In the marketplace
of a big city, armorsmiths and weaponsmiths offer
a wide variety of arms and armor for those with the
gold to buy them. Here you can find practical, sturdy
swords and perhaps a few elven blades of exceptional
quality. Alchemists sell acid, alchemist’s fire,
and smokesticks for those who want something flashier
than a trusty blade. Wizards (or, more likely, their
brokers) even sell magic scrolls, wands, weapons,
and other items.
This
chapter covers the mundane and exotic things that
characters may want to purchase and how to go about
doing so. (Magic items are covered in the Dungeon
Master’s Guide.)
Equipping A Character
A
beginning character generally has enough wealth to
start out with the basics: some weapons, some armor
suitable to her class (if any), and some miscellaneous
gear. As the character undertakes adventures and amasses
loot, she can afford bigger and better gear. At first,
however, her options are limited by her budget.
Starting Packages
Each
class has a starting package that lists default equipment
(as well as default skills, a default feat, etc.).
If you equip your character with the default equipment,
you can customize these packages a little by swapping
in some equipment of your choice for listed equipment.
Trades like this are fine as long as the value of
the equipment you swap in isn’t higher than the
value of the equipment listed for the package.
 The
starting packages have moved to the Classes chapter
because they now include starting skills, feats, and
spells, not just equipment.
Weapons
Your
weapons help determine how capable you are in a variety
of combat situations. See Table 7–4: Weapons
for the list of weapons. See Table 7–10: Grenadelike
Weapons for a summary of grenadelike weapons (acid,
alchemist’s fire, holy water, and so forth).
Weapon Categories
Weapons
are grouped into several interlocking sets of categories.
These categories pertain to what skill is needed to
be proficient in their use (simple, martial, and exotic),
usefulness in close combat (melee) or at a distance
(ranged, which includes both thrown and projectile),
and weapon size (Tiny, Small, Medium-size, and Large).
Simple,
Martial, and Exotic Weapons: Anybody but a druid,
monk, rogue, or wizard is proficient with all simple
weapons. Barbarians, fighters, paladins, and rangers
are proficient with all simple and all martial weapons.
Characters of other classes are proficient with an
assortment of mainly simple weapons and possibly also
some martial or even exotic weapons. If you use a
weapon with which you are not proficient, you suffer
a –4 penalty on attack rolls.
Melee
and Ranged Weapons: Melee weapons are used for
making melee attacks, though some of them can be thrown
as well. Ranged weapons are thrown weapons or projectile
weapons that are not effective in melee. You apply
your Strength bonus to damage dealt by thrown weapons
but not to damage dealt by projectile weapons (except
for mighty composite shortbows or longbows).
Tiny,
Small, Medium-Size, and Large Weapons: The size
of a weapon compared to your size determines whether
for you the weapon is light, one-handed, two-handed,
or too large to use.
Light:
If the weapon’s size category is smaller than
yours (such as a human using a Small weapon), then
the weapon is light for you. Light weapons are easier
to use in your off hand, and you can use them while
grappling. You can use a light weapon in one hand.
You get no special bonus when using it in two hands.
One-Handed:
If the weapon’s size category is the same as
yours (such as a human using a rapier), then the weapon
is one-handed for you. If you use a one-handed melee
weapon two-handed, you can apply one and a half times
your Strength bonus to damage (provided you have a
bonus). Thrown weapons can only be thrown one-handed,
and you receive your Strength bonus to damage.
Two-Handed:
If the weapon’s size category is one step larger
than your own (such as a human using a greataxe),
then the weapon is two-handed for you. You can use
a two-handed melee weapon effectively in two hands,
and when you deal damage with it, you add one and
a half times your Strength bonus to damage (provided
you have a bonus).
Thrown
weapons can only be thrown one-handed. You can throw
a thrown weapon with one hand even if it would be
two-handed for you due to your size (such as a gnome
throwing a javelin), but doing so counts as a full-round
action because the weapon is bulkier and harder to
handle than most thrown weapons. You receive your
Strength bonus to damage.
