Let the player choose which fighting style they prefer and reskin the appropriate weapon. Heavy scythe, greataxe. Lighter maneuverable scythe, glaive. Smaller versatile scythe, battleaxe. Beyond that the weapon has no unusual features or abilities. Consider letting them search out some magical scythe later (reskin another of the same weapon) when the other players are starting to get their own magic weapons.
Yeah, much the same, really. I mean, what even is a greataxe? Is it a Dane Axe? A Poleaxe? A bardiche? 5e's weapon system is so neutered and watered down that you could shoehorn just about any weapon into an already established mechanical niche with a bit of reflavouring. Which is great for simplicity but awful for verisimilitude.
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"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation."
I have used a scythe to cut tall grass in real life. It seems like it would be very awkward to use as a weapon. Does anyone know if and how they were used militarily and if they were modified from the type used for agriculture?
I have used a scythe to cut tall grass in real life. It seems like it would be very awkward to use as a weapon. Does anyone know if and how they were used militarily and if they were modified from the type used for agriculture?
If I recall correctly, the scythe was never used "militarily", but more like a weapon a farmer would use to defend their land if they were attacked. Mostly because, well... That's all they had. The closest to a scythe that would actually be a common used weapon I think would be a kama, basically a one-handed small scythe. There were never units or groups of people that purposefully used a scythe as their primary weapon.
The use of scythes in combat is pretty much exclusive to anime, video games and fantasy books - they had very little actual use as a weapon historically in the real world.
That shouldn't stop anyone from using them in D&D though, if that's what they want to do and it seems cool for the player & DM.
At the end of the day, it's totally ok to take any existing weapon and "reskin" it by just calling it something else.
The use of scythes in combat is pretty much exclusive to anime, video games and fantasy books - they had very little actual use as a weapon historically in the real world.
Correct, because the blade is facing the wrong way - it is at an angle to the handle and facing sideways. There isn't any effective way to swing a scythe at an opponent and have the sharp bit hit them with any force.
You could cut the back of your enemies’ legs using it the way it is intended to be used but you would have no way to defend yourself. I was thinking that it might have been used with a vertical swing bringing the tip of the blade down on the head. Somewhere I read that the Romans were fighting someone (Dacians maybe?) who devised a pick-like weapon that they used to attack the Romans’ heads. The Romans had to strengthen their helmets in response. But this is D&D, so we don’t have to limit ourselves to how weapons were used in real life. The movie 300 would have been really boring if the actors fought like the Spartans actually fought.
I think we all imagine our heros gracefully parrying and slashing. A character wielding a scythe looking like Death incarnate would be really cool.
5e doesn't really come packaged with weapon granularity, but as was discussed in.... an older thread that doesn't show up in the search any more? Weird... Anyway, as was discussed before, the earlier rules port over pretty easily on an individual basis, other than changing the economics of what weapons should be popular among NPCs in the game world. A 2d4 martial weapon, Heavy, two-handed, Special (crits triple all dice instead double), weighing about 6 lbs would be easy enough to make available to a single character that wants to build around it.
You could cut the back of your enemies’ legs using it the way it is intended to be used but you would have no way to defend yourself. I was thinking that it might have been used with a vertical swing bringing the tip of the blade down on the head. Somewhere I read that the Romans were fighting someone (Dacians maybe?) who devised a pick-like weapon that they used to attack the Romans’ heads. The Romans had to strengthen their helmets in response. But this is D&D, so we don’t have to limit ourselves to how weapons were used in real life. The movie 300 would have been really boring if the actors fought like the Spartans actually fought.
I think we all imagine our heros gracefully parrying and slashing. A character wielding a scythe looking like Death incarnate would be really cool.
Or be some over strong being that does not seem to be affected by the unwieldiness of an implement designed to be used close to the ground in a swaying arc. Also, they look super cool in pictures. Here is a piece of live action, semi-realistic usage of a scythe, but it is a movie with all that magic.
I'd probably make a "scythe" using a mix of the rules for a Halberd and a Lance. Make it 1d10 or 1d12 slashing, with Reach, but disadvantage if you try to use it against someone 5' away. It doesn't feel like a weapon that would be easy to use close-up.
That doesn't look like a real scythe. The angle of the blade is wrong. As you say, it's movie magic.
My ruling would be that if your character picks up a real scythe and tries to use it as a weapon, it is improvised (no proficiency, does 1d4+STR) because it is so unwieldy.
If your character just wants a polearm that looks like a scythe, then cool. You have a glaive that looks a lot like a scythe. Just don't expect it to be able to cut grass. :-)
It is the same one Louie uses in the clip I posted previously. Also,I think bonus against small, plant based races that are near the ground, or flaming vampires with snarky smirks should be applied.
But, seriously, just re-flavor any weapon you would like to use. It is a 2-3 foot blade attached to pole. It is really the look you are going for, not the semantics of how physics would have it be used. Heck, make it a greatsword if the DM allows it.
I'm thinking that it will be similar to the sickle, but two-handed. Thoughts on damage?
I'd probably just use greataxe stats.
