I just recently took up the quarterstaff for RP purposes on my Crystal Hand Monk moon mage. Currently using the Bo Stick sold in crossing. I can swing a 36 stone bastard sword around with 1-4 second roundtimes, but when I swing that glorified "stick" I constantly end up with 4-6 second round times. I've tested the Ashen quarterstaff bound with iron at each end as well. It was so slow and did hardly more damage I went back to the Bo for the occasional 4 second round time.

I don't understand why you can buy a store bought two handed sword and immediately began doing critical damage on opponents yet I've made my way to eels with quarterstaff and sadly find the overall quality of compared store bought weapons to be un-balanced.

So I did a little re search into the historical references of the weapon and this is what I found. The Bo Staff range from heavy to light, from rigid to highly flexible, and from simply a piece of wood picked up off the side of the road to ornately decorated works of art. Some believe its roots are from sticks used across your shoulders to carry buckets of water and fish.

Also generally they were excellent climbing tools for monks as well as used highly for submission moves rather than lethal attacks due to the power they can inflict. The design makes them nearly perfect tools for displacing all the force generated into thrust attacks into one single point causing severe internal as well as external damage. While tapered ends offered substantial slice and whip impacts. Many Martial art forms focus heavily on the staff over swords and other weapons do to its power and ease of use.

I challenge any of you to swing a two handed sword faster than you can thrust, jab and swing a staff with two hands with real life weapons made for combat. Its just not very logical for the weight requirements for blunt weapons to hit hard. And many historical swords held with two hands did as much or more impact damage as cutting. The Katana is an example of a sword held with two hands which attacks very fast. Yet the same sword can easily be used with 1 hand. I hope there are staffs in game that actually reflect the power and utility of the historical weapon.

Also. Are their any future plans to add player made staffs of comparable quality to other player made weapons? Make the staff into a climbing aid? Or implement any submission moves to be used with a quarterstaff weapon?

Eventually my goal is to reach quarterstaff, longbow and light thrown as my top three weapons and keep all edged close behind. I love the Dance verb on staffs as well as the Lean verb. They make excellent role play tools.

first, not all quarterstaff weapons are pole range. You will have to appraise it to see which range it strikes at.

second, it seems teh QS template for some unknown reason is extremely heavy. Most QS's you'll find are over 60 stones. This is the reason for the long roundtime.

I was lucky enough to be around back when we could carve canes that were heavy impact and around 16-20 stones. I use that cane mostly for training.

It is a tough weapon class especially for new characters with lower stats. In order to reduce your swing RT you will need to train your strength up. Since it is for RP purposes you should have issues with sacrificing other stats for your character.


Yamcer

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"You know, while I understand the importance of seeing the (personal) validity in other's arguments, it's impossible for me to believe fully that others are correct. If their argument was correct, I'd change mine." - My GF

>I happened to be passing by El Bain's so picked up a lightened bo stick and had significantly better results, at least on blood wolves right next door.

I was going to suggest this. The good news is, quarter staff does get better when you can handle the heavy weapons. There are a few out there that do great impact damage at 50 stones. At 60 stones, just about all of them do. Here's what I use:

A steel-capped ironwood quarter staff carved with multiple cambrinth-inlaid symbols is a quarter staff pole-ranged weapon.

You are certain that it could do:
no puncture damage
no slice damage
great impact damage

You are certain that the staff is fairly balanced and is fairly suited to gaining extra attack power from your strength.

You are certain that the ironwood staff is of average strength, and is in pristine condition.

The ironwood staff is made with metal.
You are certain that the ironwood staff weighs exactly 50 stones.
You are certain that the ironwood staff is worth exactly 12000 lirums.
Roundtime: 8 seconds.

At minimum RT, this thing is pretty nice.

aiming for reality with DR weapons isn't exactly a fruitful endeavor. i doubt staff will ever be given a climbing bonus, as we have ropes for that.

i do wish weapons other than longbow/shortbow/blades would get some love though.

Thanks very much

Perhaps one way to balance out less favorable weapons is to make them user creatable. I haven't been back in the swing of things long, but shortbows, longbows and heavy slicers all have outstanding player made versions.

It seems that QS, blunts, thrown... don't. Maybe if more high quality options were available it would naturally expand.

I really liked the idea that was essentially "fletching" quarter staves. Maybe add in a little technique like forging to you can go with heavy vs light, stiff vs flexy, and make some choices.

I think the climbing bonus is very reasonable. And take downs, and brawling maneuvers for each weapon class that can actually be used in such ways.

A lightened bo stick is a quarter staff pole-ranged weapon.

You are confident that it could do:
no puncture damage
no slice damage
moderate impact damage

You are certain that the stick is fairly balanced and is fairly suited to gaining extra attack power from your strength.

You are certain that the lightened bo stick is somewhat flimsy, and is in pristine condition.

The lightened bo stick feels light.
You are certain that the lightened bo stick is worth exactly 218 kronars.

No slice or pierce damage?

Boring, Unrealistic, and the impact damage is LESS than many store bought ONE hand weapons.

