D&D 5E Vulnerabilities

[gasric]

Hi All,How do players get Vulnerabilities?how would piercing damage from a goblin dagger apply? Would this require the player to wear leather armour or would the item have to reflect this vulnerability?Thanks

 

[ExploderWizard]

Hi All,How do players get Vulnerabilities?how would piercing damage from a goblin dagger apply? Would this require the player to wear leather armour or would the item have to reflect this vulnerability?Thanks

The best way to impose vulnerabilities is with a cursed item. Curses are easy to remove so it won't last very long. One devious thing to do is to have a vulnerability curse on an otherwise very useful or potent item such as very rare magic armor being cursed with vulnerability to an elemental damage type. Make the curse part of the enchantment so that the only way to remove it would be to remove all enchantment from the armor.

Once the curse is revealed the players would have to decide if the benefit of the item is worth the vulnerability.

 

[gasric]

Thanks for the explanation as that does help level my mind a bit as I was going off in silly directions with this.

 

[mellored]

Generally, players don't get vulnerabilities.

 

[gasric]

So why is it that minions have the ability to use piercing damage for example?

Other than being cursed is there a way to give a player a vulnerability?

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

So why is it that minions have the ability to use piercing damage for example?

Piercing is just a descriptor. Like Slashing and Bludgeoning. All weapons do some form of damage.
Stuff that pokes holes in you (like arrows) does Piercing damage. Stuff that cuts you up (like axes) does slashing. Stuff that crushes or breaks you (like hammers) does Bludgeoning.

Its usually only important against monsters with special Resistances or Vulnerabilities.

 

[mellored]

So why is it that minions have the ability to use piercing damage for example?

Other than being cursed is there a way to give a player a vulnerability?

For the most part, damage type doesn't matter. The minions could just as easily have a club (bludgeoning) or sickle (slashing).

A few rare things specify resistance/vulnerability to a particular type. Like "blade ward" gives you resistance to piercing, bludgeoning, and slashing. Skeletons have resistance to piercing, and vulnerability to bludgeon.

 

[seebs]

All damage is typed. Some things give resistances (much more common than vulnerabilities) to damage types.

 

[TheCosmicKid]

A few rare things specify resistance/vulnerability to a particular type. Like "blade ward" gives you resistance to piercing, bludgeoning, and slashing.

Barbarian rage is probably the most ubiquitous source of this resistance.

 

[Illithidbix]

All damage inflicted has a damage type.
Vulnerability is simply taking double damage from a certain damage type.

For the most part players don't have vulnerabilities to certain types of damage, there are a handful of ways they can temporarily suffer it.
D&D 5E doesn't distinguish between players suffering vulnerability because they're wearing different types of armour or anything similar.


Contagion and Hallow are spells which have the option to inflict vulnerability unto those affected by the spell.

Similarly Armor of Vulnerability is a cursed magic item that inflicts vulnerability on those who wear it.


It's more commonly found with monsters being vulnerable to certain types of damage.
But even then it's fairly rare.

A quick search of the System Reference Document PDF shows...
Earth Elemental, Mephits, Mummies, Rakasha, Shadows, Salamander, Skeleton, Treants and uh... Awakened Shrubs

All have at least one vulnerability.