D&D 3E/3.5 [3.5] Can a Bbn/Drd wield a glaive while wildshaped as a dire ape?

[ForceUser]

Last month, Andy Collins clarified on his messageboards that, while wildshaped, a druid retains the use of any magic items that can be used by his new form (I.E., a wolf can wear a necklace), and that DMs should give players wide latitude when deciding what can and can't be used by a new form.

My barbarian/druid wields a +1 adamantine glaive. If he turns into a dire ape, would the glaive therefore remain when he changes, since in dire ape form he has hands and could continue to wield it? Also, dire apes are Large size. Would the glaive therefore become a Large size weapon if he's holding it when he wildshapes into an ape? If not, what happens to it? Remains the same size, imposing penalties for using a weapon not of your size category? Melds into your form even though you have hands?

Caveat: I know that it's likely no one on this forum has a clue what the rule would be, but I am curious to read your opinions.

Hope it works out in my favor, I wanna be the glaive-wielding raging barbarian dire ape with Combat Reflexes and a 15-foot zone of control!

 

[mikebr99]

If the 1st level Enlarge spell also increases the size of all the targets equipment... I would think a class ability based off of Polymorph (a much higher level spell) would also grant re-sized equipment. It would have to... if rings and necklass' are available when I change into a large animal from a Gnome. So should weapons...

YMMV


Mike

 

[Nifft]

Using the power of Nature to enhance your prowess with manufactured arms & armor? Goes against the spirit of the thing.

I wouldn't allow Wild Shape to emulate Enlarge Person. I'd require a special enchantment on a weapon to allow it to be used by Wild Shape'd Druids, and would not allow armor to be worn by human-shaped animal forms.

-- Nifft

 

[mikebr99]

Using the power of Nature to enhance your prowess with manufactured arms & armor? Goes against the spirit of the thing.

I wouldn't allow Wild Shape to emulate Enlarge Person. I'd require a special enchantment on a weapon to allow it to be used by Wild Shape'd Druids, and would not allow armor to be worn by human-shaped animal forms.

-- Nifft

Respectfully Nifft... you'll have to quote something... or you are just making a house rule.

 

[Wippit Guud]

Wild shape doesn't affect the size of anything else that isn't absorbed (a cloak wouldn't get any bigger, for example), so I don't see why it would affect a weapon.

However, if you want it in hard copy... Wildshape is based off polymorph self, which doesn't have any comments on equipment, but is in turn based on alter self, and so we get:

When the change occurs, your equipment, if any, either remains worn or held by the new form (if it is capable of wearing or holding the item), or melds into the new form and becomes nonfunctional. When you revert to your true form, any objects previously melded into the new form reappear in the same location on your body they previously occupied and are once again functional. Any new items you wore in the assumed form and can't wear in your normal form fall off and land at your feet; any that you could wear in either form or carry in a body part common to both forms at the time of reversion are still held in the same way

Held in the same way means they're unaffected.

 

[Nifft]

Respectfully Nifft... you'll have to quote something... or you are just making a house rule.

I'm discussing the spirit of the rules, and saying how I would rule if it came up in my game.

It is legal to discuss the spirit of the rules in this forum, is it not? (And if you say not, you'll have to quote something... )

-- Nifft

 

[ForceUser]

Held in the same way means they're unaffected.

For the sake of discussion, "held in the same way" could also be interpreted to mean that if the weapon is two-handed when you're Medium, then it's also two-handed when you're Large. Otherwise it is not, in fact, held in the same way - it becomes a one-handed weapon.

 

[Wippit Guud]

For the sake of discussion, "held in the same way" could also be interpreted to mean that if the weapon is two-handed when you're Medium, then it's also two-handed when you're Large. Otherwise it is not, in fact, held in the same way - it becomes a one-handed weapon.

No... it's always a two-handed weapon. You're just size large, and can wield a two-handed weapon in one hand.

Remember, to a halfling, it's called a 'two-handed weapon', but they can't weild it at all.

 

[marshaldwm]

I just looked over the Druid and their weapons. Apparently using a non-druid weapon is not a problem, only wearing metal armor is in 3.5

I see no reason bythe rules the druid could not, as@they have proficiency fromthe barbarian class. So I see no reason the glaive would not be usable itneh new for,

However, I would have to rule that the glaive would have to be dropped when wildshaping and would thus remain the same size.

Doing otehrwise could open a can of worms where the druid holds sutuff he could theoretically use when in dire ape form, just to increase its size.

 

[Hypersmurf]

"The measure of how much effort it takes to use a weapon (whether the weapon is designated as a light, one-handed, or two-handed weapon for a particular wielder) is altered by one step for each size category of difference between the wielder’s size and the size of the creature for which the weapon was designed. If a weapon’s designation would be changed to something other than light, one-handed, or two-handed by this alteration, the creature can’t wield the weapon at all."

A Medium longsword is a one-handed weapon for a Medium creature. To a halfling, it is not "called a one-handed weapon" - its designation changes so that, for the halfling, it is considered a two-handed weapon.

A Medium Greatsword is a two-handed weapon to the Medium Druid, but to the Large Dire Ape, it is a one-handed weapon. It is not a two-handed weapon he can wield in one hand, like a lance while mounted; its designation actually changes when the Ape picks it up.

-Hyp.