Is there any way to make firearms kensai weapons in D&D Beyond? I really want to make some sort of Gunslinger Monk and that seems like a great way to do it, however the way D&D Beyond works you can't select any firearms. The only restrictions the class makes is that the kensi weapons can't have the special or heavy properties, which most firearms don't. Just wondering if there is a way to do this or if there ever will be?
I think you'd have to copy the subclass in the Homebrew section, and add Firearms to the list of possibles for Kensei Weapons. Based on RAW, you are already homebrewing by allowing a Firearm to be used as a Kensei Weapon (though that's more of bending a rule).
I mean, Sugitani Zenjubo comes to mind. Kensai, literally Japanese for Sword Saint, probably has enough ground to give a musket if we extend the architype to warrior monks. The firearms available probably don't have the firing rate for gun katas, but you could certainly use one as a club ... or if you are really ennamoured with gun katas, take a page from the 18th century and just care a tonne of pistols on your person and just drop them after each shot.
I know this is super late and a pretty big necro to your post but I just wanted to clarify that RAW: Adding firearms to the game is optional (homebrew) but kensai becoming proficient would fall in line due the way the feature is written (since firearms themselves are martial weapons which lack the heavy and special properties).
Bizarrely enough, DDB puts them under a special category which to be fair is because they are an optional rule hence the reason they seem separate from other martial weapons. I think Tasha's Gunner feat was designed to allow players to bypass the need for hesitant DMs to just "give" players proficiency with firearms in general (unless they are Kensai which doesn't need permission :P).
If you see this though, what did you end up doing? I personally made a bug report showing that kensai were unable to pick any firearms under the listed weapons (which seems like a simple fix, but there may be a rule dispute I'm unaware of), even when I made a homebrew class or gave my character firearm proficiency I couldn't get it onto the list.
Have you seen the movie Equilibrium? There are many pistol-fu fight scenes in it that might prove inspirational.
I used to think that, until John Wick came out and I think the way he Reeves uses guns in melee in that movie is actually more “gun fu” to me.
If only there were some movie that combined Keanu Reeves with Equilibruim-style gun-fu... I bet it would have been extremely popular in 1999 or so!
Yeah, but if they had there would have been a compulsion to make godawful sequels that would have taken a single good movie and turned it into an incredibly shitty trilogy. Good thing it never happened.
Have you seen the movie Equilibrium? There are many pistol-fu fight scenes in it that might prove inspirational.
I used to think that, until John Wick came out and I think the way he Reeves uses guns in melee in that movie is actually more “gun fu” to me.
If only there were some movie that combined Keanu Reeves with Equilibruim-style gun-fu... I bet it would have been extremely popular in 1999 or so!
Yeah, but if they had there would have been a compulsion to make godawful sequels that would have taken a single good movie and turned it into an incredibly shitty trilogy. Good thing it never happened.
You should take a very long nap on December 22nd. You'll thank me afterward.
Yeah, pre pandemic it was looking like Keanu Reeves would be competing with himself for box office since Matrix 4 and John Wick 4 were supposed to come out the same day. I had even thought about creating a commemorative coin modeled after "challenge" coins with Wick on one side and Neo on the other and you were supposed to flip it at the movie theater ... then pandemic threw the schedule out of whack. I think I was more aware of Matrix 4 because they were literally shooting some of it in my old work's back yard. I believe this one lacks Hugo Weaving but does have Neil Patrick Harris, so I'm curious.
The sequels had their moments, the fight with the "monsters" and the L.A. freeway scene in 2 were good "action". "Night of a Thousand Agent Smiths" in 3 was interesting.
I don't get why people, and particularly D&D people, like Equillibrium so much. Better filmography based on true fact: what blew American audiences minds about The Matrix was its merging of U.S. digital fx with Hong Kong stunt choreography. I guess folks want to gun fu like Equilibrium, but actually game play would probably play out more like Hard Boiled or the Killer where the PC needs to "disengage" by throwing themself on a blood slick floor and using the recoil of their twinned pistols to hydroplane them across it.
I mean I can get the same beats from Equilibrium from a Milla Jovovich Underworld movie, and see Milla Jovovich, and probably see it more adaptable to 5e. Bullet curving, what about Wanted? Or the Kingsmen for that matter.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Interesting that you mention Underworld because that was literally based off of the World of Darkness TTRPG. Wanted and Kingsmen are a little too “graphic novel” and TTRPGS don’t have those visuals outside of the mind’s eye. But for the darker action like Underworld and Equilibrium, the blurry, shadowy action lends itself to mind’s eye folks like TTRPG players.
It also doesn’t hurt that Equilibrium was an action film adaptation of 1984.
