tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post579980577933772803..comments2024-03-28T22:10:04.089+08:00Comments on Monsters and Manuals: The Humble SlingUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-26148832749825483012012-08-10T22:36:08.119+08:002012-08-10T22:36:08.119+08:00I recall slings being used to great effect in the ...I recall slings being used to great effect in the novel Hadon of Ancient Opar, a kind of pre-Conan I think, ancient pulp. <br /><br />I'd like to add that slings are easy to make yourself out of cloth or leather, which is impossible for a ruler to deny his people. A despot can't keep his people from slinging. And, if you care about weapon maintenance, slings are again super simple, and there's no worry about maintaining the strings of bows or crossbows, or the mechanical parts of a crossbow, or the glued parts of a composite bow. I've also heard that firing a bow empty causes great stress and could even break on the next shot. Not so with a sling!<br /><br />It makes me wonder why everyone doesn't use slings. Well, for one, the space required is greater than a bow or crossbow. I'd put one slinger per 10', two bowmen, or three crossbowmen. It's a similar situation to most slashing / blunt melee weapons (1 per 10'), short piercing (2 per 10') or homogeneous spears or pikes (3 per 10').Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-72157152580173343102012-08-09T09:10:11.398+08:002012-08-09T09:10:11.398+08:00Another tweak you can try is treating slings as hu...Another tweak you can try is treating slings as hurled weapons, allowing strength bonuses to apply.Mark Thomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13648399258393669436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-70129603555098004882012-08-07T21:19:50.505+08:002012-08-07T21:19:50.505+08:00The same guy has a bunch of different videos. This...The same guy has a bunch of different videos. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixm6sXe1TYE" rel="nofollow">This one</a> is, to me, the most informative. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw0GljEn-Qw" rel="nofollow">These guys</a> have many sparring sessions up.<br /><br />It's amazing what a difference cheap communications can make compared to being in the 80s and just having the PHB to make sense of.Alex J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/00147269991231314528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-61991971485663295952012-08-07T19:00:11.589+08:002012-08-07T19:00:11.589+08:00I'm sure that in Yoon-Suin any magic-user wort...I'm sure that in Yoon-Suin any magic-user worth his salt would pick up a sling and practice... It's hardly the same as walking around with a sword or crossbow... Right?NathanRyderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17963023116440525852noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-49122596794449694442012-08-07T18:55:19.605+08:002012-08-07T18:55:19.605+08:00Nice videos. There's this entire subculture of...Nice videos. There's this entire subculture of people on youtube messing around with ancient weapons, isn't there? I once came across a 20 minute video of two blokes in a park in Denmark fighting with glaives.noismshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09933436762608669966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-1690111102232250242012-08-07T18:54:11.149+08:002012-08-07T18:54:11.149+08:00I never thought of slinging silver pieces at undea...I never thought of slinging silver pieces at undead. Nice idea.noismshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09933436762608669966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-62327206850960904052012-08-07T18:52:26.414+08:002012-08-07T18:52:26.414+08:00Yeah, slings get a bum rap. The ancients feared t...Yeah, slings get a bum rap. The ancients feared them more than bows etc. because you couldn't see the stones coming in and they could kill an armored man more readily than arrows. But they really took a lot of practice. And while you could sling any stone, the pros preferred cast lead bullets and smooth river stones; I'd give penalties to hit with anything else.<br /><br />Back in the old days, I remember slinging silver pieces at the undead! Cheaper than silver arrows. But that only works if you are keeping the 10 to a pound coins, which is ridiculous.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-44759107784537463402012-08-07T09:53:48.518+08:002012-08-07T09:53:48.518+08:00Some points about slings.<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=covH4voKukw&feature=BFa&list=PL6F34FFE0E76B83BE" rel="nofollow">Some points about slings.</a>Alex J.https://www.blogger.com/profile/00147269991231314528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-54685801674501126352012-08-07T09:08:23.839+08:002012-08-07T09:08:23.839+08:00Plus slings are cheap, almost weightless, and use ...Plus slings are cheap, almost weightless, and use debris as ammunition. If your class allows you to use one you have no reason to carry one.Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10884401206802336531noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-20566851152731101662012-08-07T08:24:27.568+08:002012-08-07T08:24:27.568+08:00I think the D&D Next damage might be bumped up...I think the D&D Next damage might be bumped up due to halfling racial proficiency.Necropraxishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12716340801054739658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-28537833797073680002012-08-07T08:10:12.671+08:002012-08-07T08:10:12.671+08:00Fellow sling fan here.
Curiously, D&D netx bu...Fellow sling fan here.<br /><br />Curiously, D&D netx bumps them up to 1d8! How awesome is that.<br /><br />Of course, Runequest did it first (slings also do 1d8 in RQ 3e) and best (a high enough damage roll to the head will kill you).Iglesiashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08416128782481346800noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2513019539869706574.post-15164092272167077012012-08-07T06:53:13.936+08:002012-08-07T06:53:13.936+08:00Slings got a raw deal in AD&D, screwed on rate...Slings got a raw deal in AD&D, screwed on rate of fire, but thieves and monks pretty much had to live with them as a ranged weapon. The thing about rate of fire is, yes you can lick off shots faster with a bow in a 5 second span, but if you are shooting within the minute long round that D&D's combat chaos assumes, then the slinger is taking as long as the bowman to line up the shot, and the time needed to spin the sling is lost in the aiming time.<br /><br />In my game sling bullets are d4+1, so comparable with bows and actually better when fighting kobolds, rats and the like (more kill, less overkill). But the sling requires more space to wield than the bow, offsetting its portability.Roger G-Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08594440701279968693noreply@blogger.com