D&D (2024) Bring back the small shield (also, a rapier fix)

[Olrox17]

5e was the first D&D edition I played that didn't have a small shield option. For the sake of simplicity, I guess. Let's fix that, shall we?

Small Shield Cost 5gp AC +1 Weight 3 lb
Don 1 object interaction
Doff 1 object interaction

It would be interesting to have a shield that's easy to put on and take off in combat. It'd play well with versatile weapons and with characters that are good at grappling, while still giving them a defensive option.

Also, after engaging in the discussion on the rapier and how to fix it, here's my latest idea, which hopefully won't send practitioners of fencing and HEMA into a berserker rage
Make the rapier a d6 damage weapon, while giving it the following special property:

Rapier. When you are wielding a rapier in one hand and either a dagger or a small shield in the other, you gain a +1 to AC.

 

[Hriston]

I don’t see 5th Ed. going in this direction. Part of the design philosophy is that it doesn’t fiddle around with +1 bonuses. The way bucklers and main-gauches are handled is you can describe your character as using one, but it doesn’t have a mechanical effect because a +1 is too insignificant to track.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

Instead of a fixed +1 to AC what about a parry reaction +d6 or d4 to AC as a reaction.

 

[Blue]

Shields are already undervalued at only +2 - both from a real world usage, but also from a takes-up-a-hand usage. My guess is it's kept this low because of bounded accuracy. A +1 shield is almost a trap option.

Also, the rapier is the absolute #1 weapon for any DEX melee. If anything a bunch of weapons except rapier needs boosts, and if all that is going to be done is touch rapier then it needs a nerf. So this is not a rapier fix, it's a rapier-more-OP.

 

[Charlaquin]

I don’t see 5th Ed. going in this direction. Part of the design philosophy is that it doesn’t fiddle around with +1 bonuses. The way bucklers and main-gauches are handled is you can describe your character as using one, but it doesn’t have a mechanical effect because a +1 is too insignificant to track.

Dual wielder feat grants +1 to AC when wielding two weapons. +1s do exist, they’re just used sparingly.

 

[Charlaquin]

Instead of a fixed +1 to AC what about a parry reaction +d6 or d4 to AC as a reaction.

The Defensive Duelist feat is basically the NPC Parry reaction, but scalable for PCs who level up.

 

[Olrox17]

Shields are already undervalued at only +2 - both from a real world usage, but also from a takes-up-a-hand usage. My guess is it's kept this low because of bounded accuracy. A +1 shield is almost a trap option.

Also, the rapier is the absolute #1 weapon for any DEX melee. If anything a bunch of weapons except rapier needs boosts, and if all that is going to be done is touch rapier then it needs a nerf. So this is not a rapier fix, it's a rapier-more-OP.

I'm working with 5e's assumptions, here. A shield is +2, a small shield/buckler must be less than that.

...rapier-more-OP? Perhaps you missed that damage is reduced to 1d6, just like a short sword or scimitar? The +1 AC, if you also use a small shield, ends up being a +2, which is what a regular shield provides. The net advantage is being able to swap your shield in and out quickly (and looking more like a cool duelist). How is that OP?

 

[Olrox17]

Instead of a fixed +1 to AC what about a parry reaction +d6 or d4 to AC as a reaction.

As Charlaquin said, that's basically what the Defensive Duel feat does, and I feel that attaching such feature to a weapon for free would be too powerful.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

I think it would be a nice use of a reaction for a buckler. I'd also add it for the normal shield.

Baiting out a parry action allows you to freely disengage.

 

[Olrox17]

I think it would be a nice use of a reaction for a buckler. I'd also add it for the normal shield.

Baiting out a parry action allows you to freely disengage.

As a general shield feature, sure, why not. Could be cool. We would probably need some more general rebalancing of the various combat styles though.