Weapons Overview

The Weapons Table lists more than just the price of each item. It also gives other game information. Since each weapon is different, you should note this information separately for each weapon your character purchases or finds.
Weapon Size: All weapons are classed according to a size category—S, M, L, G, or H. Small (S) weapons are approximately two feet or less in size; medium (M) weapons are two to five feet long; large (L) weapons are generally six feet or greater in length. Giant (G) and huge (H) weapons are not found on the lists, since these are items normally used by ogres, giants, and even greater creatures. They are not items of equipment a PC can normally buy! A character can always wield a weapon equal to his own size or less. Normally this requires only one hand, except for some missile weapons (bows and crossbows in particular). A character can also use a weapon one size greater than himself although it must be gripped with two hands. Beyond this size limit, the weapon is not usable without special means (most often magical).
Type: Weapons are classified according to types—bludgeoning (B), piercing (P). and slashing (S). These types are used to determine armor type modifiers (if these are used). Weapons vs. Armor Type is explained under Combat.
Speed Factor: Weapon speed is a relative measure of the clumsiness of the weapon. The lower the number, the quicker and easier the weapon is to use. Weapon speed is explained under Combat.
Damage: All weapons are rated for the amount of damage they can cause to small- and medium-sized creatures (S-M) and larger-than-man-sized creatures (L).

Bows

Bows come in various shapes and sizes. The power of a bow is measured by its pull. The greater the pull, the more Strength needed to work the bow. Thus it is possible for characters to have bows that grant them damage bonuses for high Strength (it is assumed the character has chosen a bow that has a greater pull). Likewise, characters with low Strengths suffer their usual penalties when using a bow (they are forced to use weaker bows or simply cannot draw back as far). The pull of a bow seldom prevents a character from using the weapon, only from gaining the full effect. The true test of a character's Strength comes in stringing a bow—the bow of a strong hero may simply be unstringable by a lesser man (as was Odysseus's).

Heavier pull bows are not normally any more expensive than standard bows. The exceptions to this are those bows that enable the fighter to gain bonuses for exceptional Strength (18/01 or greater). These bows must be custom crafted and cost three to five times the normal price. These bows are also difficult to string or use effectively for those without exceptional Strength. These characters must roll a successful bend bars/lift gates roll to string or use such weapons (again, think of the test of the suitors in Odysseus's household).

Arrows for long bows of all types are divided between light-weight flight arrows and heavier sheaf arrows. Flight arrows have longer ranges and are normally used in hunting. Sheaf arrows have a stronger metal head but a reduced range. They are often used in times of war.

Crossbows

Strength bonuses or penalties do not apply to crossbows, since these are purely mechanical devices. The hand crossbow is easily held in one hand and cocked with the other. The light crossbow, also called latches, must be braced against an object to be cocked with a lever mounted on the stock. The heavy crossbow, also called arbalest, has a powerful pull and must be cocked with a cranequin (a simple winch or lever) that comes with the weapon. One foot is placed in a stirrup at the end of the crossbow while the cranequin is worked. All crossbows fire quarrels or bolts and the correct size must be used with each weapon.

One-Hand, Two-Hand Weapons

Weapons, for purposes of how they're held and wielded, fall into four categories: one-handed only, one-handed but can be wielded two-handed, one-handed or two-handed, or two-handed only.

One-Handed Only means the weapon can only be wielded one-handed, in one hand or the other.

One-Handed But Can Be Wielded Two-Handed refers to a weapon principally designed for one-handed use but which can be used two-handed. These weapons have enough haft or hilt on them that the wielder can wield the weapon in both hands, which confers no benefit . . . unless the character has taken a Style Specialization in Two-Hander Fighting Style.

One-Handed Or Two-Handed weapons are designed specifically to be used with one or both hands, and have separate damage listings for the two different fighting styles.

Two-Handed Only weapons can only be wielded in two hands.

Examples

Each of the weapons from the Player's Handbook falls into one of those four categories, as follows:

One-Handed Only

Dagger/dirk, Dart, Footman's mace, Hand/throwing axe, Knife, Lances (all), Scourge, Sickle, Sword/Khopesh, Sword/Scimitar, Sword/Short, Whip.

One-Handed But Can Be Wielded Two-Handed

Battle axe, Club, Footman's flail, Footman's pick, Horseman's flail, Horseman's mace, Horseman's pick, Morning star, Sword/Long, and Warhammer.

One-Handed or Two-Handed

Harpoon, Javelin, Spear, Sword/Bastard, Trident.

