Dual-wielding Slings?

[malichai]

Is it possible to dual-wield slings? A player in our campaign is planning to do it, and taking rapid-fire, ambi, 2-weapon, to get off 4 shots at first level at a -4 to his BaB. I would've guessed it couldn't be done, but can't find anything that says it can't.

 

[LGodamus]

Ambi and two weapon fighting only work for melee weapons.

 

[Jondor_Battlehammer]

A sling is a two handed weapon, anyway. You can't shoot two bows at once, nor could you relod them for multiple shots without dropping one.

 

[CCamfield]

A sling is a two handed weapon, anyway. You can't shoot two bows at once, nor could you relod them for multiple shots without dropping one.

I'm not really clear on why a sling is a two-handed weapon, at least once you start whirling it around, but I can't really imagine using two at once.

 

[Zappo]

Uh? How are you supposed to dual wield a sling? Except by having four arms of cour... wait. You're thinking about the kind of sling where you put a stone into a strip of cloth and make it spin over your head before letting it go, right? Ok, but I think D&D slings are of the kind that looks like a bifurcated stick with a bit of elastic something in it. It takes two hands to use.

 

[Jondor_Battlehammer]

How do you load a sling with one hand? I suppose you could do it like crossbows, but after your first two shots, you would need to drop one to keeep firing.

 

[Crothian]

Uh? How are you supposed to dual wield a sling? Except by having four arms of cour... wait. You're thinking about the kind of sling where you put a stone into a strip of cloth and make it spin over your head before letting it go, right? Ok, but I think D&D slings are of the kind that looks like a bifurcated stick with a bit of elastic something in it. It takes two hands to use.

No, that's a sling shot. A sling is the item you spin over your head.

 

[Mal Malenkirk]

You can't spin both above your head, they'll get tangled.

You could try spinning them laterrally, parralel to your body. I doubt it would be very accurate.

Beside, how do you reload? You have to drop one of the sling. And at that point, what have you accomplished that you couldn't do with rapid shot?

 

[Swack-Iron]

Ambi and two weapon fighting only work for melee weapons.

I have yet to see any great proof of this. The feat doesn't specify melee only. The only text I've found that even beats around this bush is in the description for a heavy crossbow (PHB p.100) but that seems like such an out of the way place, as to almost be an afterthought -- as if it was written by a different author than whoever wrote the Feats chapter.

In one game I'm playing an ambi/2-weapon fighter that dual wields two whips (which, oddly enough, are accounted as ranged weapons) and we haven't found it to be unbalancing. Someone who dual wields hand crossbows, light crossbows, or whatever is even more hampered than my whip wielder by the necessity of using an off hand to reload every round. I say if you want to buy the feats (which have steep entry requirements) than sure, go ahead and dual wield ranged weapons -- it's an expensive buy-in for a very small benefit.

 

[Crothian]

I have yet to see any great proof of this. The feat doesn't specify melee only. The only text I've found that even beats around this bush is in the description for a heavy crossbow (PHB p.100) but that seems like such an out of the way place, as to almost be an afterthought -- as if it was written by a different author than whoever wrote the Feats chapter.

Well, that's the official rule and the Sage has quoted that for proof.