Double Weapons: Scrap or keep?

[Wiseblood]

It would seem that the reason that double weapons got enough steam to make it into the PHB was Darth Maul. But if you watch the movie he uses his double lightsaber like a staff. I would suppose the only reason it was a double lightsaber (or is it sabre?) was because most any material would yield to the energy of said lightsaber.

Granted you get different results when you poke someone with plasma like heat source vs. a piece of hardwood. It's just a matter of inherent lethality that's the difference.

 

[drothgery]

I am getting more and more irritated by these "remove, remove" reactions... If everything that has a problem should be removed from the game, what really remains? :/

Eh. I think that's only coming up when said problematic thing is kind of weird to begin with, and doesn't have much basis in history or popular fantasy fiction (which does include some video games and anime in my book).

Frex, almost no one over in the 'familiars and animal companions' thread thinks they should be summarily dumped from the game. Made into optional class features and reworked, certainly. As written, they've got lots of issues. But they still should stay for players that want them.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

And narrow-minded DMs.

As for double weapons? A small mechanical advantage is an appropriate return on feat investment. Keep them.

The problem is that its mechanical benefit is just too small. An average of +1 damage is pretty horrible for a feat, particularly considering if the DM randomly generates treasure or uses published adventures you are less likely to find a good weapon.

I'm a fan of double weapons like the quarterstaff or a double ended morningstar. A slashing weapon modeled after the lajatang works great, so I could see a viable double bladed orc axe. Gnome hook hammer? Dire flail? Not so much.

 

[Wombat]

Never liked 'em.

I've seen too many Pandybat tournaments...

 

[Cadfan]

I said keep them. I don't like them myself, but other people do and they don't hurt me any.

There are things in the game which I don't like, don't use, and which degrade my game when other players use them. This is not one of them.

For the record, I'd like mechanical advantages to exist for weapons like an axe with a spike on the back side of the axe blade. Even if it was something as simple as letting you switch between slashing and piercing damage. That's not exactly a double weapon, but its maybe relevant.

 

[GreatLemur]

What should be done about those contraptions like the orc double axe, two-bladed sword, and dire flail? You know, those constructs that screamed "lazy, fanboy-inspired design" in the wake of the whole Phantom Menace and Darth Maul craze.

If that's WOTC's idea of "exotic weapons," someone there needs to do a little more research on weapons like the monk's spade, meteor hammer, rope dart, and slungshot (not to be confused with slingshot). And then put those in instead of those silly, impractical double weapons.

Ironically, the monk's spade is a double weapon (at least in theory; I don't know how they were actually wielded). I think examples like that--along with the quarterstaff and, as ehren37 pointed out, the lajatang--suggest that the concept of the double weapon isn't inherently ridiculous. I'd be very happy to scrap such absurdities as dire flails, but as a mechanical trait, "double weapon" can stay.

 

[FadedC]

On the issues of quarterstaves and reach, keep in mind that just because something is long doesn't mean it has reach. Reach weapons tend to be about 10' long in D&D (or at least that's what I get from the size charts), shorter large weapons such as the greatsword and the short spear (still a 2 handed weapon despite the name) do not have reach.

 

[Simia Saturnalia]

Well, I've only ever seen ONE PC use a double weapon (wild elf paladin w/double scimitar, drawn from the Valenar Bladebearer idea 4 years before Eberron hit) so I don't really care. It makes sense (though the cost is too high) for quarterstaves, chains, and the back end of polearms, and some double weapons work for me (urgrosh/urgosh?, double swords, the Kalamar poleaxe + mace), but the dire flail? Stoooooopid. The double axe, while absurd, is kind of cool to put in the hands of an Orc Ftr 2/Brb 4 and let him loose on the party. Near TPK the first time.

Oh. And the double sword in the PHB is just a little bit worse than the dire flail, IMO.

 

[JediSoth]

I've never seen a double-weapon used in a D&D game and I haven't seen a quarterstaff-wielding wizard since 3.0 came out, either.

I don't think there needs to be a mechanic for using both ends of a quarterstaff. If you attack twice in a round, there ya go, you're using both ends.

JediSoth

 

[Andor]

If that's wrong, then I don't want to be right!

Although I think you may be confusing Friar Tuck with Little John.

Could easily be. Didn't he fight both of them? I have hazy memories that Robin beats Little John but gets his butt kicked by Friar Tuck.