Weapon Style of choice

[Lord Jolly the Scribe]

Just out of curiousity, what type of comabt and weapons do you or your players prefer? Do they prefer distance with ranged or reach with a pike? Or maybe brute force versus two-weapon fighting? Do you prefer up-close-and-personal unarmed or maybe high ground on the horse or camel (or war rhino, like my one player wants for his crime boss :shock: )? Love to hear your general opinions and comments.

 

[Foxworthy]

I didn't vote cause I've seen a mixture with the players. We tend to have someone focus on ranged combat, one focus on stealth combat, another focus on two weapon combat and another focus on two handed combat. Then if I'm playing I'll go through all those styles in a single combat sometimes if the fight is big enough. Except the sorcery, the one time I played a sorcery I got killed by a giant snake in my second adventure. The first adventure he was left for dead after he got jumped by two soldiers and our group thief watching thinking the scholar could take the two in one on one combat. Poor sorcerer...

 

[Krushnak]

you need an all of the above option. my players have gone through a bunch of wpn combos but the favourites seem to be dual wield for the pirate, pike and then sword and board for the gunderland soldier, great sword for the hyperborean soldier and daggers or scimitar for the thief. we did have a sorcerer at one point but he had a fatal allergic reaction to a miscast spell.

 

[Yogah of Yag]

I vascillate between warsword and broadsword, personally. I would imagine that most players feel blah about the impersonality of ranged combat, as opposed to the very personal, grittier hand-to-hand format.
Can't say no, though, to the classic two-bladed, chop-you-in-half, ginormous battle-axe! :twisted: 8)

 

[FailedSpotCheck]

There should be an option for "Whatever's lying around."
Conan would have said, "Hey, I'm gonna use whatever I've got handy!" He is so versatile that he would look around for something, pick up a toothpick, damp wash-cloth, or an old, stuffed teddy-bear and say, "Who dies first?" :lol:

Death by teddy.
Don't let this happen to you!

 

[Valgrim Bragisson]

My main character is a Vanir Barbarian with an Akbitanan war sword, so Two Handed Brutality it is! Throw in maximum Power Attack and it's one whack, two thuds...Next!

Mike

 

[Lord Jolly the Scribe]

I have a player who is a Cimmerian with a two-handed battleaxe AND a Hyrkanian bow. I have a Hyrkanian Nomad who is our sniper and I have a Temptress with a whip and a flash attack ("Look at these!" :shock: )

 

[Sutek]

I've got two characters with Sneak Attack and Light Footed, so they think that is wonderful. Rolling so many d6 gives them such glee.

They haven't yet begun to understand the "two-handed" world of damage yet...

 

[Foxworthy]

I've got two characters with Sneak Attack and Light Footed, so they think that is wonderful. Rolling so many d6 gives them such glee.

They haven't yet begun to understand the "two-handed" world of damage yet...

Wait till they discover the glee of two handed weapons and sneak attack... nothing slices through bodies like a bardiche mixed with sneak attack.

 

[slaughterj]

Two-handed weapons seem to be the default because of (1) extra STR damage, (2) extra from Power Attack, (3) is a single attack against armor rather than 2 weapons both getting reduced by armor, and (4) can be fully used in a charge, with a move action, in a surprise round partial action, etc. unlike 2 weapons which require a full round attack action. But I have emphasized to my PCs that given the lack of rapid magical healing, increasing one's defense to avoid the damage in the first place is a good thing, and consequently after some battles and taking grevious damage, the Nordheim barbarian has swapped his Bardiche for a War Sword (gets his racial damage bonus, and uses one handed due to race bonus) and a Large Shield, and the Hyrkanian Nomad uses a Scimitar and Buckler occasionally. The Kushite Barbarian remains focused on two-handed weapons, where he can maximally take out a foe with the enhanced STR damage and Power Attack, so as to use his Cleave feat and strike an additional foe from time to time.

 

[Aelric]

Well I do like swords but I would have to start with the bow first

 

[argo]

I've got two characters with Sneak Attack and Light Footed, so they think that is wonderful. Rolling so many d6 gives them such glee.

They haven't yet begun to understand the "two-handed" world of damage yet...

Wait till they discover the glee of two handed weapons and sneak attack... nothing slices through bodies like a bardiche mixed with sneak attack.

