| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Your reasoning could be mechanical, thematic, or it looks cool. It can be anything simple martial or exotic. Ranged, melee, or both.
So far, one of my favorites is The Double Chained Kama. It like having a kama in each hand but you can whip one out and attack a guy at range. I also like the mental image of a fighter whipping the kama over his head and sending it out, slashing out a guy's throat.
|
Mechanical -
I loved the original scorpion whip, which was 'normal whip, but does lethal damage.' Very cool, and an evocative name that sold it to me much better than the 3.0 'whip dagger.'
The Temple Sword, combined with the 'bind weapon' maneuver and the blade binder feat can be flavorful and, against weapon using foes, fun, particularly if combined with shield-bashes or sneak attack or other things that take advantage of the target's weapon being 'bound.'
The bola is neat. The Shoanti bola, which does a ranged trip *plus* damage, is even neater (unlike the Scorpion Whip, which was nerfed to no longer be 'whip plus,' the Shoanti bola remains 'bola plus').
Flavor -
The hunga-munga or congo throwing iron. The PF stats for it blow chunks, especially when compared to the sharpened frisbee that is the chakram, but it's a thing of ugly beauty.
The katar or 'punch dagger.' Again, very cool looking, although the triple bladed ones seem unwieldly.
The 3.X 'Tortoise Blade' or PF Klar. I love the shield + dagger combination. I'd love it more if there were any sort of mechanical support for it being used as both weapon and shield, or even (gasp, heresy!) being effectively dual-wielded.
Ahh yes the katar! I almost completely forgot about that one. Fell in love with that thing ever since i played an assassin on Ragnarok Online. I especially like the one you posted because it has 2 built-in flintlocks.
...
Anyone care for a statblock for the double-pistol punch dagger?
|
|
Ahh yes the katar! I almost completely forgot about that one. Fell in love with that thing ever since i played an assassin on Ragnarok Online. I especially like the one you posted because it has 2 built-in flintlocks.
Ha, I didn't notice that when I picked the picture!
An alchemically powered spear that exploded into the target when it hit, like one of those shark-stabby-sticks (yes, that's a technical term, go with it), could be funky.
Mechanically, in the game I like the No-Dachi (Two-handed with a high crit-range) and the Composite Longbow (because, duh, archery is unfair).
In real life, I like polearms, something mostly pokey that can be used to slash a little--a Glaive/Naginata or a broadheaded spear of some sort is generally my preference. In real life, Reach wins and there's no such thing as a 5' step (of course, it would suck to include that sort of realism, mind you--I'm not suggesting the game include some kind of CMB roll to get inside someone's reach as it would get tedious). Frankly, in game, I feel like reach is a liability more than a benefit.
I'm also a big fan of the sling--it's such a ridiculously deadly weapon in the hands of a skilled user, but D&D kind of screwed it in translation from the start. Slings are effective from extremely long ranges, comparable to bows, and very dangerous, especially because they don't need to penetrate heavy armor to deal damage from their impact.
I think they probably read the story of David vs. Goliath and thought, "Oh, some shepherd can use a sling and it was impressive that it killed a guy? Ok, it must be a simple and weak weapon" when really, it was a weapon shepherds learned to use to protect their flocks, as it was extremely effective at killing wolves and whatnot, and it was impressive because Goliath was huge and the other side's champion, so any one hit kill, even with a bazooka, would have been impressive.
The real reason bows replaced slings is not because bows were "better." It's actually the same as the reason crossbows and later guns replaced bows: it's a hell of a lot easier to learn how to use a bow than a sling. Chances are you can pick up a bow without any previous training and figure it out pretty fast. With a sling, good luck not braining yourself without training.
And while I wouldn't want to use one, I do find the Keris to be fascinating and awesome. There's just so much myth and legend around them (ex: they're believed to be made of poisonous metal). Very cool weapon, very cool fighting style--but then, I've always thought Silat was more interesting than anything from China or Japan.
Oh, and I love that ancient Hawaiians made swords (that held a sharp edge and everything) out of wood. How crazy/awesome is that?
Mechanically: Nodachi, Wakizashi, Tetsubo, Falcata, Spear
Style: Chakram, Rhoka Sword, Rope Dart, Tekko-Kagi, Pata...
I feel like I am forgetting something though
Definitely liking what i'm seeing. Lets keep em coming!
in game, either falchion or scimitar, both for looks and mechanics...
though earth breaker is getting close to being just behind
For both, the Earthbreaker. Mechanically almost identical to a Greatsword, but there's something so much more satisfying to smash people straight into the ground with a spiked hammer, which I always figured looked a lot like the medieval version of a gravity hammer.
