Weapons

Without a doubt, weapons number among adventurers’ most coveted possessions. Whether weapons are used as tools to lay foul monsters low, as the medium for magical enhancements, or as outlets for a host of fundamental class abilities, few heroes head into the field without their favorite—or perhaps even a whole arsenal of their favorites. This section presents all manner of nonmagical weapons for characters to purchase and put to use, whatever their adventures might entail. The weapons presented here should be relatively easy to find and purchase in most towns and cities, although some more expensive or exotic weapons may be limited by availability and/or locale.   From the common longsword to the exotic dwarven urgrosh, weapons come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.   All weapons deal hit point damage. This damage is subtracted from the current hit points of any creature struck by the weapon. When the result of the die roll to make an attack is a natural 20 (that is, the die actually shows a 20), this is known as a critical threat (although some weapons can score a critical threat on a roll of less than 20). Similarly, a natural 1 (the die shows a 1) is a fumble. See Criticals and Fumbles for information on their effects and how they are resolved.   Weapons are grouped into several interlocking sets of categories. These categories pertain to what training is needed to become proficient in a weapon’s use (simple, martial, or exotic), the weapon’s usefulness either in close combat (melee) or at a distance (ranged, which includes both thrown and projectile weapons), its relative encumbrance (light, one-handed, or two-handed), and its size (Small, Medium, or Large).  

Simple, Martial, and Exotic Weapons

Most classes give a character Proficiency in either simple or martial weapons. The Simple Weapon Proficiency and Martial Weapon Proficiency feats can grant proficiency in them if a character does not have it as a class feature. The Exotic Weapon Proficiency grants Proficiency in a single exotic weapon if it is not already given as a class feature, and many racial exotic weapons are treated as martial weapons for specific races.  

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.  

Reach Weapons

A reach weapon is a melee weapon that allows its wielder to strike at targets that aren’t adjacent to them. Most reach weapons double the wielder’s natural reach, meaning that a typical Small or Medium wielder of such a weapon can attack a creature 10 feet away, but not a creature in an adjacent square. A typical Large character wielding a reach weapon of the appropriate size can attack a creature 15 or 20 feet away, but not adjacent creatures or creatures up to 10 feet away.  

Double Weapons

A character can fight with both ends of a double weapon as if fighting with two weapons, but they incur all the normal attack penalties associated with Two-Weapon Fighting, just as though the character were wielding a one-handed weapon and a light weapon. The character can also choose to use a double weapon two-handed, attacking with only one end of it. A creature wielding a double weapon in one hand can’t use it as a double weapon—only one end of the weapon can be used in any given round.  

Thrown Weapons

The wielder applies their Strength modifier to damage dealt by thrown weapons (except for a Splash Weapon).   It is possible to throw a weapon that isn’t designed to be thrown (that is, a melee weapon that doesn’t have a numeric entry for Range) as an Improvised Weapon, and a character who does so takes a –4 penalty on the attack roll. Throwing a light or one-handed weapon in this way is a Standard Action, while throwing a two-handed weapon in this way is a Full-Round Action. Regardless of the type of weapon, such an attack scores a threat only on a natural 20 and deals double damage on a critical hit. Such a weapon has a range increment of 10 feet.  

Projectile Weapons

Most projectile weapons require two hands to use (see specific weapon descriptions). A character gets no Strength bonus on damage rolls with a projectile weapon unless it’s a specially built composite bow or a sling. If the character has a penalty for low Strength, apply it to damage rolls when using a bow or a sling.  

Ammunition

Projectile weapons use ammunition: arrows (for bows), bolts (for crossbows), darts (for blowguns), or sling bullets (for slings and halfling sling staves). When using a bow, a character can draw ammunition as a free action; crossbows and slings require an action for reloading (as noted in their descriptions). Generally speaking, ammunition that hits its target is destroyed or rendered useless, while ammunition that misses has a 50% chance of being destroyed or lost. Although they are thrown weapons, shuriken are treated as ammunition for the purposes of drawing them, crafting masterwork or otherwise special versions of them, and what happens to them after they are thrown.  

