Change Weapon focus or Specialization

[Sqwonk]

If this belongs in House Rules please move.

Drago the 5th level fighter had taken Wpn Focus and Specialization in Greatsword. But now his family heirloom greatsword, that he has had since level 1, was eaten by a demon. Since then he has found a nifty magical glaive. Now his 2 GS feats are wasted.

Do you allow a player to change his Focus/Spec feats? By what process/rules?
or is he SOL?

Thanks

 

[Stalker0]

Don't let him change, that's the price you pay for spec. I'm sure he'll find another greatsword down the road...hopefully not too far from now

 

[smootrk]

No changing specialization under normal circumstances. The Player's Handbook 2, however, does have re-training rules that you might review and see if your DM allows the modification.

 

[frankthedm]

I believe complete adventurer introduced rules for those with focus and specialization in certain weapons to apply the benefits to the upgraded, exotic versions.

Longsword to bastard sword

Longbow to greatbow

Longspear to greatspear...etc.

 

[Piratecat]

There are enough by-the-book ways to do this that I'll slide it into Rules.

 

[Jarrod]

Many of the exotic weapons in the Completes have a clause of "can be treated like unexotic version for purposes of feats". That doesn't really help here, though.

As said, the PHB2 has retraining rules that could be applied.

Finally, the Eberron campaign setting (particularly Races of Eberron) has a series of "weapon style" feats that provide three typical bonuses. First, it makes a set of themed exotic weapons martial for a particular group or race. Second, it allows the player to apply Weapon Focus/Weapon Spec to the entire set. Finally, it adds some action point rules.

The first and third don't really help in this case. I would suggest going with the PHB2 rules if the player wants to give up the sword for the spear. I'd also make it very difficult to change a second time.

 

[Arnwyn]

Do you allow a player to change his Focus/Spec feats? By what process/rules?
or is he SOL?

No, I do not. He's "SOL".

(Though, as others have noted, the PHB2 does have some guidelines for "retraining".)

 

[IndyPendant]

This is one of those concepts that needs to be taken 'in context' to truly find a fair ruling.

For example, in my campaigns the player would most likely be SOL. However, I also rarely limit players on reasonable magic item creation, so that eaten Greatsword would be relatively easily replaced in my campaigns, since I figure the cost in GP is enough of a 'penalty'.

It seems however that you are in a campaign where magic items are mostly found, and not created by the party. In a campaign like that, Weapon Focus and Specialization really become severely suboptimal feats, since the likelihood that one of the best weapons randomly rolled on a table would be your specialty weapon is...almost infinitesimally slim. In a campaign like that, I as the GM would do one of two things: 1) allow the fighter to change his spec with a minimum of hoops to jump through, or 2) create a sidequest that leads to the McGuffin Greatsword, that he has to drag the party along to get to.

*IF* you are in a campaign where you cannot purchase your own magic items to order, and at the same time *IF* the GM is refusing to make it at least reasonably possible to get another magic greatsword or switch the feats, then I would do one of two things: 1) switch out the character for a barbarian or something, since the fighter will never be good enough; or 2) get a new GM. : )

 

[Artoomis]

No changing specialization under normal circumstances. The Player's Handbook 2, however, does have re-training rules that you might review and see if your DM allows the modification.

Agreed. That's the way to go, I think.

 

[nobodez]

Just encourage him to take a level in Warblade (ToB). I know it's got it's own problems, but it does allow you to change out the specialization of the various Weapon Focus tree feats. Plus, it'll allow him to use some fairly cool maneuvers.