warhammers and all that!!!

RSS
Email

0 Kudo

Author

Comment

Golen

warhammers and all that!!!

Lead

[-]

Posts: 20

(06/20/02 15:28:56)

Tags : None

So Im thinking of making a new character for the campaign Im in. Straight fighter, a dwarf or human who wields a monster hammer.

Now for the tough part... the biggest hammer in the game is the warhammer ( 1d8 dam, x3 crit, 1 handed, 10lbs).

So if I wanted to make a new hammer, how would making it a two handed greatwarhammer effect the stats, damage, the critical, the and the gross weight?
and after that if you make it a two handed mercurial greatwarhammer how would that effect the stats, damage, the critical, the and the gross weight?

Here's how Im figuring it:

Using the weapon damage by size alteration charts in sword and fist on page 62, and comparisons of standard weapons to mercurial ones from page 70.

warhammer
1d8, x3, 10lbs

Two handed greatwarhammer
2d6, x3, 30lbs

Two handed mercurial greatwarhammer
2d8, x4, 32lbs

Now call me crazy but I think that a 32lbs of weight careening down on your poor hapless skull would turn your skeletal system in to a grainy gelatinous substance with much greater abandon that a mercurial greatsword could hack you into a frappe...
As the immortal python would say "it's a mater of weight ratios".
So either Ive greatly over estimated the weight of the hammer or this thing would do like 4d8 dam or better.

And so with this, I appeal to you my fellow gamer's,... lead the way and I shall fallow, your wisdom.

Drakus

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 1540

(06/20/02 16:14:50)

Um, besides the case of munchkinitis in regards to 'mercurial two-handed warhammers"... the possibility of a mercurial warhammer sin't that great. The physics are wrong.

With the Merc Greatsword, the weight is relatively even along the length of the blade. With the warhammer, the weight is mostly at the top. The effect of putting mercury inside the shaft of the warhammer would be near insignificant.

Now if all you want is a weapon that does more dice of damage than anybody elses, go ahead.

------ My imaginary friend thinks you have serious mental problems

SilverHawk

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 769

(06/20/02 17:06:34)

i created what your looking for becuase I always wanted an orc barbarian

heavy maul 3d4 X3 40lbs 16 str to wield

mega maul 2d8 X3 60lbs 20 str

--------
D&D: Protecting the world from reality since 1974.

Huefalo

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 13

(06/20/02 17:24:49)

Well, in the FRCS, they have a two-handed Maul in the equipment section, 1d10 damage, 20/x3 crit. In other words, a greatclub with a better crit multiplier. I personally think that's good enough. And if you want it mercurial, it wont increase the damage die... that has been errata'ed. Sword and Fist errata lists merc long sword as now a 1d8 damage, 20/x4 crit and merc great sword is 2d6, 20/x4 crit.

Being mercurial doesn't increase damage, it increases the damage big time on critical hits, but makes it harder to crit. The fact the the maul is already 20/x3 means it hits pretty durn hard on a crit, but not often. As Drakus said, the idea doesn't work all that well, taking the crit mult from 3 to 4. BTW, Maul is a martial weapon and weighs 20 lbs

Gralhruk

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 3110

(06/21/02 04:08:39)

Quote:
mega maul 2d8 X3 60lbs 20 str

That isn't a weapon, it's an anchor!

Quoth the Raven, 'Adventure More'-- Redgar Allan Poe

Flyingdebris

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 4590

(06/21/02 05:15:55)

I'm pretty sure 60 pounds would do more than just 2d8. I mean getting hit by 60 pounds, Jeez

I'd at least add another d8, 60lbs is equivalent to weapons carried by really big races.

60lbs is wielding a pudgy kid as a weapon.

Life's a lich and then you don't die...Words to unlive by

mcb

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 200

(06/21/02 05:43:48)

I know this is fantasy but I don't think even Arnold Swortsinager could not swing a 60 pound sledge fast enough to make it an effective weapon even against some one in full plate armor. You have a tuff time accelerating that weapon fast enough to even challenge the dodging abilities of a gelatinous cube

Remember that the amount of damage goes up proportional to mass, but it goes up at the square of the velocity. Thus if you double the weight of the weapon and are still able to swing it at the same speed as the weapon that masses half as much you get twice the damage. On the other hand if you leave the weapon the same mass and somehow double the speed you can swing it you quadruple the damage done.

But there are limitation to just how fast you can activate muscles and how fast the kinimatics of your limbs will let you swing any weapon so you want to optimize the weight of the weapon so that you can attain maximum velocity with maximum mass. If you get to heavy you cant maximize your velocity or too light then you him max speed before you have use 100% of the force capability of you muscles.

I said all that to say the 60 pounds is ridicules for a medium or even large creature to try to wield. I dont care if it is fantasy or not.

Go to your local home depot and by your self an 8 pound sledge and a 12 pound sledge and drive some post or something with them. See if you get more work done with the 8 or 12. I have tried it and with my physical strength or lack there of I get a lot more work done with the 8 without beating myself up. The 12 pounder is good if I dont have to hit the head of a stake or post. The extra mass does help do a little more damage to say concrete but then again the concrete slab is not trying to dodge my blow. There is more then just lots of weight to do damage. You actually have to be able to hit something with it.

Not to mention think of you poor mount that has to carry the thing around with your characters lard a$$

Sorry, I ramble
mcb

Andorax

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 7052

(06/21/02 06:31:31)

My tendancy would be to allow it a step-up from a Greatclub...probably a D12 (comparable to a Greataxe), with the same crit range as a Warhammer.

