Is Drawing A Weapon A Free Action

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How and Why to Bring Double the Fun

Prepare for trouble and go far double! Slapping a sword in both easily is a time-honored D&D tradition and endless adventurers have campaigned using the old slice and dice. Some other systems and older editions made this type of build complicated, only thankfully fifth edition smooths everything over. But what steps do y'all need to accept? What are the best ways to double stab your manner through combat? Catch a couple weapons and stick with me every bit we go through everything you need to know.

The Basics

Earlier getting fancy or adding a bunch of class abilities, let'due south go through exactly how two weapon fighting works in fifth edition. With no bells and whistles, when y'all make an attack activity, you make a single assault whorl with a weapon you're holding.

Now let'southward take a wait at the rules for two weapon fighting:

Two-Weapon Fighting

When y'all have the Set on Activeness and Assault with a calorie-free melee weapon that you're holding in one hand, you can use a Bonus Activeness to Attack with a different low-cal melee weapon that you lot're holding in the other hand. You lot don't add your ability modifier to the damage of the bonus Attack, unless that modifier is negative.

If either weapon has the Thrown property, you can throw the weapon, instead of making a melee Attack with it."

Allow's go over this slowly and brand sure you don't miss a few key pieces here.

It's Usable past Everybody

It's of import to notation that this isn't a feat or something exclusive to specific classes, everybody tin can do this if they want.

Light Weapons

The big limitation for two-weapon fighting is that both your weapons demand to accept the calorie-free quality. Lite is a weapon quality given to smaller weapons, which normally do less damage than their big cousins.

Bonus Action

The extra set on you go to make with your extra weapon uses up your bonus action. This is important, since this ways even when yous gain the "extra attack" power and similar abilities, you still only ever get the one bonus action.

Off-hand Attacks Don't Add together the Modifier

This ways that out of your "one ii dial", the second hit is going to be quite a bit weaker. Your 1st attack is totally normal (the one you got from the actual assault activity), only your second attack (the one from the bonus action) doesn't become to add your Strength or Dexterity modifier to the damage.

Information technology Works with Thrown Weapons!

As long as your thrown weapons are lite y'all can toss an extra one through ii weapon fighting equally a bonus action.

Why Doesn't Everybody Dual Wield?

Everybody tin do information technology, and you get some other attack! Why wouldn't everybody just catch 2 swords and go to town? Well, two weapon fighting is amazingly piece of cake to do in 5e just doing and so means choosing that extra attack above a bunch of other options.

Light Weapons Hit Lightly

Mostly, attacking with ii light weapons has about-ish slightly higher harm output than smacking with i heavy weapon, and because it'southward betwixt two attacks y'all take better odds of hitting at to the lowest degree once. But once you get to level 5 or and so and gain an actress attack, ii swings with something big hits a lot harder than 3 stabs with something small. I'm generalizing here, but the strategy with two-weapon combat is more weaker attacks, instead of fewer stronger attacks.

No Shield

Put a weapon in that off-hand or a shield, it's a pick between offence and defense. +2 Air conditioning is a major vitrify that you shouldn't pass up without consideration. Your course may not have shield proficiency to begin with, so this may not even exist an pick but.

Bonus Actions Matter

For some classes, your bonus action is a vital resource that you can't reliably use for that actress swing. A surprisingly large number of abilities use your bonus actions, barbarian rage, flurry of blows and countless archetype abilities need your bonus action. Go along that in listen when figuring out your build.

What Weapons Should I use for Ii Weapon Fighting?

Two weapon fighting requires two qualities, light, and one-handed. So, unless y'all've got access to homebrew exotic weapons or odd magic items, your options are: Clubs, Daggers, Handaxes, Light Hammers, Sickles, Scimitars, and Shortswords.

Clubs

I wish there was some beautiful reason to use clubs, but there really isn't. Don't use clubs, they're bad.

Daggers

Daggers get a lot of use, mainly because they're the simply weapon that has finesse, calorie-free, and the thrown weapon properties. This lets yous do some pretty absurd stuff like stabbing a dagger in melee for your first attack and throwing a dagger for the second attack. The impairment is very low, but they're the best finesse option out of the simple weapon category. If you lot're planning on using a dual wielding Dexterity based character, these are your all-time selection if you lot don't have martial weapon proficiencies.

Handaxes

Handaxes become a step up in their damage die over daggers (d6 instead of d4), they're simple weapons, you even so get thrown, but you lose the finesse quality. Handaxes are the best choice if you're using dual wielding for a Strength based graphic symbol who doesn't accept admission to martial weapons.

Light Hammers

Light hammers are the only thrown bludgeoning weapon, which is odd, but there'due south even so no reason to utilise them. Handaxes are improve in every respect unless you're dealing with some strange damage type resistances and need bludgeoning for some reason.

Sickles

While I love them stylistically, they're outmatched by practically every other weapon in the game, so don't use sickles.

Scimitars/Shortswords

I'm lumping these together because they're practically identical, and also because they are your best options. These are the big winners when information technology comes to dual wielding. Both have the light and finesse qualities, and each one does 1d6 damage which is the best you'll become as a light weapon. The only differences between them other than their aesthetics is that scimitars deal slashing damage and shortswords deal piercing damage, also the scimitar is slightly more than expensive. Assuming you lot have the weapon proficiencies (both the scimitar and shortsword are martial weapons) these are your best options for straight damage dealing equally a dual wielder. Pick ane of these, unless you want to play effectually with throwing weapons, in which instance y'all should dip dorsum downward to daggers or handaxes.

