[Arms and Armor] To golf, or not to golf?

[Isamu Dyson]

When you design your warrior-type characters, how do you envision them carrying the multitude of weapons in their possession?

Do they utilize multiple scabbards/sheaths?

Do they simply rely on extradimensional magic to keep their implements of devastation ready for a fight?

Do they have a mount that holds their silver scythes, adamantine kamas, holy frying pans, etc?

[RegalKain]

For me it totally depends on the race, stats and overall feel I want from a character. The barbarian I recently made is dragging around a Large Greathammer, and a portable ram, quite literally dragging them around, in a fight he'll either drop them if he doesn't need them, or use them. He doesn't have a very high INT, but has a huge amount of STR, so it seemed pretty fitting to me, and a bit humorous.

I've also had a Reaper styled character who uses extra dimensional space shenanigans with a shape-changing weapon to store his Scythe, and slowly pull it from his sleeve pocket when he was going to kill someone! What are some of the ways you've stored weapons on your character?

[Afgncaap5]

Most of my characters like that have a sheath (or similar conveyance) for their main weapon, with smaller weapons in smaller things. The alchemical silver mace can just get tossed into the backpack in the event that I meet a werewolf.

[Isamu Dyson]

I imagine that some players are influenced by how hard-and-fast their DM is about enforcing the Encumbrance rules.

[(Un)Inspired]

My group enforced encumbrance to the letter. When I make characters that wield weapons I tend to outfit them with a primary melee weapon, a range weapon, and a dagger.

Dagger goes in boot or belt. Weapons go on back or hip. Spears are carried like you would a walking stick.

I wouldn't mind making a character who wielded a big sword and had a caddy carry it around though. that would be kinda cool.

hmmmm... Maybe a duskblade with a greatsword that has a familiar that can carry it around. Without improved evasion I fear a caddy wouldn't last too long on the front lines.

[Erik Vale]

Most of my characters are equipped in one of three ways.

-They are armed to the nines with concealed weapons from Complete Scoundrel, so I imagine them covered with spring-loaded blades strapped to their body. One moment unarmed, next, more attacks than you can fit in a bag of caltrops.

-One or two weapons, strapped to them/their mount somehow.

-Belt of many weapons.... I mean [Insert variant of belt of many pockets here]. [I have a PF gunwielder with 4 guns and a really large sword, you can normally only see his sword and double hackbut [attached to mount by turntable saddle of coolness]]

[mistformsquirrl]

Ordinarily my martial characters only carry a primary weapon, a secondary weapon, and maybe a ranged weapon too. So generally it's generally not a big deal to just strap them all on.

That said, I did have an amusing concept for a dwarven Exotic Weapon Master in 3.0*, named Hauberk Cavernbreaker, who carried a cart full of random implements of destruction with him everywhere he went as a form of physical training. When a fight would break out, he'd jump into the cart and emerge with a random weapon or pair of weapons and go to town >_> Nothing quite like having a dwarf suddenly whip out a nunchaku and a katar because they're what came up on a table of random weapons.

Efficient? Not at all. Fun? Heck ya! >_>

*The version of the class that gets proficiency with every exotic weapon eventually.

[(Un)Inspired]

Ordinarily my martial characters only carry a primary weapon, a secondary weapon, and maybe a ranged weapon too. So generally it's generally not a big deal to just strap them all on.

That said, I did have an amusing concept for a dwarven Exotic Weapon Master in 3.0*, named Hauberk Cavernbreaker, who carried a cart full of random implements of destruction with him everywhere he went as a form of physical training. When a fight would break out, he'd jump into the cart and emerge with a random weapon or pair of weapons and go to town >_> Nothing quite like having a dwarf suddenly whip out a nunchaku and a katar because they're what came up on a table of random weapons.

Efficient? Not at all. Fun? Heck ya! >_>

*The version of the class that gets proficiency with every exotic weapon eventually.

That's kinda like Lone Wolf and Cub but his cart is a baby carriage.

[unseenmage]

I had my characters discover some colossal giants who'd been turned to stone.

One of the players took one of the Giant's Fullblades and tucked it into his Handy Haversack. But the whole thing wouldn't fit, so he had this Huge size massive stone sword hilt just jutting up off his back from his backpack.

They would use the sword as a bridge, a tentpole, etc. never use it as a sword.

[Heliomance]

http://static.fjcdn.com/pictures/Encumbered_d49231_2875255.jpg

[Sith_Happens]

...And we have a winner!

