Rapiers and daggers.

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When duel-weilding a rapier and a dagger should that provide a bonus to your AC?

I wonder this because when the use a rapiers was common(aka musketeers) they often used a dagger along with the rapier. They used the dagger as a method of defense. They could block thrusts with the dagger and send one in return with their own rapier. I just wanted everyone's thoughts on this.

 

No. The dagger could (was?) also be used as another attack. The benefits of using your weapon(s) for defense is already figured into the much simplified value that is your character's hitpoints.

 

There is a feat in both the FRCS and 3.5E that can give this bonus. I have no idea if they are the same feat or not.

That asides, there's always fighting defensively and Expertise.

 

Hitpoints? I think you meant AC, I hope you meant AC.

 

Get the off-hand parry feat. It allows you to add a +2AC bonus when using your off-hand weapon. This AC bonus also stacks with a buckler and any defensive bonuses that weapon might have. Of course, you cannot use that off-hand weapon to attack during the turn you declare you're using the off-hand parry feat.

Like Oaz said, it's in FRCS and in PHB3.5.

Yes, I'm a D&D geek.

 

There are some such feats on the web. Just enter the right keywords (d&d, feats etc) in Google or Kazaa. You may also check if learning to attack with shield off-hand isn't more profitable.

 

There is quite a difference betweem the one in the FRCS and the one in the 3.5 PHB.
The one in FR is called Twin Sword Style and gave a +2 dodge bonus to AC, without the need to sacrifice any attacks.
And the one in the PHB is called Two-Weapon Defense, and only grants a +1 shield bonus. So, there you have it.

 

Nope, I meant hitpoints. You think that becoming more proficient at your profession(s) will make you able to take 20 times as much damage if you just stand there? Hitpoints go up as much as they do partially because of the character's increased ability to defend him/herself.

 

These HPs were always a bit strange stuff to me. It just isnt logical or either realistical for one guy, just becouse he did someone a favour(errant quest) to survive a sword hit most people dont.

BigSticks explanation seems quite nice to me


How do you view HPs?

 

the definition of HP from the 3e handbook.

HP are NOT a scale of how tough you are to survive getting hit. (of course it partially depends on it, but it's far from the main factor. This is the factor of dice HP vs con HP I think)

What HP actually are, is a scale of how good you are to avert being critically struck (not as in critical hits, but as in hurts like hell).

A level 1 fighter gets hit by an attack, he's not very experienced, and when hit, he's usually hit hard.

A level 10 fighter is hit, however he might know how to twist himself against or from the blade so it wont hurt as much.

so a hit that hits both, might hit the level 1 in the chest or shoulder, while the level 10 manages to dodge it so it only scars his chest, thigh as he tries to press the sword down.

use your imagination when fighting and remember the more hp a character, the less he's actually hurt (as in term of well placed hit) on a hit.

 

What Lokken said, except that HP can also represent favor by powerful beings or very strong willpower. When a 12th-level cleric walks out from a fireball relatively safe, you'll have a hard time convincing others that no one out there is looking out for him.

HP and AC have blurry lines. A fighter getting hit by an arrow might happen to just dodge it well enough so it grazes him, representing high HP. But if he can dodge arrows well, doesn't it mean he should have a high dexterity or whatnot as well? It can get a bit confusing, which is why the simple and abstract HP system is so nice.

 

In addition as a reflection of HPs and AC, having one increase and not the other does twist things a bit. BAB and HPs go up with level but not AC. Why would a 10th level fight not be better at defending himself than a 1st level bard. I agree that HPs do account for some of this but our group using a defense bonus in addition. Warrior types, fighter, rangers, paladins, barbarains, etc gain a +1 to AC every 2 levels. Clerics, bards, rogues, and druids get +1 every 3 levels. Wizards and sorcerers get +1 every 3 levels. Multi-class character can add different types together. This system appears to work very well for our group.