But overall the entire storyline behind Matrix 2 & 3 were sooo bad.... The only good thing to come out of The Matrix franchise beyond the 1st movie as a stand-alone is that it inspired Reeves to actually learn everything that John Wick can do. Also, ever noticed how many characters Keano Reeves has played who were named John...? 🤔
Is there any way to make firearms kensai weapons in D&D Beyond? I really want to make some sort of Gunslinger Monk and that seems like a great way to do it, however the way D&D Beyond works you can't select any firearms. The only restrictions the class makes is that the kensi weapons can't have the special or heavy properties, which most firearms don't. Just wondering if there is a way to do this or if there ever will be?
I think you'd have to copy the subclass in the Homebrew section, and add Firearms to the list of possibles for Kensei Weapons. Based on RAW, you are already homebrewing by allowing a Firearm to be used as a Kensei Weapon (though that's more of bending a rule).
After some research I noticed firearms are a separate weapons set like simple or martial. This makes more sense now. Homebrew it is.
Have you seen the movie Equilibrium? There are many pistol-fu fight scenes in it that might prove inspirational.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
I mean, Sugitani Zenjubo comes to mind. Kensai, literally Japanese for Sword Saint, probably has enough ground to give a musket if we extend the architype to warrior monks. The firearms available probably don't have the firing rate for gun katas, but you could certainly use one as a club ... or if you are really ennamoured with gun katas, take a page from the 18th century and just care a tonne of pistols on your person and just drop them after each shot.
The gun-kata made a lot of people want to play Clerics after not realizing the difference between a Tetragrammaton Cleric and a D&D Cleric. :)
I used to think that, until John Wick came out and I think the way he Reeves uses guns in melee in that movie is actually more “gun fu” to me.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
One is cinematic, the other is more real.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
And the pivotal point in both was an adorable puppy.
You know, I ever really thought about it like that before, but you’re right.
That’s ‘cause puppykins gives the bestest snurgles and kisses!!
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
The best snoots to boops!
I know this is super late and a pretty big necro to your post but I just wanted to clarify that RAW: Adding firearms to the game is optional (homebrew) but kensai becoming proficient would fall in line due the way the feature is written (since firearms themselves are martial weapons which lack the heavy and special properties).
Bizarrely enough, DDB puts them under a special category which to be fair is because they are an optional rule hence the reason they seem separate from other martial weapons. I think Tasha's Gunner feat was designed to allow players to bypass the need for hesitant DMs to just "give" players proficiency with firearms in general (unless they are Kensai which doesn't need permission :P).
If you see this though, what did you end up doing? I personally made a bug report showing that kensai were unable to pick any firearms under the listed weapons (which seems like a simple fix, but there may be a rule dispute I'm unaware of), even when I made a homebrew class or gave my character firearm proficiency I couldn't get it onto the list.
If only there were some movie that combined Keanu Reeves with Equilibruim-style gun-fu... I bet it would have been extremely popular in 1999 or so!
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
Yeah, but if they had there would have been a compulsion to make godawful sequels that would have taken a single good movie and turned it into an incredibly shitty trilogy. Good thing it never happened.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
You should take a very long nap on December 22nd. You'll thank me afterward.
No... they aren’t.....
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Those sons of *****es.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Yeah, pre pandemic it was looking like Keanu Reeves would be competing with himself for box office since Matrix 4 and John Wick 4 were supposed to come out the same day. I had even thought about creating a commemorative coin modeled after "challenge" coins with Wick on one side and Neo on the other and you were supposed to flip it at the movie theater ... then pandemic threw the schedule out of whack. I think I was more aware of Matrix 4 because they were literally shooting some of it in my old work's back yard. I believe this one lacks Hugo Weaving but does have Neil Patrick Harris, so I'm curious.
The sequels had their moments, the fight with the "monsters" and the L.A. freeway scene in 2 were good "action". "Night of a Thousand Agent Smiths" in 3 was interesting.
I don't get why people, and particularly D&D people, like Equillibrium so much. Better filmography based on true fact: what blew American audiences minds about The Matrix was its merging of U.S. digital fx with Hong Kong stunt choreography. I guess folks want to gun fu like Equilibrium, but actually game play would probably play out more like Hard Boiled or the Killer where the PC needs to "disengage" by throwing themself on a blood slick floor and using the recoil of their twinned pistols to hydroplane them across it.
I mean I can get the same beats from Equilibrium from a Milla Jovovich Underworld movie, and see Milla Jovovich, and probably see it more adaptable to 5e. Bullet curving, what about Wanted? Or the Kingsmen for that matter.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Interesting that you mention Underworld because that was literally based off of the World of Darkness TTRPG. Wanted and Kingsmen are a little too “graphic novel” and TTRPGS don’t have those visuals outside of the mind’s eye. But for the darker action like Underworld and Equilibrium, the blurry, shadowy action lends itself to mind’s eye folks like TTRPG players.
It also doesn’t hurt that Equilibrium was an action film adaptation of 1984.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
But overall the entire storyline behind Matrix 2 & 3 were sooo bad.... The only good thing to come out of The Matrix franchise beyond the 1st movie as a stand-alone is that it inspired Reeves to actually learn everything that John Wick can do. Also, ever noticed how many characters Keano Reeves has played who were named John...? 🤔
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting