D&D 3E/3.5 [3.5] Wounding blade broken?

[niteshade6]

It's powerful certainly but I don't think it's more powerful then what you could get from a similar +2 enchantment except maybe at very high levels.

If your enemy has 10 HD then essentialy every hit will do 5 extra damage to them. It also lowers fort saves by 1/2 per hit. Unless they are immune to critical hits, then it will do nothing to them. Presumably fortification armor would have it's usual chance to negate this although it's not entirely clear. So it doesn't work on undead, constructs, plants, oozes, elementals, and a few other specific opponents.

A holy weapon would deal an average of 7 extra damage per hit. It would also have a range of enemies it would be ineffective against but it would punch through alot of types of DR too.

A weapon with two energy types would also deal 7 extra damage per hit and would probably work on more creatures then the wounding weapon (your campaign may vary).

Seems reasonable enough to me. At high levels it starts to push ahead more but even if your enemies all have 20 HD it's not that big a damage difference compared to equivelent magics.

 

[Hypersmurf]

I'm wondering why people keep talking about a wounding sword, when to me a wounding bow would be a lot more powerful.

Check the tables.

Wounding is only available as a melee weapon special ability - it doesn't appear on the ranged table.

-Hyp.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

By raw damage it is no better than regular energy enhancements until you hit high levels. It is certainly less effective against mooks where you want the instant kill to get the Cleave.

That seems reasonable to me.

The only weird issue with this weapon is it is more efficient against the Big Boss than other opponents. That is not a problem but it could catch a DM off guard.

You are not going to see Wounding much except in level 10+ play. At that point, potions of Lesser Restoration are as much standard equipment as healing potions.

The potion takes a standard action, provokes an AoO (Concentration is rarely a skill taken by fighters), and unintelligent monsters can't really use it.

 

[hong]

Go ahead & find me any other mechanic, anywhere in weapons, armor, spells, magic, or feats, where you will consistantly do more damage against tougher targets than you will against weaker ones.

Phantasmal killer, slay living, finger of death, destruction... possibly even hold person, depending on how loosely you interpret "more damage against tougher targets". Disintegrate used to be on the list as well, prior to being nerfed.

While we're at it, include grappling, tripping, disarming and sundering. All of these special attacks are "called shots" in that they bypass the hit point mechanic, and thus often get trotted out as ways to handle a particularly tough encounter. Wizard giving you trouble? Grapple him, which stops him getting off spells and ignores his stoneskin, shield and other defensive buffs. Archer shooting you to bits? Sunder the bow. Sword guy in your face? Disarm him. Etcetera.

Personally, I don't think wounding is that uber an enchantment. It's useless against anything immune to crits, which means it won't work on undead, plants, elementals or constructs. Undead in particular tend to be common encounters, enough so that I'd rather spend the +2 on holy. It also won't work on anything wearing fortification armour, which should be fairly common at high levels. Certainly there's already enough incentive for PCs to wear fort armour: even leaving wounding aside, getting hit for a x3 crit from a giant-sized greataxe is going to hurt.

 

[Andion Isurand]

oops, nm

 

[Celtavian]

re

Our party carries a Restoration wand, if you don't, then you are up the creek due to the long casting time for the spell.

Wounding is exceedingly powerful for a +2 enhancement. It can be stacked on top of energy burst weapons due to its low enhancement cost. There are few spells that provide resistance to ability damage, whereas a simple Protection from Elements or a minor energy resistance item can protect you from energy weapons. There is no save for the wounding damage and it continues to do more damage the higher the level or hit die of your enemy unlike energy weapons and the higher level that you obtain due to more attacks like energy weapons. It is a very powerful ability, it could get way out of hand when used by a two-weapon fighter or a creature like a Marilith.

I don't quite know how you would modify, but I am thinking of making it like the old wounding. Hit point damage is easy to heal. Energy weapons do hit point damage, so the abilities would be closer in power.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Re: re

Our party carries a Restoration wand, if you don't, then you are up the creek due to the long casting time for the spell.

Um, yeah, 'cos the wand is gonna make a difference...?

"Activation: Wands use the spell trigger activation method, so casting a spell from a wand is usually a standard action that doesn’t provoke attacks of opportunity. (If the spell being cast, however, has a longer casting time than 1 action, it takes that long to cast the spell from a wand.)"

-Hyp.

 

[Celtavian]

Re: Re: re

Um, yeah, 'cos the wand is gonna make a difference...?

"Activation: Wands use the spell trigger activation method, so casting a spell from a wand is usually a standard action that doesn’t provoke attacks of opportunity. (If the spell being cast, however, has a longer casting time than 1 action, it takes that long to cast the spell from a wand.)"

-Hyp.

I should have went with my original ruling. I knew I had read somewhere that wands used the casting time of the spell. Lo and behold its even in the old DMG. Sometimes it is difficult to keep track of these rules.

Now, wounding seems even worse because it will take 3 rounds to cast a Restoration to get those lost points back. In 3 rounds against a high level wounding opponent, you'll be dead.

 

[drnuncheon]

Re: Re: Re: Re: re

There are much better ways to force a -1 to -2 penalty to Fort, especially at levels where it really starts to matter.

As you said, it does 'about the same' damage as unholy or two energy enhancements, which cost the same amount - and then you get the Con modifier for free.

The fact that there are better ways to get a con penalty is irrelevant. The point is that it's an effect that is over and above the damage (which by itself is roughly balanced, as you pointed out.)

J

 

[niteshade6]

"As you said, it does 'about the same' damage as unholy or two energy enhancements, which cost the same amount - and then you get the Con modifier for free."

Yeah but a holy weapon has extra bonuses that it bypasses good DR which is a huge deal. And I think there are alot more creatures immune to wounding then there are who have the 2 proper types of energy resistance. Plus unless your enemy has 14 HD wounding actualy does less damage then these things.