D&D 5E Re-gripping your weapon uses an object interaction?

[Arial Black]

This week my DM told me half-way through my extra attack sequence that when nothing is in your hands except your two-handed weapon, removing one hand takes your free interaction even though it costs nothing to drop the weapon (removing both hands!), and that re-gripping it takes another object interaction, therefore using my action, therefore not having an action left, therefore I can't use the Attack action!

He said he saw a tweet or something somewhere, but he couldn't find it again.

Later he said that the tweeter/poster/whatever got mixed up. What they said was that getting your spell components out of your component pouch was your free interaction and re-gripping your greatsword with that hand was also an object interaction, leaving no action remaining to attack.

So the position is either:-

* both removing one hand from your held 2H weapon AND re-gripping it each costs its own object interaction

OR

* letting go with one hand costs nothing, but re-gripping it costs your free interaction.

Imagine your greatsword is sheathed. You draw it (with one hand, obviously), you then grip it with your other hand because you need both hands to attack with it, then attack.

Nope! Drawing your weapon IS your free object interaction for this round! If you then grip it with your other hand it takes another object interaction, which uses your action, so you don't have an action to attack! Of course if you DON'T grip it with your other hand then you can't attack with a 2H weapon if only one hand is on it!

Is this correct? Are users of 2H weapons unable to draw and attack with them in the same turn, while users of 1H weapons are unhindered?

Or is this, as I suspect, total BS?

Has anyone heard of this 'rule'? If so, please cite the book and page number.

Has anyone seen this post/tweet? If so, please quote/link.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I think your DM is getting his information from "random people on the internet", and confusing it with official rules advice.

I've never seen anything suggesting that re-gripping a weapon is any kind of action at all, not even a "Free Action", let alone an "object interaction".

Tell your DM to stop making up nonsense-rules, frankly.

 

[J.Quondam]

Under "Use an Object," the Basic Rules specifically mention drawing a sword as part of the attack, as differentiated from other object interactions:

Use an Object​

You normally interact with an object while doing something else, such as when you draw a sword as part of an attack. When an object requires your action for its use, you take the Use an Object action. This action is also useful when you want to interact with more than one object on your turn.

I read that as saying that a PC can draw their weapon as they attack, no matter what weapon that is. And if fully drawing and readying a sword is part of the attack, I don't see how the much swifter act of simply re-handing a sword wouldn't also be.

tl;dr: I think your DM is wrong on this.

 

[Lakesidefantasy]

This sounds very much like the way we used to play as munchkins.

Dungeon Master: "The dragon jumps out and roars at you!"

Player: "I shoot an arrow at him."

Dungeon Master: "First you'll have to pull out an arrow, then next turn you can knock the arrow. Then, next turn after that you can draw the bow. Then, next turn, aim; then finally (on the next turn) fire the arrow!"

Player: "Aw, man."

Next Player: "You sucker, I cast Fireball!"

 

[Stormonu]

:headdesk:

Find a better DM

 

[jmartkdr2]

For what it's worth, that would be a correct ruling in Pathfinder 2e. But not Dungeons and Dragons.

 

[toucanbuzz]

Reference, Rolld20: Combat, subheading "Other Activity on Your Turn."

You can also interact with one object or feature of the Environment for free, during either your move or your Action. For example, you could open a door during your move as you stride toward a foe, or you could draw your weapon as part of the same Action you use to Attack.

If you want to interact with a second object, you need to use your Action. Some magic items and other Special Objects always require an Action to use, as stated in their descriptions.

The GM might require you to use an Action for any of these activities when it needs Special care or when it presents an unusual obstacle. For instance, the GM could reasonably expect you to use an Action to open a stuck door or turn a crank to lower a drawbridge.

"You could draw your weapon" doesn't specifically distinguish whether it takes 1 or two handed. Cross reference this with general rules apply unless trumped by a specific one, a basic concept of the game. Barring any specific rule for 2-handed weapons, the general rule is that any weapon can be freely drawn during an Attack.

The weapon isn't a "second object" so that argument is moot.

And, there's nothing that suggests a 2-handed weapon presents an "unusual obstacle."

What the DM may be confusing is what happens if you have a 2-handed weapon in hand, hold it with one hand, and cast a spell as an Action. In that scenario, you're denied the use of that weapon that round (barring taking the Warcaster Feat) for things like Attacks of Opportunity. However, there is no specific rule anywhere in 2-handed weapons to treat them differently than 1-handed weapons, and that's that.

For what it's worth, that would be a correct ruling in Pathfinder 2e. But not Dungeons and Dragons.

Yeah, that seems spot on where the DM is getting this idea.

 

[CleverNickName]

Unless re-gripping that weapon also involves donning or doffing a shield, I think your DM made a bad call.

 

[Shiroiken]

I could see an argument of it mattering to switch from 1H to 2H, but drawing it would bring it to the readied position immediataly. If dropping it is a free action, going from 2H to 1H would be as well. The DM might be getting his rpgs mixed up, or he's trying to stop you from killing his kewl monster before it can do what he wants it to.

 

[Charlaquin]

Drawing a weapon is an object interaction. Dropping a weapon is not. Manipulating the material components of a spell is not, though it does require a free hand, which can be the same hand used to perform the somatic components of that spell. “Re-gripping” a two-handed weapon isn’t a thing the rules describe.

It sounds to me like your DM just doesn’t want your character casting spells while wielding a two-handed weapon, and instead of just saying that, is trying to use an overly restrictive interpretation of the rules around interacting with objects on your turn to make it too inconvenient for you to want to do, then vaguely pointing to “developer tweets” when questioned on the interpretation. You both just need to be up-front with each other instead of turning to strangers on the internet to have a proxy rules debate for you.