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About Defending weapons

Not sure if this has been brought up before...

When a defending weapon, say, a +3 is fully activated, is the weapon still treated as a +3 in regards to damage reduction?

-F
 

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the Jester

Legend
Femerus the Gnecro said:
Not sure if this has been brought up before...

When a defending weapon, say, a +3 is fully activated, is the weapon still treated as a +3 in regards to damage reduction?

-F

Good question!

I'm not sure if there's a written answer to this one anywhere; I'd lean towards no, but that's just me, and I'm open to discussion...

The DMG description says you "transfer" some or all of the enhancement bonus to your AC.
 

tburdett

Explorer
A +3 sword is a +3 sword. There is no rule or ruling, with regards to the Defending special ability, that changes this.
 
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Hypersmurf

Moderatarrrrh...
A +3 sword is a +3 sword. There is no rule or ruling, with regards to the Defending special ability, that changes this.

Except that if you've transferred all of your enhancement bonus to AC, your sword doesn't have an enhancement bonus that round. It doesn't get the enhancement bonus to attack or damage, why would it help defeat DR?

I'd even say that if you transfer away all of your enhancement bonus, your sword can be broken by the orc with the rusty greataxe...

-Hyp.
 

kreynolds

First Post
Hypersmurf said:
Except that if you've transferred all of your enhancement bonus to AC, your sword doesn't have an enhancement bonus that round. It doesn't get the enhancement bonus to attack or damage, why would it help defeat DR?

This, I agree with.

Hypersmurf said:
I'd even say that if you transfer away all of your enhancement bonus, your sword can be broken by the orc with the rusty greataxe...

This, I don't. Even if someone dispel magic's your +3 sword, it's still a +3 sword, so it gets better saves and can't be sundered by anything with less than a +3 enhancement bonus. If dispel magic can't turn your magic weapon into a mundane weapon, I don't transfering your bonus to defense should either.
 

dkilgo

First Post
It is still a +3 sword even though it does not get those benefits to attacks and damage adjustments. So, I would have to rule that it would still bypass DR, but not add +3 to the damage of the weapon.

It would just be plain silly to allow that orc to sunder your +3 sword just because you put the entire enhancement into your AC.

Silly I say!
 

Mordane76

First Post
But isn't bypassing DR a benefit to attack? If you don't have any enhancement that round left because you've used the special ability of your weapon, I don't think you should be able to bypass DR that round. Doing this makes Defending much more powerful than it is -- I can make it harder for the baddie to hit me, but I can bypass his supernatural defenses with ease? Where's the trade-off? I know it's a magical weapon, but that is a little more powerful, that what I remember, if it is adjudicated the way some of the above posters are positing.

However -- I agree with the sundering bit. Even if you've transferred all your enhancement bonus to AC that round, the weapon is still "magical," and only a magical weapon of requisite power can sunder another magical weapon. Transferring the enhancement bonus shouldn't effect the weapon's power level for this purpose, IMO -- the situation is one of defense (resisting a sunder attempt), at which this weapon excels.
 
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Hypersmurf

Moderatarrrrh...
Transferring the enhancement bonus shouldn't effect the weapon's power level for this purpose, IMO -- the situation is one of defense (resisting a sunder attempt), at which this weapon excels.

Tell that to any bodyguard who ever "took a bullet" for their client without a vest on :)

The Defending power makes the weapon excel at protecting its wielder.

Kreynolds - reference on that Dispel thing? Does it go for AMF as well?

-Hyp.
 


Mordane76 said:
But isn't bypassing DR a benefit to attack? (snip) I can make it harder for the baddie to hit me, but I can bypass his supernatural defenses with ease? Where's the trade-off?

The trade-off is that you don't get a +3 to your attack against the monster with DR. Sure, you bypass the DR, but your attack is less likely to hit his AC.

Sounds like a decent trade-off to me.

-F
 

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