Rationale and Changelog

Y
es, it's yet another "weapon expansion"
supplement for D&D 5e made by some
nobody on the internet.
People who make supplements like this
helping refine the first draft.
are lovers of complexity and medieval
warfare. If they weren't, they wouldn't make
supplements like this.
Unfortunately, that means such supplements are often
convoluted and over-complicated, with far too many
modifiers possible at once that go against the established
design of 5e.
Design Goals
With that in mind, I had several goals when creating this
system:
First, simplicity. Weapons should feel different; most
weapons should behave in an interesting way, but this
must not over-complicate their use.
Second, new weapons should be added that are not
represented by 5e's base selection, particularly in light
of the new properties added to make weapons feel
different.
Third, buffs should be as subtle as possible - enough to
make the weapon feel different without throwing off
balance.
Improved property consistency in similar weapons
Double-weapons rules altered due to balancing issues.
Version 2 completed. Thanks to u/SamuraiHealer for
Fixed overlooked alphabetisation
Added the blackjack and restored the vanilla 5e club.
Added the special rule for the staff-sling
Concealable removed
Hold-out renamed to Concealable
Impactful removed.
Walked back the scimitar renaming.
Removed the "lobbed" property
Finesse added to the former Impactful weapons
Added the "Flat" property.
Tweaked bonuses.
Added explicit compatibility for Battlemaster
Maneuvers and the Defensive Duelist feat.
Formatting changes for legibility.
Battleaxe's Sweeping replaced with Momentum.
Tuck renamed for recognisability.
Version 1 completed.
First draft distributed for feedback and adjustment.

Fourth, Special weapons in base 5e should be buffed so

that they are more useful, as they are almost never
used in their current form.

Finally, exotic weapon materials should be more

diverse and more worthwhile without being too close in
power to magical weapons.

Changelog
Version 4 in progress. Thanks to u/Geckoarcher for helping
refine the third draft.

Nerfed anti-armor.
Buffed bastard sword for balance.
Added throwing club
Removed errant properties

Version 3 completed. Thanks to u/SamuraiHealer for

helping refine the second draft.

Concealed sheath added.

Concealable removed from hatchet.
Buffed scimitar for balance
Buffed shortsword for balance
Buffed trident for balance
Nerfed whip for balance
Removed club - superseded by blackjack and baton
Nerfed quarterstaff for balance
Buffed sickle for balance
 Better Weapons for D&D 5e
T
his supplement is intended to be dropped
into an existing D&D 5e campaign quickly
and easily so that different weapons can
behave differently. The intention is for
players' choices to be more important and
for martial characters to have more options
on their turn in combat.
It can be used on its own or alongside Better Shields.
Supplement User Guide
To begin using Better Weapons, do the following in your
game:
Replace the 5e Longsword with this supplement's
Bastard Sword
Replace the 5e Greatsword with this supplement's
Longsword
Replace the 5e Handaxe with this supplement's Hatchet
Replace the 5e Club with either this supplement's
Blackjack or Baton, depending on what fits best in each
case.
If you are using the optional Disarm action from the
Dungeon Master's Guide (p. 251), consider allowing
weapons with the Disarming property to have advantage
on attempts to Disarm.
Finally, all weapons with the Special property have been
tweaked. The new rules can be found in the Special
Weapons section.
Weapon Properties
Agile. This weapon is nimble. When an enemy triggers an
attack of opportunity, you gain a +2 bonus to your attack
roll with this weapon.
Anti-armor. This weapon is suited to attacking armored
foes. When attacking a creature that is wearing medium or
heavy armor that is not hide armor, you gain a +1 bonus to
your attack roll.
Concealable. If this weapon is hidden on your person, for
example with a Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check, it cannot
be spotted from a distance. Any checks made to physically
search you for the weapon are made at disadvantage.
Disarming. Using this weapon, you can use a weapon
attack to knock a weapon or item from a target’s grasp.
You make an attack roll contested by your target’s
Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics). If you win, the
target drops the item. If they are holding the item with
multiple hands, you have disadvantage. You have
advantage if your size is larger than your target,
disadvantage if it is smaller.
If using a weapon with this property when you use the
Battlemaster's Disarm maneuver, you can impose
disadvantage on the target's Saving Throw instead.
Part 1 | Usage & Properties
2
Flat. This ranged weapon's shape is such that it can be
easily used while prone. While prone with this weapon,
you can make ranged attacks without disadvantage from
being prone.
Joint-locking. This weapon is especially useful when
grappling. When using your action to Grapple your enemy
with this weapon equipped, you can add this weapon's
damage die to your Grapple check.
Momentum. This weapon can build momentum to hit
harder. When you miss a melee attack with this weapon,
add +1 to the next damage roll made with this weapon in
that turn. If you miss multiple times in a row, add +1 for
each miss.
Parrying. This weapon is good for fighting defensively.
When another creature hits you with a melee attack, you
can use your Reaction to add +1 to your AC for that attack,
potentially causing it to miss. If you have the "Defensive
Duelist" feat, this +1 adds on to your existing parry bonus.
Shoving. When using a Shove attack to push an enemy
away with this weapon equipped, you can add its damage
die to the roll. If it has the Reach property, you may use
that Reach as your reach for the Shove attack. Creatures
that are not either riding a mount or moving using legs or
wings are immune.
Sweeping. This weapon uses wide sweeping motions.
When you use it to attack multiple times in one turn, you
gain a +1 bonus on your attack rolls against creatures that
are not the first one you hit.
Tripping. When using a Shove attack to knock an enemy
prone with this weapon equipped, you can add its damage
die to the roll. If it has the Reach property, you may use
that Reach as your reach for the Shove attack. Creatures
that are not either riding a mount or using their legs to
move are immune. If you use a Trip Maneuver using this
weapon, your target has disadvantage on the saving
throw.
Ranged Tripping. When you make a successful ranged
attack with this weapon, you can use the attack roll against
the target's Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics)
check, adding its damage die to the roll. If you win, the
creature falls prone. Creatures that are not using their legs
to move are immune.
Unhorsing. When you hit a target with this weapon, they
must make a Dexterity saving throw to avoid falling off
their mount. The DC for the saving throw is equal to 8 +
your Strength modifier + your proficiency modifier.
Weapons Tables

