The only other option that makes sense to me is that, since it is a one-handed weapon, we go ahead and allow you to use it with a shield (the same would apply to the sling, which is historically accurate at least). I mean, as written, the hand crossbow is basically a DEX javelin that requires both hands to pull out the next javelin, and it can't be used in melee. Maybe a hand crossbow could allow you to explicitly get advantage (and therefore sneak attack) if you draw and shoot on the first turn of combat, as if you were able to get the shot off before your target saw the weapon. Making it do bonus sneak attack damage instead fills a similar function, since most classes need to use an action to hide, although rogue can do it as a bonus action, and there are ways to qualify for sneak attack without needing to burn any kind of action. A muzzle-loaded pistol would fit this fluff better, although it would be a noisier assassination tool. But if this was the niche the weapon was meant to fill, this would be the proper way to fill that niche. Obviously, it is kind of awkward to imagine a hand crossbow working like this while other crossbows don't, and it's particularly odd that a smaller crossbow would deal so much more damage than a larger crossbow. It's great for an opening shot, but then you may as well put it away and pull out a heavy crossbow or longbow, or close to melee. This increases the damage per shot significantly, but needing to use an action to reload pulls its damage back down to on par with a light crossbow but with crappier range.
Point of the hand crossbow is exactly what you've already mentioned, Greywander: a chance to get one shot off before the battle, or in a battle.If this is the niche it's meant to fill, then it should look something more like this: This would cement the concept of the weapon as a tool for assassins. Rogues would add this on to their normal Sneak Attack, while everyone else would act as though they had Sneak Attack with 1d4 sneak attack bonus damage. One potential way to improve the hand crossbow is to change the damage die to 1d4, but have it allow you to do sneak attacks for an extra 1d4 damage (making it competitive with the light crossbow, damage-wise). So, outside of the Crossbow Expert feat or for pure fluff reasons, when would you actually use a hand crossbow instead of a light/heavy crossbow?
Hand crossbow dnd free#
The hand crossbow basically lets you make one attack and then, because you need a free hand to load it, essentially acts like a regular crossbow thereafter. Remember, you only need both hands to attack with and load a light or heavy crossbow any time you're not attacking with it, you can free up one hand for casting spells, grappling, using items, or even draw a melee weapon (although you'll need to free up your hand again if you want to use the crossbow). Now, that's not a terrible concept for a weapon, something you pull out at the start of a fight, shoot off for massive damage, then discard, sort of a "once per battle" type of weapon, but that's not what the hand crossbow is. But since you need a free hand to reload, that means you can only get off one shot and then you may as well throw it away. The only real difference is that you need both hands to shoot the light crossbow, while the hand crossbow can be shot with one hand.
So if we compare the hand crossbow to the light crossbow, we see that the light crossbow has a greater range and deals more damage.
But this isn't entirely correct, as either JC or MM (can't remember) has clarified that any weapon with the ammunition property requires an empty hand to reload it. The entire point of the weapon seems to be that it is a one-handed crossbow. In trying to come up with a way to buff the sling without making the hand crossbow entirely obsolete, I found myself wondering why the hand crossbow even exists. I was originally going to make a post about the sling after reading this article, but while they've done a good job of balancing the sling against the bow in their bit of homebrew, they ignored entirely the weapon the sling actually competes with: the hand crossbow. It certainly wins in style points, but mechanically I just find this weapon. I mean, aside from being hella rad, of course.
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