Trip with special weapons??

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

I noticed in D&D 3.5 (and in my own Conan RPG) the Trip maneuver, if you're using a weapon to trip your foe, requires specific weapons.

For example, the 3.5 D&D PHB indicates that a halberd could be used to trip a foe but a spear cold not. A guisarme can be used, but a quarterstaff can not.

Why?

There's a difference between how a trip is described, and how it is mechanically handled.

Trip weapons generally provide bonuses on trip attempts and, in addition, give you the opportunity to drop the weapon instead of being counter-tripped if you fail horribly at your trip attempt.

A character wielding a spear can describe his trip attempt as placing the spear behind his enemy's knees and attempting to push him over it (and should be encouraged to do so!), but mechanically it is resolved as an unarmed trip attempt.

You also don't need your hands free to attempt it, so I don't see why there's a need to make tripping harder.

 

[Empirate]

I endorse the importance of distinguishing between fluff and crunch. However, minor nitpick: trip weapons don't provide bonuses on trip attempts (disarming weapons do that, since you can disarm with any weapon, but some, like the flail, are just better for it). If you have Improved Trip, the only bonus you get from using a weapon instead of an unarmed trip attack is that you can do it at reach (if it's a reach weapon, that is).

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

I endorse the importance of distinguishing between fluff and crunch. However, minor nitpick: trip weapons don't provide bonuses on trip attempts

Sorry - that was a bit of Pathfinder leaking through. PF trip weapons can provide bonuses to trip attempts.