"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation."
― Oscar Wilde.
Agreed. Great axe is closest to two handed scythe.
I'd say glaive, but greataxe would work too.
Let the player choose which fighting style they prefer and reskin the appropriate weapon. Heavy scythe, greataxe. Lighter maneuverable scythe, glaive. Smaller versatile scythe, battleaxe. Beyond that the weapon has no unusual features or abilities. Consider letting them search out some magical scythe later (reskin another of the same weapon) when the other players are starting to get their own magic weapons.
Yeah, much the same, really. I mean, what even is a greataxe? Is it a Dane Axe? A Poleaxe? A bardiche? 5e's weapon system is so neutered and watered down that you could shoehorn just about any weapon into an already established mechanical niche with a bit of reflavouring. Which is great for simplicity but awful for verisimilitude.
"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation."
― Oscar Wilde.
I have used a scythe to cut tall grass in real life. It seems like it would be very awkward to use as a weapon. Does anyone know if and how they were used militarily and if they were modified from the type used for agriculture?
If I recall correctly, the scythe was never used "militarily", but more like a weapon a farmer would use to defend their land if they were attacked. Mostly because, well... That's all they had. The closest to a scythe that would actually be a common used weapon I think would be a kama, basically a one-handed small scythe. There were never units or groups of people that purposefully used a scythe as their primary weapon.
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Feats: Artificer Apprentice
Monsters: Sheep - Spellbreaker Warforged Titan
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Monster template: Skeletal Creature
The use of scythes in combat is pretty much exclusive to anime, video games and fantasy books - they had very little actual use as a weapon historically in the real world.
That shouldn't stop anyone from using them in D&D though, if that's what they want to do and it seems cool for the player & DM.
At the end of the day, it's totally ok to take any existing weapon and "reskin" it by just calling it something else.
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I believe there is a historical precedence for using scythes in war, but they didn't really look like farming scythes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_scythe
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This type of scythe would definitely use glaive stats.
Pfffft, no way, that's definitely a halberd.
(That was sarcasm, just in case... just funny how D&D 5e has two separate weapon profiles for these two weapons, when they work exactly the same.)
Correct, because the blade is facing the wrong way - it is at an angle to the handle and facing sideways. There isn't any effective way to swing a scythe at an opponent and have the sharp bit hit them with any force.
You could cut the back of your enemies’ legs using it the way it is intended to be used but you would have no way to defend yourself. I was thinking that it might have been used with a vertical swing bringing the tip of the blade down on the head. Somewhere I read that the Romans were fighting someone (Dacians maybe?) who devised a pick-like weapon that they used to attack the Romans’ heads. The Romans had to strengthen their helmets in response. But this is D&D, so we don’t have to limit ourselves to how weapons were used in real life. The movie 300 would have been really boring if the actors fought like the Spartans actually fought.
I think we all imagine our heros gracefully parrying and slashing. A character wielding a scythe looking like Death incarnate would be really cool.
5e doesn't really come packaged with weapon granularity, but as was discussed in.... an older thread that doesn't show up in the search any more? Weird... Anyway, as was discussed before, the earlier rules port over pretty easily on an individual basis, other than changing the economics of what weapons should be popular among NPCs in the game world. A 2d4 martial weapon, Heavy, two-handed, Special (crits triple all dice instead double), weighing about 6 lbs would be easy enough to make available to a single character that wants to build around it.
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I'm going to make this way harder than it needs to be.
Or be some over strong being that does not seem to be affected by the unwieldiness of an implement designed to be used close to the ground in a swaying arc. Also, they look super cool in pictures. Here is a piece of live action, semi-realistic usage of a scythe, but it is a movie with all that magic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7rVCeG3QqI
IMHO, Earthdawn is still the best fantasy realm, Shadowrun is the best Sci-Fi realm, and Dark Sun is the best D&D realm.
I'd probably make a "scythe" using a mix of the rules for a Halberd and a Lance. Make it 1d10 or 1d12 slashing, with Reach, but disadvantage if you try to use it against someone 5' away. It doesn't feel like a weapon that would be easy to use close-up.
That doesn't look like a real scythe. The angle of the blade is wrong. As you say, it's movie magic.
My ruling would be that if your character picks up a real scythe and tries to use it as a weapon, it is improvised (no proficiency, does 1d4+STR) because it is so unwieldy.
If your character just wants a polearm that looks like a scythe, then cool. You have a glaive that looks a lot like a scythe. Just don't expect it to be able to cut grass. :-)
The deadly plant destroyer at about 4 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMCHOL3YCOI
It is the same one Louie uses in the clip I posted previously. Also,I think bonus against small, plant based races that are near the ground, or flaming vampires with snarky smirks should be applied.
But, seriously, just re-flavor any weapon you would like to use. It is a 2-3 foot blade attached to pole. It is really the look you are going for, not the semantics of how physics would have it be used. Heck, make it a greatsword if the DM allows it.
IMHO, Earthdawn is still the best fantasy realm, Shadowrun is the best Sci-Fi realm, and Dark Sun is the best D&D realm.