Light, One-Handed, and Two-Handed Melee Weapons

This designation is a measure of how much effort it takes to wield a weapon in combat. It indicates whether a melee weapon, when wielded by a character of the weapon’s size category, is considered a light weapon, a one-handed weapon, or a two-handed weapon.  

Light

A light weapon is used in one hand. It is easier to use in one’s off hand than a one-handed weapon is, and can be used while Grappled. Add the wielder’s Strength modifier to damage rolls for melee attacks with a light weapon if it’s used in the primary hand, or half the wielder’s Strength bonus if it’s used in the off hand. Using two hands to wield a light weapon gives no advantage on damage; the Strength bonus applies as though the weapon were held in the wielder’s primary hand only. An Unarmed Strike is always considered a light weapon.  

One-Handed

A one-handed weapon can be used in either the primary hand or the off hand. Add the wielder’s Strength bonus to damage rolls for melee attacks with a one-handed weapon if it’s used in the primary hand, or 1/2 their Strength bonus if it’s used in the off hand. If a one-handed weapon is wielded with two hands during melee combat, add 1-1/2 times the character’s Strength bonus to damage rolls.  

Two-Handed

Two hands are required to use a two-handed melee weapon effectively. Apply 1-1/2 times the character’s Strength bonus to damage rolls for melee attacks with such a weapon.   *Note: releasing a hand from a two-handed weapon or grabbing it again with a second hand is a Free Action, but like any Free Action it can only be done a reasonable number of times per round, typically 1 release and 1 re-grasp.  

Weapon Size

Every weapon has a size category. This designation indicates the size of the creature for which the weapon was designed.   A weapon’s size category isn’t the same as its size as an object. Instead, a weapon’s size category is keyed to the size of the intended wielder. In general, a light weapon is an Object two size categories smaller than the wielder, a one-handed weapon is an Object one size category smaller than the wielder, and a two-handed weapon is an Object of the same size category as the wielder.  

Inappropriately Sized Weapons

A creature can’t make optimum use of a weapon that isn’t properly sized for it. A cumulative –2 penalty applies on attack rolls for each size category of difference between the size of its intended wielder and the size of its actual wielder. If the creature doesn't have proficiency with the weapon, a –4 nonproficiency penalty also applies.   The measure of how much effort it takes to use a weapon (whether the weapon is designated as a light, one-handed, or two-handed weapon for a particular wielder) is altered by one step for each size category of difference between the wielder’s size and the size of the creature for which the weapon was designed. For example, a Small creature would wield a Medium one-handed weapon as a two-handed weapon. If a weapon’s designation would be changed to something other than light, one-handed, or two-handed by this alteration, the creature can’t wield the weapon at all.  

Improvised Weapons

Sometimes objects not crafted to be weapons nonetheless see use in combat. Because such objects are not designed for this use, any creature that uses an improvised weapon in combat is considered to be nonproficient with it and takes a –4 penalty on attack rolls made with that object. To determine the size category and appropriate damage for an improvised weapon, compare its relative size and damage potential to the weapon list to find a reasonable match. An improvised weapon scores a threat on a natural roll of 20 and deals double damage on a critical hit. An improvised thrown weapon has a range increment of 10 feet. (duplicated from the Improvised Weapon article)  

Damaged Weapons

(The following information is a subset of that provided in the Broken condition for weapons)   Attacks made with a weapon with the Broken condition suffer a –2 penalty on attack and damage rolls. Such weapons only score a critical hit on a natural 20 and only deal ×2 damage on a confirmed critical hit.  

Weapon Qualities

Here is the format for weapon entries (given as column headings on the weapons tables).  

Price

This value is the weapon’s price in gold pieces (gp) or silver pieces (sp). The price includes miscellaneous gear that goes with the weapon, such as a scabbard or quiver. This price is the same for a Small or Medium version of the weapon. A Large version costs twice the listed price.  

