D&D (2024) Sort weapon table by...

[mellored]

IMO, the weapon table could be sorted better. I don't know anyone who picks weapons based on their name. But I can easily see someone looking for a weapon with Push.

So how should the weapon table be sorted?

 

[Clint_L]

Weapons should be sorted by traits and armour by AC. And weapons with the same traits should all do the same damage, so whether you pick a great sword or a great axe is just an aesthetic choice.

 

[Horwath]

1st: melee or ranged
2nd: 1Handed or 2Handed
3rd: damage die
4th: traits and masteries

 

[Corinnguard]

I think they ought to be sorted by their damage die. It's how Level Up sorts them out.

 

[Vikingkingq]

And weapons with the same traits should all do the same damage, so whether you pick a great sword or a great axe is just an aesthetic choice.

I cannot disagree more. Reducing weapons of a type to mere fluff is less interesting and engaging than having there be mechanically significant differences between them.

This is why I think Weapon Mastery was such an improvement, because it moved away from the old regime where all weapons of the same damage die were effectively just all the same weapon with different aesthetics, and created interesting choices between weapons.

 

[Horwath]

I cannot disagree more. Reducing weapons of a type to mere fluff is less interesting and engaging than having there be mechanically significant differences between them.

This is why I think Weapon Mastery was such an improvement, because it moved away from the old regime where all weapons of the same damage die were effectively just all the same weapon with different aesthetics, and created interesting choices between weapons.

weapon mastery should be global, and applicable to every weapon of it's type and not tied down to a single weapon.

this way is again narrowing down players options like 3.5e; Weapon focus, weapon specialization, improved critical, etc...

masteries should be:

Sap; usable with all weapons with Versatile property
Vex: usable with all weapons with ranged, finesse or light property
Nick: usable with all weapons with light property

etc...

 

[Vikingkingq]

weapon mastery should be global, and applicable to every weapon of it's type and not tied down to a single weapon.

this way is again narrowing down players options like 3.5e; Weapon focus, weapon specialization, improved critical, etc...

masteries should be:

Sap; usable with all weapons with Versatile property
Vex: usable with all weapons with ranged, finesse or light property
Nick: usable with all weapons with light property

etc...

Again, I disagree. The goal is to encourage diversity of weapon usage, not narrowing it down.

If all weapons with Versatile can use Sap, then every Versatile weapon becomes the same - and so on for the other properties.

By contrast, the fact that a Battleaxe gets Topple and a Warhammer gets Push and a Longsword gets Sap makes these weapons distinct and the choice between them meaningful for the first time in a long time. It's not perfect (in part because there is still a few places of overlap that make War Picks functionally equivalent to Longswords and so forth), but it's a huge improvement.

 

[Horwath]

Again, I disagree. The goal is to encourage diversity of weapon usage, not narrowing it down.

If all weapons with Versatile can use Sap, then every Versatile weapon becomes the same - and so on for the other properties.

By contrast, the fact that a Battleaxe gets Topple and a Warhammer gets Push and a Longsword gets Sap makes these weapons distinct and the choice between them meaningful for the first time in a long time. It's not perfect (in part because there is still a few places of overlap that make War Picks functionally equivalent to Longswords and so forth), but it's a huge improvement.

yeah, and when you are high level fighter you are forced to carry 10+ weapons so you can use all masteries for ranged, 2Handed and 1Handed+shield options.

 

[Tonguez]

Weapon Group Proficiency and Traits

 

[CreamCloud0]

Speaking of diversifying weapons to have uniqueness, how many people think that B/S/P actually contributes to weapons being all that different from each other? Damage dies, properties and masteries can so much more to define a longsword from a warhammer than slashing or bludgeoning damage ever would, I think 4e had a generic ‘weapon damage’ type, how much would it actually effect 5e if it did the same, I realise there are a small handful of times where it’s relevant, skeletons or oozes, the crusher/slasher/piercer feats and the like, but I feel like they might be just as effective as minor properties than damage types(maybe B weapons have +2 to hit, P has +1 crit expansion, S does modifier extra bleed damage the following turn, or the like)

Oh, and I voted sort by damage