What is the use of piton?

[Dark Schneider]

We have piton at Adventuring Gear table, without description or advantages.

I assume you could require them to climb slippery surfaces, or removing disadvantage if you apply it instead.

Any official rule/description? We have climber kit, but not pitons.

[nickl_2000]

Pitons are meant to be driven into walls and then rope tied to them so you don't fall as far. I would think that using pitons with ropes would reduce the fall distance on a failed climbing check.

[Man_Over_Game]

We have piton at Adventuring Gear table, without description or advantages.

I assume you could require them to climb slippery surfaces, or removing disadvantage if you apply it instead.

Any official rule/description? We have climber kit, but not pitons.

The pitons are used as the anchoring points for the Climbing Gear. The Climbing Gear makes it so that, after you anchor a spot in the wall, you cannot fall more than 25 feet from that spot until you release the anchor. You place the pitons at these locations, but it's unlikely that you retrieve them when you're climbing. For each anchor point you make to save yourself that massive drop, the anchor point requires you to basically expend one piton.

So on a 200 foot wall climb, you might have to use about 10 pitons.

[ImproperJustice]

Their also really handy for spiking door hinges to control who can come at you in a dungeon environment or controlling escape routes.

[nickl_2000]

Their also really handy for spiking door hinges to control who can come at you in a dungeon environment or controlling escape routes.

Thank you. I need more of these off the book uses of things running around in the back of my mind. The last time I needed to block off an area to keep us safe in a dungeon for a long rest, I did it with Wall of Stone. It was really, really effective after concentrating for an hour and it became permanent. Until in the morning we had to bash our way through it. That may have notified a few of the dungeon baddies that we were there.

[ImproperJustice]

Thank you. I need more of these off the book uses of things running around in the back of my mind. The last time I needed to block off an area to keep us safe in a dungeon for a long rest, I did it with Wall of Stone. It was really, really effective after concentrating for an hour and it became permanent. Until in the morning we had to bash our way through it. That may have notified a few of the dungeon baddies that we were there.

Well in that case:

Can be used to distract rust monsters, make a trail of bread crumbs.

Build simple trip lines.

Jam open trap doors.

Acid pool testers.

Improvised chisels for various purposes.

Put a few on a string as a simple noise maker.

Animated by Tiny Servant with a rope attached to anchor a rope or entangle an enemy, or trap test / lower into a dangerous area. (pull the rope when you encounter something hostile, they have 60’ blindsense).

[StorytellerHero]

If you've got rope and someone with a hammer to secure the pitons into the floor/ground, you could use the pitons to hold down an object or creature.

[Brawndo]

Their also really handy for spiking door hinges to control who can come at you in a dungeon environment or controlling escape routes.

I was gonna say, most of the groups I've played with has used pitons to jam things open or shut more than we ever used them for climbing!

[Kane0]

Catapult and Animate Objects spells
Tying with rope into Impromtu bolas
Staking tents and hammocks
Anchoring leashed beasts
Shoving into complex machinery (especially cogs)

And most things you could use a stake or wedge for

[Sigreid]

Thank you. I need more of these off the book uses of things running around in the back of my mind. The last time I needed to block off an area to keep us safe in a dungeon for a long rest, I did it with Wall of Stone. It was really, really effective after concentrating for an hour and it became permanent. Until in the morning we had to bash our way through it. That may have notified a few of the dungeon baddies that we were there.

So, by RAW if you ritual cast tiny hut such a way that the door is just outside the boarder, Nothing can open that door.

[Tanarii]

Traditional use in D&D is spiking doors closed, and spiking traps so they can't go off.

[Dark Schneider]

The pitons are used as the anchoring points for the Climbing Gear. The Climbing Gear makes it so that, after you anchor a spot in the wall, you cannot fall more than 25 feet from that spot until you release the anchor. You place the pitons at these locations, but it's unlikely that you retrieve them when you're climbing. For each anchor point you make to save yourself that massive drop, the anchor point requires you to basically expend one piton.

