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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(un)reason" data-source="post: 5376680" data-attributes="member: 27780">Dragon Magazine Issue 210: October 1994part 4/6Primitive weaponry: A second article by Greg here. One that crosses over well with his previous one too, as most of these are made of non-metallic materials, so they won't be affected so badly by the scarce resources of Dark Sun. Plus many of these have additional benefits beyond the basic attack and damage thing. A few more tricks to liven combat up is rarely a bad thing. Kotitate are clubs shaped like a thin sharpened violin. Perfect weapon for gangsters to conceal for HtH battles, since guns aren't common in D&D. Kugerongs are another club variant with a sharpened point. Inflicting multiple damage types with a single weapon is always good, because it gives you tactical options. Leoniles are primitive pick/clubs used by australians. They're a real bugger to parry, but not hugely damaging, so they become most interesting against other warrior types. Exactly how good they'll be against a kickboxing roo I'm not sure. Manoples are like large sais, short swords with a pair of daggers on the side. As with the japanese variant, this means extra good parrying. Specialists can even break enemy weapons. Nasty and totally radical. (Gimme a break)Patu are little sharpened paddles. So another one that also serves as a tool, which is important when you aren't wearing any clothes, and don't have many pockets. They're also good for two weapon fighting. Seems like that's a common thread most cultures experiment with. Powhenua are another variant on the spike/club combination. Putting one on each end, they let you deal with flanking enemies simultaneously. So much more sensible than bat'leths. Rang-kwan are staves with spikes on both ends, another variant on the same theme. Again, they're good for parrying and/or attacking multiple enemies on both sides. I wonder if they have a 3rd edition conversion, where that would be even more handy. Shotel are very curved swords that are rather good at getting round enemy shields. Since they're from the kind of climate where people only used shields, and not armor, this is quite a substantial benefit. Against dumbass knights (presuming they resisted heatstroke) this may not be the case. Tebuje are clubs studded with sharks teeth. Just another way of raising the damage and looking more intimidating. Plus, relatively easy to replace if they come off. (and you know they will) Just add spiky bits from your latest monstrous kill. It can become a real avenue for bragging. Tewha-tewha look like no weapon I've seen before, and look like they'd be handy as tools as well. They're one that really rewards specialisation. Nice to see other cultures coming up with stuff that isn't just another variant on the same few shapes. Wahaika are little curved clubs. They're surprisingly good at being used from horseback, and are cheap too. For those who think cavalry strafing is a european advantage, these'll be a nasty surprise, and really annoy adventurers who are used to their foes standing and trading blows with them.  Watilikri are massive boomerangs that don't come back, but do lots of damage and get stuck in the victim. If you have a whole stack of them you can throw them pretty fast too, so you have a good shot at bringing down something big and tasty. Wongala are another boomerang variant, this one intended to be thrown at the ground just in front of someone and then bounce up to smack them in the face. This is obviously disorienting and tricky to dodge. That's not cricket at all. Wirka are another one designed to trap the enemy's weapon and break it in experienced hands. Plenty of meanness there. So this is a collection of weapons that very much supports system mastery, as stuff in a supplement should compared to the core weapons. That there are a few that aren't just variants on existing weapons as well is a real plus. Keep experimenting, something new turns up eventually. Fiction: The siege of Bahorel's bed by Daniel Hood. Hmm. This is a nice mix of pathos and humour. Not easy to blend those without diluting the two. So this is the story of an old librarian dragged into being an apprentice wizard, and the awkward stuff that happens as he tries to learn wizardry with students maybe a third his age. This culminates in a well handled incident of accidental demon summoning which is solved by a neat bit of rules lawyering. So by combining a whole bunch of elements that I like, this manages to be very satisfying indeed on an emotional level. Like an early episode of Red Dwarf or The Young Ones, it's amazing how attached you can become to a bunch of misfits, even if they aren't actually that nice as people.</blockquote>

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