You
can use a two-handed projectile weapon (such as a
bow or a crossbow) effectively in two hands. If you
have a penalty for low Strength, apply it to damage
rolls when you use a bow or a sling. You get no Strength
bonus to damage with a projectile weapon unless it’s
a mighty composite shortbow or longbow (page 113).
Too
Large to Use: If the weapon’s size category
is two or more steps larger than your own (such as
a gnome trying to use a greatsword), the weapon is
too large for you to use.
Unarmed
Strikes: An unarmed strike is two size categories
smaller than the character using it.
Weapon Qualities
The
weapon you use says something about who you are. You
probably want both a melee weapon and a ranged weapon.
If you can’t afford both your melee weapon of
choice and your ranged weapon of choice, decide which
is more important to you.
What
size of weapon you choose determines how you can choose
to wield it (with one hand or two) and how much damage
you deal with it. A two-handed weapon deals more damage
than a one-handed weapon, but it keeps you from using
a shield, so that’s a trade-off. If you are Small,
you need to choose smaller weapons.
Depending
on your class, you are proficient with more or fewer
weapons. If you see a weapon that you want to use
but with which you’re not proficient, you can
become proficient with it by selecting the right feat.
See Exotic Weapon Proficiency (page 82), Martial Weapon
Proficiency (page 83), and Simple Weapon Proficiency
(page 85).
A
better weapon is usually more expensive than an inferior
one, but more expensive doesn’t always mean better.
For instance, a rapier is more expensive than a longsword.
For a dexterous rogue with the Weapon Finesse feat,
a rapier is a terrific weapon. For a typical fighter,
a longsword is better.
To
choose your weapons, keep in mind these factors (given
as column headings on Table 7–4: Weapons):
Cost:
This is the weapon’s cost in gold pieces
(gp) or silver pieces (sp). The cost includes miscellaneous
gear that goes with the weapon, such as a scabbard
for a sword or a quiver for arrows.
Damage:
The Damage column gives the damage you deal with a
weapon when you score a hit. If the damage is designated
"§," then the weapon deals subdual damage
rather than normal damage (see Subdual Damage, page
134). If two damage ranges are given, such as "1d6/1d6"
for the quarterstaff, then the weapon is a double
weapon, and you can use a full attack full-round action
to make one extra attack when using this weapon, as
per the two-weapon rules (see Attacking with Two Weapons,
page 124). Use the second damage figure given for
the extra attack.
Critical:
The entry in this column notes how the weapon is used
with the rules for critical hits. When you score a
critical hit, you roll the damage with all modifiers
two, three, or four times, as indicated by its critical
multiplier, and add all the results together.
Exception:
Bonus damage represented as extra dice, such as from
a sneak attack or a flaming sword, is not multiplied
when you score a critical hit.
¥2:
The weapon deals double damage on a critical hit.
¥3:
The weapon deals triple damage on a critical hit.
¥3/¥4:
One head of this double weapon deals triple damage
on a critical hit. The other head deals quadruple
damage on a critical hit.
¥4:
The weapon deals quadruple damage on a critical hit.
19–20/¥2:
The weapon scores a threat (a possible critical hit)
on a natural 19 or 20 (instead of just on a 20) and
deals double damage on a critical hit. (The weapon
has a threat range of 19–20.)
18–20/¥2:
The weapon scores a threat on a natural 18, 19, or
20 (instead of just on a 20) and deals double damage
on a critical hit. (The weapon has a threat range
of 18–20.)
Range
Increment: Any attack at less than this distance
is not penalized for range, so an arrow from a shortbow
(range increment 60 feet) can strike at enemies up
to 59 feet away with no penalty. However, each full
range increment causes a cumulative –2 penalty
to the attack roll. A shortbow archer firing at a
target 200 feet away suffers a –6 attack penalty
(because 200 feet is at least three range increments
but not four increments). Thrown weapons, such as
throwing axes, have a maximum range of five range
increments. Projectile weapons, such as bows, can
shoot up to ten increments.
Thrown
Weapons: Daggers, clubs, halfspears, shortspears,
darts, javelins, throwing axes, light hammers, tridents,
shuriken, and nets are thrown weapons.
Projectile
Weapons: Light crossbows, slings, heavy crossbows,
shortbows, composite shortbows, longbows, composite
longbows, hand crossbows, whips, and repeating crossbows
are projectile weapons.
