D&D 5E Weapon oddities

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Ground control to WotC. you have some weapon rule oddities that I think need to be fixed:

1. Glaive vs. Halberd. They're identical right now. D&D halberds haven't traditionally been reach weapons; deleting reach from halberd would allow both of these weapons to be distinct.

2. Spear vs. trident. There's little reason to use a trident over a spear except for flavor, since both have identical stats and the spear is a simple weapon vs. the trident's martial. My fix would be to give the trident the Light property, as well as the Net, so you can replicate a trident & net fighter.

3. Unarmed strike. Why isn't an unarmed strike a light weapon? Right now you can't two-weapon fight with two fists, or use an unarmed strike as an off-hand weapon, because unarmed strike doesn't have the Light property.

4. Warhammer vs. flail. With both 1d8 bludgeoning yet warhammer having the versatile property, there's little reason to take a flail when one could take a warhammer. I'd make the flail a 1d10 bludgeoning weapon with the Heavy, two-handed properties.

5. Battleaxe vs. Longsword. They're mechanically identical; I'd like to see them distinguished slightly as the greataxe and greatsword are. For thematic consistency with greataxe and greatsword, I'd recommend longsword damage be 2d4 (with versatile 1d4+1d6). I don't see this fix as strictly necessary unlike the four above since Dwarven, Elven, and Rogue proficiencies provide ways to get either battleaxe or longsword proficiency without having all martial weapon proficiency.

 

[Phoenix8008]

I can see all those as okay changes. Especially #3! That seems weird that you can't fight with 2 fists or punch someone with an off hand while wielding a sword or whatever in the other hand.

 

[Jiggawatts]

Only change I really want to see:

Greatsword and Maul do 1d12 damage

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Only change I really want to see:

Greatsword and Maul do 1d12 damage

Given that battleaxe and longsword both do 1d8 slashing (versatile 1d10), that's a logical and consistent and consistent change.

I prefer to have the weapons be slightly mechanically different just to make for interesting choices. I think 2d6 vs. 1d12 (or 2d4 vs 1d8) makes for an interesting choice since they are more or less equivalent and the player can choose between slightly more reliable damage or a slightly higher chance of max damage.

 

[Kobold Stew]

Elsewhere, I've suggested a fix for the quarterstaff that I think makes sense:

Quarterstaff. 1d6 finesse, two-handed.

Ground control to WotC. you have some weapon rule oddities that I think need to be fixed:

1. Glaive vs. Halberd. They're identical right now. D&D halberds haven't traditionally been reach weapons; deleting reach from halberd would allow both of these weapons to be distinct.

My sense is that these are here as "legacy weapons" -- Gygax liked pole arms, and so the variety remains. But in mechanical terms, there is no need to distinguish them, IMO.

2. Spear vs. trident. There's little reason to use a trident over a spear except for flavor, since both have identical stats and the spear is a simple weapon vs. the trident's martial. My fix would be to give the trident the Light property, as well as the Net, so you can replicate a trident & net fighter.

Agree 100%. This was an ongoing theme in my feedback on play tests. (Though perhaps the thrown weapon master feat will find a way around it).

EDIT: actually, my complaints were suggesting net as a light weapon; I don't mind needing a feet, if it can create a viable retiarius. Yours is a good solution, though.

3. Unarmed strike. Why isn't an unarmed strike a light weapon? Right now you can't two-weapon fight with two fists, or use an unarmed strike as an off-hand weapon, because unarmed strike doesn't have the Light property.

Yes.

4. Warhammer vs. flail. With both 1d8 bludgeoning yet warhammer having the versatile property, there's little reason to take a flail when one could take a warhammer. I'd make the flail a 1d10 bludgeoning weapon with the Heavy, two-handed properties.

That would find a new niche, but I'm not sure it represents what flails actually are. My sense is that better matches "war hammer" (but side dwarves are proficient, it's not an innocent change).

5. Battleaxe vs. Longsword. They're mechanically identical; I'd like to see them distinguished slightly as the greataxe and greatsword are. For thematic consistency with greataxe and greatsword, I'd recommend longsword damage be 2d4 (with versatile 1d4+1d6). I don't see this fix as strictly necessary unlike the four above since Dwarven, Elven, and Rogue proficiencies provide ways to get either battleaxe or longsword proficiency without having all martial weapon proficiency.

Your argument is sound, but Longsword will never become 2d4: it's too central a weapon in the game, and the experience of playing one of the basic weapons has to be basic as well. The overlap of these two is not a problem, I feel.

 

[evileeyore]

2. Spear vs. trident. There's little reason to use a trident over a spear except for flavor, since both have identical stats and the spear is a simple weapon vs. the trident's martial. My fix would be to give the trident the Light property, as well as the Net, so you can replicate a trident & net fighter.

3. Unarmed strike. Why isn't an unarmed strike a light weapon? Right now you can't two-weapon fight with two fists, or use an unarmed strike as an off-hand weapon, because unarmed strike doesn't have the Light property.

YOINKED if I ever run a game.

 

[Shiroiken]

1 & 5) I have no problem with providing multiple weapon options that are mechanically identical. For pole arms, however, I wouldn't have minded if they made Heavy and non-Heavy Reach weapons, so that small characters can use Reach, but at slightly less damage.

2) That bugged me too, and worked hard on a fix. I like your solution, because it does help fit a gladiator type. However, to prevent dual-wielding Tridents (which is rather silly), I'd probably give it the Special property to prevent this.

3) Agreed.

4) Actually, there is a point to it. At first agreed with you, but remember small characters. Non-versatile weapons have to be used 2 Handed by small characters or suffer disadvantage. The Flail (and others from the playtest) allows them to use a 1d8 weapon in 1 hand, so they can use a shield.

My big beef is with the Hand Axe as a Simple Weapon, which is asinine. I would also like to see the following:

6. Change Quarterstaff to Staff, and create the Quarterstaff as: Martial 1d8 Bludgeoning, Finesse, Two Handed

7. Add Parrying Dagger: Martial 1d4 Piercing, Finesse, Light, Thrown (same as dagger), Special (you may use two weapon fighting with the parrying dagger and a non-Light weapon). This would allow the Sword and Dagger style, without requiring a feat. With the feat, you are likely going to use a shortsword, hand axe, or scimitar due to the extra damage.

 

[JC99]

Non-versatile weapons have to be used 2 Handed by small characters or suffer disadvantage.

This is not a rule that I can find in D&D Basic. The only restriction for Small characters is Disadvantage on attacks using weapons with the "heavy" trait. Small characters can use a Longsword one handed for 1d8 or two handed for 1d10.

 

[Umbran]

3. Unarmed strike. Why isn't an unarmed strike a light weapon? Right now you can't two-weapon fight with two fists, or use an unarmed strike as an off-hand weapon, because unarmed strike doesn't have the Light property.

We might guess that it isn't intended to be "fists" specifically. It is fists, elbows, knees, feet, headbutt, or whatever is appropriate.

 

[samursus]

I can see all those as okay changes. Especially #3! That seems weird that you can't fight with 2 fists or punch someone with an off hand while wielding a sword or whatever in the other hand.

I suspect that only the Monk or perhaps a Grapple-build Fighter will get the unarmed as light feature.