Weapon Types You Just Don't Use

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Mainly out of curiosity...

There are a lot of weapon types in the game and despite playing it over and over again I find there are certain types of weapon I just keep coming back to (eg bastard swords) and others I've barely ever used (eg halberds)

So I'm wondering - what sort of weapons do you guys just seem to not use so much and what sort of incentive would get you to use them a bit more?

 

It's weird but when it comes to the infinity engine games one of my priorities is to always have all weapon types covered by any one my characters. I may have picked up on this after I learned the hard way that Holy Avengers aren't always two-handed swords. Hell sometimes they're not even bladed weapons.

But my least used weapon would be darts. There just aren't enough unique ones for you to throw at monsters, and stuff.

 

Ninja to(sp?) and maces are those I haven't touched for years. But Item Revision has made me use most other weapons on a regular basis.

I haven't use halbards and bastard swords for a time, but I just started a BG2 game with Ajantis mod, and guess what? Besides two handed weapons he'll be using bastard swords and halbards.

 

bastard swords, ninja to, wakazashi, clubs (only as jaheiras back up weapon when absolutely necessary), and maces (except the mace of disruption and then only for undead) are all rare for me. Spears are avoided in general as well (except for 3 the impaler, the witherer, and ixil). There are just so few quality weapons of those types and many of those come at times too late to be of use.

I do use darts as they can be deadly but yea they are not that common.

 

I don't use darts, daggers, short swords or crossbows much. Clubs not much either, but the Club of Detonation +5 can be fun to use with a solo character.

Basically, whether or not I use a weapon type a lot, boils down to what good end game weapons are available for any weapon type.

 

I typically only use daggers, long swords, short swords, maces, flails, two-handed swords, long bows, short bows, crossbows, axes and staves. Everything else gets sold off as they generally don't have more than one or two worth using.

Notable exceptions to this are when there is a single item so good it's worth the proficiency - like katanas. I don't even mess with scimitars, as even getting the extra attack from Belm isn't usually worth it to me.

But to me this all more or less boils down to the stupid way weapon proficiencies are implemented in second edition. 3 and 3.5 rules - where a general proficiency covers most weapons - works a lot better.

 

I generally don't use non-magical weapons. I swap out +1 and +2 as quickly as possible too.

 

If NWN implemented these 3.5 ed rules correctly, you do have a general weapon proficiency that allows you to use the weapon, but still there's a crap-ton of separate weapons types that you can specialize in.

 

Why Bastard Swords 8peeps? You really don't start fniding anything worthwhile in your choices of Bastard Swords until reaching the Underdark.

 

Sentimentality I guess, one of my first swords was a bastard sword (well, to me it was ) and I just like the idea of them as a versatile and powerful blade.

Probably why I also find myself using bows more than crossbows - I used to do archery, but not with crossbows - I feel they lack the same sort of grace.

I do not play with item mods either so don't get anything interesting added in earlier in the game, but am thinking of having a play around to see if I can make any worthwhile items, which piqued my curiosity in thinking what I did and didn't use and curiosity into what other people did and didn't use.

 

I'm surprised so many people mention they don't use maces. I rarely use a mace for my PC, but I have Viconia or Aerie using Mauler's Arm for most of Shadows of Amn, and sometimes into Throne of Bhaal as it lets me give the belts of strength to somebody else.
The Mace of Disruption is not to be sneezed at either when fighting undead.

 

Morning stars. I never ever use them, maces/flails are almost always better.

I like darts though, their 3 attacks/round is nice, actually gives a mageling a chance to hit something via a critical. Also darts of stunning and wounding are nasty. That poisonous viper darts pack quite a punch, too! Slings have more damage potential, but darts are more versatile/easier to use.

 

It strikes me I never used crossbows in BG. I did in IWD, but I just don't feel they belong in this setting. Don't know why.

Darts are nice, especially those returning ones

 

I've never used hammers, bastard swords, daggers, or quarterstaves. I use maces and two-handers more than I probably should.

 

Never used hammers? I pretty much always have a character that's using Crom Faeyr, or at least will swap out the Mace of Disruption +2 with Runehammer +5 when it becomes available.

Same with bastard swords, but then for Foebane. The vampiric touch on hit makes the character wielding it (preferably a barb or something similar) pretty much indestructible.

As for quarterstaves... I can't believe there's actually someone that would never use them. My mages always get the Staff of Magi at least.

 

Halberds and morning stars for me... Clubs also seem useless.

 

I never use clubs, they have some nice choices but there are some GREAT choices out there which kinda puts them to shame. With only one club that can manage against the scarier baddies out there and that one (the most powerful) has the major drawback of party un-friendly fireballs shooting off every couple of attacks.

Spears I never use, actually, all two handed weapons. They're just a bit underpowered. Staff of the Ram is wonderful but its upgraded form sends enemies flying which is annoying so it is only used for backstabbing in my games. Staff of the Magi is all around fun but not really suited for actual melee combat. The loss of attacks per round coupled with the relative loss of benefits (only one weapons worth of on hit/passive bonuses and no shields as opposed to two batches of tricks).

I feel like they need a damage boost to stay competitive, perhaps the 1.5x strength bonus of the third edition.

Also, I don't use longbows, they just seem the weaker cousins of shortbows. Short swords also, I find there are relatively few remarkable ones.

 

I always seem to miss the pieces for Crom on my playthroughs. Last time I was going through I had all the pieces after coming back from the Underdark, but I realized I missed the gloves I need in the Planar Sphere! Needless to say, I was all like

 

Depends on my party. I never used staves before (except to turn invisible at random times), but now I'm playing a Thief that uses the Staff of Rhynn to backstab. I also never used axes much, but now I have Korgan in the party. I also didn't use darts, but now I have Edwin, and that Crimson Dart from Watcher's Keep sure is nice (if only because it never runs out, keeping Edwin from suddenly deciding to join the front line.)

What I've never used at all are bastard swords, spears, halberds and two-handed swords.

I also never used any longsword other than Blackrazor. Or any katana other than Celestial Fury. Or any dart other than the Crimson Dart. Or any mace other than the Improved Mace of Disruption. Or any hammer other than Crom Faeyr.

I also never use any magically created weapons (Flame Blade, Black Blade of Disaster, Slay Living, Harm, etcetera) except for Melf's Minute Meteors (which I use all the time.)