Improvised
Thrown Weapons: Sometimes objects not crafted
to be weapons get thrown: small rocks, small animals,
vases, pitchers, and so forth. Because they are not
designed for this use, all characters who use improvised
thrown weapons are treated as not proficient with
them and suffer a –4 penalty on their attack
rolls. Improvised thrown weapons have a range increment
of 10 feet. Their size and the damage they deal have
to be adjudicated by the DM.
Weight:
This column gives the weapon’s weight.
Type:
Weapons are classified according to types: bludgeoning,
piercing, and slashing. Some monsters may be partially
or wholly immune to attacks with some types of weapons.
For example, a skeleton only takes half damage from
slashing weapons and no damage from piercing weapons.
If a weapon is of two types, a creature would have
to be immune to both types of damage to have damage
dealt by this weapon be ignored.
Special:
Some weapons have special features, such as reach.
See the weapon descriptions.
The
rules now use the categories "simple," "martial,"
and "exotic" to define which characters are
proficient with which weapons, and the weapon chart
orders weapons first by these categories. Weapons have
gone back to having an absolute size rather than a size
relative to the wielder. For instance, a short sword
is Small, so it’s a light weapon to a human and
a one-handed weapon to a halfling. Criticals are now
multipliers. Also, we gave a few weapons a really good
threat range (such as the rapier) or multiplier (heavy
pick), better than in pervious versions of the rules.
Weapon Descriptions
The weapons
found on Table 7–4: Weapons are described below.
Grenadelike weapons are summarized on Table 7–10:
Grenadelike Weapons and described in the Special and
Superior Items section later in this chapter.
Arrows:
An arrow used as a melee weapon is Tiny and deals
1d4 points of piercing damage (¥2
crit). Since it is not designed for this use, all
characters are treated as not proficient with it and
thus suffer a –4 penalty on their attack rolls.
Arrows come in leather quivers that hold 20 arrows.
An arrow that hits its target is destroyed; one that
misses has a 50% chance to be destroyed or lost.
Axe,
Throwing: A throwing axe is lighter than a handaxe
and balanced for throwing. Gnome fighters often use
throwing axes for both melee and ranged attacks.
Axe,
Orc Double: An orc double axe is a double weapon.
You can fight with it as if fighting with two weapons,
but if you do, you incur all the normal attack penalties
associated with fighting with two weapons, as if you
were wielding a one-handed weapon and a light weapon
(see Attacking with Two Weapons, page 124). A creature
using a double weapon in one hand, such as an ogre
using an orc double axe, can’t use it as a double
weapon.
Battleaxe:
The battleaxe is the most common melee weapon among
dwarves.
The
battleaxe description now refers to dwarves, indicating
a general shift away from historical notes to fantasy
details.
Bolts:
A crossbow bolt used as a melee weapon is Tiny and
deals 1d4 points of piercing damage (¥2
crit). Since it is not designed for this use, all
characters are treated as not proficient with it and
thus suffer a –4 penalty on their attack rolls.
Bolts come in wooden cases that hold 10 bolts. A bolt
that hits its target is destroyed; one that misses
has a 50% chance to be destroyed or lost.
Bullets,
Sling: Bullets are lead spheres, much heavier
than stones of the same size. They come in a leather
pouch that holds 10 bullets. A bullet that hits its
target is destroyed; one that misses has a 50% chance
to be destroyed or lost.
Chain,
Spiked: A spiked chain has reach. You can strike
opponents 10 feet away with it. In addition, unlike
other weapons with reach, you can use it against an
adjacent foe.
Because
the chain can wrap around an enemy’s leg or other
limb, you can make trip attacks with it. If you are
tripped during your own trip attempt, you can drop
the chain to avoid being tripped.
When
using a spiked chain, you get a +2 bonus on your opposed
attack roll when attempting to disarm an opponent
(including the roll to avoid being disarmed if you
fail to disarm your opponent).
You
can use the Weapon Finesse feat (see page 86) to apply
your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier
to attack rolls with a spiked chain.
Club:
A wooden club is so easy to find and fashion that
it has no cost.
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