[Isamu Dyson]

Luckily for Link, his GM cares not for Encumbrance.

[Erik Vale]

Or weight when not worn, as shown by iron boots only weighing him down when he wears them.

And again for magnetism, as shown by only being picked up magnetically when iron boots are worn, whilst not loosing his master sword etc.


Anyhow, I think he's missing a few items.

[Knaight]

In a lot of cases, weapons could easily be kept in an oxcart, saddle bag, etc. Similarly, lots of characters actually have houses and don't necessarily go fully armed everywhere, where even fully armed might just be a main arm, a sidearm, a knife, and maybe a throwing weapon or two (if the main arm isn't a ranged weapon).

It gets more interesting in the context of futuristic fantasy settings (e.g. space opera). I've got a fondness for powered armor with built in weapons, miniaturization wherever possible, and the good old standby of keeping some weapons in a vehicle. Which includes things like mounting a mortar in the back of a modified jeep, in sufficiently gonzo settings. D&D is high magic enough that some of these ideas can transfer, past level 10 or so.


And again for magnetism, as shown by only being picked up magnetically when iron boots are worn, whilst not loosing his master sword etc.

Between the mass difference between the boots and the sword and the variability of magnetism between different steel alloys this seems like a fairly minimal issue. The boots only having mass when worn is much more suspect - though Midna at least seemed to explicitly provide some sort of extra dimensional storage.

[Erik Vale]

Between the mass difference between the boots and the sword and the variability of magnetism between different steel alloys this seems like a fairly minimal issue. The boots only having mass when worn is much more suspect - though Midna at least seemed to explicitly provide some sort of extra dimensional storage.

And your explanation for Iron boots in OOT is?
Particularly since Link needs them to sink into the water temple, and then puts them somewhere to go float.

[Togo]

Two handed weapons go on the back, as do bows. I find three is about the limit before it starts to get hard to imagine.

One-handed weapons go on the sides. Light weapons go almost anywhere.


A warrior of mine will generally have a main weapon, a backup weapon, and a ranged weapon. I often add to this a club/staff/prodding implement - something cheap, non-metallic, that be prodded at things I don't want to touch.

Between those I'm generally covering the main weapon types, cold iron, adamantine, magical, bludgeoning, slashing, piercing, disposable and non-metallic. Silver I then cover with silversheen, because it never seems to come up. <shrug>

The two times I had real problems with encumberance were when I was playing a master thrower, and managed to fill a quiver of ehlonna with throwable weapons, and when I was playing a druid, and carried around a gargantuan club in a bag of holding (which pretty much fills it).

[CTrees]

You know that scene in Hot Fuzz where Simon Pegg is as loaded down as possible with guns? And Il Duce's loadout in Boondock Saints? Combine those two with a little bit of Rick's Bag-o-guns from The Walking Dead, and you have the way I envision my melee types, because I just don't feel right unless I have a weapon for every situation. I actually really like the mental image, because it's so ridiculous it's awesome.

Side note, encumberance rules are for people with strength in the teens.

[Seerow]

When you design your warrior-type characters, how do you envision them carrying the multitude of weapons in their possession?

Do they utilize multiple scabbards/sheaths?

Do they simply rely on extradimensional magic to keep their implements of devastation ready for a fight?

Do they have a mount that holds their silver scythes, adamantine kamas, holy frying pans, etc?

For me it depends on the character.

The vast majority of characters will have only one or two weapons. If two it'll be one ranged, one melee. If it's a character type that gets hosed by DR (ie low damage lots of attacks), I'll probably run with the weapon properties that let you ignore most DR types.


Occasionally it does fit to have a character who is a walking armory though. A somewhat recent character of mine was a barbarian, who throughout the adventure took a liking to taking random bits off monsters we'd killed and making it into gear. He had 5 ranks in a half dozen craft skills starting with Taxidermy and moving on to Weaponsmith, Armorsmith, Leatherworker, Tailor, Bowyer/Fletcher. Wound up with some spiked gauntlets, 3 different two-handers, a one-hander and shield (mostly because making a triceratops head shield was too badass to pass up), a bunch of javelins, a longbow and shortbow (just in case I was mounted). Oh also a handaxe, a couple daggers, and probably a couple more just random "Oh that sounds cool" items I made along the way.

