Weapons and Magic Weapons

[Perseus]

So I'm thinking of starting a homebrew weapon table and magic weapon table.

But before I do I want to get some feedback on my basic idea for it before I go down the wrong path and get something too troublesome going on.

Each weapon has their damage dice as normal. If you roll higher than the base damage die/dice maximum (damage dice + modifier + other > max damage die) on a damage roll you may use a maneuver that is specific to that weapon as a free action.

Simple weapons won't have these maneuvers.

Magic weapons will trigger the same way. When you roll X on the damage roll an effect take place.

Example:

Fighter with deuling style has a long sword and is attacking a goblin. The Fighter's longsword base weapon die damage is (8). The fighter rolls a 5 + 3 (Str) + 2 (style) on his damage roll. The Fighter may now perform a maneuver (no contest and no save).

Perhaps limit it 1/turn like sneak attack is...

Does this have potential or is this just too troublesome?

[Daishain]

It has potential, but the maneuvers will need to be relatively weak.

Use a standard critical hit for comparison, which normally has only a 5% chance of triggering. Most martial characters will be triggering this effect quite a bit more often.

[Eslin]

So I'm thinking of starting a homebrew weapon table and magic weapon table.

But before I do I want to get some feedback on my basic idea for it before I go down the wrong path and get something too troublesome going on.

Each weapon has their damage dice as normal. If you roll higher than the base damage die/dice maximum (damage dice + modifier + other > max damage die) on a damage roll you may use a maneuver that is specific to that weapon as a free action.

Simple weapons won't have these maneuvers.

Magic weapons will trigger the same way. When you roll X on the damage roll an effect take place.

Example:

Fighter with deuling style has a long sword and is attacking a goblin. The Fighter's longsword base weapon die damage is (8). The fighter rolls a 5 + 3 (Str) + 2 (style) on his damage roll. The Fighter may now perform a maneuver (no contest and no save).

Perhaps limit it 1/turn like sneak attack is...

Does this have potential or is this just too troublesome?

I'd honestly just have a list of special things each weapon can do and make them 1/turn. Gives melee options, gives people choice, makes things fun. Basing whether you can on damage rolls seems odd, but if it's the kind of thing your players enjoy then go nuts. Don't be afraid to make the effects relatively strong in terms of their effects (though not damage, martials already do damage well), martials are behind in useful options already.

Alternatively, here's some stuff I did back in 3.5, might help for inspiration if it's related to how you want to run it. May not, everyone runs a different game, and a lot of it won't translate that well to 5e.

Aim
Usable with: Any bow, any crossbow.
As a full round action, attack the target once - you add your dexterity bonus to the shot's damage and ignore up to 5 range increments worth of attack penalties.

All or nothing
Usable with: Any two handed weapon
As a full round action, perform two full attacks. You are now exhausted and sickened until the end of the encounter, even if you would otherwise be unable to be affected by these conditions.

Bludgeon
Usable with: Unarmed attack, club, greatclub, nunchaku, any hammer
As a standard action, perform an attack. For every attack you would have gotten if you had full attacked, deal an additional [W] as nonlethal damage.

Brawler
Special: Requires the improved unarmed strike feat.
Usable with: Unarmed attack, one handed weapon.
As a full round action, perform a full attack. Until your next turn (or, if you successfully grapple the foe, until the grapple ends) are considered to have a secondary natural weapon with damage equal to your unarmed strike that you have the improved grab special ability for though unlike the normal improved grab you can grapple a creature of any size, though you take a -10 penalty (instead of the normal -20) if you choose to use improved grab's secondary grapple mode. Your brawling attack can be used in addition to a one handed weapon or your regular unarmed attack.

