Brilliant energy weapons... what's the deal?

[Yair]

Just how does one sheathe a brilliant energy sword, for example, if the blade ignores nonliving matter? It'd fall out of the scabbard each and every time (unless the scabbard was made of still living flesh - a neat if somewhat disturbing idea).

Very neat. *Yoink*

On topic, I agree brilliant energy weapons need to circumvent shields as well.
Energy weapons are nothing like light sabres. Adamantine is closer to a light sabre, an adamantine vorpal keen scimitar, perhaps? With flaming to inflict fire damage on vault doors each round? Light sabres just can't be mimicked in D&D unless you assume HP's are not representing wounds so the sword misses until it cuts the character in half and kills him, it just cuts through everything too damn well.

 

[domino]

Light sabres just can't be mimicked in D&D unless you assume HP's are not representing wounds so the sword misses until it cuts the character in half and kills him, it just cuts through everything too damn well.

Technically, that's how things work. They have some excuse about HP actually being the fighter's greater training at avoiding hits, and rolling with punches, etc... until you run out of luck.

But I've NEVER met anyone that really plays it like that.

 

[Sir ThornCrest]

A +3 keen Sword of Sharpness, brilliant energy weapon I have not looked at 3e swords of sharpness but the 2e version, would be pretty close to the light sabre. You would also have to have the sword handle be equal to that of a glove of storing, call it a handle of storing, when triggered *poof* instant light sabre. You would also have to "break" or alter the B.E. part to damage non living matter but add 1d6 damage in exchange.....the blade could not be sundered, that would be the benefit of having a energy blade.

I think that would cover it just a 200,000 gp weapon build and your there!

Thorncrest

 

[salemcse]

Brilliant Energy vs Fire Resistance on Armor

Wrong place, sry

 

[frankthedm]

IIRC The remaining material of a Brilliant Energy weapon was depicted as baroque filigree in some of the weapon's illustrations. I'd assume that was what kept the weapon from falling out of the sheath.

Not a fan of the BE enchantment. An expensive mod to get a random, but sometimes huge bonus to hit in exchange for the chance the weapon won’t get any bonus or often won’t do anything at all, just does not sit well with me.

An awesome glowing weapon that is less dangerous to the undead than a NERF^TM foam bat is something that should have been sent back to the drawing board.

Brilliant Energy weapon and Warforged - Aug 25, 2009
Fortification vs. Brilliant Energy‎ - Oct 29, 2006
Cold Iron Brilliant Energy Longsword? - Page 8‎ - May 27, 2005
Brilliant Energy vs. Fortification - Page 2‎ - Mar 4, 2004

There's nothing in the [Living] subtype that mentions this invulnerability would change, so ...

Warforged are explicitly living matter. You might be able to argue that the brilliant energy ignores their armor plating, but the fact is that their mass- despite being metal and wood and so forth- is living.

Or treat the armor plating as armor, like it was intended and the warforged as living creatures, like it was intended and leave them just as well/bad off against a BE weapon as any other player in armor. But gods forbid if we don't treat the warforged as special little snowflakes at every opportunity!

This gets my vote. They introduced the living construct subtype precisely because they didn't want warforged to be immune against everything constructs are immune against. If in doubt they aren't immune.

If someone tries to argue with the sentence that refers to 'type', you simply inform them that line was written before the introduction of the warforged's subtype, thus it is the prerogative of the DM to decide how those rules interact, especially since none of the creature types listed in BE 'live'.

According to Sage, warforged are affected by brilliant energy weapons:
Ask Wizards: 01/10/2007