D&D 5E Scimitar

Larac · May 7, 2015

Does it look to anyone else the Scimitar and Rapier in the PHB are messed up?
If this has been covered sorry, did not see it.

Same price, but

Scimitar is 1d6 3lbs Finesse and Light Slash
Rapier is 1d8 2lbs Finesse Pierce

My thought is it should be,

Scimitar is 1d8 3lbs Finesse Slash
Rapier is 1d6 2lbs Finesse and Light Pierce

The Scimitar is much heavier blade than a Rapier
The Rapier should be a light weapon

It looks like the table got messed up a bit to me.

Just noticed when a player asked about the Scimitar being a d6 then saw the d8 on Rapier and the light on Scimitar.

the Jester · May 7, 2015

Looks fine to me. There's more to weapon balance than realism (which is a dubious thing to apply to anything much in D&D anyway).

Dragoslav · May 7, 2015

I think it's weird, too. In our campaign, the Rogue has the pirate background, and we thought it was weird for a pirate to be able to use rapiers and two-handed longswords but not any sword with a curved blade, so we reflavored the rapier into a saber that does 1d8 slashing damage, and the short sword into a cutlass that does 1d6 slashing damage (which... turns it into a scimitar. But it's not like it really matters beyond thematic aesthetics).

EDIT: Basically, weapon types are so indistinct in this edition that you can pretty much just boil them down to 1 or 2 mechanical points and then call them whatever you want.

The Crimson Binome · May 7, 2015

Larac said:
The Scimitar is much heavier blade than a Rapier
The Rapier should be a light weapon

It all comes down to dual-wielding. Light weapons are designed for dual-wielding. It looks funny when you try to use two rapiers at once, but the iconic dual-wielder uses two scimitars.

Greenstone.Walker · May 7, 2015

What the rulebook calls a "scimitar" is perhaps more like a machete or a kukri - a light, one-handed weapon.

What the pirate character could be using is more likely a cutlass (which is modelled by a longsword) or sabre - a weapon that is missing from the game.
Sabre, martial melee weapon, 1d8 slashing damage, non-light, non-versatile, finesse, 3lb. Anyone with proficiency in rapier gets sabre proficiency.

Shiroiken · May 7, 2015

IMO, the scimitar should have been 1d8 slashing finesse (not light). Not that I have a problem with there being a 1d6 slashing finesse light weapon, just that the scimitar shouldn't have been it.

Sunseeker · May 7, 2015

The scimitar is too small, yes, but I think the rapier is also too large, it is likely they were conceiving a more "light blade" ala Legolas for the scimitar and perhaps something more akin to a wide-blade "ricasso" rapier ala:

while most people conceptualize a rapier as a fencing rapier.

Thyrwyn · May 7, 2015

I definitely think of the three musketeers style rapier, not an épée. But then I have no issues with the mechanics as written...

Salamandyr · May 7, 2015

Rapiers and scimitars actually are very similar in weight. Rapiers are just a lot longer.

Dausuul · May 7, 2015

Saelorn said:
It all comes down to dual-wielding. Light weapons are designed for dual-wielding. It looks funny when you try to use two rapiers at once, but the iconic dual-wielder uses two scimitars.

In any game which allows feats, rapiers are the best (melee) weapon for dual wielding.

D&D 5E Scimitar

Larac

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Shiroiken

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