I've seen this in action :shock: The PC in question was a southern islander named Umbutu. Even though that campaign is over his name remains and has been made into a verb by our group... as in "You've just been Umbutu'ed"

That was the three-man group where every man had some levels of Thief (a Barb 6/Thief 1, a Sdl 3/Thief 4, and a Thief 7). We were very fast, very sneaky and we did not fight fair. :twisted:

Oh, and in case you're curious, Umbutu took Bardiche as his sneak style and blew a feat on Light Footed, so when he won initative his damage was 2d10+2d8+6 (Str) + 4 or 6 points of power attack. Yea... Umbutu. :roll:

 

[Foxworthy]

I've got two characters with Sneak Attack and Light Footed, so they think that is wonderful. Rolling so many d6 gives them such glee.

They haven't yet begun to understand the "two-handed" world of damage yet...

Wait till they discover the glee of two handed weapons and sneak attack... nothing slices through bodies like a bardiche mixed with sneak attack.

I've seen this in action :shock: The PC in question was a southern islander named Umbutu. Even though that campaign is over his name remains and has been made into a verb by our group... as in "You've just been Umbutu'ed"

That was the three-man group where every man had some levels of Thief (a Barb 6/Thief 1, a Sdl 3/Thief 4, and a Thief 7). We were very fast, very sneaky and we did not fight fair. :twisted:

Oh, and in case you're curious, Umbutu took Bardiche as his sneak style and blew a feat on Light Footed, so when he won initative his damage was 2d10+2d8+6 (Str) + 4 or 6 points of power attack. Yea... Umbutu. :roll:

My Southern Islander Barbarian/Thief was Zambulu while I mostly used the warsword the time I had the Bardiche I was a 1 Thief/ 8 Barbarian. By that point I had Hide and Move Silently bonuses of +17 I took many people by suprise with that Bardiche. Of course I never needed to use a fate point with it unlike when I had an akibitanan war sword (which broke) for max damage. Boy did I force a lot of Fort Saves.

Of course that doens't compare to the time our group Coup De Graced 40 sleeping soldiers. I had a good laugh when the Army Captian sent his guards for reinforcements later on.

 

[Ichabod]

Our group uses a wide variety of styles ... which means most of the group is ineffectual while the guy with the greatsword and the thief do all of the killing.

Really, bardiche and greatsword and probably tulwar too are broken. Sneak attack damage gets insane quickly but at least is useless in some situations.

 

[Krushnak]

how is the bardiche and greatsword broken? it's realistic weapon damage, it can very likely kill you in one blow no matter how tough you think you are. unlike normal d20 were weapons a pretty pathetic alround. 2d6 for a greatsword is just ridiculous.

 

[Lord Jolly the Scribe]

Yeah it does make sense plus the fact that to really use one you need good swinging room, though I don't think I have ever enforced a
"close spaces" rule for anything but reach weapons (in a ship, close quarters, low ceiling). Does anyone else? I know you have to for Dodging and Reflex saves.

 

[Castel]

Well actually the problem with 2handed weapons is that it makes the diference from several blows from a 1hand weapon to a near automatic kill each time you roll those damage dice and add str mod, and PA 1,5 times...
And what i´ve seen is that the penalty of not being able tu use a shield isn´t that important!
You even get bonuses in disarm, sunder and etc...
And the last time i checked a dagger is as deadly or even more deadly than a great sword...
How do you explain that it deals only 1d4 lethal?
The way i´m thinking to remove this broken part of the "I have a great sword i kill all" mechanic is making my own homebrew D20/RUNEQUEST hybrid!
My awnser to that is "I chopped your arm off, try using that 2handed sword now"
But using D20... D100 it´s just uses too many number for me...
And actually in a boat every weapon that´s larger than a cutlass suffers a -2 penalty to attack rolls...
Have fun Rpgaming

 

[Krushnak]

daggers are only deadly if you know where to strike(sneak attack) but with something like a greatsword you can just swing it in their general direction and as long as you connect they will be in a whole world of pain.

 

[slaughterj]

daggers are only deadly if you know where to strike(sneak attack) but with something like a greatsword you can just swing it in their general direction and as long as you connect they will be in a whole world of pain.

Exactly, David was skilled with the stone slung from the sling, thus could fell Goliath, compared to the average joe trying to hurt a foe with a pebble, but *anybody* can crush a foe below with a huge frickin' boulder pushed off the ledge.

 

[bjorntfh]

Personally, I always take Improved Unarmed Attack for every character (simply because it's so worthwhile.) It gives you a threatened area even if you're armed with a missle weapon, and gives you an extra attack when wielding a two handed weapon (you use TWF with unarmed, hey, kicking is legal.)

I voted for ranged, but that's only because my current character is ranged.