Combat appraisal
Useable with: Any piercing weapon
As a standard action, take stock of an individual within 30' you have already attacked and roll an appraise check. For the rest of the encounter, ignore points of armour or natural armour (if they have both, choose one to reduce. The other can be reduced by using this ability again) equal to your result on the table below.
5 or less: Opponent gains a +3 dodge bonus against you due to your faulty assessment.
6-15: -1
16-25: -2
26-35: -3
36-45: -4
46+: -5

Confusing throw
Usable with: Any melee weapon with a range increment
As a full round action, move up to half your speed and throw a weapon from up to two hands - no more than one weapon may be aimed at a particular target, and any targets are treated as flat footed for the attack.

Crane Stance
Usable with: Any reach weapon that is not a spiked chain
As a standard action, nominate any number of targets within reach. These targets get a +2 bonus on attack and damage rolls against you, but attacks against them do not count towards your limit of attacks of opportunity you can make. Additionally, if you make a successful attack of opportunity against that target they must make a fortitude save equal to the damage you dealt or be unable to move beyond the square they were in when they provoked that attack.

Crossbow trap
Usable with: Any crossbow
As a standard action, ready a standard attack against a square of your choosing. If a foe steps into that square and the attack hits it does x2 damage, increasing the multiplier by one for every extra attack you would have gotten had you made a full attack.

Decipher weakness
Usable with: Quarterstaff, dwarven waraxe, bastard sword, whip.
Special: You must be wielding a magical weapon
As a standard action, perform a single attack and make a decipher script check - if the attack hits, choose a magic item belonging to the target and attempt to dispel it using your decipher script check -10 as your caster level for the attempt. If you succeed, both the weapon used and the item targeted are suppressed for 1d4 rounds.

Duel
Usable with: Any sword
As a standard action, perform a single attack against one foe. For the rest of the encounter or until that foe is incapacitated you may only direct attacks against that foe and can not flank him, but any time the foe attacks you may make an attack roll back - if yours exceeds his, the attack is nullified. For every time you do this you take a -2 penalty to AC until the start of your next turn, making you more vulnerable to other enemies and to attacks that get through your guard.

Execution
Usable with: Any crossbow, any dagger, scythe, falchion
As a standard action, perform a Coup de Grace.

Flurry
Usable with: Unarmed strike, any special monk weapon
As a standard action, perform a single attack and any extra attacks your flurry of blows would give you if you'd performed a full attack, with the appropriate penalties (if any).

Focus defense
Special: Must be within reach of more than one foe that is intent on harming you or your allies
Usable with: Any shield
As a free action, pick a foe that you are within reach of. The bonuses to AC your shield grants you are doubled against that foe until the start of your next turn, but removed against any other foe.

Great cleavage
Usable with: Scythe, any axe
Attack as a standard or full round action - any attack may target two adjacent squares within your reach simultaneously, but you do not apply your strength bonus to damage.

Harvest
Usable with: Scythe, sickle.
As a standard action, pick a number of opponents within reach and perform an attack against each of them. You are treated as nonproficient with scythes and sickles for a number of rounds equal to the number of foes who took no damage from these attacks.

Hew
Usable with: Any axe
Attack as a standard or full round action - your attacks ignore the target's damage reduction, but afterwards until the end of your next turn the target is considered to have bonus AC equal to their damage reduction against you.

Hybrid style
Usable with: Any ranged weapon, any melee weapon
Attack as a standard or full round action - at the end of the action you sheathe your weapon and cannot draw a weapon of that same type (melee or ranged) until the end of your next turn. If you attacked with a melee weapon your ranged attacks deal extra damage equal to your str mod next until the end of your next turn and if you attacked with a ranged weapon your melee attacks deal extra damage equal to your dex mod until the end of your next turn.

Iaijutsu focus
Usable with: Any one handed sword or light weapon
Special: Must not have a weapon drawn
As a standard action you draw your weapon and attempt to strike your opponent before he can react. You and your foe both make a reflex check - whoever wins is treated as having just attacked and threatened a critical hit with a critical modifier of x3. If the reflex checks result in a draw neither party attacks and anyone with quick draw gains a +4 bonus on the reflex check.

