Brilliant Energy Enchantment Can be turned off?

[theboss]

As the title says, Can it be turned off? for hitting non-living matter as well.
I always thought it can be, but untill today when I checked the srd description for this weapon property, it did not mentioned anything about pasuing the effect.
If it can be turned off, what's the action it take? (free, swift, etc...)
And could you send me the source for your answer?

ty in advance.

[Hellpyre]

AFAIK, it cannot be turned off. So, you know, don't ever let go of your +1 brilliant energy spiked chain.

[Falontani]

Necklace of Mighty Fists enchanted with Brilliant Energy while your a monk. You can no longer grasp the necklace to take it off, nor can you eat anything that isn't alive!

[Raven777]

A brilliant energy weapon has its significant portion transformed into light, although this does not modify the item’s weight. It always gives off light as a torch (20-foot radius). A brilliant energy weapon ignores nonliving matter. Armor and shield bonuses to AC (including any enhancement bonuses to that armor) do not count against it because the weapon passes through armor. (Dexterity, deflection, dodge, natural armor, and other such bonuses still apply.) A brilliant energy weapon cannot harm undead, constructs, or objects.As per the rules, sadly Brilliant Energy has no toggle. Still, here are a couple suggestions to make it more worth your gold:


While the rules only focus on the two main non-living matter objects protecting someone (Armor and Shield) there are more than that on a battlefield.

Things that you should ask a DM to consider:
With a large brilliant weapon you could fight in a narrow tunnel unhindered, because the weapon will pass through the non-living walls with ease. Thus you should not get the usual penalties.
You can slice through cover, like an archer hiding behind an arrowslit or Kobolds hiding behind a grate. This would not work against someone behind a bough of still living trees.
If you have some means to look through walls you can attack through them. If you have a caster with you, he could enclose an enemy in a wall of stone and then slice and dice through it till the enemy is dead.
You should be able to use the weapon under water more easily because there is no resistance to it. While your arms still cause drag, the penalty should be reduced.
At the very least if you are outside the water the creature under water should not get a cover bonus against your attacks. Enchanted projectiles shot through water should behave as if there was no water.
You could attack a burrowing creature like an earth elemental while it is hiding underground so long as it is still within reach from the surface.

[Hellpyre]

Still, here are a couple suggestions to make it more worth your gold:

As far as the projectile suggestion, water should probably still grant cover against arrows, since only metal is transmuted into energy. The shaft and fletchings would still drag on the water.

Most of the rest are things I've seen BE weapons used for, though. It really does reward outside the box thinking.

[Knaight]

They're all pretty obvious applications - Brilliant Energy is an incredible ability.

[calam]

As per the rules, sadly Brilliant Energy has no toggle. Still, here are a couple suggestions to make it more worth your gold:

There'd probably some shooting penalty against foes in water due to refraction.

[Crichton]

So, on a related note, how do you sheathe/carry a brilliant energy weapon. Wouldn't it just fall out of most scabbards? They typically only grip the blade portion of a sword....

[calam]

So, on a related note, how do you sheathe/carry a brilliant energy weapon. Wouldn't it just fall out of most scabbards? They typically only grip the blade portion of a sword....

Maybe the sheathe is enchanted too? D&D doesn't seem to focus on the logistics of what you're carrying in the first place.

[Crichton]

Maybe the sheathe is enchanted too? D&D doesn't seem to focus on the logistics of what you're carrying in the first place.

So can I disassemble a bunch of those scabbards that have enchantments that hold/stop brilliant energy weapons, and make some armor from the material? Thus negating any benefit my foes gain from brilliant energy weapons?

[grarrrg]

So can I disassemble a bunch of those scabbards that have enchantments that hold/stop brilliant energy weapons, and make some armor from the material? Thus negating any benefit my foes gain from brilliant energy weapons?
Only if your DM agrees, otherwise no.
"Flavor" justifications don't let you do things not stated in the rules.

Depending on exact weapon: maybe -just- enough of the blade is not energy, and then maybe straps to wrap/hold the grip in place?

Or maybe the sheath is alive? "Sword holder eel"

[Crichton]

"Sword holder eel"

Not only is that gross, it brings a whole new dimension to sword swallowing!

[Knaight]

So, on a related note, how do you sheathe/carry a brilliant energy weapon. Wouldn't it just fall out of most scabbards? They typically only grip the blade portion of a sword....

It's not necessarily that hard to make a specialized sheath that locks in to the guard, and that covers particularly difficult cases - most of the time you've got a shaft.

[Fizban]

Pretty sure the original brilliant energy weapons were just straight up lightsabers, either that or it was the sun blade.

Note that Flaming/Frost/etc weapons aren't always lit up either: it takes a standard action to turn on each energy, and if you don't turn it off your scabbard is probably not gonna do well. 1d6 cold won't destroy anything tougher than glass, but acid will go through wood in a couple minutes and prolonged exposure to fire should cause a fire, at least.

Personally, I'd probably allow someone to turn brilliant energy off/on with a standard action, so they aren't completely hosed by undead and constructs. That's assuming a lower-op game where I'm using mostly monsters (that don't use armor or shields), so the benefit isn't as huge. The higher op, the less leeway people should get, so you're gonna need a backup weapon and you're gonna like it.

If I was planning on using a lot of armor/shield dependent foes, I wouldn't actually allow brilliant energy at all. If its regularly giving them more than +5 or +6 attack, it's running too high on the value scale (if the drawbacks of not being able to turn it off are a problem, then obviously that attack bonus isn't very "regular" anymore). Weapon properties are pretty dang easy to evaluate against each other, since it's all numbers that convert easily back and forth.