T
he following are the new weapons tables.
The Proficiency column is used for new or
renamed weapons to indicate which
weapon proficiency they fall under
according to the standard 5e rules.
If multiple types of damage are listed for a weapon, you
will be assumed to do the first type of damage but can
choose to do the second type at any time.
The Materials column indicates the typical material
used to make the striking surface of that weapon.

Simple Weapons & Ammunition

Simple Melee Weapons
Weapon Cost Damage Weight Properties Proficiency Material
Baton 1 sp 1d4 bludgeoning 2 lb. Joint-locking, light Club Wood
Blackjack 1 sp 1d4 bludgeoning 2 lb. Concealable, light Club Wood
Dagger 2 gp 1d4 piercing/slashing 1 lb. Concealable, finesse, light, thrown (range 20/60) — Steel
Greatclub 2 sp 1d8 bludgeoning 10 lb. Momentum, two-handed — Wood
Hatchet 5 gp 1d6 slashing 2 lb. Light, thrown (range 20/60) Handaxe Steel
Javelin 5 sp 1d6 piercing 2 lb. Thrown (range 30/120) — Steel
Light hammer 2 gp 1d4 bludgeoning 2 lb. Anti-armor, light, thrown (range 20/60), — Steel
Mace 5 gp 1d6 bludgeoning 4 lb. Anti-armor — Steel
Quarterstaff 2 sp 1d6 bludgeoning 4 lb. Shoving, tripping, versatile (1d8) — Wood
Sickle 1 gp 1d4 slashing 2 lb. Light, sweeping — Iron
Spear 1 gp 1d6 piercing 3 lb. Agile, thrown (range 20/60), versatile (1d8) — Steel
War-scythe 2 gp 1d8 slashing 6 lb. Sweeping, two-handed Spear Steel

Simple Ranged Weapons

Weapon Cost Damage Weight Properties Proficiency Material
1d4
Bolas 5 sp 2 lb. Ranged tripping, special, thrown (range 20/60) Net Stone
bludgeoning
Crossbow, 25 Ammunition (range 80/320), flat, loading, two-
1d8 piercing 5 lb. — Wood
light gp handed
Dart 5 cp 1d4 piercing 1/4 lb. Concealable, finesse, thrown (range 20/60) — Steel
Harpoon 1 gp 1d4 piercing 3 lb. Thrown (range 10/30), special Javelin Steel
25
Shortbow 1d6 piercing 2 lb. Ammunition (range 80/320), finesse, two-handed — Wood
gp
1d4
Sling 1 sp — Ammunition (range 100/400), concealable, finesse — Rope
bludgeoning
1d4 Light
Throwing club 1 sp 1 lb Finesse, thrown (range 20/60) Wood
bludgeoning hammer
Ammunition
Type Cost Weight Material
Arrows (20) 1 gp 1 lb. Steel
Crossbow bolts (20) 1 gp 1 1/2 lb. Steel
Sling bullets (20) 4 cp 1 1/2 lb. Stone

