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Some people might cringe at that thought, but hear me out .

That is, let weapons be meaningful tools, not just vehicles for dishing out various identical dice of damage.  Each weapon should have a special ability--a write up, sort of like a spell.  Think of it as expanding on the idea of Slashing/Piercing/Bludgeoning damage types and Superior Weapons (and the Feats that augment certain weapons in 3e/4e).

This way, Fighters (or perhaps any proficient user, specialized users getting access to better maneuvers) can pick up any weapon on the battlefield or carry what they need for the job at hand.  And they would be At Will (like Cantrips), since a martial warrior shouldn't suddenly not be able to attack a certain way just because he did a few moments before (daily/encounter powers strain credulity for these characters).

This is more realistic and simulationist while also serving to diversify combat abilities.  As the people at ARMA have proven, weapons were crafted for certain purposes and techniques, and martial skill (yes, even in Europe) was very advanced.  Knights and other dedicated fighters were quite skilled in quite a variety of weaponry, armor use, and battlefield situations. 

Let that come through in the skilled Fighter's ability to maximize his use of his weapons!!

P.S. There is potential out there for Armor to have similar write-ups for proficient/specialist users.  This all makes equipment matter much more, gives non-spellcasters something to care about (or not, if they want to keep it simple and focus on their sword-and-board combo, for instance), and should, I think, have widespread appeal (something for low magic people, 4e versatility, the less fantastical martial combat of earlier editions, and a bonus new level of realism for simulationists). 

Thoughts?

Jun 26, 2012 -- 6:04PM, everdawn7 wrote:

...and martial skill (yes, even in Europe) was very advanced.

For this line alone, you are awesome!

Let that come through in the skilled Fighter's ability to maximize his use of his weapons!!

QFT. I've wanted fighters to be specialist weapon users for ages, capable of more and better attacks than the average PC, and I really don't like the "once per encounter" thing either.

Jun 27, 2012 -- 4:49AM, MrChamp wrote:

I think most people want fighters to have options.  Power-attack, cleave, whirlwind attack are examples of what they've already got access to and most people agree there's a bit of room to move.

The danger is going the 4th Ed route and making fighter abilities mimic magical abilities.  Power aside, differentiation is important and expands the gaming experience.

I want to see tactical, mechanical figters, but I don't want to see spells like fire replicated with shouts or stomps.  There is a middle ground on this and we're all waiting to see it.

This is precisely what I'm afraid of.
I don't want a game full of magic users like in 4th edition. 

How do you get "spells" out of wanting to have a weapons and armor write up where they have meaning and special uses?

The martial exploits that had the most spell feel were those that provided healing, IMO, and, of course, the fact that there were encounters and dailies.  That's why I made the "Cantrip" comparison--these would simply be things that a fighter can do with a weapon (or weapon advantages he can exploit) because he knows it so well.  Any time (at will).  Also, simple write-ups--the Cantrips have short descriptions, and some have a "special" section.

I'm working up some examples to show, but the variables that you could play with include attack bonuses to certain special attack types (disarm, trip, bull rush, grapple, etc); damage bonuses in certain circumstances or against certain types of foes or defenses; changing weapon damage type; overcoming damage type resistances; special utility against large or small foes; and all the other common variables (brutal or defensive descriptors, power attack, versatile, high crit, etc).

Just don't require feat burning all over the place to gain these.  They should be built in to Proficiency and/or levels of specialization.

Jun 27, 2012 -- 4:49AM, MrChamp wrote:

I think most people want fighters to have options.  Power-attack, cleave, whirlwind attack are examples of what they've already got access to and most people agree there's a bit of room to move.

The danger is going the 4th Ed route and making fighter abilities mimic magical abilities.  Power aside, differentiation is important and expands the gaming experience.

I want to see tactical, mechanical figters, but I don't want to see spells like fire replicated with shouts or stomps.  There is a middle ground on this and we're all waiting to see it.

What? Name a single 4e Fighter power that was "magical".