Longsword PCs

[Beckett]

I figured about 70% long term, although my current games seem to be using it a bit less. It's the favorite of the sword and boarder who doesn't want to spare a feat for the bastard sword. Elves, too, whatever the class will pick it up.

For alternate weapons, rogues tend almost exclusively to the rapier. Pelor is the favored god of my players, so heavy maces seem to be the standard on clerics. Great Sword or Great Axe is the standard of the twohanded power attackers.

Going back to earlier editions, long sword was even more common since the majority of magic swords would randomly be that type.

 

[Masquerade]

Of the 19 PCs in my current multi-campaign, only 1 even carries a longsword, and he only uses that for close-quarters (longspear otherwise).

In other campaigns I haven't seen the weapon used heavily, either. Rapiers and katana are much more common in my experience.

 

[Wik]

Yeah, the only time I see a longsword in play is when someone is playing a bard or an elf. *occasionally* I see a paladin pick one up, or some other sword+shield character, but that's fairly rare. The longsword is typically only the weapon of choice for NPCs.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Main weapons in the last few campaigns I've run or played in, discounting those who didn't actually use weapons

1 - Greataxe
1 - Falchion
1 - Shortbow
1 - Duom
1 - Gauntlet
1 - Claw/Claw/Bite
1 - Warhammer
1 - Heavy Flail
2 - Longow
2 - Dagger
2 - Rapier
3 - Short Sword

 

[Sound of Azure]

Just for the record, bows are neither one or two handed weapons. Those are melee distinctions. Bows are ranged weapons, without designation to the handedness.

You might want to re-examine Blue's list. Blue didn't say that bows were either.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Yeah, the only time I see a longsword in play is when someone is playing a bard or an elf. *occasionally* I see a paladin pick one up, or some other sword+shield character, but that's fairly rare. The longsword is typically only the weapon of choice for NPCs.

Just out of curiosity, what do paladins use IYC? Do they not go sword and board, or do they spend one of their feats on EWP: Bastard Sword? Or are they mostly using other martial one-handed weapons like hammers and axes?

 

[Wik]

Just out of curiosity, what do paladins use IYC? Do they not go sword and board, or do they spend one of their feats on EWP: Bastard Sword? Or are they mostly using other martial one-handed weapons like hammers and axes?

Well, the last couple of paladins I've seen work on divine feats, and don't bother with Bastard Sword - but they generally use shields (longsword being the most common choice, followed by warhammers). That rule has been blown out of the water with our current paladin in STAP, whose feats are something like:

Combat Reflexes, Weapon Focus (Glaive), Power Attack, Cleave.

I'd also like to mention that a paladin with a glaive is AWESOME.

 

[w_earle_wheeler]

The type of characters I generally see using longswords are: elves with classes that don't already grant the use of a longsword, clerics who have a deity that favors longswords (or elven clerics), and rangers or other two-weapon fighters.

 

[drothgery]

It seemed like they were very common in 2e, but in 3.x they've really fallen out of favor. Some of this might be playing with different people, but I think it's mostly that offense outstrips defense so much in 3.x that you don't see many sword and board types; two-weapon and two handed weapon types are somewhat more common.

Now, as for my fellow tabletop PCs, we've got this for primary weapons

1/2 orc barbarian/fighter - greatsword
kalashtar soulknife - mind blade (normally as two shortswords)
human cleric - quarterstaff (he's got a Vow of Poverty)
human scout (cohort of cleric) - longbow
human warmage - fireball

So no longswords here.

 

[SteelDraco]

In our current group, we have one character with a long sword. She's a sword-and-board fighter, and the only one who fights with a single melee weapon. That's out of a group of six.

Thinking back, I can't think of too many long swords in our current group at all. It seems like sort of a boring choice, so I think most people tend to shy away from it. I tend to see more rapiers these days than I do long swords, actually. I know I haven't played a character with one in quite some time.

Maybe 10%?