Piercing Damage

[BRC]

Piercing Damage appears to be the least useful damage type, there are plenty of things with damage reduction that is bypassed by slashing or bludgeoning, but it seems like Piercing damage is rarely the superior choice if one of the other types is available.
Is this true or is there something that piercing is better against.

[marjan]

Rakshasas and anyone under the effect of As The Frost Spell.

[its_all_ogre]

and then you homebrew...

[Yami]

Peircing damage is great against mounted warriors as you can either brace for a charge, or shoot them from a distance. It's also good against and slow moving melee monster, for one of the reasons mentioned above.

[Roderick_BR]

Piercing weapons usually have a good critical multiplier.
Interesting to note that bludgeoning is apparently considered an awesome kind of damage, since weapons are nerfed a lot.
You doesn't have a martial two-handed bludgeoning weapon with base damage of 1d12/2d6 like the great axe and great sword. A great hammer only came later in Races of Stone as a exotic weapon (granted, it gives a huge damage multiplier).
Same thing with the bastard sword/dwarven war axe. The maul came only in Forgotten Realms.

[Nebo_]

It also does half damage to objects, so it sucks for sundering.

[Jack Zander]

Against armor, piercing weapons are the most effective of all types, though DnD does not represent this.

[Worira]

Depends on the armour. Chainmail wouldn't do much about a mace to the gut.

[Dan_Hemmens]

Depends on the armour. Chainmail wouldn't do much about a mace to the gut.

Yeah, but it wouldn't do much against an arrow either.

I think the reason that piercing is so underpowered is roughly the same reason that Fire damage is less useful than Sonic damage. It's very, very easy to think of a reason why a mystical creature might not care about being stuck full of arrows, it's much harder to think of a reason why one might be especially *vulnerable* to it.

Fire and Sonic work basically the same way. Fire is a big archetype, and *obviously* all kinds of beings wind up being immune to burning. "Sonic" damage is so wacky that it's hard to make "and they are impervious to sound damage" fit into a monster description without looking totally weird.

[Lord Lorac Silvanos]

Balloon Animals are particularly vulnerable.

[Zincorium]

Balloon Animals are particularly vulnerable.

Thus their generally low CR.

[Dan_Hemmens]

Balloon Animals are particularly vulnerable.

I would like to be able to say, with 100% certainty, that I knew you were joking, and that clearly Balloon Animals have never featured in D&D.

Then I remember that we have things like the Toffee Pudding and I realize I can't be so sure.

[Miraqariftsky]

Also, piercing weapons are good for full damage underwater whereas the other weapon types suffer penalties when used below the waves. Another use of piercig weapons is when yer in a grapple--- light piercing/slashing weapons are best in that situation, right?

[Lord Lorac Silvanos]

You can increase the CR a bit by filling your Balloon Animals with poisonous gas.

Another use of piercig weapons is when yer in a grapple--- light piercing/slashing weapons are best in that situation, right?

Any light weapon will do in a grapple.

[Swooper]

Balloon Animals are particularly vulnerable.

So, who's gonna volunteer to homebrew a template for that?