Memorise style
Usable with: Any monk special weapon, unarmed attack, any crossbow
As part of a full attack or standard attack against a single, take a -2 penalty to all attacks and provoke an attack of opportunity from your foe for doing so. If the opponent makes an attack of opportunity, roll an autohypnosis check - if it is higher than your foe's attack roll for the rest of the encounter you may, as an immediate action, make an attack of opportunity against him whenever that opponent makes one of his own. If the opponent does not make an attack of opportunity in response to this maneuver he is dazed until the end of his next turn.

Multiple missile massacre
Usable with: Any light throwing weapon.
As a full round action, make a sleight of hand check and throw one throwing weapon per target at a number of targets equal to your result on the table below.
5 or less: Attack yourself, no other targets
6-11: One target
11-17: Two targets
18-25: Three targets
26-34: Four targets
35-44: Five targets
45+: All targets within range

Pummel
Usable with: Any blunt weapon, light or heavy shield.
Special: Must be wielding both a shield and blunt weapon (two shields is acceptable)
Attack with your weapon as a standard or full round action - every time you deal damage with your blunt weapon you may slam the target with your shield, attacking at the same attack bonus as your weapon and dealing damage equal to your strength modifier and reducing their fortitude save by 1 until the start of your next turn every time you hit.

Quick feint
Usable with: Any light weapon, rapier
Special: Must be dual-wielding melee weapons
As a standard action, make a feint check and then perform a single attack with both weapons. If the feint check is successful, your opponent is denied his dexterity bonus to AC for the lowest of your attack rolls. If your BAB is 6+ your opponent is denied his bonus for one of your attacks (your choice) and if your BAB is 11+ he is denied his dexterity bonus to AC for both attacks.

Relentless march
Usable with: Any shield
As a standard action, move up to your speed - immediately and until the beginning of your next turn, you gain a bonus to ability checks, skill checks or saves to resist movement impairing or compulsion effects equal to the AC bonus your shield grants you.

Salvo
Usable with: Any ranged weapon with a reload time longer than a free action.
As a full round action, make a full attack - every time you damage a target, you may reload your weapon as a free action. If you miss you must spend a full round action to reload your weapon again.

Sheathe and shock
Special: Must start this maneuver with a one handed weapon in one hand and nothing in the other hand
Usable with: Any one handed weapon
As a move action, sheathe your weapon and move up to half your speed. Until the end of your next turn, you are treated as having the improved grapple, improved bull rush, improved trip, improved disarm and improved overrun feats.

Shield rush
Usable with: Heavy shield, extreme shield, tower shield
As a move action, perform a bull rush with a bonus on your strength check equal to your shield's AC value. You lose your shield's shield bonus to AC until the start of your next unless you have the improved shield bash feat.

Shorten grip
Usable with: Any reach weapon
As a move action, shorten your reach - you now threaten squares adjacent to you but your weapon no longer counts as a reach weapon until you take another move action to return to your original stance

Skewer
Usable with: Any spear, lance
As a standard action, make an attack roll - if your weapon deals damage the spear is stuck in the target, causing the target to bleed for damage equal to your strength modifier x1 (increase the multiple by 1 for every extra attack you would have made if you'd made a full attack) every round unless it is pulled out as a full round action which causes the same damage as the weapon did going in. A successful heal check (DC equal to the original attack) allows the weapon to be pulled out with no damage.

Skyfire
Usable with: Any bow, sling
Attack as a standard or full round action - your missiles ignore the effects of any weather effect and deal bonus damage equal to your dex mod, but afterwards you may not fire at any target that is in contact with the ground until the end of your next turn.

Skullsplitter
Usable with: Heavy mace, morningstar, any flail, any pick, warhammer, gnome hooked hammer.
As a full round action, perform a single attack - your opponent makes a fortitude save against (1/2 HD+str mod) and if he passes the attack is negated. If the attack is not negated, deal [W] damage to the target's intelligence. If your BAB is 6 or higher you may perform this as part of a charge and if your BAB is 11+ you may perform this is as a standard action.