So on a 200 foot wall climb, you might have to use about 10 pitons.
Well I was thinking that, to extent the climber's kit usage. The question is how many pitons are included in the kit?, the description says:

A climber’s kit includes special pitons

About the other uses, OK for fixing cords for traps or alarms is fine, but for fixing doors could not be better to use simply nails?, easier to nail and cheaper. Using a piton with its cord capability could be a bit excesive. The problem is that nails are not listed as item, maybe the price and weight of a piton could be for 5 nails?

[ChampionWiggles]

Could probably use a Piton as an improvised weapon with piercing damage, but I don't see many situations where you'll have access to a piton but no access to a dagger...

[Willie the Duck]

About the other uses, OK for fixing cords for traps or alarms is fine, but for fixing doors could not be better to use simply nails?, easier to nail and cheaper. Using a piton with its cord capability could be a bit excesive. The problem is that nails are not listed as item, maybe the price and weight of a piton could be for 5 nails?

Presumably you would need more nails than pitons (but maybe the same weight of metal). If you had a time budget, pounding 1 piton instead of 10 nails might be important. However, overall you are right. The reason you would use pitons instead of nails is because you already have pitons with you (because of course you do, you have walls and mountains to climb. You're an adventurer, right?). It's the swiss army knife principle-- it's not the best saw, screwdriver, tweezer, knife, etc., it's the one you have with you that acts as any of those things.

And yes, part of it is sacred cow. Bringing hammer and pitons with you into the dungeon came about before the game even had skills (like Athletics) or classes with natural climbing abilities.

[Dark Schneider]

Presumably you would need more nails than pitons (but maybe the same weight of metal). If you had a time budget, pounding 1 piton instead of 10 nails might be important. However, overall you are right. The reason you would use pitons instead of nails is because you already have pitons with you (because of course you do, you have walls and mountains to climb. You're an adventurer, right?). It's the swiss army knife principle-- it's not the best saw, screwdriver, tweezer, knife, etc., it's the one you have with you that acts as any of those things.

And yes, part of it is sacred cow. Bringing hammer and pitons with you into the dungeon came about before the game even had skills (like Athletics) or classes with natural climbing abilities.
Maybe not, think that the greater weight of pitons are due to the extra they need for passing and clamping the cord, but the nailed surface/long could be the same.

[Slayn82]

Carpenter proficiency is your friend. Once you fix a Piton, you have a point to fix a pulley, and soon you have a force multiplier to raise something heavy on your way, or improvise a quick trap.

You can also fix a bunch of ropes to Pitons on the walls to create a obstacle in a corridor while you shoot from the other side. Sure, the enemy can break the ropes easily, but that's al least an action spent doing that.

[Tanarii]

About the other uses, OK for fixing cords for traps or alarms is fine, but for fixing doors could not be better to use simply nails?, easier to nail and cheaper. Using a piton with its cord capability could be a bit excesive. The problem is that nails are not listed as item, maybe the price and weight of a piton could be for 5 nails?
Dungeon doors rarely lend themselves to being spiked shut by nails.

[Demonslayer666]

Dungeon doors rarely lend themselves to being spiked shut by nails.

Nails would work perfectly fine as well. All you need to do is jam the door seams.

You can spike an inward door shut with pennies when you are on the outside (see penny a door).

[Tanarii]

I suggest you google dungeon door, then come back here and try to repeat that witha straight face. :smallamused:

[Willie the Duck]

Maybe not, think that the greater weight of pitons are due to the extra they need for passing and clamping the cord, but the nailed surface/long could be the same.

I keep having trouble understanding exactly what you are stating. Are you saying that you think that the weight of a piton is because of the loop or other rope attachment points? I'm sure it is part of it, but I feel that medieval pitons would be bigger and sturdier than medieval nails. Although it should be pointed out that nails were not thrown around as regularly at the time as we do now, either. People went out of their way to not need metal to join their wood for quite a while.

[dmteeter]

driving them through captives hands/feet makes for really simple persuasion techniques

[Slayn82]

driving them through captives hands/feet makes for really simple persuasion techniques

Ouch. Nasty...

Pitons are also good points to anchor chains, so if you are confident on your athletics checks, you may be able to drop prone an enemy and immobilized. Although it's easier to beat them a bit before dropping a sleep spell first.