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Shadowhowler wrote:

I am in that minority with you my friend!

See, now we are two... we grow in power already.

Make that three!

Optimized_Commoner wrote:

1ft wide is excessive, but a genuine claymore is unbelievably huge and heavy. I have trouble lifting one and yet they were wielded in battle.

In Germany, soldiers who wielded two-handed swords were called dopplesoldner because they required so much strength and special training that they earned double pay.

Here's my list of peeves:
*People who rip off anime and video games to create their characters. I can't tell you how many vampire-hunting PCs named "Alucard" I've turned down.
*Stealth cheese. You've all seen the players who try to slip cheesy stuff past their DMs, when all they have to do is be straightforward with me. If a player comes up and says, "Hey, I want to make a charge-focused build because I found this combo that's pretty effective," then I'll be more receptive to it. I may even help him work out how his character would have come up with the idea.
*Players who put crunch ahead of fluff. The point of the game, in my point of view, is to roleplay, not just to sit around and stare blankly into space until I call for initiative rolls. If all you want is combat, go home and play Neverwinter Nights.
*People who ban psionics without understanding it. I understand if you don't want a system in your game that a player could be abusing without your knowledge, but at least give it a look-over. It's not like you can't get the SRD for free.
*Template-stackers and insane multiclassing. No, you can't be a half-celestial half-dragon half-vampire werebear drow monk/rogue/spellthief/psion/eldritch knight/shadowcaster/arcane archer/cerebremancer/Slayer of Domiel.
*Whiny players. Grow a pair.
*Cowardly players. Heaven forbid your character have to take any risk!
*Moochers, IC and OOC. I had a player begging half the party just last night to loan him the lion's share of their personal wealth so he could purchase an item that would benefit only him. Then he was begging one of the other characters to haul some of his gear for him so he wouldn't be encumbered. This is common behavior for him and it drives me crazy.

Honestly, the list goes on.

Optimized_Commoner wrote:

I want to make them easier to use than a wand, (anyone can use but requires proficiency) and not quite so powerful. Somewhere around 1d6 energy per attack. Shorter range than a bow.

Can't use without proficiency, or just takes the -4?

Here's the big questions: does it have charges? How fast can it be fired (once per round? as BAB?)? Is it a touch attack?

If it's basically just a short-range bow (no touch attack, fires as fast as BAB) that deals fire damage instead of piercing, it has only the advantage of bypassing DR. Price it at, say, 200 gp, but must be masterwork, for 500 gp final cost. Pros: bypasses DR, looks cool, can light campfires. Cons: fire resistance, must be masterwork, won;t work in areas of dead magic, SR (maybe).

Let's see...

I don't like good. Period. It just doesn't fit 95% of the time into the adventuring life style, especially when the player's alignments are hovering around TN and therefore couldn't properly roleplay it even if they wished to, resulting in it feeling fake and forced... Um no.

I REALLY don't like paladins. Way too unrealistic, overdramatic... disrupts play. Nuff said. And yes, that includes the evil variants.

I absolutely disallow clones of existing characters (which hasn't been a problem actually).

I despise idiots in all forms, those who are incapable of learning (and not just slow at it) are not welcome anywhere around me.

I despise anyone who abuses the alignment system to do stupid stuff (most common with CN, but possible with any).

For that matter I don't take kindly to anyone abusing anything to do stupid stuff, see also infinite wishes at level 11, druids with an army of plant creatures with thousands of hp each, etc. Making strong characters is fine, doing pun-pun like thought exercises is not.

I distrust but allow chaotic alignments, mostly because these are commonly used as excuses to act insane.

I don't want anyone at my table who thinks making strong characters and roleplaying are mutually exclusive. No, you aren't a good roleplayer because you suck at everything else, shape up. To continue this I'd prefer my players to be quite capable of both, but don't mind running pure combat games. Those who insist can roleplay being torn apart by the unadjusted ECL of party -3 encounter who they still stand no chance against because they're a 10 str sans weapon finesse mage who thinks casting spells is a waste of time so they melee with a rapier instead.

I don't like the game turning overly sexual. Some adult themes is fine, but keep it PG 13 or maybe hinting at R if noone minds. No, you may not roleplay out your sexual encounter with the elven princess at the table. And this is coming from an anthro DM, so the stereotype does not apply here. Keep the sexual roleplay out of D&D, do it elsewhere.

CryoSilver wrote:

Can't use without proficiency, or just takes the -4?

-4. Some classes would also be ammended to include it in the proficiency list.

Here's the big questions: does it have charges?

It has ammunition. Much like a bow or crossbow. Only more expensive and single use.

How fast can it be fired (once per round? as BAB?)?

As BAB.

Is it a touch attack?

No, I think that would unfairly tresspass upon the territory of the warlock and the mage.

If it's basically just a short-range bow (no touch attack, fires as fast as BAB) that deals fire damage instead of piercing, it has only the advantage of bypassing DR.

Yes, but with one version for each element. (different versions purchased seperately, also different ammunition). Obviously going with the normal damage change of dropping one die category for acid and sonic (I believe those are the ones, I'll need to check on that, where's my XPH).

Don't forget that unlike the bow it isn't penalised by a low strength score, whereas the crossbow (to which it's more similar in that aspect) requires slow reloading processes. Thus it needs to be balanced against these aspects.

Price it at, say, 200 gp, but must be masterwork, for 500 gp final cost. Pros: bypasses DR, looks cool, can light campfires. Cons: fire resistance, must be masterwork, won;t work in areas of dead magic, SR (maybe).

I agree with your price analysis wholeheartedly. Puts it around the range of the repeater crossbow, to which it is the most similar. I find 500gp a very satisfying figure.