Though I did get some custom magic gloves to treat any weapon I made myself as enchanted, to make having so many different weapons not quite so worthless. But no magic or enchantments, or mounts with weapon racks, to keep it all sorted. The character had a base strength in the mid 20s and walked around close to a medium load just from all his different weapons stored at various places around his person.

[Knaight]

And your explanation for Iron boots in OOT is?
Particularly since Link needs them to sink into the water temple, and then puts them somewhere to go float.

Link doesn't have an excuse in OoT. The magnetism in TP is fine, TP in general has fewer issues because of Midna, but OoT is nonsensical in encumberance.

[Coidzor]

At low levels the backup weapons are on tearaway straps on their pack or on top of the rest of what a pack animal is carrying. Just about as soon as extra-dimensional storage becomes available though, they'll make use of it.

Though about the same time that happens they also start to get the ability to only need the one weapon. XD

[Isamu Dyson]

Do most civilized folk not care when someone comes armed to the teeth with various weaponry, that might be glowing with arcane/divine/unholy/holy energy, all over their persons?

[Heliomance]

Do most civilized folk not care when someone comes armed to the teeth with various weaponry, that might be glowing with arcane/divine/unholy/holy energy, all over their persons?

http://i.imgur.com/bne244M.jpg

[Seerow]

Do most civilized folk not care when someone comes armed to the teeth with various weaponry, that might be glowing with arcane/divine/unholy/holy energy, all over their persons?

Almost certainly, yes.


That intimidation factor is a large part of the appeal of carrying so many weapons.


Sure you could just get a Morphing Metalline weapon and have nearly the same effect as the whole golfclub. But you don't get the joy of walking around with enough weapons on your person to outfit a squad of soldiers.

[Coidzor]

Do most civilized folk not care when someone comes armed to the teeth with various weaponry, that might be glowing with arcane/divine/unholy/holy energy, all over their persons?

You don't often find civilized folk in dungeons, usually they're either corpses or porny 80s slave girls who are actually monsters in disguise when you do.

And if it weren't for the fact that commoners can be killed by housecats and only have proficiency with one weapon anyway, they'd be loaded down with whatever weaponry they could afford when traveling too. :smalltongue:

[Erik Vale]

Almost certainly, yes.


That intimidation factor is a large part of the appeal of carrying so many weapons.


Sure you could just get a Morphing Metalline weapon and have nearly the same effect as the whole golfclub. But you don't get the joy of walking around with enough weapons on your person to outfit a squad of soldiers.

That, and occasionally you do need to outfit a squad of soldiers :smallbiggrin:

[Sith_Happens]

Right now I'm going the primary-secondary-dagger-ranged route. The ranged being a handful of javelins because Warblades can't use bows.:smallfrown:

[Hand_of_Vecna]

Link's encumberance issues were resolves way back in 1989 in the Legend of Zelda cartoon. Everything except the mastersword shrinks to the point that several fit in the palm of his hand, then they get stored in a pouch the size of a large coin purse.

[almightycoma]

This recently has become a issue for me. I just started playing a hulking hurler ,and I have been dragging a pointed log the size of a small mast around while outside. Thankfully I ended up looting a regular size weapon for indoor use.
So, I have two categories inside and outside I guess.

[Mithril Leaf]

Almost all melee characters I play are monk types who abuse the weapon size scaling rules to toss out ubercharger damage on normal hits, or crazy frenzy types who really only need one weapon because DR is much smaller than HP.

[Isamu Dyson]

You don't often find civilized folk in dungeons, usually they're either corpses or porny 80s slave girls who are actually monsters in disguise when you do.

And if it weren't for the fact that commoners can be killed by housecats and only have proficiency with one weapon anyway, they'd be loaded down with whatever weaponry they could afford when traveling too. :smalltongue:

Admittedly, the notion of PCs lugging about their weapons in civilized centers of population is often humourously referenced, but I am now genuinely curious as to how you GMs handle this. Is it merely handwaved, or does it arise as a thorny issue from time to time?

[LibraryOgre]

That said, I did have an amusing concept for a dwarven Exotic Weapon Master in 3.0*, named Hauberk Cavernbreaker, who carried a cart full of random implements of destruction with him everywhere he went as a form of physical training. When a fight would break out, he'd jump into the cart and emerge with a random weapon or pair of weapons and go to town >_> Nothing quite like having a dwarf suddenly whip out a nunchaku and a katar because they're what came up on a table of random weapons.



That's kinda like Lone Wolf and Cub but his cart is a baby carriage.

Or Sol from Battle Circle.