Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Azlan" data-source="post: 174356" data-attributes="member: 2340">If you used a GURPS-like game system, where each combat round is only a second in length, and where every single swing or thrust is accounted for, then weapon speed (as well as Dexterity, encumbrance, combat experience, and weapon reach) should play a role in determining number of attacks per round. (As far as for it determining initiative, I think that weapon length has a much great affect on this; at least, while the combatants are at normal combat distances from each other.)However, a combat round in 3E D&D lasts six seconds. (Combat rounds in earlier editions of D&D used to last a whole minute!) During this time, combatants are considered to be making numerous swings and thrusts, feints and lunges, parries and blocks, attacks and counterattacks. It is a combatant's experience (i.e. his BAB, which is determined by his class/level) that determines how many actual attacks (i.e. the number of attacks that have the potential to inflict damage) he gets per round.I think using weapon speed to affect attack bonuses for subsequent attacks after the first is a good idea. It's quick and easy to implement, and it does not unbalance the game. Furthermore, it encourages players to take more things into consideration when chosing a weapon for his character. (Otherwise, choosing between a bastardsword and a greatsword, 2-handed, is a no-brainer: you go with the one that inflicts more damage, since everything else about these two weapons is equal when playing 3E D&D by-the-book.)If, on the other hand, you also use weapon speed to affect whether, say, a 12th level fighter gets two or three or four attacks per round, when he normally (according to his class/level) gets three attacks per round, then you make things a lot more complicated. You may also make the game system unbalanced or otherwise out-of-whack.Incidentally, while I'm discussing caveats: I think it's probably not a good idea to allow a character's Strength to affect his weapon speed. After all, a weapon's weight is only one of several characteristics used in determining its speed factor. (Perhaps a term other than "speed" should be used, given how I think it should work in 3E D&D?) Not only that, but a character is already given an attack bonus for his Strength -- why compound that by reducing the speed of his weapon?It is probably a good idea for size difference between a wielder and his weapon to affect the weapon's speed. If the speed of a dagger and a shortsword wielded by a human is -2 and -3, respectively, then those same weapons wielded by a halfling should be -3 and -4. This makes a human-sized dagger and shortsword have the equivalent speeds of a shortsword and longsword, respectively, when wielded by a halfling.</blockquote>

Verification