D&D 5E Mearls on other settings

[Zardnaar]

Let's turn that around. If a metal sword is as good as a +1, what's important about having +1 metal swords?

Seriously, though, weapons can differ in ways beyond bonuses or penalties. A simple and easy to use weapon breakage rule, for example, is quite genre-appropriate.

Likewise, changing the damage die would be a quick way to differentiate them.

An actual penalty makes sense. The Aztecs for example had trouble vs Spanish steel. Another way of doing it I suppose would be to have inferior Athasian weapons that are simple weapons or a 1d10 greatsword like the Aztec obsidian sword. If you want a 2d6 one go find a metal one.

I like the penalties because it actually makes weapons inferior and there is a trade off (and incidentally indirectly nerfs the -5/+10 feats). You can suck up the penalty or just use a staff or club which fits the setting instead of everyone using normal weapons.

 

[Obryn]

An actual penalty makes sense. The Aztecs for example had trouble vs Spanish steel. Another way of doing it I suppose would be to have inferior Athasian weapons that are simple weapons or a 1d10 greatsword like the Aztec obsidian sword. If you want a 2d6 one go find a metal one.

I like the penalties because it actually makes weapons inferior and there is a trade off (and incidentally indirectly nerfs the -5/+10 feats). You can suck up the penalty or just use a staff or club which fits the setting instead of everyone using normal weapons.

Because, from a design point of view, you keep the setting expectations as the standard. That keeps fiddling around to a minimum.

If you expect 90% of all weapons to be inferior quality, you should focus on adjusting the remaining 10%. It's poor design and unnecessary overhead otherwise.

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk

 

[Zardnaar]

Because, from a design point of view, you keep the setting expectations as the standard. That keeps fiddling around to a minimum.

If you expect 90% of all weapons to be inferior quality, you should focus on adjusting the remaining 10%. It's poor design and unnecessary overhead otherwise.

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk

Not really its just a thing. Non metal weapons are inferior and its a fairly simle rule, -1 or -2 (or -3 in the original)

Consider it one of those dials Mearls talked about, the slavish devotion to simplicity does not need to apply to settings. The mists of Ravenloft, moons of Krynn and defiling on Athas might be slightly more complicated or have an additional step over the PHB.

I'm actually starting to wonder why people want to play other settings if they just want to turn them into another variant of the PHB.

 

[MechaPilot]

An actual penalty makes sense.

Sure, but no penalty to inferior weapons and a buff to better weapons literally makes just as much sense. And it has the benefit of being easier and less fiddly.

The Aztecs for example had trouble vs Spanish steel.

Which could easily be modeled by giving the superior steel weapons a bonus.

I like the penalties because it actually makes weapons inferior and there is a trade off (and incidentally indirectly nerfs the -5/+10 feats). You can suck up the penalty or just use a staff or club which fits the setting instead of everyone using normal weapons.

Regardless of whether you use a negative mechanical modifier to non-metal weapons or a penalty by way of buffing metal weapons, you are modeling the superiority of metal weapons. That doesn't change with the method used.

Also, without some special chi ability to make them cut or chop, a wooden sword or axe is just a funny-shaped club, and treating them as such would also work for modeling their inferiority.


Even if you wanted to make the monsters stronger by making them harder to hit and more resistant to damage, you could easily accomplish the same thing by simply increasing their AC.

 

[Obryn]

Not really its just a thing. Non metal weapons are inferior and its a fairly simle rule, -1 or -2 (or -3 in the original)

Consider it one of those dials Mearls talked about, the slavish devotion to simplicity does not need to apply to settings. The mists of Ravenloft, moons of Krynn and defiling on Athas might be slightly more complicated or have an additional step over the PHB.

I'm actually starting to wonder why people want to play other settings if they just want to turn them into another variant of the PHB.

This isn't about saying metal weapons can't be better. They should be.

The only difference between giving 10% of the weapons a bonus, or 90% of the weapons a penalty, is whether you're adjusting 90% or 10% of all weapons. It's silly to add that extra level of busy-work to the 90%.

 

[Zardnaar]

This isn't about saying metal weapons can't be better. They should be.

The only difference between giving 10% of the weapons a bonus, or 90% of the weapons a penalty, is whether you're adjusting 90% or 10% of all weapons. It's silly to add that extra level of busy-work to the 90%.

How do you differentiate between a +1 steel sword and a +1 magical seel sword? Is the only difference one deals magic damage? Darksun is also gritty and an actual penalty reflects that and its not hard to work that in.

If you can't handle a -1/-2 penalty you might not want to check out Birthright.

 

[Obryn]

How do you differentiate between a +1 steel sword and a +1 magical seel sword? Is the only difference one deals magic damage? Darksun is also gritty and an actual penalty reflects that and its not hard to work that in.

If you can't handle a -1/-2 penalty you might not want to check out Birthright.

Holy cow, man, it's not about "can't handle" it's about minimizing useless busywork.

I mentioned a bit earlier that there's other ways to distinguish steel than simple +'s. But if you're stuck on modeling steel as +1, and for some reason still need +1 steel swords (which I honestly don't see why) you can go one of two ways for these corner-cases. (1) you model it as a +2 sword, or (2) you ignore the first +1 enchantment as redundant except for bypassing damage resistance and for other breakage-resistance stuff. Again - is it worth making adjustments to 90%+ of the weapons in the game for this specific rare corner-case?

 

[MechaPilot]

How do you differentiate between a +1 steel sword and a +1 magical seel sword?

A Steel sword would get a +1 to attack and damage rolls.

A +1 steel sword would get a +2 to attack and damage rolls and would qualify as a magical weapon.

 

[Zardnaar]

A Steel sword would get a +1 to attack and damage rolls.

A +1 steel sword would get a +2 to attack and damage rolls and would qualify as a magical weapon.

How about a +3 steel sword then that becomes +4?

5E only goes to +3 remember,

 

[Ilbranteloth]

How about a +3 steel sword then that becomes +4?

5E only goes to +3 remember,

Using one die type lower for damage is another approach.

You could also give medium and heavy armor resistance against non-steel weapons. That would better reflect that the weapons are less effective against armor, rather than making them less effective against unarmored opponents as well.