Dmg

These columns give the damage dealt by the weapon on a successful hit. The column labeled “Dmg (S)” is for Small weapons. The column labeled “Dmg (M)” is for Medium weapons. If two damage ranges are given, then the weapon is a double weapon. Use the second damage figure given for the double weapon’s extra attack. The following table gives weapon damage values for alternate weapon sizes.  

 

Critical

The entry in this column notes how the weapon is used with the rules for critical hits. When your character scores a critical hit, roll the damage two, three, or four times, as indicated by its critical multiplier (using all applicable modifiers on each roll), and add all the results together.   Extra damage dice over and above a weapon’s normal damage (such as sneak attack dice, elemental damage dice, or the added damage from Vital Strike) 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 on a natural roll of 19 or 20 (instead of just 20) and deals double damage on a critical hit.
• 18–20/×2: The weapon scores a threat on a natural roll of 18, 19, or 20 (instead of just 20) and deals double damage on a critical hit.

 

Range

(The following information is a subset of the Ranged Attack section of the Actions in Combat article).   Any attack at more than this distance is penalized for range. Beyond this range, the attack takes a cumulative –2 penalty for each full range increment (or fraction thereof) of distance to the target. For example, a dagger (with a range of 10 feet) thrown at a target that is 25 feet away would incur a –4 penalty. A thrown weapon has a maximum range of five range increments. A projectile weapon can shoot to 10 range increments.   Attacks with a ranged weapon (not a thrown weapon) made within 30 feet of the target gain a +1 Circumstance Bonus to attack and damage rolls.  

Weight

The weight given is that of a Medium version of the weapon. Halve this number for Small weapons and double it for Large weapons. Some weapons have a special weight. See the weapon’s description for details. Treat weapons with a Weight of “—” as weighting 1/2 lb. for the purposes of pricing when crafting them out of special materials (see Craft and Objects and Materials for more details).  

Type

Weapons are classified according to the type of damage they deal: B for bludgeoning, P for piercing, or S for slashing. Some monsters may be resistant or immune to attacks from certain types of weapons. Some weapons deal damage of multiple types. If a weapon causes two types of damage, the type it deals is not half one type and half another; all damage caused is of both types. Therefore, a creature would have to be immune or resistant to both types of damage to ignore any of the damage caused by such a weapon. In other cases, a weapon can deal either of two types of damage. In a situation where the damage type is significant, the wielder can choose which type of damage to deal with such a weapon.  

Treated as

If a weapon’s description says it is “treated as” another weapon, a character lacking the appropriate Exotic Weapon Proficiency, can still use it as if it were the other kind of weapon and feats such as Weapon Focus still apply, as do abilities requiring a certain weapon. For example, the butterfly knife allows a proficient user to open or close it as a free action and is otherwise treated as a dagger, meaning they can wield it as a dagger, gain the benefit of Weapon Focus (dagger) when wielding it, use it as the target of a spell that only affects daggers, and so on.  

Masterwork Weapons

A masterwork weapon is a finely crafted version of a normal weapon. Wielding it provides a +1 Enhancement Bonus on attack rolls. You can’t add the masterwork quality to a weapon after it is created; it must be crafted as a masterwork weapon (see the Craft skill). The masterwork quality adds 300 gp to the cost of a normal weapon (or 6 gp to the cost of a single unit of ammunition). Adding the masterwork quality to a double weapon costs twice the normal increase (+600 gp).   Masterwork ammunition is damaged (effectively destroyed) when used. The Enhancement Bonus of masterwork ammunition does not stack with any Enhancement Bonus of the projectile weapon firing it.   All magic weapons are automatically considered to be of masterwork quality. The Enhancement Bonus granted by the masterwork quality doesn’t stack with the enhancement bonus provided by the weapon’s magic.   Even though some types of armor and shields can be used as weapons, you can’t create a masterwork version of such an item that confers an enhancement bonus on attack rolls. Instead, masterwork armor and shields have lessened armor check penalties.  

Splash (Grenade-like) Weapons

Splash weapons are described under Splash Weapon in the Special Attacks article.