The reason i ask is the ranger variant weapon style , would alow me to skip the whole 2 weapon fighting in getting shield master, and get it at 6 level!.
seems like it would work rules wise , and a 1.5 str bonus dmg on shield slam would be good ,, no?
Logically, it doesn't seem very likely to use it with two hands. But, from a rules perspective, you can use any one-handed weapon with two hands to gain 1.5x STR damage, but you cannot use any light weapon this way. So, if you have a heavy shield (one-handed weapon), the rules seem to support using it two-handed to get the extra STR damage.
I suppose you could be slamming with the arm your shield is strapped onto while you simultaneously shove the shield with your other arm for the extra oomph. Maybe.
Or you could just unsling it from your arm and grab it with both hands and start swinging it like a big flat club, but I suppose if you wield it this way, it would stop being a shield and become an improvised weapon instead.
Off the top of my head some examples of where it would be appropriate and make sense: 1) You are disarmed, the enemy is prone, you strike down with both hands on the shield edge. 2) You have a sharpened upper edge on your shield, and need extra leverage to drag it across your opponents throat. 3) You need to go all Captain America on someone, thrown shields included, especially with an uppercut style bash. 4) Someone is going all Thorgrimm on you with a maul because you killed his snake, and you want to make sure every hit counts, but at the same time you don't want to take the brunt of those swings on a shield being held with one hand. Numerous other situations where keeping your defense effective, while trying to maximize offense.
In other words I don't see a problem with it. In fact most of the ways I can imagine using it two handed are brutal, completely callous, with really ugly results.
Yep, you can take a shield with your (two) hands and smash anyone, but you don't gain any AC bonus.
However, I would think of some kind of house rule just for the fun of it.
The reason i ask is the ranger variant weapon style , would alow me to skip the whole 2 weapon fighting in getting shield master, and get it at 6 level!.
seems like it would work rules wise , and a 1.5 str bonus dmg on shield slam would be good ,, no?
Well, even if a GM was crazy enough to allow you to weild a large shield in two hands, it's definitely an improvised weapon and should require Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat to weild it that way.
I'm confused when you say you can get Shield Master at 6th level though. Shield Master is not a Combat Feat on the Ranger list, so you have to meet the prerequisites to choose it. And Shield Master has a lot of hefty prereqs.
Based on the damage potential of real shields, I would allow it. You are losing out on base die damage vs a two handed weapon to gain some AC bonus. Seems fair to me.
Based on the damage potential of real shields, I would allow it. You are losing out on base die damage vs a two handed weapon to gain some AC bonus. Seems fair to me.
it is in the ranger variant new combat stlyes in the APG.
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