Poll: Enforce the Standard Action to activate Energy Properties?

[JimAde]

I split it down the middle. The weapon needs to be activated, but it's a free action. Generally this is just as good as having it always on, but it looks cooler. It also means that they turn it off when they put it away which is less silly.

It also means that if it's not on for some reason, you can't activate it for an AoO, but it has never come up.

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

So who needs to activate a weapon more than once per encounter? Or more than once per adventure even? As soon as you get the idea that there are orcs about, it's "flame on!" and you leave it on until you're back at the inn. I only enforce the rule when the PCs are surprised and hadn't expected to be in combat at all...basically any time their weapons would be sheathed anyway.

 

[Shin Okada]

By RAW, they need command word activation. Also by RAW, they don't harm users, that means their gears are not harmed, too. So, a character can sheath the weapon when flaming ability is activated, as long as he is wearing that sheath. Effectively, the command word rule is important only when the owner is not bearing the weapon when the combat starts.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Also by RAW, they don't harm users, that means their gears are not harmed, too.

Not the user; the wielder.

-Hyp.

 

[Alpha Polaris]

By RAW, they need command word activation. Also by RAW, they don't harm users, that means their gears are not harmed, too. So, a character can sheath the weapon when flaming ability is activated, as long as he is wearing that sheath. Effectively, the command word rule is important only when the owner is not bearing the weapon when the combat starts.

The interesting part here is that it takes one command to activate each property, so that "+1 flaming frost shocking" longsword would start slower than a diesel engine, 3 rounds is a lot at the start of a surprise encounter. Not to mention +1 flaming arrows, would they have to be activated separately ? Oh, the madness, for the rapid-shot longbow freak: "Burn, burn and burn, now, burn, will you ? Aaaaaargh !"

And if it's all activated while worn, the player characters may just as well forfeit their Move Silently / Hide Checks, because they are walking Christmas trees, and as far as I remember, even invisibility does not hide light emissions.

 

[Scion]

I definately require the actions to activate and deactivate.

But it has never mattered.. just get a decent sheeth and the hardness will make it ignore the elemental damage anyway.

 

[Scion]

odd.. double.. weird.

But anyway, I guess the only way it would matter is if the party wanted the 'flaming' or whatever to not be apparent.. as in not be visible

 

[Shin Okada]

Not the user; the wielder.

-Hyp.

Ah, so we must start "what is the definition of Wielder" again?

 

[Hypersmurf]

Ah, so we must start "what is the definition of Wielder" again?

Can you really stretch it to mean "person with the weapon in a sheath"?

-Hyp.

 

[Shin Okada]

Can you really stretch it to mean "person with the weapon in a sheath"?

-Hyp.

If we strictly interpret "wielder" as "someone using that item in hand and swinging" or something, several rules regarding magic items lose meanings for non-hand-held type magic items. For example, "DAMAGING MAGIC ITEMS" section is using the word "wielder" to describe the rules, though there are many magic items which is never physically wielded.