Potentially devistating, but wildly unpredictable.

I'd also recommend that you forget about dreams of Mercurial Warhammers...as has already been said, the physics are just plain wrong.

"Whadda ya mean, Orcs get levels too?!?"

boring7

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 5013

(06/21/02 07:02:29)

Ancient Wyrm

all righty, BY THE RULES a "two handed" or Large (as in, one size larger than medium, which is the standard longsword and/or warhammer) deals 2d6 damage as per the rules for increasing the damage die of a weapon that is increased in size.

It's on page 246 under the description of the spell righteous might.

don't ask me why the maul is only a d10 when the "great hammer" is 2d6, I don't make up the rules.

anyhoo, hope that helps. oh, and mercurial is stupid, I know that's just my opinion, but I'm going to say it anyway.

"You come to a sign, it says 'Pit of Despair: Only the DOOMED beyond this point' what do you do?""huzzah! we stride forth!"

mcb

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 200

(06/21/02 07:18:08)

I just got thinking about that mercurial hammer. They already exist sort of. They are called dead blow hammers. I use them in the shop on occasion. They are generally a tough plastic or brass faced hammer that the head has been filled with fine lead shot. The lead is slightly less toxic, easier to work with and not a messy as mercury and almost as dense. But it does not help you do more damage or hit harder with the hammer. The loose dense lead shot in the head of the hammer allows you to hit something hard (transferring a lot of momentum) while using a contact material (the plastic hammer head) to hit with out marring or dinging the surface hit. As a result of the large momentum transfers the loose lead also keeps the hammer from bouncing of a solid objects. You have essentially created a nearly inelastic collision between the hammerhead and the target.

So as a D&D weapon it sounds pretty darn cool. The mururial dead blow heavy maul but it wouldnt do any more damage for the same basic weight but it would be less likely to bounce off that paladins armor and sting you character hands like when you hit a baseball out on the end of a bat or such.

Later
mcb

Flyingdebris

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 4590

(06/21/02 11:08:43)

How about this, make it so that your hammer has pointy bits at the end of it, like a meat tenderizer. I don't know if this would deal more damage but you'd be able to also deal piercing damage against a target, assuming the pointy parts are long enough. Can someone tell me if this is viable I am not the hammer expert so I wouldn't know.

Life's a lich and then you don't die...Words to unlive by

Sephiroth Yagyu

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 1413

(06/21/02 13:48:49)

Psychotic Scot

Or you could put a rocket thruster on one end of the hammer, so when you swing the rocket kicks in and propels the weapon at a fantastic speed! I'd say 10d8 damage.

What?

How about just have it do 2d8 bludg, x2 crit, L, 30 lb. There. better than a Greatsword in raw damage, which is what you all seem to want, and worse in crit capacity. Also heavier, I think........

...And so the Paladins were robbed of their money, pants, and dignity, proving once again that good is dumb.

boring7

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 5013

(06/21/02 13:51:40)

Ancient Wyrm

no no, you have to put a nail on the end o add a point of piercing damage! yeah, that's it.

"You come to a sign, it says 'Pit of Despair: Only the DOOMED beyond this point' what do you do?""huzzah! we stride forth!"

Flyingdebris

Re: warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 4590

(06/21/02 14:02:47)

I still don't know whats wrong with swingin a big meat tenderizer, no need to get all sarcastic

Life's a lich and then you don't die...Words to unlive by

skylark

warhammers and all that!!!

[-]

Posts: 239

(06/21/02 17:25:59)

The weights in the PH are off for many weapons, including swords. Most swords were in the 2-3 pound range with two-handed swords about 8 lbs. These are not the only examples of 'weight inflation' in the PH.

Mugetsu

Greathammer

[-]

Posts: 62

(06/21/02 18:27:34)

In the Divine and the Defeated (Swords and Sorcery), they have a greathammer, which is the same thing as a maul, which has been mentioned. Just in case you wanted to wield a hammer weapon and not a maul...

Sephiroth Yagyu

Re: Greathammer

[-]

Posts: 1413

(06/21/02 22:20:44)

Psychotic Scot

I thnk tiny alterations are factored into the damage it already deals. Besides, a little ridge may draw some blood, but does it matter when you're getting a big truckload of raw ass-whoopin' power upside the head?

...And so the Paladins were robbed of their money, pants, and dignity, proving once again that good is dumb.

boring7

Re: Greathammer

[-]

Posts: 5013

(06/22/02 13:27:34)

Ancient Wyrm

yeah, I think a meat tenderizer effect wouldn't really change things, though if someone wanted to do a spiked hammer With really long spikes then it could do Piercing and bludgeoning damage. It requires an EWP since you have to take those spikes into acount when swingin' the darned thing, but it'll work.

oh yeah, and for just having it look like a meat tenderizer I agree it mihgt be an intereswting little "thing" for character development.

"You come to a sign, it says 'Pit of Despair: Only the DOOMED beyond this point' what do you do?""huzzah! we stride forth!"

CelticDragonlord

Re: Greathammer

[-]

Posts: 1502

(06/22/02 15:12:04)

Why not use the maul? It IS a hammer... a sledgehammer designed for combat. At most, step it up one category and make it an EWP to be able to effectively wield it two-handed (just as pre-errata'ed fullsword).

RPG stands for Roleplaying Life... Role-Playin' G'Life.

Yuku free message boards

warhammers and all that!!!

warhammers and all that!!!

Quick Reply