Two-Handed Only

Blowgun, Bows (all), Crossbows (all), Mancatcher, Polearms (all), Quarterstaff, Sling (one hand to load, one hand to throw), Staff sling, Sword/Two-handed.

More On One-Handed or Two-Handed

As you can see, five weapons fall into the One-Handed or Two-Handed category: The Bastard Sword, and four spear-like weapons (Harpoon, Javelin, Spear, Trident). In the Player's Handbook, it's presumed that you're fighting with Spear one-handed, and with Harpoon, Javelin, and Trident two-handed. (This is because Spear is a Medium weapon and the others are Large.) However, any of these weapons can be used either in one hand or in both.

But they can also be wielded two-handed, and do even more damage when they are. The Weapons chart shows both the one-handed and two-handed damage for each of the four weapons.

Also, the Long Spear has been added to this list. This is like the ordinary spear, but mounted on a much longer (12'–18') shaft. It's not especially suited to one-handed use, but inflicts a lot of damage when used two-handed.

The Harpoon, Javelin, Spear, and Trident can all be thrown, but the thrown weapon damage is always the one-handed damage, never the two-handed damage. The Long Spear is not built for throwing.

These five spear-like weapons are as fast and maneuverable when used two-handed; therefore, unlike the Bastard Sword, their speed factor does not worsen when they are used two-handed.

New Weapons

Several of the Warrior Kits mention new weapons appropriate to those warrior types. These weapons are already in the Weapons chart; a discussion about what they are and how they're used can be found in the equipment section..

Many of these weapons have special abilities, bonuses and combat functions not reflected on the chart; these abilities help account for the high costs listed for some of the weapons.

Other weapons, particularly the bone and stone ones, seem to be of very limited usefulness. There's a reason for that.

The fact that these weapons appear on tables in an AD&D® game product doesn't mean that players may immediately buy these weapons for their characters. These weapons are not commonly available, and may only be taken with DM permission . . . and that permission should depend on the character's origin.

You see, each of these weapons is appropriate to a certain culture (and to the Warrior Kits belonging to that culture and each of these weapons is further described below, under the heading that corresponds to that culture or Warrior Kit.

If, for instance, your character isn't a Gladiator, he can't start play with a drusus. In fact, if he doesn't belong to a culture which has gladiators, never travels to such a culture, and doesn't even find a market with contacts with such a culture, he can never even get a drusus.

So the DM, and DM alone, decides how accessible each of these weapons is based on how many ties the campaign culture has with the culture that creates these weapons. Even if he says that there is contact, it may not be possible or easy for PCs to acquire these weapons; just because samurai visit the court of your king doesn't mean that they'd be willing to sell their treasured katanas, after all.

In short, acquisition of this type of equipment is left as an exercise in role-playing and adventure, in played-out game sessions, not as something as simple as dropping some gold pieces off your character sheet.

Gladiator Weapons

Gladiators are trained in a variety of weapons. In addition to the new weapons on the chart above, gladiators can be trained in the following, more commonly-available, weapons: Long bow (any type), Short bow (any type), Dagger, Footman's flail, Knife, Halberd, Scourge, Scimitar, Short sword, Spear, Trident, and Whip.

The short sword used by gladiators, incidentally, is a short, straight-bladed weapon sharpened on both edges; it is called the gladius, and gladiators take their name from it. The gladius has the characteristics of an ordinary short sword.

Pirate Weapons

The world of piracy doesn't demand that pirates use any specific weapons . . . but for reasons of tradition and convenience, some specific weapons are very common to pirate crews.

In addition to the new weapons on the chart above, pirates are readily familiar with: Battle axe, Bow (all types), Club, Crossbow (all normally-available types), Dagger/Dirk, Hand/throwing axe, Harpoon, Javelin, Knife, Polearm/Awl pike, Polearm/Partisan, Scourge (mostly for disciplinary purposes), Sling, Spear, Sword (all but Khopesh), Trident, and Whip (also mostly for disciplinary purposes).

Additionally, the world of the Pirate overlapped that of the Swashbuckler to a considerable degree. With the DM's permission (and there's usually little reason to deny it), Pirates may have access to all the weapons listed on the chart above and descriptions below for Swashbucklers.

Samurai Weapons

The exotic, oriental world features many weapons which are strange to western eyes . . . including the eyes of the PCs in most campaigns.