Depending on the character, I like different weapons for flavor. My paladin of Shelyn used a glaive. A master spy I made used a hand crossbow with poison and daggers (important to keep backups). A half-orc barbarian used a falchion.
MPL is dead-on about slings. I would love to see a string of feats making slings effective, like what the whip has. A pair of Sai would be cool, too.
Oh, and greatswords. So cool. Claymore was a great anime.
Long sword. Iconic heroes weapon. Master Sword is best is magic sword.
Your reasoning could be mechanical, thematic, or it looks cool. It can be anything simple martial or exotic. Ranged, melee, or both.
So far, one of my favorites is The Double Chained Kama. It like having a kama in each hand but you can whip one out and attack a guy at range. I also like the mental image of a fighter whipping the kama over his head and sending it out, slashing out a guy's throat.
Tough call but I'm going to say the Falchion.
Doesn't need an exotic weapon profeciency to master, has a high crit threat ranger for a two-handed weapon and is one of those things that you can easily imagine as any number of exotic looking fantasy blades.
I've loved the Meteor Hammer since Kill Bill, that is one cool weapon. Fire Meteor displays are amazing too.
I've also got a soft spot for the humble Longsword. It was a beast back in AD&D and it's depressing that it's been left by the wayside by todays players.
Falchion for me, too. It can have a more European look, like a grosse messer, or look more Arabian or Asian, like a scimitar.
They can look all kinds of ways, and they do solid damage with a good swing.
It was a beast back in AD&D and it's depressing that it's been left by the wayside by todays players.
It was a beast due to sword fetishism among the original writers.
One handed swords have been back-up weapons for as long as they've existed--they're the medieval equivalent to a sidearm.
Nodachi... 1d10, two-handed, 18-20 crit, martial.
With your choice of Slashing OR Piercing, no less....
It is definitely my #1 favourite mechanically.On a different note, I have to say that one thing that stops a number of weapons from being my favourites is I HATE rolling d4's...
For that reason alone I basically never use Falchions :P
I've loved Bastard swords (I prefer hand and a half, but only because that doesn't get you dirty looks in polite company) for many years, outside the confines of the game. I enjoy their mix of power and versatility in game.
As for style, I'd love to stat melee chakram and have a Sun Shang Xiang type character. Circular strikes, and almost dance like moves.
Maybe it's a fondness for the character Izayoi Sakuya, but I like the idea of a character who not only throws knives, but has enough to barrage with them. The mental image of someone hiding until all his buddies have been knifed, and saying "she must be out by now" only to step out to flying steel amuses me.
I have always liked the idea of the bastard Sword. I liked ti when it acted as a long sowrd in one hand and added damage if used two handed.
From a Min/Max point of view there are so many more weapons that are better though.
1st Whpblade (house made)
2st Bastard sword
3nd Sawthoot Saber
I must confess that whenever I think to play a melee character,
I automatically picture him with a longsword. My latest melee character was a 1/2 Orc Inquisitor--city-raised--who use two-weapon fighting with a longsword and whip feat progression. Fun stuff!
The Gladius - the sidearm of choice for many, many centuries.
Maybe it's a fondness for the character Izayoi Sakuya, but I like the idea of a character who not only throws knives, but has enough to barrage with them.
The fact that she can stop time to go pick them up is helpful as well :P
On topic, I think my favorite weapon is probably just the Greatsword. I just can't think of things much cooler than cutting people with an enormous sword.
Nodachi is pretty high up there though, mostly 'cuz of this guy.
Also, I find the meteor hammer to be a cool weapon, though I've never had a character who used one, sadly.
RPG Superstar 2015 Top 16
|
Flavor:
Urumi (belt sword) is pretty awesome.
Sansetsukon: An incredible monk weapon that is just awesome; check out this video to see the awesomeness.
Flavor and Mechanics: Nine-section-whip. This thing does slightly less damage than the Sansetsukon, but bears the same crit range, is also a trip weapon, can be wielded two handed for extra strength damage or one-handed, which pairs incredibly well with Crane Style (with 3+ ranks in Acrobatics and Crane Riposte, it's a -1 to hit for +5 AC boost (4 Dodge and 1 Shield). Plus, it looks awesome in use as shown here.
Mechanics: Cestus: It looks cool, but it's the most reliable backup weapon. It's a dagger you can't throw, but you can't be disarmed of, either. Plus, you can have it equipped regardless of whatever else you're doing with that hand (only some activities, such as Disable Device or Sleight of Hand are affected by the cestus), so even if you're disarmed of your primary weapon or surprised, you have something to work with.
RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32
|
Kukri if we are using the crit cards. Improved Crit and TWF really stacks on hurt when you use those cards.
