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On GWF and a versatile fighting style
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<blockquote data-quote="Hawk Diesel" data-source="post: 7623602" data-attributes="member: 59848"><p>I think the main problem with a versatile fighting style is that from round to round or even encounter to encounter, things don't change enough that switching between one or two hands on a weapon will make any difference. If you don't already have a shield, there's no reason (except attempting a grapple) not to use two hands to maximize damage. If you do have a shield, then dropping it in exchange for a +1 average damage doesn't make sense, since it is not likely to make or break an encounter. And honestly, I don't see any mechanical bonus that would encourage switching between holding a weapon in one or two hands. With existing mechanics, only a champion fighter or fighter multiclass with ranger or paladin could be effective with versatile weapons, if they took Dueling and GWF. But even then, I don't see a lot of situations that would encourage someone to switch things up.</p><p></p><p>But as I'm thinking about this, maybe instead you can do something like the Protection fighting style, that adds a whole new mechanic. Perhaps something like this:</p><p></p><p><strong>Versatile Fighting Style</strong></p><p>When you are wielding a versatile weapon in your hands and no other objects, you gain the following abilities:</p><p>-When an enemy you can see hits you with an attack that only targets you, you can use your reaction to deflect the attack and reduce the damage you would take. You reduce the damage by an amount equal to your one handed weapon damage plus your proficiency bonus. After this reaction, you can only make one handed attacks until the end of your next turn.</p><p>-When you kill an enemy while wielding your weapon in two hands, you can cleave through them, damaging a nearby enemy. If an attack's damage would reduce an opponent to less than 0 HP, you can deliver the remaining damage plus your proficiency bonus to a creature you can see within your reach.</p><p></p><p>The above example is complicated and unwieldy compared to other fighting styles, but I feel like this is the kind of mechanic we would need for a versatile weapon fighting style.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Hawk Diesel, post: 7623602, member: 59848"] I think the main problem with a versatile fighting style is that from round to round or even encounter to encounter, things don't change enough that switching between one or two hands on a weapon will make any difference. If you don't already have a shield, there's no reason (except attempting a grapple) not to use two hands to maximize damage. If you do have a shield, then dropping it in exchange for a +1 average damage doesn't make sense, since it is not likely to make or break an encounter. And honestly, I don't see any mechanical bonus that would encourage switching between holding a weapon in one or two hands. With existing mechanics, only a champion fighter or fighter multiclass with ranger or paladin could be effective with versatile weapons, if they took Dueling and GWF. But even then, I don't see a lot of situations that would encourage someone to switch things up. But as I'm thinking about this, maybe instead you can do something like the Protection fighting style, that adds a whole new mechanic. Perhaps something like this: [B]Versatile Fighting Style[/B] When you are wielding a versatile weapon in your hands and no other objects, you gain the following abilities: -When an enemy you can see hits you with an attack that only targets you, you can use your reaction to deflect the attack and reduce the damage you would take. You reduce the damage by an amount equal to your one handed weapon damage plus your proficiency bonus. After this reaction, you can only make one handed attacks until the end of your next turn. -When you kill an enemy while wielding your weapon in two hands, you can cleave through them, damaging a nearby enemy. If an attack's damage would reduce an opponent to less than 0 HP, you can deliver the remaining damage plus your proficiency bonus to a creature you can see within your reach. The above example is complicated and unwieldy compared to other fighting styles, but I feel like this is the kind of mechanic we would need for a versatile weapon fighting style. [/QUOTE]
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