Scion said:
Still though, in the campaigns where brilliant energy is worth it then the change will do almost nothing. In those where it is not worth it then it will make it worth it. Again, win/win situation.
Almost nothing? Turning someone's AC from a 40 to a 20 is "almost nothing". That's odd, it looks like an extra 10+ points of power attack damage to me.
You keep saying this, but it doesnt make a lot of sense really. All it does it take it from a 'use only against the pc's' and turns it into 'it is useful for people to have, but still a tough choice'. Nothing wrong with that. It makes for less wasted space as it is actually useful then.
Actually it makes it a must have item. High CR creatures are frequently a challenge because they can't just be power attacked into oblivion by the party fighter. Let's take the Tarrasque as an example, he's a fairly scary CR 20 critter. AC: 35. Touch AC: 5. At 20th level that's an extra 100 points of damage per round that the fighter will be able to output with a full attack.
Another example: Great Wyrm Red Dragon. AC: 41. Touch AC: 2. Yet another major difference.
Now we'll step away from the reqlly big critters and look at things that have less of their offense put intot heir size (since that's where the big AC penalties come from).
Balor: AC 36 (with Unholy Aura). Touch AC 20 (with unholy aura).
Pit Fiend: AC 40. Touch AC 17.
Need I continue? Alowing touch attacks with a weapon is far from "almost nothing." There is the downside that the weapon cannot harm undead, constructs, or items. So what? Get yourself a sun blade backup for undead, and an adamntium +1 construct bane weapon for constructs and you'll be just fine, but you'll be dealing an extra 10-40 damage against most foes because of your increased abilty to power attack.
Lots of creatures have good touch attack ac's. Even dragons, the king of high natural armor, can have touch ac's in the low 20's without an incredible amount of effort. At that point the first two attacks hit on anything but a 1 sure, but the latter ones need higher. Plus, this is about the only creature where the difference is so huge. It takes a creature that is normally nearly impossible to hit and puts him into the range of possiblities, nothing wrong with that. Especially for such an expensive enhancement with such huge limitations.
Have you seen the average attack bonuses for high level fighters? An AC of 20 means that the chances of missing with all but the last attack are pretty darned slim. And AC 40 is not "nearly impossible to hit" to begin with.
Creatures with high dex, deflection bouses, dodge, or any number of other things, of which all are common at higher levels, would be hit only slightly more often. More often enough to warrent the +4? Yes, however you also have to take into account that effectively everything with a 'con -' is immune to the weapon entirely.
Hence the idea of a backup weapon.
That is a huge drawback! Some weapons may be entirely 'brilliant', if this happens and you drop it no more weapon. Along with difficulties in sheathing.
Huh? I don't see anywhere in the item description that says you can't sheathe a briliant energy weapon or that if you drop it is disappears. Yeah, if you toss in house rules that make weapons disappear, you'll probably have to up the power level on them.
Plus, it sheds light like a torch all of the time. That is not great in all situations. At higher level light sources are incredibly easy to get, but not always easy to put out. There is a bit of a drawback there.
Many magical swords that are found will shed light, and can't be put out. How is Brilliant any different from those? If you put it in a sheathe, its light is going to be blocked, just like with any other weapon.
Really, like I've said, all it does is make the weapon more reciprocal. Are there situations and campaigns where it could be 'too good'? sure, but as it is right now I have not been in a campaign yet were it was even good enough to take for anyone but the bad guys. That is poor form. For the campaigns where it is too good, which I assume to be the vast minority, they can simply ban it. Much like many people do with vorpal even now.
Come play in one of my campaigns at some point. Generally its humanoid foes that are the movers and the shakers, alongside their extraplanar or undead allies. A brilliant energy weapon will be useful about 60% of the time, not so useless about 20% of the time, and completely useless the other 20%.
Who bans vorpal now? Nobody I know. And I find it hard to imagaine a group that would contemplating allowing Briallant Energy to ignore natural armor but be worried about the less than one in twenty chance of instant death that vorpal grants.