Heavy Shield was very fun to use in one game. I might have to make a character that specializes in shields as weapons because of all the fun I had.
Large ladle is also on my list. Best use of improvised weapon ever.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Give me a cannon and 4 followers to load it for me
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"What about pointed sticks?"
"Shaddup!"
Dont laugh but for some reason the slingstaff is probably my favorite flavor weapon. A ranged weapon you can melee with. I read alot of dragonlance growing up and that weapon stuck with me.
In terms of its versatility the Nodachi feels nearly perfect. It's as a bastard sword, but with a larger crit threat range, can do piercing or slashing, and brace.
Of course. build a fighter for a specific weapon and you'll be great no matter what.
Off-Topic; favorite D&D weapon: Fullblade. It controversial but it doesn;t break the game. Alot of its flavor-to-game attributes are vague but often times the tank needs as large of a weapon as possible to put at least a fraction of a dent spell casters do.
Honorable mention: Double Crossbow. D&D ain't got nothing on dat.
Maybe it's a fondness for the character Izayoi Sakuya, but I like the idea of a character who not only throws knives, but has enough to barrage with them.The fact that she can stop time to go pick them up is helpful as well :P
On topic, I think my favorite weapon is probably just the Greatsword. I just can't think of things much cooler than cutting people with an enormous sword.
Nodachi is pretty high up there though, mostly 'cuz of this guy.
Also, I find the meteor hammer to be a cool weapon, though I've never had a character who used one, sadly.
Wanna go big or go home? Try convincing your next DM to let you use D&D's fullblade. 2d8 but you need an exotic weapon feat. Good for a big weapon for the hell of it.
Harpoon - Does anyone know if there is an archetype that gives exotic weapon proficiency: harpoon? I've been wanting to build a mad sea captain.
[Captain Ahab readies an attack with his harpoon. He throws as the white dragon flies by and succeeds in his grapple check, only to be carried off into the distance dangling from his nemesis, firing his pistol erratically.]
In terms of its versatility the Nodachi feels nearly perfect. It's as a bastard sword, but with a larger crit threat range, can do piercing or slashing, and brace.
You're now the second person to think the NoDachi is like a bastard sword. It's a two-handed martial weapon, though, and can't be one-handed like a bastard sword. The real core weapon it's like is the Elven Curve Blade--it just doesn't take a feat to learn and isn't finesseable.
Real Life? The Falx (a shield killing two handed sword that made the Roman Army completely review its equipment and Tactics).
Cool stuff on the falx, wasn't familiar with that.
Bastard Swords are my favorite. They most fit my visual ideal fantasy weapon.
Curved blades of any kind, especially one-handers, are just amazing to me. But for sheer style...
The battle poi. Fire dancers are awesome. This weapon makes fire dancers lethal. :)
Definitely the katana. Thing cuts through tanks, deserves 12d6 damage and bypass all DR ever!!! KATANAS FOR LIFE!
*duck and cover*
On a serious note, I also am a fan of the humble longsword. However, for pure melee power I like the earth breaker and greatsword equally well--something about 2d6 damage calls to me. The whip's versatility could make for a very interesting character, and I'd enjoy building a whip-master someday. I also love the chakram as a useful melee-and-ranged weapon for heavy armor users--that it's martial makes it that much easier to use.
My single favorite weapon has to be the one I created for a level-20 character who was a barbarian/cavalier with the Titan Mauler and Beast Rider archetypes (Titan Mauler fixed so he could use larger weapons). A Gargantuan +5 throwing distance hunstman impact lance, he could, by virtue of feats, abilities, and items, ride up on his T-Rex, charge right over you to deal damage, then turn around and throw it to skewer you through the face for 18d6+34 damage. Gotta love combos!
|
|
Mechanically: I like the Scythe-- martial, two-handed, and deals 8d4 on a crit. I like that Weapon Specialization: Sling Staff adds to your melee damage and your ranged damage. I like that the rope dart lets a monk flurry from 20 feet away, and I like the falcata for DAT CRIT RANGE.
"Cool Factor": Battle poi all the way. Especially with Weapon Specialization and Two-Weapon Rend for lots of extra fire damage. The steampunk in me loves the dragon pistol and the pepperbox. The starknife has all the badassery of the chakram without the Xena baggage or the -1 in melee. And the 3.5 PHB had such a cool drawing of the spiked chain, the stats always left me disappointed.
Thematically: Any dwarf I play who isn't proficient in martial weapons usually carries a heavy pick. I like that the Elven Curve Blade is a finessable two-hander created by a race who favor DEX just cause it's cooler than STR. I wish there were a reason to use darts as your primary weapon, and I wish more martial types carried a net or three.
