Dwarf Racial Proficiencies

[SpartanDH45]

So I have been considering adding a house rule to give dwarves automatic proficiency with axes and maybe hammers. Something bugs me about elves getting fantastic initial proficiencies regardless of class, but dwarves don't get their iconic axes by default. What do you guys think?

[Saintheart]

Dwarves get free martial weapon proficiency with the waraxe and urgrosh, which are EWPs otherwise.

Probably the reason the designers thought this was enough was because they're exotic weapons and they weren't expecting a lot of people to do other than fighter or barbarian with their dwarven characters.

Elves' free proficiencies are with stuff that's already martial weapons, i.e. I guess they were trying, for some odd reason, to help elven clerics and mages who otherwise are stuck with simple weapons. Light hammers, handaxes, warhammers and greataxes are all martial weapons which fighter-ish types get the moment they take a level. I suppose if you want your dwarven cleric to be chopping trees or pounding nails effectively from first level this'd be a net bonus, otherwise it doesn't make a lot of difference. Doubt it's going to break the game to allow the dwarven mage or monk run around with sharp things from first level.

[NerdHut]

Dwarves get free martial weapon proficiency with the waraxe and urgrosh, which are EWPs otherwise.

That's not quite accurate. The Dwarf racial weapons are considered Martial for them. So a Dwarf Wizard still wouldn't get proficiency, since they don't have martial weapon proficiency.


SpartanDH45, I'd say it's not going to make a huge difference for most groups, but I'd be hesitant to do that houserule. Dwarves are already a solid race without giving them more. While there is some debate on the matter, many people consider Dwarves to be the most powerful core race (or second most, after humans).

The Ugrosh I think would be fine, because I don't think it's inherently better than many other double weapons. The Dwarven Waraxe, though, is the most damaging one-handed weapon in the PHB at a d10. If even a Wizard can pick that up for free, it feels like an iffy balancing choice to me. Like I said above, I don't think it'd be a huge deal, but iffy.
(TL;DR: it should be fine, I just think it doesn't feel right to me)

[loasmkers]

Unity is strength,this is an example.

[Saintheart]

The Ugrosh I think would be fine, because I don't think it's inherently better than many other double weapons. The Dwarven Waraxe, though, is the most damaging one-handed weapon in the PHB at a d10. If even a Wizard can pick that up for free, it feels like an iffy balancing choice to me.

If a Wizard puts himself in a position where might actually use his 1d10 weapon for something other than making firewood surely he's doing it wrong? :D

[OgresAreCute]

If a Wizard puts himself in a position where might actually use his 1d10 weapon for something other than making firewood surely he's doing it wrong? :D

Perhaps he wants to be an arcane gish in a core-only, no multiclassing game? :smallconfused:

[Feantar]

So I have been considering adding a house rule to give dwarves automatic proficiency with axes and maybe hammers. Something bugs me about elves getting fantastic initial proficiencies regardless of class, but dwarves don't get their iconic axes by default. What do you guys think?


Meh, if you compare elven traits and dwarven traits, dwarven are better. Standard elves are generally sub-optimal, unless you're going undead wizard (in which case, sun elves are okay and high elves which are the default are meh).

If you want to empower them, don't go all the way. Make their racial affinity(Dwarven Waraxe and Urgrosh) weapons count as simple weapons. So nearly any class can wield them except those in which it would be thematically inappropriate, either through specialised training (monk), tradition(druid) or complete lack of martial training(wizard).

Giving them all axes and all hammers is overkill. The equivalent would be an elf who started with fullblade proficiency regardless of class.

Alternatively, go pathfinder, and make it an alternate racial feature: Either the standard one (for classes which give martial weapon proficiency) or a single proficiency choice between Battleaxe, Greataxe, Handaxe and Warhammer. Still better than the original, but not by that much.

[SpartanDH45]

I was thinking about this and if i was to implement it I would likely give them proficiency with one handed axes. That kinda fits with the setup for the elves which gives them some one handed swords.