Magic weapon enhancements

[Dramoth]

Hello all esteemed giants.

Having browsed here and read some handbooks (mostly melee) I have seen many people saying weapon enhancements (like flaming) are better than a straight up +1 can someone please confirm why (as +1 to hit and damage seems good even if you can get a d6 to damage instead) and suggest any good enhancements for a melee bruiser (barbarian aiming for a power attack based build)

Thanks in advance

[gallagher]

shock trooper will make the little +1 to hit worth less than ever, and once one of your parties casters can cast greater magic weapon, then you wont have to worry.

however, elemental damage has the opportunity to be worth more against creatures vulnerable to such types. anyway, the fun enhancements arent things like flaming, you have much better options than a bonus d6

also, what kind of weapon are we looking at using? Are you a greataxe/sword kind of guy, or are you cool enough to go for bludgeoning damage?

[Dramoth]

Still tossing up in my head between a great sword, to try and nail the basics (probably to start) and maybe try to get a Minotaur great hammer or a spiked chain.

[tyckspoon]

A: Basic benefits to hit and damage can be had from other sources- feats, class features, and stats can cover for those basic +1s, while the better weapon enhancements do interesting things that are more difficult to come by.
B: The Magic Weapon and Greater Magic Weapon spells exist. Assuming you have a 'standard' party (ie, one that has both an Arcane and a Divine caster, at least one of which has Cleric or Wizard-type access to their spell lists) your party should have access to these spells. Buying a Pearl of Power for your caster to cover the spell-slot he uses casting the spell for you in the morning is a hugely more cost-efficient way to get basic enhancement, and in the majority of situations is the same as having the base enhancement (except that your weapon's net enhancement equivalent is probably two or three higher than it would have been otherwise.)

[Spuddles]

Flaming, etc, enchantments are only worth it if your party caster doesn't mind putting a Greater Magic Weapon on your sword every day. If you have an arcane caster, the 9k gp to buy him a pearl of power 3 starts saving you money after level 12. If it's a divine caster, then you have to wait until level 16 until it pays itself off.

+1 type enchantments are ALWAYS superior to flaming, shock, etc. if there's no caster around willing to babysit your weapon. To hit is much more valuable than 1d6 damage. Also note that against enemies with resistances, your weapon enhancement only has 1/6 chance of adding any damage. And enemies with a wide spread of resistances begin to get really common at higher levels.

If I had a caster to put greater magic weapon on my sword, I still wouldn't waste gold purchasing +flaming, etc., to be honest. The cost vs. benefit in investing in a magic sword just isn't there. Splitting (for bows) and impact (for everything) are really the only enhancements that are worth the cost. I would rather buy stuff that lets me fly, adds to saves, increases AC, gives miss chance, and negates crits/sneak attacks.

[gallagher]

well you are a barbarian, so you want brash probably to get an extra 3 rounds out of your rage. everyone can use an eager weapon... magic item compendium has lots of goodies, and if you have a caster that can create magic weapons, these are all cheaper and you can work with your DM for making new enhancements based on other spells.

heck, if you want the +1 bonus, a resounding weapon gives you and allies within range a +1 morale bonus to attacks and damage, so you are conferring the same benefit to many people after successful attacks (and you will be getting shock trooper, so you wont need the +1 yourself) and it stacks with most bonuses that they are likely to be getting

[Dramoth]

Cheers all, will bear this in mind as I keep foraging into the world of 3.5!

[HunterOfJello]

Earthbound is a +1 weapon enhancement that gives you +2 to attack and +2 to damage as long as both you and your enemy are touching the ground.

At a certain point, your attack gets high enough that you can hit pretty much anything. Damage enhancements suddenly begin to look much more appealing at that point.

Doubling your crit chance is always amazing. This is especially true for 18-20 crit range weapons and for weapons with x4 multipliers.

There are tons of weapon enhancements out there that can make you much better at what you do or give you interesting options to be able to do things you don't normally.

Also, +5 to initiative > all.

[TuggyNE]

Splitting (for bows) and impact (for everything) are really the only enhancements that are worth the cost.

Impact (refers to Keen for blunt weapons only), or Collision (+5 damage before crits)?

[Spuddles]

Impact (refers to Keen for blunt weapons only), or Collision (+5 damage before crits)?

Collision, my bad.

Keen & Impact, for crit increase, is generally worth it on stuff with good crit multipliers/crit ranges, at least in the level ranges I play at.