Part 2 | Simple Weapons

3
 Martial Weapons & Ammunition
Martial Melee Weapons
Weapon Cost Damage Weight Properties Proficiency Material
15
Arming sword 1d8 slashing/piercing 2 lb. Agile Longsword Steel
gp
20
Bastard sword 1d8 slashing/piercing 3 lb. Agile, versatile (1d10) Longsword Steel
gp
10
Battleaxe 1d8 slashing 4 lb. Momentum — Steel
gp
Duelling
5 gp 1d4 piercing 1 lb. Disarming, finesse, light, parrying, Rapier Steel
dagger
35 1d10
Estoc 4 lb. Agile, anti-armor, two-handed Longsword Steel
gp piercing/bludgeoning
20
Fauchard 1d10 slashing/piercing 6 lb. Heavy, reach, tripping, two-handed Glaive Steel
gp
Flail 5 gp 1d6 bludgeoning 4 lb. Anti-armor — Steel
20
Glaive 1d10 slashing/piercing 6 lb. Heavy, reach, two-handed, momentum — Steel
gp
30
Greataxe 1d12 slashing 7 lb. Heavy, momentum, sweeping, two-handed — Steel
gp
50
Greatsword 1d10 slashing/piercing 6 lb. Heavy, reach, sweeping, two-handed Greatsword Steel
gp
20
Halberd 1d10 slashing/piercing 6 lb. Heavy, reach, two-handed, unhorsing — Steel
gp
10
Lance 1d12 piercing 3 lb. Reach, special, unhorsing — Steel
gp
35
Longsword 2d6 slashing/piercing 4 lb. Agile, heavy, two-handed Greatsword Steel
gp
10
Maul 2d6 bludgeoning 10 lb. Anti-armor, heavy, two-handed — Steel
gp
20
Military fork 1d10 piercing 6 lb. Disarming, heavy, reach, two-handed Pike Steel
gp
15
Morningstar 1d8 bludgeoning 4 lb. Anti-armor — Steel
gp
Pike 5 gp 1d10 piercing 6 lb. Agile, heavy, reach, two-handed — Steel
25
Rapier 1d8 piercing 2 lb. Agile, finesse — Steel
gp
25
Sabre 1d8 slashing 2 lb. Finesse, sweeping — Steel
gp
10
Scimitar 1d6 slashing 3 lb. Finesse, light, sweeping — Steel
gp
10
Shortsword 1d6 piercing/slashing 2 lb. Agile, finesse, light — Steel
gp
Agile, disarm, thrown (range 20/60), versatile
Trident 5 gp 1d6 piercing 4 lb. — Steel
(1d8)
War pick 5 gp 1d8 piercing 2 lb. Anti-armor — Steel
15
Warhammer 1d8 bludgeoning 2 lb. Anti-armor, versatile (1d10) — Steel
gp
Whip 2 gp 1d4 slashing 2 lb. Disarm, finesse, reach, trip — Leather

Part 3 | Martial Melee Weapons

4
Martial Ranged Weapons
Weapon Cost Damage Weight Properties Proficiency Material
10
Blowgun 1 piercing 1 lb. Ammunition (range 25/75), concealable, flat, loading — Wood
gp
Crossbow, 75
1d6 piercing 3 lb. Ammunition (range 30/120), concealable, light, loading — Wood
hand gp
Crossbow, 50 Ammunition (range 100/400), flat, heavy, loading, two-
1d10 piercing 8 lb. — Wood
heavy gp handed
50 Ammunition (range 150/600), finesse, heavy, two-
Longbow 1d8 piercing 2 lb. — Wood
gp handed
Net 1 gp — 3 lb. Special, thrown (range 5/15) — Rope
1d6 Ammunition (range 150/600), finesse, special, two-
Staff-sling 3 sp 4 lb. Sling Wood
bludgeoning handed
Ammunition
Type Cost Weight Material
Arrows (20) 1 gp 1 lb. Steel
Blowgun needles (50) 1 gp 1 lb. Wood
Crossbow bolts (20) 1 gp 1 1/2 lb. Steel
Sling bullets (20) 4 cp 1 1/2 lb. Stone

ranged attack within 5ft of an enemy.

