So...About breaking the enemy weapon....

[SetArk]

Ok, i've been searching around a bit and.. I haven't found it yet.
It's a simple concept, damaging the enemy weapon, destroy it and make then surrender.
Or for some dramatic moment when the BigFreakingOrc shatter your shield in one swing and stuff.
Another thing that raised my eyebrows were that disarming seems to be an Martial Manuever for fighters only.
Well, any of you guys knows about this stuff?

[jkat718]

The DMG has an optional Action Option called "Disarm" on page 271. It's in the Combat section of the DM's Workshop. Basically, the target uses an Athletics or Acrobatics check instead of their AC, with modifiers for relative size and how many hands the target is holding the item with. I would combine this option with page 246's rules for objects (including AC, HP, and the like) to see if the attack can successfully break the item. The info there tells me that wood has an AC of 15, and iron/steel has an AC of 19.



OBJECT HIT POINTS DMG, p.247


Size:
Fragile:
Resilient:


Small
1d4
2d4


Medium
3d6
1d6



EXAMPLE:
Thokk sees Little Man with pointy stick. Thokk laughs at Little Man, because Thokk know that greataxes are where it's at. Thokk will inform Little Man of greataxe superiority by smashing Little Man's pointy stick.

Thokk, our Half-Orc Barbarian, has a STR modifier of +5 and a proficiency bonus of +2, and he is proficient with both his beloved greataxe and the Athletics skill.
Garret Goodbarrel, aka Little Man, is a Rogue, so his STR modifier is a measly +1. Luckily, he can add his +5 DEX and +2 proficiency to his shortbow attacks, as well as to Acrobatics checks.

Thokk rolls 1d20+7 for his attack against Garret's shortbow, getting a 17. Garret wisely chooses to counter with an Acrobatics check, and he rolls a 10, for a total of 17. Unfortunately for Garret, he is smaller than Thokk, and so he gets disadvantage. His second total is a 12 (he got a 5), which is not enough to avoid the swinging greataxe. Thokk lands a clean hit on Garret's bow, and its wooden AC of 15 is passed by the 17 he rolled earlier. The halfling bow is definitely small, and probably fragile, so its HP is only 2 (the average result for 1d4). Thokk rolls 1d12+STR for damage, getting 6+5=11 damage dealt, splintering poor Garret's bow into toothpicks in his hands.

[SetArk]

Wow! Thx you :D
That actually makes a lot of sense :P
And i didn't saw the extra actions on the DGM

[Myzz]

The DMG has an optional Action Option called "Disarm" on page 271. It's in the Combat section of the DM's Workshop. Basically, the target uses an Athletics or Acrobatics check instead of their AC, with modifiers for relative size and how many hands the target is holding the item with. I would combine this option with page 246's rules for objects (including AC, HP, and the like) to see if the attack can successfully break the item. The info there tells me that wood has an AC of 15, and iron/steel has an AC of 19.



OBJECT HIT POINTS DMG, p.247


Size:
Fragile:
Resilient:


Small
1d4
2d4


Medium
3d6
1d6



EXAMPLE:
Thokk sees Little Man with pointy stick. Thokk laughs at Little Man, because Thokk know that greataxes are where it's at. Thokk will inform Little Man of greataxe superiority by smashing Little Man's pointy stick.

Thokk, our Half-Orc Barbarian, has a STR modifier of +5 and a proficiency bonus of +2, and he is proficient with both his beloved greataxe and the Athletics skill.
Garret Goodbarrel, aka Little Man, is a Rogue, so his STR modifier is a measly +1. Luckily, he can add his +5 DEX and +2 proficiency to his shortbow attacks, as well as to Acrobatics checks.

Thokk rolls 1d20+7 for his attack against Garret's shortbow, getting a 17. Garret wisely chooses to counter with an Acrobatics check, and he rolls a 10, for a total of 17. Unfortunately for Garret, he is smaller than Thokk, and so he gets disadvantage. His second total is a 12 (he got a 5), which is not enough to avoid the swinging greataxe. Thokk lands a clean hit on Garret's bow, and its wooden AC of 15 is passed by the 17 he rolled earlier. The halfling bow is definitely small, and probably fragile, so its HP is only 2 (the average result for 1d4). Thokk rolls 1d12+STR for damage, getting 6+5=11 damage dealt, splintering poor Garret's bow into toothpicks in his hands.

The problem I have with this is... the weapon takes that much damage on hits you deal with it anyways (not necesarily in the case of this shortbow, but vs Garret's Rapier? He normally subjects that to 2d8+4d6 assuming he is a level 3 assassin. Why should it break now? Why would he parry with his bow vs a Great Axe? Why is he still holding his bow in melee?

Breaking the weapons doesn't necessarily mean applying strength to them... Breaking weapons is typically done from either wear and tear or from someone highly skilled and trained in doing that, who most likely has specialized weapons for that purpose.

AND from a PC metagame perspective breaking weapons is a terrible idea... Dohh, you just broke the only magic weapon I had in this campaign... congrats on that.

AND if you are going to involve breaking weapons, then you might as well throw in armor too...

The system is simplified and adding that layer of complexity... meh... other systems do a much better job at that stuff. Enjoy the simplicity =)

[jkat718]

@Myzz: Oh, I know. I don't include this stuff in my campaigns unless my players specifically ask me to. But as for your complaints:

A) Weapons (presumably) don't take the same amount of damage that they deal. Otherwise, they wouldn't be very effective weapons.

B) Garret wasn't parrying with the bow, Thokk was aiming for it and he was trying to pull it out of harm's way (hence the ability check, versus the AC or an attack roll).

C) Garret was standing there, and Thokk rushed in and smacked him. Surprise melee!

D) That's thinking of HP as meat, versus "the ability to take a hit" or something similar. Sure, I can break a rock by sanding it until it's dust, but it's far more efficient to smack it with something.

E) Yes.

F) Eh, probably. You could use a similar mechanic, by using the system I describe here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=18880074&postcount=7) to figure out if they hit the armor, and then the Object rules to see if it breaks, and maybe give it resistance (all) or damage reduction, because it's designed to take a hit. But that's far more complicated than I'm willing to have to deal with on a regular basis.