Many of these weapons simply look a little different and bear different names. Old, familiar weapons with slightly changed forms and names include: the Battle axe, Hand axe, Dagger (tanto), Halberd, Javelin, Light lance, Mace, Pike, Spear, Long sword, Short sword, Two-handed sword (no-daichi), and Trident. These weapons have game characteristics identical to the normal versions, and proficiency with the common weapon works just as well with the more exotic version.

Savage Weapons

The lump term "savages" is being used here to refer to any number of different types of people. They have in common these traits: They're not as technologically advanced as the normal peoples of the campaign, though some do make weapons of bronze or iron; and they're probably hunter-gatherers who have not yet embraced the agricultural revolution. And that's really all they have to have in common. "Savages" might be highly cultured, artistic, peaceful peoples, but if they have dirt floors or flint-tipped weapons, the rest of the world calls them savage. For our purposes, "savages" encompasses Neanderthal man, Old Stone Age Cromagnon, and New Stone Age modern men.

Stereotypical savages know the following weapons: Blowgun (mostly jungle tribes), Long and Short bow (no composite bows), Club, Dagger, Hand/Throwing Axe, Javelin, Knife, Sling, and Spear.

Depending on their level of technological development, they may make their weapons (including arrowheads, spear-heads, etc.) out of iron, bronze, stone or even bone. For our purposes, iron and bronze weapons have the same characteristics as steel weapons; it's not worth generating all-new weapon stats for the slight game-mechanic differences.

Stone and bone weapons, on the other hand, require their own statistics, which is why they're represented on the weapon chart at the top of the chapter.

Stone Weapons

Stone weapons are used just like their modern counterparts, but are worth less money, do less damage, and are more prone to shattering.

The damages and costs (should some ever be sold on the market) for these weapons are given in the weapons chart.

Stone weapons have a chance of breaking every time they hit and do damage. Every time a stone weapon successfully hits a target, the player must roll 1d6. Regardless of the roll, this attack does its full damage, but on a roll of 1 on the 1d6, the weapon or weapon-head shatters and is useless.

Bone Weapons

Bone weapons are likewise used like their modern counterparts, but are worth even less money, can only be used with smaller stabbing weapons (knives and daggers), and shatter even more readily—on a roll of 1 or 2 on 1d6.

Other Uses for Stone and Bone Weapons

Generally, no one in his right mind is going to trade in nice, modern steel weapons for bone or stone counterparts. But characters don't always have the choice.

Characters with the Savage warrior kit start out with the level of weapons the DM decides for him: "Modern," stone or bone. In a campaign where most savages are simply hunter-gatherers who live at a certain distance from the PCs' culture, but who trade and interact with them, modern weapons are fine. When the savage culture is far away and more technologically primitive, stone weapons are more appropriate. If the savages are supposed to be very primitive indeed, bone weapons are the proper choice. In all likelihood, these savage characters, reaching more advanced lands and seeing how much more damage more modern weapons will do, will make the switch. . . though they're likely to stick to the types of weapons they know best (spears, bows, daggers, etc.).

Remember, though, that the club is the same weapon regardless of technological advancement; the surliest caveman can make a club that has the weapon stats of the most modern baseball bat.

Also, player-characters might find themselves stripped of weapons and cast adrift in the wilderness. If they want weapons, they'll have to make them, possibly of stone or bone. For these purposes, too, the weapon stats above can be useful.

Swashbuckler Weapons

(Note: Links are provided for both the Warrior & Rogue Swashbuckler kits)

Swashbuckler {Warrior} weapons are light, fast weapons used by lightly-armored opponents, usually in an environment (a culture, nation or even just a city) where heavier arms and armor are illegal or outdated. They're also appropriate for shipboard campaigns and situations; the light armor is easier to get out of so you don't drown if you fall overboard. So, usually, Swashbuckler {Rogue} emerge in an area where the days of the plate-armored, broadsword-wielding knight are past . . . or at least numbered. Swashbuckler characters might bolt on the plate mail and pick up the lance for genuine warfare, but in their cosmopolitan big-city adventures they stick to the lighter stuff . . . and can be sure that most of the opponents they face will be likewise armed and armored.

Weapons from the Player's Handbook which can be considered swashbuckler weapons include: Bows (all types), Crossbows (all available types), Dagger/Dirk, Knife, Polearms (all types), and Short Swords. The only sorts of shields they use regularly are bucklers and small shields, and they tend to wear only leather, padded, and hide armor.

The new weapons listed on the chart above include: Stiletto, Main-Gauche, Rapier, and @sabre.