Special Weapons A Large or smaller creature hit by a net is Restrained
until it is freed. A net has no effect on creatures that are
Some weapons have specific rules governing their use.
incorporeal or amorphous. A creature can use its action to
Those will be described here.
make a DC 10 Strength (Athletics) check, freeing itself on a
Bolas. If you successfully trip a creature with a bolas, that success. Dealing 5 slashing damage to the net (AC 10) also
creature's movement speed is reduced to 5ft until it uses frees the creature, ending the effect and destroying the
an action to untangle itself. A bolas only affects creatures net. When you attack with a net, you can make only one
that are walking or running. attack regardless of the number of attacks you can
normally make.
Harpoon. A Huge or smaller creature hit by a harpoon is
unable to move away from the wielder until it is freed. It Staff-sling. This weapon also functions as a Quarterstaff.
can still move around or towards the harpoon's wielder. A
harpoon has no effect on creatures that are incorporeal.
While the creature is affected by the harpoon, you can use
your action to make a Strength (Athletics) check contested
against the target's Strength (Athletics) check. If you are
successful, you can drag the creature a number of feet
towards you equal to 5 times your Strength modifier,
provided it is no more than one size larger than yourself.
A creature can use its action to make a DC 10 Strength
(Athletics) check, freeing itself on a success. Dealing 5
slashing damage to the harpoon's tether (AC 10) also frees
the creature, ending the effect and destroying the
harpoon. When you attack with a harpoon, you can make
only one attack regardless of the number of attacks you
can normally make.

Lance. You have disadvantage when attacking a creature

within 5ft of you. If you are not mounted, you must use
two hands to wield a lance.

Net. When throwing a net at a target within five feet of

you, you do not suffer the disadvantage from making a
Part 4 | Ranged Martial & Special Weapons
5

Materials and Modifications
The weapons in this supplement are assumed to be in
their most common form and made of typical materials.
By including exotic materials in the weapon's construction
or making modifications, it is possible to imbue it with
extra effects.
Adamantine. A weapon or load of ammunition can be
made from adamantine. Against objects, any hit from an
adamantine weapon is a critical hit. Against creatures
made of stone or wood, an adamantine weapon does 1
point of extra damage. The adamantine version of a
weapon or ten pieces of ammunition costs 500 gp more
than the standard version, and weighs 1.5 times as much.
Additionally, adamantine weapons do not rust, tarnish, or
corrode.
weapon is considered magical for the purposes of
bypassing resistances or vulnerabilities. If an undead
creature is not resistant to damage from non-magical
weapons, they take 1 point of extra damage from silvered
weapons. The silvered version of a weapon or load of
ammunition costs 100 gp more than the standard version.
Tether. For 1 gp, you can attach a narrow rope tether to
any weapon with the Thrown and Light properties. Once
thrown, you may use a bonus action to retrieve the
weapon, but the weapon's range is halved.
Concealed Sheath. For 5 gp, you can commission a
sheath to be made for a specific Light Simple Weapon that
belongs to you. This weapon is treated as though it has the
Concealable property while it is in the sheath.

Double-weapons. Some cultures have traditions of using

weapons with two ends such as double-ended swords.
Such weapons are rare, but may be based on any one-
handed weapon without the versatile or reach properties.
When a weapon is adapted to a double-ended form, it
loses the following properties: light, concealable, joint-
locking, and parrying. A double-ended weapon allows its
user to make a weapon attack as a bonus action, but
requires two hands to be used. Additionally, a user is not
considered proficient in the use of such a weapon unless
they are proficient with martial weapons and the double-
ended weapon in question features prominently in their
culture.

Dragon-horn. A bow can be made from the horns of a

dragon. Such bows are prized the world over. Bows of
dragon-horn multiply both of their ranges by 1.5 but weigh
twice as much. Dragon-horn bows are rarely sold due to
the rarity of suitable horns and the difficulty of working
with such materials.

Iron. A weapon that is normally made of steel or wood, or

an ammunition that is normally made of steel, can instead
be made of iron. If usually made of wood, the weapon
doubles in cost when made in iron, but if usually made of
steel the cost for an iron version of the item is the same.
Fey creatures and creatures with the Fey Ancestry trait
take 1 point of extra damage from iron weapons. If you
roll a natural 1 when attacking with an iron weapon, it is
bent or broken and useless until it can be repaired.

Mithral. A weapon can be made from mithral. Weapons

made from Mithral are half their usual weight.
Additionally, a Heavy weapon loses that property, a
normal weapon gains the Light property. Two-handed
weapons made of mithral become usable in one hand, and
Light weapons gain the Finesse property if they do not
already have it. Mithral weapons cost 500 gp more than
the standard version. Additionally, mithral weapons do not
rust, tarnish, or corrode.

Silvered. Any weapon or load of ammunition can be

silvered by adding runes and glyphs to its striking surfaces
or blades and using silver to filigree them, or in the case of
ammunition, silver plating. Against undead, a Silvered

Part 5 | Materials and Modifications

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