Please listen to me on this one. The quarterstaff is not a blunt weapon in the same sense a club or hammer is. Yes the staff deals impact damage more than anything else. But its not impact from weight, its impact from force.

Pulling with one arm and pushing with the other to drive the weapon. The Quarterstaff impact comes from the speed and strength it was swung and the material's ability to resist counter forces.

Basically the harder the material, and the power driving it are the factors of impact damage. It is not a club. Please keep this is mind when altering the weapons.

The quarter staff does not need weight to deliver lethal impacts.

From a scientific point of view its just a tool. It takes all your force and delivers it to a single point of impact on a target a safe distance away.

Seriously, poster VERATHOR...Real Life =\= Dragonrealms. Trying to apply RL logic and physics to the mechanics of DR will only lead to a headache, the sooner you can disassociate the two, the better off you'll be.

Secondly, the walking canes you're talking about are 'old' and can no longer be made.

You're also incorrect on the definition of 'bo'. It does in fact mean 'wood', 'stick', or 'staff', which is why you have Bo, HanBO, BOkken, and so on. I'd show you the kanji, but i don't think the DR forums support it.

And, having studied martial arts for around 20 years now, i can guarantee that there are many one-handed moves with a staff. It is primarily a 2-handed weapon, no argument there, but it also has a number of one-handed uses.

But again, it all comes back to RL =\= DR. A weapon can have whatever name or stats the designer feels like giving it.

I just did a little bit of research, And it appears The word Bo means Staff or stick and refers the the farm tool.
Wish I could remember where I read it was a word for weapon.
And even though it has one handed uses, I wont argue at all about that. I still feel its a two handed weapon based on the classic way to hold a bo is in thirds with two hands.

I hope you don't take offense by the serious nature I post. I'm not room temperature and tend to feel strong in one way or another on things.

I hope everyone considers my opinions at least. I only post idea's to help the game maintain its level of high quality and realism.

really bo is just a shortened version of rokushakubo. So bo basically means, yes, staff. rokushakubo, kinda loosely translates at a staff of 6 shakue ( length)

And yes, I too believe QS staff needs some major loving, I understand that DR is not RL, but the whole QS thing has always bothered me.

Incidentally I purchased one of the custom glaives in Rossman's and love it. Swappable QS and Halberd - durable (so you're not repairing it constantly) and not too heavy as QS's go and does alot of damage so its good for training.

You can wear it over your shoulder with a weapon strap but it also fit in my weapon harness, staff harness and belt worn greatsword sheath if not more containers that I neglected to try.

Only drawback is it takes 10 rl days (I think?) to have them crafted and a few plat if I recall. Pretty nice range of custom finishes to accomodate the style of your existing gear as well.

skaen

<<What are the stats in QS and halberd mode? Weight? I've been meaning to buy one of those for awhile now.>>

Unfortunately I gifted it to a younger moonmage to replace the pitiful quarterstaff he was using and the file I had all my notes in died an ignoble death. Never again will I place all my eggs in one basket. Hopefully someone else can post the glaive stats.

skaen

<<The vast differences between the various weapons types has bothered me a good long while too. However, a resolution to this requires an approach from several directions. Some of it needs to come from the combat system end itself. Much of it needs addressed in the item creation systems. Simply opening up a merchant that has a version of everything at {insert favored weapon stats} quality level however is NOT a proper resolution that actually benefits the game no matter how much I'm sure it sounds good at face value. Does the quality of items sold in shops and merchants need addressed as well? Most certainly, but without the other steps in place at the same time it simply won't really do the job that is needed.>>

<<As you may recall I've already taken some steps in the past to try to bring certain weapons up in quality but the effort was partially wasted as none of the other needed resolutions were lined up and ready. Where we can we are inputing changes to help, but ultimately we need to address this on a vaster scale than any quick or simple fixes can address so it is going to take us some time to get it all straightened out. But trust me in that Dartenian, myself and several other concerned GM's have been in discussion on what steps we need to take to get there.>>

<<GM Oolan Jeel>>

I for one do very much look forward to that day Oolan.

~Beliel

A shoulder tube should work. You've also got weapon straps and rucksacks.

A polished leather back harness might work, but those aren't terribly cheap since folks like to store crossbow on them.

Shoulder tube from .... ?Shard?

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Magic's Death Caraamon Makdasi,
Gor'Tog Barbarian
Hunta Talna Kortok, built by Gor'Togs, for Gor'Togs
http://www.angelfire.com/rpg2/caraamon/home.html
Weapon Combo Balance List
http://www.angelfire.com/rpg2/caraamon/balance.xls

THe shoulder tube is indeed from the Theren general store. Would a quarterstaff fit in a backtube from Wolf Clan? I know I can fit multiple spears in there.

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~Talo, Prydaen Barbarian~

That's what I was thinking. My Paladin has carried up to 4 gold tasseled spears or 3 harpoons (as that was all I had) from the Merelew fest in a backtube, so there is that possibility.

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~Talo, Prydaen Barbarian~

Carry-all in Hiba general store would work. some of the boats in Ilaya Taipa have shoulderworn spidersilk containers aswell, but getting the right ship to dock is a pain.