D&D (2024) Firearms to be made a fixed part of the game, new Weapons Rules

[GMforPowergamers]

Weapons meanwhile have a new "Mastery" mechanic. Each weapon has a specific tag that lets it do some special thing, and the Fighter's going to be able to use two "Mastery" features at once on their weapon.

One example is "Graze" mastery, which causes the weapon to do a minimum of damage even on a miss.

View attachment 280921

um wow... loving that damage on a miss is back

 

[Weiley31]

You flex your muscles while going "its this way to the beach" and you get advantage on seduction rolls.

That would technically make Warhammers the best weapons for Bards.

 

[Vaalingrade]

That would technically make Warhammers the best weapons for Bards.

They already were.

 

[tetrasodium]

I worry about the ranges listed on those weapons being a bit too extreme absent some serious & unhinted changes to vision ranges.

Spoiler: simple ranged

• Light crossbow Range: 80/320 - half a standard chessex mat/more than the entire chessex megamat
• Dart Range: 20/60 - This is great & allows the attacker to swing about in an encounter attacking targets at will while allies engage at close range
• Shortbow Range: 80/320 - half a standard chessex mat/ more than the entire chessex megamat
• Sling Range: 30/120 - half a standard chessex mat/the entire standard chessex mat or half the chessex megamat.

Spoiler: martial ranged

• Blowgun Range: 25/100- This is great & allows the attacker to swing about in an encounter attacking targets at will while allies engage at close range/almostthe entire standard chessex mat or just under half the chessex megamat.
• Crossbow heavy Range: 30/120 - half a standard chessex mat/the entire standard chessex mat or half the chessex megamat.
• hand crossbow Range: 100/400 -almost an entire standard standard cchessex mat or somewhere between a third & half the megamat./ almost two full megamats
• longbow Range: 150/600 - almost an entire standard standard cchessex mat or somewhere between a third & half the megamat/ almost THREE full megamats
• Musket Range: 40/120 - half a standard chessex mat/the entire standard chessex mat or half the chessex megamat.
• Pistol Range: 30/90 This is great & allows the attacker to swing about in an encounter attacking targets at will while allies engage at close range / almost an entire standard standard cchessex mat or somewhere between a third & half the megamat.

As we move into VTTs being more & more common with wotc even planning one this excess becomes even more problematic because it forces the GMs to make maps that can accommodate bob wanting to attack from max range or bob and alice wanting to attack from max ramge but from different directions. Wotc showed some outdoor environments in their VTT video recently, I'd bet that odds were slim & near zero that those maps met those bars. With a dry erase matit's easy for a GM to absolve responsibility for those extremes just by saying "the mat's not that big man... here's a broadstrokes of what your character sees/thinks is between you & that target". With a capable VTT the GM lacks that shield though because the only thing stopping bob from having a perfect gods eye view is the GM refusing to zoom the map.

For the record, chessex megamat is 34.5inches x48 inches & the standard map is 23.5inches x 26 inches..

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Thank you for not spoiling the dimensions of play mats.

 

[Incenjucar]

Some math and maybe a second map is usually plenty for resolving long distance scenarios. You typically don't need perfect detail until you're in spell range.

 

[tetrasodium]

Thank you for not spoiling the dimensions of play mats.

Someone at wotc seems to have spent a lot of years trying to remain unexposed to it, I wanted to be sure that there was a chance for them to be mentally prepared to burst that bubble

Some math and maybe a second map is usually plenty for resolving long distance scenarios. You typically don't need perfect detail until you're in spell range.

The trouble is that "a second map" is bonkers unreasonable and more capable vtt's will always be capable of trivially displaying it. Once the bar between seeing it & not seeing it is a clash between "plsyer:can you scroll out so I can see?" vrs "gm:no I won't" any consequences of imperfect information stemming from that refusal to scroll out for Bob's gods eye view can quickly crash into a fraying social contract.

 

[Incenjucar]

Someone at wotc seems to have spent a lot of years trying to remain unexposed to it, I wanted to be sure that there was a chance for them to be mentally prepared to burst that bubble
The trouble is that "a second map" is bonkers unreasonable and more capable vtt's will always be capable of trivially displaying it. Once the bar between seeing it & not seeing it is a clash between "plsyer:can you scroll out so I can see?" vrs "gm:no I won't" any consequences of imperfect information stemming from that refusal to scroll out for Bob's gods eye view can quickly crash into a fraying social contract.

Bonkers unreasonable? I was doing this back in 4E in my FLGS and it was fine. It would be a good tip for the DMG.

 

[tetrasodium]

Bonkers unreasonable? I was doing this back in 4E in my FLGS and it was fine. It would be a good tip for the DMG.

48 inches is 4 feet, how many tables in the 5.75x8 foot+room for sheets & dice range do you have? Were you playing in the grand hall of a castle or does your FL:GS double as convention center?

edit: for a relatable comparison most people can make, some of these weapons are pushing full & multiple king size beds worth of gridspace. 1 Few people play on tables that size & IME few people even have access to a table in that range, I'm not certain I've ever even seen one

 

[GMforPowergamers]

my buddy is claiming this is yet another "Pathfinder did it first" I guess on crits weapons do things like this in PF2