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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cap'n Kobold" data-source="post: 7034226" data-attributes="member: 6802951">Bear in mind that in 5e, Strength does not require looking like a bodybuilder: its athleticism and ability to apply force as much as how much you can lift. Think Bruce Lee as much as Arnold. It actually requires more strength to use a rapier effectively than a longsword. A rapier (as opposed to the whippy fencing swords used by Flynn & co.) is of similar mass, and is controlled to a large degree through the muscles of the hand and arm rather than having the leverage of both hands on the long longsword hilt. Many styles of fencing also emphasise athleticism - which in 5e is covered by Strength. I can't speak for all weapons or styles for using them. However, for most swords, what 5e defines as Strength plays a large part in landing a blow even before you consider having to get past armour or layers of hide and muscle.In actual combat, as opposed to what you might see in a lot of media or in weapon displays, a big, unopposed swing that strikes and continues is rare. The ability to control the weapon through leverage exerted is essential: the more force you can exert on the handle, the faster you can change direction of a swing and the less time and distance you need to generate a damaging attack. So, outside of actual skill and technique, I would consider the attributes covered by Strength in 5e D&D as more important in landing a damaging hit.Reflexes, balance and suchlike are also important in a fight, but if you had to simplify things down to D&D's level, using Str as the offensive stat, and Dex as the defensive stat makes more sense than the other way around.In terms of whether I would change the rules to reflect this? Not really. D&D exists to allow popular media tropes as well as realism. Apart from a few adjustments (removing finesse requirement for sneak attacks, allowing Str to be used with Bows etc) I personally see the value of finesse as a rules mechanic to allow certain character concepts despite viewing it as rather unrealistic.If you did want to remove finesse, I would also suggest applying Dex to all armour, at least partially.</blockquote>

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