Torch as a weapon?


Equipment and Description

Scarab Sages Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 4, Legendary Games

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This is an old chestnut as far back as basic D&D: What happens when you use a torch as a weapon?

The simple answer is that it is an improvised weapon of its size, and that's fine for the basic whacking aspect of the torch, but what about the fire?

1. Should a torch used as a weapon inflict fire damage on a hit?

(probably 1 point of fire damage)

2. Should a torch have a chance of setting a target on fire on a hit?

(mmm... probably not, but maybe you could try to light someone on fire with a torch as a full-round touch attack, rather than attacking for damage... still probably too good)

3. What are the chances of your torch going out when you're waving it around and whacking it into things?

(pretty substantial I would think, though not automatic)

The "torch as a weapon" is a pretty classic fantasy/pulp trope, but it rarely shows up in D&D because the rules have always been awfully fuzzy on it. I'd like to see that remedied in PF.


Er...did you read the description of a torch? It pretty clearly states that it "deals bludgeoning damage equal to that of a gauntlet of its size, plus 1 point of fire damage".

I agree that it might have a chance of going out, but I'd prefer not to worry about it.

Scarab Sages Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 4, Legendary Games

hogarth wrote:

Er...did you read the description of a torch? It pretty clearly states that it "deals bludgeoning damage equal to that of a gauntlet of its size, plus 1 point of fire damage".

I agree that it might have a chance of going out, but I'd prefer not to worry about it.

Nope. I read NOTHING! NOTHING I say!!!

That's why I asked such a dumb question... :)

Well, in that case I'm glad to see the question was already answered. Yay for Pathfinder!

Grand Lodge

Actually it should also have a chance to blind. Smoke and flames close to the eyes can cause all kinds of problems.


Krome wrote:
Actually it should also have a chance to blind. Smoke and flames close to the eyes can cause all kinds of problems.

As opposed to stabbing someone in the eye, which should do nothing special. ;-)

While I agree with you that you should have a chance to blind someone with a torch (or other weapon, for that matter), that should probably be reserved for a feat or an entry in the Paizo "Critical Hit Deck".

Grand Lodge

hogarth wrote:
Krome wrote:
Actually it should also have a chance to blind. Smoke and flames close to the eyes can cause all kinds of problems.

As opposed to stabbing someone in the eye, which should do nothing special. ;-)

While I agree with you that you should have a chance to blind someone with a torch (or other weapon, for that matter), that should probably be reserved for a feat or an entry in the Paizo "Critical Hit Deck".

yeah good point.

Lost my critical hit deck... *sniff sniff* we didn't even get to use it...

RPG Superstar 2009 Top 16, 2012 Top 32

Jason Nelson wrote:
Well, in that case I'm glad to see the question was already answered. Yay for Pathfinder!

And here you see yet another obvious improvement PFRPG makes to the 3.5 rules. The old core rules just sit there, doing nothing all day. The new core rules instead spend their free time using divination magic to anticipate and resolve questions that will one day be posed by players.


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Epic Meepo wrote:
Jason Nelson wrote:
Well, in that case I'm glad to see the question was already answered. Yay for Pathfinder!
And here you see yet another obvious improvement PFRPG makes to the 3.5 rules. The old core rules just sit there, doing nothing all day.

Exsqueeze me? The exact same torch description is in the SRD; Pathfinder didn't change a thing. Does no one ever look stuff up except for me? ;-)

RPG Superstar 2009 Top 16, 2012 Top 32

hogarth wrote:
Exsqueeze me? The exact same torch description is in the SRD; Pathfinder didn't change a thing. Does no one ever look stuff up except for me? ;-)

:)

Bah! I'm not going to waste time looking up some obscure rule about torches. I mean seriously, how is that supposed to help my character min/max the damage output of her 50-foot-long greatsword of Kewl Amine Powerz (tm)?

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