Battleaxe worth it?

[Daedalus]

Had some more thoughts on the battle axe, another big pro, plus a con.

First the con. A broadsword and shield will serve you better in ambushes and when a wandering monster is drawn. Losing the first attack means more hurt for your lower-defense Hero.

Now the pro. A battle axe will not only protect your Hero with a stronger offense, but will also help get other Heroes out of trouble quicker when your Hero slays their opponents, as well.

Maxed-out Heroes would want both, switching as needed. Actually, only a shield need be equipped while making treasure searches and exploring empty rooms. Bring out the pain (battle axe) on your next turn for attacking back. [edit]

[Goblin-King]

Assuming switching in-game is allowed

[Decipher]

Assuming switching in-game is allowed

Thats a good point Goblin-King. Just had that same issue pop up the other night. One of my players had Orc's Bane and a long sword. He opted to switch to the Orc's Bane when he was attacking Orcs. I didnt really give it much thought up till then about switching weapons. But, in the long run it didnt really affect the outcome of the game.

[Daedalus]

Switching equipment is allowed in the game without restriction, but many Evil Wizard players prefer to sensibly limit this to varying degrees.

[Goblin-King]

Switching equipment is allowed in the game without restriction, but many Evil Wizard players prefer to sensibly limit this to varying degrees.

I wouldn't say it's allowed as much as the rules simply doesn't cover this issue.

Is switching allowed because the rules doesn't explicitly forbid it?
Or isn't it allowed because there isn't an explicitly explained mechanic in the rules?

Compare it to wielding two shields. Is it allowed? Well...?

[Decipher]

Switching equipment is allowed in the game without restriction, but many Evil Wizard players prefer to sensibly limit this to varying degrees.

I wouldn't say it's allowed as much as the rules simply doesn't cover this issue.

Is switching allowed because the rules doesn't explicitly forbid it?
Or isn't it allowed because there isn't an explicitly explained mechanic in the rules?

Compare it to wielding two shields. Is it allowed? Well...?

Yeah, this could get crazy quick. If a player is carrying two shields and a one 1 handed weapon, he could technically equip two shields when defending and switch back to 1 weapon and one shield at anytime.

[chaoticprime]

My players typically start focusing on defense with Mage in the Mirror, which I run before the Frozen Horror and then The Dark Company. Those last three can be brutal, the Frozen Horror's Quests almost always have some way to kill off loads of mercenaries and nickle and dime the heroes out of body points.

[knightkrawler]

The North American rules say on page 13: "Important: You may only attack with one weapon at a time."
That clearly implies that you can use two or more weapons during a quest and thus change them.

[Goblin-King]

Crazy cross-thread madness!!!

The North American rules say on page 13: "Important: You may only attack with one weapon at a time."
That clearly implies that you can use two or more weapons during a quest and thus change them.

I don't agree. It only clearly means you can't ever dual wield.
Several interpretations are possible.

1. You can switch during a quest, as long as you only equip one at a time.
2. You can choose which ONE of the weapons in your stash you want to equip before you enter the dungeon.

Both interpretations fit and both make assumptions. Switching isn't mentioned anywhere and neither is "before you enter the dungeon".
The rules just aren't clear enough to make any definitive "official" rulings.

Has anyone ever thought about asking Stephen Baker some of these unanswered questions?

[knightkrawler]

2. You can choose which ONE of the weapons in your stash you want to equip before you enter the dungeon.

I don't think so. The sentence I quoted is under Hero Attack and thus unambiguously only references that hero attack
and not buying multiple weapons and equipping before a quest.

It assumes the players think as far as ruling logically/intuitively that each hero can carry and thus buy more than one weapon into/during a quest.
The quote then clarifies that - if you have more than one weapon - only one attack dice number (e.g. 2 for the short sword) may be rolled, not two or more
(e.g. 2 for short sword + 3 for longsword = 5 attack dice).

It's not about equipping, it's about the attack and thus stating you can make seperate attacks choosing a weapon you're equipped with before you roll the attack.

If there was an equipment (buying) restriction, the whole "IMPORTANT..." part under How a Hero Attacks would be completely obsolete.

My interpretation, this.