Weapons that are over the top


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion


Just a quick question are there any weapons that you think are over the top as reguards to damage or crit range/multiplyer


I house-rule the Falcata out as well as any base weapon that allows a x3 or better crit multiplier on an expanded crit range.


Is it really that over the top considering you need EWP to use it without that -4?


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tony gent wrote:
Just a quick question are there any weapons that you think are over the top as regards to damage or crit range/multiplyer

Compared to a fireball? Not at all.

The idea that I could put a piece of sharpened metal into a fighter's hands and somehow have it be over the top when he's standing next to a cleric and a wizard is... interesting.

Silver Crusade

All double barelled guns.

Other than that I wouldn't say "over the top" but there are a lot that are just silly. Dwarven boulder helmet jumps to mind, as do most of the double weapons.


oh yeah, its not over the top for crit or damage but just the firearm rules in general? I house rule the fluff to make them seperate from real world black powder muzzle loaders and let adamantine barrels protect from damaging misfires. The reload speeds attainable are way over the top for me. I max out my suspension of disbelief when you get past one free reload in a round.


Double barreled firearms certainly.

If by over the top, you mean good weapons that martial characters should have access to because they don't get anything nice then I would say the Falcata, Nodachi, Greatsword are 3 of the best weapons in the game.

Sovereign Court

I don't think the Falcata is over the top. It's comparable to the (martial!) Falchion, Scimitar and Kukri, that get X2 crit range but in a 50% longer range.

It's really just longswords that lag behind. Those are iconic weapons with sub-iconic stats.


The only weapon I know of that's "over the top" is the Dwarven Boulder Helmet.


Not really, because dwarfs are so short (corny rim shot noise).


Torbyne wrote:
The reload speeds attainable are way over the top for me. I max out my suspension of disbelief when you get past one free reload in a round.

Wands that turn people into frogs, no problem --- but reloading a firearm quickly is too hard for you to believe?


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Mechanically? Yes, I think the majority of the weapons in the game are so over the top under powered as to be nearly worthless.


I think weapons are only as "over the top" as you make them. Take for example a Kukri; 1d4 damage, 18-20 threat range. In the hands of a rogue, nice, but the critical hits don't matter much on sneak attack. Let's toss them in the hands of a 2 weapon fighter or a ranger. 6 or 7 attacks with max BAB progression, and both usually have the extra feats to spend on stuff like Improved Critical and Critical Feats. So Kukri's now become at 20th level (without ANY magic items and 10 in all stats) +18/+18/+13/+13/+8/+8/+3. Also, since I critically hit you, you're bleeding and stunned, oh, I critically hit you twice, you're staggered and blinded as well.

Higher stats, plus magical bonuses with a Kukri combo are some of the most deadly things I've seen. However, it's not the Kukri itself that's over the top


Fraust wrote:
Mechanically? Yes, I think the majority of the weapons in the game are so over the top under powered as to be nearly worthless.

With alchemical cartridges? They're basically better-than-bullets at that point. Tossing it in is only a bit more involved than drawing and nocking an arrow--which is why you need a feat to do it quickly.

Before you get into how unrealistic that is--alchemical cartridges. Not real ones. Pathfinder firearms are not real-world firearms, thay're not-quite-magical contraptions of delicate complexity, which accounts for their exorbitant cost (a real-world gun isn't all that expensive).


No mention of the Barbazu Beard? It's a metal beard you hit people with! But if we're just talking damage, maybe the Double Hackbut/Immovable Rod combo?


So... nobody gonna mention the piston maul and the ripsaw glaive?


The greatsword. Honestly, I feel bad for the greataxe. They're both called "great" but one is clearly better. Even the earthbreaker is jealous.

Honourable mention to the composite longbow, not for the damage/crit values, but for the free reloads and the feat support it gets. Poor slings and crossbows just can't have nice things.


Chris P. Bacon wrote:

The greatsword. Honestly, I feel bad for the greataxe. They're both called "great" but one is clearly better. Even the earthbreaker is jealous.

Honourable mention to the composite longbow, not for the damage/crit values, but for the free reloads and the feat support it gets. Poor slings and crossbows just can't have nice things.

They are the Rogues and Fighters of weapons, really.


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I'd say the most over the top weapon is a Huge Sunblade. The Sunblade spoofs a shortsword as far as wielding it goes and a Medium character can wield a Huge light weapon as a two-hander. So from your perspective, it handles like a Greatsword with a too-thick handle but from your opponent's perspective, it hits with all the impact of a Huge Bastard Sword. You're essentially wielding a sword the size of a fighter jet.

Runner up would probably be a Large Quarterstaff wielded via Quarterstaff Master.


Orfamay Quest wrote:
Torbyne wrote:
The reload speeds attainable are way over the top for me. I max out my suspension of disbelief when you get past one free reload in a round.
Wands that turn people into frogs, no problem --- but reloading a firearm quickly is too hard for you to believe?

Yes, it really is. I never claimed to be well adjusted or versed in physics but it irks the crap outta me. In my games firearms are minor magical devices, with an aura and everything. They are break action and have numerous, expensive, enchanted components to smooth out their functioning.


Glaives. I mean, really, how overpowered does a weapon have to be before someone cries "enough!" Look at this thing. Way overpowered.


Kazaan wrote:
The only weapon I know of that's "over the top" is the Dwarven Boulder Helmet.

Two-bladed swords, double axes, pretty much any double weapon. Armor spikes. Syringe spears. Ripsaw glaives. That seven-branched ceremonial sword, among other Eastern weapons.


The damn shortsword..look at what the Romans did to the world with that little bastard.


Athaleon wrote:
Kazaan wrote:
The only weapon I know of that's "over the top" is the Dwarven Boulder Helmet.
Two-bladed swords, double axes, pretty much any double weapon. Armor spikes. Syringe spears. Ripsaw glaives. That seven-branched ceremonial sword, among other Eastern weapons.

You, sir, just fell victim to a stealth pun. Where does one wear a helmet?


Chris P. Bacon wrote:
The greatsword. Honestly, I feel bad for the greataxe. They're both called "great" but one is clearly better. Even the earthbreaker is jealous.

In the same vain as this, give me the Nodachi for how it makes the Falchion feel about itself.

Though, honestly, what weapon a character uses doesn't really matter all that much once static damage multipliers start increasing. Critical range, multiplier and unique traits like reach or trip are far more important.


blahpers wrote:
Fraust wrote:
Mechanically? Yes, I think the majority of the weapons in the game are so over the top under powered as to be nearly worthless.

With alchemical cartridges? They're basically better-than-bullets at that point. Tossing it in is only a bit more involved than drawing and nocking an arrow--which is why you need a feat to do it quickly.

Before you get into how unrealistic that is--alchemical cartridges. Not real ones. Pathfinder firearms are not real-world firearms, thay're not-quite-magical contraptions of delicate complexity, which accounts for their exorbitant cost (a real-world gun isn't all that expensive).

I was replying to the original post, not commenting on firearms. In a game where someone can grapple a giant after falling a hundred feet off of a dragon onto some rocks I'm perfectly fine with someone loading a musket as fast as someone else fires a bow.


Most of the double weapons are ridiculous.

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