D&D 5E Fixing the terrible Weapon Master feat

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CTurbo

Explorer

• Oct 7, 2016

• #1

Ok so I think we can all agree that the Weapon Master feat is pretty terrible.

The Weapon Master feat has 2 features.

1. You can increase your str or dex +1 to a max of 20
2. You gain proficiency in 4 weapons of your choice.

Yawn. When would anybody use this? Seriously. I can't think of a single example of a time when any character would take this feat.

So......... this is an easy candidate for worst feat in the book. What can we do to make it better without breaking things?


This is tough one, but here are a few of options for a 3rd feature.

1. You gain +1 to the attack rolls with the 4 weapons you select.
2. You gain +1 to the damage rolls with the 4 weapons you select.
3. Your damage die increases by one for each of them 4 weapons you select.

I like option 1 best here. I could actually see some Clerics and Rogues taking this feat with that added feature.


What do you guys think? Anybody have a better option?



I like feats. They really help you give your character some character

 

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F

FormerlyHemlock

Hero

• Oct 7, 2016

• #2

Combine it with Savage Attacker. You get the benefit of both feats. Boom, done.

 

AaronOfBarbaria

Adventurer

• Oct 7, 2016

• #3

Seriously - not helping your own point at all by claiming everyone thinks the feat is terrible.

It doesn't work well or isn't appealing for your table, that's fine.

It does, however, work just fine and appeal to players at my table.

As for when a character would take it; My wife likes for her wizards to be proficient with swords (and sometimes other weapons) so that she can 1) fit the image in her mind, and of the mini she chose for her character that happens to hold a staff/scroll/book in one hand and a sword/scythe/something else in the other; 2) utilize some magical hand-me-downs from the warriors in the party while casting her green flame blade cantrip; 3) better her character's overall performance while playing the way she is used to playing - which involves using buff spells to survive melee positioning to benefit her party members and using a weapon so she can save other spell slots for area effects and emergencies.

 

jaelis

Oh this is where the title goes?

• Oct 7, 2016

• #4

Yeah this one doesn't seem so bad to me. It does what it does, and if you want what it gives you then the benefit is worthwhile.

I could buy letting it give you prof with all martial weapons though.

 

bedir than

Full Moon Storyteller

• Oct 7, 2016

• #5

The +1 to damage would be my preferred option of those on offer here.

I also don't like the "four weapons" concept. I would rather it be for proficiency in a weapon "family" like all swords, all axes, all polearms, etc

 

Horwath

Legend

• Oct 7, 2016

• #6

I wouldn't give attack bonuses lightly, but yeah Weapon master is pathetic.

One solution is to give proficiency with all simple and martial weapons when you take it. In addition to +1 to str or dex.
And still it would suck.

Maybe add 4 weapons proficiencies to Skilled feat that you can take instead of 1 out of 3 skills from that feat. But skilled feat sucks too

IMO best way to get weapon proficiencies is to take 1 level of class that has it.

Or to get 4 weapon proficiencies instead of one tool or language from your background bonuses.

 

CapnZapp

Legend

• Oct 7, 2016

• #7

The feat isn't spectacular. Anyone with even a little optimization acumen will use multiclassing to achieve what they want for a lower cost.

But in other news, nobody's forcing you to take it. And it definitely not terrible - it is a "half-feat" granting +1 ability score, and already there it is definitely out of "terrible territory" even if it didn't grant anything else.

The situation is fine. We have bigger axes to grind.

 

CapnZapp

Legend

• Oct 7, 2016

• #8

bedir than said:

I also don't like the "four weapons" concept. I would rather it be for proficiency in a weapon "family" like all swords, all axes, all polearms, etc

Click to expand...

You do get a long way if you choose handaxe, battleaxe, greataxe. Or short sword, long sword and greatsword.

And in at least my game, I would totally allow you to count all variations of glaive-glaive-glaive-guisarme-glaive as four, no more, no less.

 

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UngeheuerLich

Legend

• Oct 7, 2016

• #9

Seems like a feat that just has to be there...
I can even imagine a variant human taking it to raise str or dex by one more point and make the rogue proficient in the longbow or the bar proficient in two handed weapons right from level 1.
Yeah that's it. Vombination with savage attacker would be a nice twist.

 

Jester David

Hero

• Oct 7, 2016

• #10

You trade a +1 to an ability score for 4 weapon proficiencies. Bland, but sometimes handy. It's not that flash, but sometimes you need it for a build or character concept.
There needs to be a way to gain new weapon proficiencies. Somehow. And downtime days is likely a mistake (but could work as a house rule). So feat.

Making it actually give a combat or damage boost would be a mistake, as then it's a combat feat with other weak bonuses that requires you to learn new feats. It becomes a trap for people who already have weapons.