills, I still think it should be at worst a -1 (but I don't really expect this to change).
Attendant to the Soldier Saints of Dagha have Knight's Code as both a prereq (or, alternatively, Strength of the Coryani Heart) and give it as one of the talents granted but it is not a tiered talent. Was this intentional that "half" of the people taking it will only gain 1 talent when taking the path? Given the prereqs, it would seem more reasonable to grant the "other" talent that you don't already have (eg prereq as-is and talent granted of "Dedicated Defender and either Knight's Code or Strength of the Coryani Heart").
Runic Warrior looks interesting but isn't currently playable (for the campaign anyway). Tultipetan Dwarves are restricted to those that already bought a cert from the Kickstarter and Khitani is not an allowable nation (yet anyway).