Bardiche - Superweapon?

[sbarrie]

I've multiplied the cost of all martial axes and pole weapons by 5 in my campaign. A bardiche should be cheaper than a broadsword, but not cheaper than a poinard, IMHO. 40sp seemed right.

Note that a character with a Strength of 14, Improved Sunder and a battle axe can give a bardiche user a much harder time than a greatsword user. Especially with Sundering Parry. I loves Sundering Parry.

 

[Sutek]

Uh-uh. Reality check. I can wield a Greatsword myself, and I'm not particularly strong. To give a stat, I have to work out some more to master the new 55 lbs longbow I recently bought. From that, and from looking at the carrying capacity chart (and my hiking experiences), I'd deduce that I would be about Str 12 in game terms.
In a swordfight, I just wouldn't make so much damage on a hit, but I'm a quite decent swordsman and can hit well enough (though for myself I prefer the Bastard Sword).

But I'm not talking about lifting the sword, but swinging it around like a madman for prolonged periods in the vien of a Conan novel hero.

I could weild a Greatsword, but not for long and with decreased proficiency. I'm talking about using that STR guage as a limiter to reflect effortless use, and people with lower STR would just have penalties to hit. Maybe it should be a penalty to damage, but I don't think that's very realistic because swords always cut. Maybe down to a minimum damage of whatever the weapon AP is. That's also getting into a lot of rule createion which I dont' think is necessary.

Bottom line, the Bardiche is a littl too badass, but hey....it's Conan, right?

 

[Sutek]

I've multiplied the cost of all martial axes and pole weapons by 5 in my campaign. A bardiche should be cheaper than a broadsword, but not cheaper than a poinard, IMHO. 40sp seemed right.

Note that a character with a Strength of 14, Improved Sunder and a battle axe can give a bardiche user a much harder time than a greatsword user. Especially with Sundering Parry. I loves Sundering Parry.

Also, weapon size plays a role in D&D3.X, but it seems that, even though it's mentioned in the rule book, there's no chart to suggest weapon size. Large weapons would be harder to use in a cramped space, but also have "reach", which is another aspect left out of Conan.