Damage Types
Weapons do one of three types of damage: slashing, piercing, or bludgeoning.
Slashing attacks are most effective against unarmored or lightly armored opponents. But medium and heavy armor protect against slashing attacks better than piercing or bludgeoning weapons. To represent this, the base damage for slashing weapons is generally one die size higher (translates to +1 damage). Medium armors give their wearer 1 point of slashing resistance. And heavy armors give their wearer 2 points of slashing resistance. So against light or no armor, slashing weapons are best. Against medium armor all damage types are equal. And against heavy armor piercing and bludgeoning damage types are best. Many weapons can be used to deal a secondary damage type, as listed in their description.
Weapon Properties
Many weapons have special properties related to their use, as shown in the Weapons table.
Armor Piercing. You have a minor advantage to attack rolls when using this weapon to make an attack against a creature wearing heavy armor.
Ammunition. You can use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from the weapon. Each time you attack with the weapon, you expend one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition from a quiver, case, or other container is part of the attack. At the end of the battle, you can recover half your expended ammunition by taking a minute to search the battlefield.
If you use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a melee attack, you treat the weapon as an improvised weapon (see “Improvised Weapons” later in the section). A sling must be loaded to deal any damage
when used in this way.
Brace. (You can use the Brace maneuver with this weapon. Braced attacks use the piercing damage mode)
Cleaving. (You can use the Cleave maneuver with this weapon)
Finesse. When making an attack with a finesse weapon, you use your choice of your Strength or Dexterity modifier for the attack and damage rolls. You must use the same modifier for both rolls.
Large. This weapon cannot be sheathed or stowed. You must either use a hand to hold this weapon at all times or drop it. Large weapons may also have disadvantage when fighting in tight spaces, as determined by the DM (this is more likely to apply to slashing or bludgeoning weapons than thrusting weapons).
Light. A light weapon is small and easy to handle, making it ideal for use when fighting with two weapons. See the rules for two-weapon fighting in chapter 9.
Loading. Because of the time required to load this weapon, you can fire only one piece of ammunition from it when you use an action, bonus action, or reaction to fire it, regardless o f the number of attacks you can normally make.
Hooked. (This weapon can be used more effectively when tripping opponents.)
Polearm. When wielding this weapon, other creatures provoke an opportunity attack from you when they enter your reach.
Powerful. This weapon has a -1 penalty to attack rolls. Typically these weapons deal more damage than similar weapons that don’t have this property.
Precision. This weapon has a +1 bonus to attack rolls.
Quick Draw. Drawing this weapon does not cost any movement.
Range. A weapon that can be used to make a ranged attack has a range shown in parentheses after the ammunition or thrown property. The range lists two numbers. The first is the weapon’s normal range in feet, and the second indicates the weapon’s maximum range. When attacking a target beyond normal range, you have a minor disadvantage on the attack roll for each normal range increment. You can’t attack a target beyond the weapon’s long range.
Reach. This weapon adds 5 feet to your reach. You cannot attack squares adjacent to you and do not threaten squares adjacent to you when wielding this weapon.
Special. A weapon with the special property has unusual rules governing its use, explained in the weapon’s description (see “Special Weapons” later in this section).
Thrown. If a weapon has the thrown property, you can throw the weapon to make a ranged attack. If the weapon is a melee weapon, you use the same ability modifier for that attack roll and damage roll that you would use for a melee attack with the weapon. For example, if you throw a handaxe, you use your Strength, but if you throw a dagger, you can use either your Strength or your Dexterity, since the dagger has the finesse property.
Two-Handed. This weapon requires two hands to use.
Unwieldy. This weapon has a -1 penalty to attack rolls.
Versatile. This weapon can be used with one or two hands. A damage value in parentheses appears with the property to indicate the damage when the weapon is used with two hands to make a melee attack.
Simple Melee Weapons
| Club | 1d4 bludgeoning | Light |
| Dagger | 1d4 piercing | Finesse, light, thrown (range 10/30), armor piercing (melee), quick draw |
| Handaxe | 1d6 slashing | Light, thrown (range 10/30) |
| Javelin | 1d6 piercing | Thrown (range 30/120) |
| Mace | 1d6 bludgeoning | |
| Maul | 1d10 bludgeoning | Large, two-handed, unwieldy |
| Spear | 1d6 piercing | Large, versatile (1d10), polearm, brace |
| Staff | 1d4 bludgeoning | Large, versatile (1d8), polearm, special |
| Tool Axe | 1d8 slashing | Versatile (1d12), unwieldy |
| Unarmed strike | 1 bludgeoning |
Martial Melee Weapons
| Arming Sword | 2d4 slashing | Precision, quick draw |
| Battleaxe | 1d12 slashing | Hooked |
| Estoc | 1d10 piercing | Large, two-handed, precision, armor piercing |
| Glaive | 1d12 slashing | Large, two-handed, precision, polearm |
| Greataxe | 2d8 slashing | Large, two-handed, cleaving, hooked |
| Greatsword | 1d12 slashing | Large, two-handed, precision, cleaving |
| Halberd | 2d8 slashing | Large, two-handed, polearm, hooked, brace |
| Lance | 1d10 piercing | Large, reach, special |
| Longsword | 1d8 slashing | Versatile (1d12), precision, quick draw |
| Partisan | 1d12+1 piercing | Large, two-handed, polearm, brace |
| Pike | 1d12 piercing | Large, two-handed, polearm, reach, brace |
| Poleaxe | 2d8 slashing | Large, two-handed, polearm, hooked, brace |
| Rapier | 1d6 piercing | Finesse, precision, quick draw |
| Raven’s Beak | 1d12+1 bludgeoning | Large, two-handed, polearm, hooked |
| Saber | 1d8 slashing | Finesse, precision, quick draw |
| Scimitar | 1d6 slashing | Finesse, light, precision, quick draw |
| Smallsword | 1d4 piercing | Finesse, light, precision, quick draw |
| Warhammer | 1d10 piercing | Versatile (1d12+1), hooked |
Weapon Descriptions
Arming Sword. Alternate damage options: 1d6 piercing, 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Battleaxe.
Dagger. Alternate damage type: slashing
Estoc. Alternate damage options: 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Glaive. Alternate damage options: 1d8 bludgeoning.
Greataxe.
Greatsword. Alternate damage options: 1d10 piercing (half-swording), 1d8 bludgeoning (murder-stroke grip), 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Halberd. A polearm with an axe head, a beak, and a spike. Alternate damage options: 1d12+1 piercing (1d10 piercing braced), 1d8 bludgeoning
Lance. Special rules…can be used as an improvised longspear
Longsword. Alternate damage options: 1d6 piercing (versatile 1d10) (half-swording), 1d4 bludgeoning (versatile 1d8) (murder-stroke grip), 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Partisan. Alternate damage options: 1d8 bludgeoning
Pike.
Poleaxe. A polearm with an axe head, a hammer head, and a spike. Alternate damage options: 1d12+1 bludgeoning, 1d10 piercing
Rapier. Alternate damage option: 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Raven’s Beak. A polearm with a piercing pick, a small bludgeoning head, and a spike. Alternate damage type: piercing.
Saber.
Scimitar.
Smallsword. A short thin thrusting blade, like a miniature rapier. Alternate damage option: 1 bludgeoning (pommel strike)
Spear. Alternate damage option: 1d4 bludgeoning (versatile 1d8)
Warhammer. Alternate damage type: bludgeoning.