Do I Need Any Feats?

Thankfully in 5e yous don't Demand any feats to make two weapon fighting viable, they did provide a feat that helps those builds forth though called "Dual Wielder". Information technology'south a solid feat, and you lot should consider taking it if you lot plan on doing primarily 2 weapon fighting. Merely keep in mind the power score increment you'll exist giving up for information technology, and information technology tin often be better just to boost your stats.

Dual Wielder

Y'all master fighting with two weapons, gaining the following benefits:

• You gain a +1 bonus to AC while you are wielding a separate melee weapon in each hand.
• You tin can use two-weapon fighting even when the one-handed melee weapons yous are wielding aren't light.
• You can describe or stow ii one-handed weapons when you would normally b e able to describe or stow only one.

Permit's go through this feat one chip at a time:

"You gain a +one bonus to AC while yous are wielding a carve up melee weapon in each hand."

The AC bonus goes a long style towards making upward for the shield you're missing out on by putting a weapon in yous off hand. It'south still non as defensive as a shield, only it helps.

"You tin can use two-weapon fighting even when the i-handed melee weapons you lot are wielding aren't lite."

This is the important bit, all those weapon ratings we had earlier go correct out the window and now you lot tin grab a pair of whatever one-handed weapons you'd similar. Generally, this but lets you upgrade from d6 weapons to whatever d8 weapons y'all'd like to endeavour. But it likewise unlocks some crazy builds like double whips, or the classic cyberspace and trident combo.

"You tin draw or stow ii one-handed weapons when you would normally exist able to draw or stow just one."

This volition exist better or worse depending on how much of a stickler your DM is. Technically, you lot should only be able to describe a single weapon as function of your turn's move. And then, if y'all go attacked you should only exist able to depict ane of your weapons without wasting an action. This lets you become around this problem. However, virtually DMs I've encountered don't enforce this issue at all, and so this "feature" will be essentially wasted.

What Course Should I utilise for Two Weapon Fighting?

Every bit stated before, every class tin can dual wield, only if you're wanting to focus on it there are a few class options that work specifically for it.

Fighter

Super unproblematic, all fighters get to pick a "fighting manner" and you simply need to pick two-weapon fighting. This gets rid of the biggest limitation for 2-weapon past letting you add your power modifier to your off-paw attacks. Only pick this fighting style followed by your pick of whatever fighter archetype. And before y'all begin fighting, check out our epic Fighter die sets to play in full gear.

Ranger

Rangers usually need that starting time turn bonus action for hunter'south marking, but after that they don't need their bonus action much and tin use it for those actress swings. Plus, that hunter'south marking damage applies with every hit, including your off-manus attacks. All this, and rangers even become the aforementioned "fighting manner" power that fighters get, albeit a level later.

Barbarian

You need your bonus action to start raging, but once you're properly angry your bonus action is normally free. Your bonus rage damage will apply to your off-manus attacks as well, and the all-out assault feels right in flavor for a barbaric. I particularly like path of the zealot for this build as y'all gain more than chances to hit and deal the extra damage with the divine fury feature.

Two Weapon Fighting FAQ'Due south

Can Anyone Utilise Ii Weapon Fighting in D&D 5e?

Absolutely everybody tin use two weapon fighting in 5e! There'south no class or proficiency limitations, simply catch two swords and start stabbing. The limitation is on the weapons themselves. 2 weapon fighting requires that both the weapons are "low-cal melee" weapons, such every bit shortswords or daggers. This should make sense, every bit it would be hard to heft a pair of lances or swing with a longsword in each hand! But yes, anyone and anybody tin can dual wield, you merely have to brand sure you're using lite weapons.

Is Two Weapon Fighting Worth It in 5e?

This volition vary greatly on your build but in a vacuum two weapon fighting generally means trading out the possibility of greater damage on fewer attacks, in favor for lesser harm spread out over multiple attacks. This does a couple of very important things, so when yous're two weapon fighting:

1. Your attacks have less impact.
2. You're non gaining the Air-conditioning benefit of a shield.
3. You're much more than likely to hit at least in one case during a plough.
4. You're much more likely to hit with multiple attacks during a plough.

 Those commencement two parts are the tradeoff, you lot're giving up the big hits and a +2 Air conditioning bonus for that extra dagger swing.

 The 3rd part there is most important for rogues. Sneak assail and is simply going to trigger one time in a round anyway, you just need to prioritize getting at least 1 striking in. Two weapon fighting maximizes your chances of hitting at to the lowest degree once and getting your fundamental power off. There'southward also some sorcerer and warlock builds that work this manner, needing only in one case to smack in to activate a spell outcome.

 Finally, the 4th part is getting multiple hits in during a round. Normally, this doesn't actually matter that much, as your impairment output is comparable to striking fewer times with a big weapon. Where it counts is when you take abilities that trigger off each hit. Barbarians are a bang-up case of this, since they become their rage damage bonus every single fourth dimension they hitting. Or the hunter's marking spell for rangers applying a bonus d6 of harm every time they hit. Stacking those up over as many attacks as possible is a very viable strategy.

 To finally answer the question YES 2 weapon fighting is worth it BUT unless you're getting value out of making certain a single assail hits (like rouges) or getting bonuses on every hit (like barbarians or rangers) it'due south arguably worse than just grabbing a single weapon and a shield. I wouldn't recommend two weapon fighting without some ability that synergizes with information technology in some fashion or some other. Still, build whatever character you similar! Characters in 5e volition generally work out regardless of whatsoever optimization decisions you make.

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Last updated: January 27, 2022

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