Samuel Rodrigues was descended from a long line of swordsmen, dating back to 16th century Japan. His father ran a Brazilian Kenjutsu dojo, and specifically taught the Uradachi technique, better known as Satsujin-ken or "the murdering sword," which dealt with violence as the end goal. Sam's father was eventually killed by one of his pupils, with one of the drug cartels being rumored to have been involved for reasons and methods unknown, although not before Sam personally inherited his Murasama blade from his father. He then left Brazil, presumably to train, and eventually returned to kill the pupil in question before leaving Brazil permanently.

Afterwards, he travelled the world as a mercenary, and taking various odd jobs, including a job as a bodyguard and as a cleaner for the Mafia and the like. He also made a name for himself in the criminal underworld, especially within South and Central America, with one story being that he managed to take down a hit squad composed of 10 mob enforcers with automatic weapons using only his sword during the early 2000s, a time before cyborg technology was available. At some point, he had the Murasama blade modified into an HF blade with an ID lock. Already a superlative sword, this led to the creation of an incredibly powerful HF Blade which glowed an eerie red color.

Recruitment by Steven Armstrong

At some point, Sam learned about Steven Armstrong's involvement with World Marshal, and decided to kill him for "sacrificing soldiers from the comfort of an office." Unbeknownst to him, however, Armstrong and Monsoon had arranged for his arrival at Denver to recruit him, in large part because of his taking out several drug cartels. He proceeded to infiltrate the compound via the sewer systems of Denver, although not before killing two DPD cyborg police officers who caught him attempting to enter. He later encountered the LQ-84i prototype unmanned gear who had orders to kill Sam, presumably from Armstrong. Sam proceeded to tell him that he should think for himself. The LQ-84i briefly considered his advice but was unable to disobey his directives due to Desperado blackmailing him with a memory wipe. The LQ-84i was then defeated by Sam, with him mentioning that he fought of his own choosing as why he prevailed over the mech. The LQ-84i believed that his defeat was resulted by a flaw in its design, but Sam reassured the UG that it was because of his superior skill.