'Dungeons & Dragons' Adds Its Coolest Weapon Yet

Dungeons & Dragons' newest weapon is both deadly and awesome-looking and adds several intriguing new options for characters builds.

Earlier this week, Dungeons & Dragons released Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron, a new digital publication that re-introduces the world of Eberron for Fifth Edition play. Eberron mixes fantasy, steampunk, and noir themes together into an amazing world filled with danger and innovative hooks to build a campaign around.

Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron also re-introduces players to the Valaes Tairn, a culture of mercenary elves who founded the nation of Valenar just a few years ago. Also known as the Tairnadal, these elves are natural warriors and are especially proficient with a unique type of weapon: the double-bladed scimitar.

Anyone who's ever read a fantasy book or played a fantasy-based video game (or watched Star Wars: The Phantom Menace) should be familiar with a double-bladed weapon. These weapons look awesome, and their spinning attack style is both hypnotic and deadly...at least in theory. Of course, using a double-bladed weapon is actually highly impractical which is why they never caught on in the real world.

Luckily - practical doesn't matter in Dungeons & Dragons, and the double-bladed scimitar will be a must-have for tons of players, even though it's a very expensive blade (100 gp) and considered very rare in Eberron. The blade is meant to be wielded only by the Tairnadal, but non-elves will occasionally appear wielding one of these special weapons.

The double-bladed scimitar's base damage is 2d4, plus your strength modifier. A player can also use their bonus action to use the blade on the other end, which does an additional 1d4 of damage (plus your strength modifier). In addition, elves can pick up the revenant blade feat, which increases a player's dexterity or strength score by 1, and turns the double-bladed scimitar into a finesse weapon, which means that a player can add their dexterity modifier to their attack and damage rolls instead of their strength modifier. Plus, the base damage for the scimitar's bonus action attack increases from 1d4 to 2d4, making the weapon even more deadly in the hands of someone who knows how to use it. Turning this weapon into a finesse weapon makes it an excellent choice for rogues or any build that's built around dexterity.

If you choose to play a non-elf that has a double scimitar and play in an Eberron campaign, you might eventually encounter a Valenar elf who isn't too thrilled about one of their signature weapons in the hands of an outsider. They may demand the weapon back or choose to duel you to make sure you're worthy of the blade.

What do you think about this awesome new D&D weapon? Let us know in the comment section or shoot me a message at @CHofferCbus on Twitter!