D&D 5E A case for weapon master

[Warpiglet-7]

Moderately armored isn't a terrible feat if your game doesn't have MCing. But if it does, it's a much lower opportunity cost to simply grab armor from a one-level dip.

I prefer having the saves of a warlock vs fighter honestly. I multiclass some, but don’t feel it is always what I want. But I do that at times when it fits

 

[TwoSix]

if it was a full feat I could see your point.

If it was a flexible half-feat it would be better, since the primary users of this feat are casters. Restricting it to Str or Dex means you'd have to keep your Dex under 14 for this to be useful, and then you're really hurting until either level 4 or you're a VHuman.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

If it was a flexible half-feat it would be better, since the primary users of this feat are casters. Restricting it to Str or Dex means you'd have to keep your Dex under 14 for this to be useful, and then you're really hurting until either level 4 or you're a VHuman.

You have a point there. I usually go variant human for this and other reasons. Surviving to level 4 is hard with non human blade pact in particular for me.

in that sense I wish level 4 feat came at 1st sometimes...not sure how it would effect the game.

 

[TwoSix]

You have a point there. I usually go variant human for this and other reasons. Surviving to level 4 is hard with non human blade pact in particular for me.

in that sense I wish level 4 feat came at 1st sometimes...not sure how it would effect the game.

I gave out bonus feats at level 1 in my last game, players seemed to enjoy the flexibility. The Theros setting also does this as a campaign rule.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

You have a point there. I usually go variant human for this and other reasons. Surviving to level 4 is hard with non human blade pact in particular for me.

in that sense I wish level 4 feat came at 1st sometimes...not sure how it would effect the game.

Probably all half feats are not balanced right. In a different thread, someone proposed having them +1 to two abilities. And after a while I thought, that might actually work. So you only give up the freedom of incrrasing your main stat by 2 immediately and you advance more slowly but get some side bonuses on your way up. Some benefits are so minor, that the increase in powers is neglaectable and it boils down to flavour.

 

[Guest User]

TL;DW. A basketball player is upset that we are talking about the Weapon Master feat.

Why are we talking about this feat? Is it really so slow, that there is literally, nothing else to talk about?

The Mind Flayers must have conquered the Material Plane

 

[FrogReaver]

I can see it from the magical weapon property’s viewpoint. I’m sure there’s some magical weapon properties that would be good for a caster. In which case gaining proficiency in said weapon could be a big deal.

 

[GlassJaw]

Weapon Master is awful. Honestly if a player had a cool character concept and they wanted to use a weapon that their class didn't allow, I would just give it to them.

Every time I see these threads pop up, it affirms my belief that the feat system needs to be throw out and rebuilt. Every feat needs to be chopped in half. Balancing the current level of "power" that each feat needs to have has clearly proven too difficult. The devs backed themselves into a corner.

Make feats less powerful but grant more of them. I know the devs were resistant to too much choice but as it stands now, there is hardly any choice because the bulk of the feats are useless compared to a minority that are clearly superior.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Weapon Master is awful. Honestly if a player had a cool character concept and they wanted to use a weapon that their class didn't allow, I would just give it to them.

Every time I see these threads pop up, it affirms my belief that the feat system needs to be throw out and rebuilt. Every feat needs to be chopped in half. Balancing the current level of "power" that each feat needs to have has clearly proven too difficult. The devs backed themselves into a corner.

Make feats less powerful but grant more of them. I know the devs were resistant to too much choice but as it stands now, there is hardly any choice because the bulk of the feats are useless compared to a minority that are clearly superior.

I said the same before about weapon mast but now see it as situationally useful. Not often, but sometimes.

I just made an arcana cleric and took heavily armored at 1 (variant human). I have a 15 str, 14 con and 16 wis.

at 4 I could take this feat and get str to 16 with use of a war hammer, long sword or whatever now being proficient.

at level 8, I can bump wis to 18 with 16 str, heavy armor on arcana cleric chassis. Honestly a good melee cleric.

the opportunity cost is there. Could limit self to use of mace and move scores around so that at 4 I take resilient con. for same ability stats at 8.

it might be superior but I don’t want to have the DM to have to handwave proficiencies, personally.

This is just the example that got me rethinking a ‘terrible’ feat. I like war hammers and axes. What can I say?

one thing I M convinced of however is that I would be very hesitant to take this feat with anything other than a variant human. So situational does not mean very often.

 

[GlassJaw]

it might be superior but I don’t want to have the DM to have to handwave proficiencies, personally.

Why not? I trust the consensus that the interwebs has determined.

If I was DM, I would let you spend a single feat and have whatever armor and weapon proficiencies you wanted.