Weaken
Usable with: Sap, whip or bola.
As part of a full attack or standard attack you can decide to convert all nonlethal damage to a strength penalty at a rate of -1 to strength per 10 nonlethal damage done over the course of that action. This penalty lasts for one minute.

[Perseus]

It has potential, but the maneuvers will need to be relatively weak.

Use a standard critical hit for comparison, which normally has only a 5% chance of triggering. Most martial characters will be triggering this effect quite a bit more often.

Critical in this game are lame and quite boring, I wouldn't exactly use that as a measuring stick for anything. In a game where mages can shape change and throw fireballs out of their hands we get (+1W damage) for critical? Siiiigh.

These will be things like 4e at-will abilities of mostly the martials. Pushing 5', Pulling 5', Reducing Speed by 5', and other little fun things*. Perhaps giving disadvantage on specific actions (so when you hit well enough and see an opening you go for it). Not sure just yet but I'll probably end up stepping on the battle master's toes (fine with me, battle master isn't all that impressive). Nothing like menacing strike but maneuvers like maneuvering strike or whatever may see play.

Resistance and immunity to damage will hurt this homebrew but that's where your Action maneuvers can come in.

This could make combat a bit more fluid.

Note*: no size restrictions, size restrictions are for reality not a fantasy game.

Edit:

Actually I have a good idea that came from all this.

I'm going to borrow a couple points and from here and the Rogue as inspiration.

Weapon Skills: Each weapon has 1 or 2 special skills that can be done with them. These weapons were made with these in mind (polearms for tripping, piercing weapons versus heavy armor) or just happen to work well with the design.

Once per turn whenever you have advantage and you hit with a weapon you may apply a weapon skill to the attack. If you have sneak attack you may choose to use the weapon skill or use your sneak attack and using either counts as your use for both during the turn.

Anyone with proficiency may use this skill, they have trained with the weapon enough to know all the little details of fighting with it.

[Shadow]

It has potential, but the maneuvers will need to be relatively weak.

Use a standard critical hit for comparison, which normally has only a 5% chance of triggering. Most martial characters will be triggering this effect quite a bit more often.

This. (except I disagree about the potential comment as I don't care for it)
When you get into mid or higher levels you'll be granting free maneuvers every attack.
+5 mod, +1 weapon, +2 style = +8 damage with dueling. That's a free maneuver on every single attack at level 6 or 8 and all they need is the simplest of magic weapons.
It's even worse when you take weapons like the scimitar into account, in which case they get free maneuvers on every attack at level 1 with dueling style and a 16 main stat.

[Perseus]

This. (except I disagree about the potential comment as I don't care for it)
When you get into mid or higher levels you'll be granting free maneuvers every attack.
+5 mod, +1 weapon, +2 style = +8 damage with dueling. That's a free maneuver on every single attack at level 6 or 8 and all they need is the simplest of magic weapons.
It's even worse when you take weapons like the scimitar into account, in which case they get free maneuvers at level 4 with dueling style and an 18 main stat.

So my question becomes...

Why shouldn't a high level martial be using maneuvers every attack? Once you hit high levels you should be able to be awesome.

Also small change to weapon skills.

Weapon Skills: Each weapon has 1 or 2 special skills that can be done with them. These weapons were made with these in mind (polearms for tripping, piercing weapons versus heavy armor) or just happen to work well with the design.

Once per turn whenever you have advantage or an ally within 5' of the target and you hit with a weapon you may apply a weapon skill to the attack. If you have sneak attack you may choose to use the weapon skill or use your sneak attack and using either counts as your use for both during the turn.

Anyone with proficiency may use this skill, they have trained with the weapon enough to know all the little details of fighting with it.

Stuff: Since these are free you can get them in easily when you have advantage or an ally distracting the target. However if you don't have advantage or an ally close to the target then you would need to use your action to do such.

All weapon skills will be able to be used as an action, lots of these will be like the maneuvers that are already printed.

Again. The battle master will have sore toes.