Aztec War Club [Archive] - Wizards Community

Aztec War Club [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Spec_Specter
03-17-07, 02:05 AM I heard somewhere that a weapon that the Aztecs used, I think it was called a macuahuitl, was acually stated in a book somewhere
my brother loves that culture and also just resently started getting into D&D, so I was wondering if anyone knew anything about it or where I could find it

just to be clear, the weapon is discribed to be a wooden club with obsidian blades embedded into it
Yanagita Kunio
03-17-07, 02:23 AM Monster Manual 4, in the section on Dark Talon lizardfolk, includes stats for a two-handed maquahuitl--in terms of damage die, critical, etc. it's a greatclub, but does piercing and bludgeoning damage.

Descriptions of its use by Duran and Sahagun always gave me the sense that it was used more like an axe than a spiked club (ie slashing or bludgeoning rather than piercing and bludgeoning). I'd also point out that they were made in both one-handed and two-handed versions.

There might be other printed versions in other books.
enygmatic_me
03-17-07, 02:23 AM Barring finding it, and considering the description in Wikipedia, you could probably just go with short sword and change the damage type to slashing and just say it is this weapon. For further alterations you could change the critical to 20/x3 to represent the jagged wounds it would leave.
Ryu Katsuragi
03-17-07, 02:24 AM Greatclub stats, I'd say. Mainly because from the picture in the PHB (as wrong as they are), show the greatclub as being a wooden club with nails embedded in it.
draconic_swine
03-17-07, 11:53 AM I like the idea of greatclub stats. Having it do two damage types also makes it a slightly more useful weapon, although I'd making it slashing and bludgeoning, not piercing and bludgeoning, for two reasons: (1) The obsidian blades seem more like slashers than piercers to me, and (2) No other PHB weapon combines slashing and bludgeoning in any way. Gives this weapon its own little niche.
dengarbountyhunter
03-17-07, 02:55 PM Hmmm... I wouldn't base any weapon stat on the greatclub, despite esthetical similarity, because the greatclub is the worst weapon in the game. Well, light hammer isn't too good either, but alas, bludgeoning weapons get no love...

Back to the subject, I'd stat the macahuatl as a one-handed martial weapon (1d8, 20/x3, slashing and bludgeoning) or a two-handed martial weapon (1d12, 20/x3, slashing and bludgeoning), because it was made in one-hander and two-hander versions.
Yup, it's slightly better than the greataxe... okay, maybe 1d10 for the two-hander, but I wouldn't decrease the damage of the one-hander or else it will be a martial weapon balanced like a morning star.
taradusis
03-17-07, 03:00 PM You could go to the 2ED download site and download the whole 2Ed maztica setting for free?Includes the 2Ed rules for the macha.There's 3 maztica adventures at the same site but they're all 2ED as well.
Watchman
03-17-07, 03:50 PM Just for the record, I would suggest you do not make it very good. It should be only barely better than a club of the comparable size, because that's really exactly what it is - a Stone Age sword-club that can't hold a candle to even semi-decent metal weapons.

Nevermind now that most of its users were actually more interested in captives (for sacrifice and/or slavery) than corpses and were thus perfectly happy with its relatively low killing power. Aimed for the limbs usually, I understand, to disable the foeman for capture.

I would suggest taking the stats of a club of the appropriate size (D6/x2 crit for the one-hander right ?) and giving them the 19-20 crit range on account of the things nonetheless having a fairly long cutting edge like swords. And adding rules concerning the fact the obsidian chips that make up the edge really don't like meeting metal, or much any hard dolid surface; one swing at any metal armour (or something comparable) pretty much ought to leave the "blades" on one side of the weapon in a condition where it no longer performs meaningfully better than a club of the appropriate size...

No, these weapons would not be very competetive compared to the standard well-developed Iron Age D&D war gear. This is only to be expected given the sheer difference in technology level involved.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Spec_Specter 03-17-07, 02:05 AM	I heard somewhere that a weapon that the Aztecs used, I think it was called a macuahuitl, was acually stated in a book somewhere my brother loves that culture and also just resently started getting into D&D, so I was wondering if anyone knew anything about it or where I could find it just to be clear, the weapon is discribed to be a wooden club with obsidian blades embedded into it
Yanagita Kunio 03-17-07, 02:23 AM	Monster Manual 4, in the section on Dark Talon lizardfolk, includes stats for a two-handed maquahuitl--in terms of damage die, critical, etc. it's a greatclub, but does piercing and bludgeoning damage. Descriptions of its use by Duran and Sahagun always gave me the sense that it was used more like an axe than a spiked club (ie slashing or bludgeoning rather than piercing and bludgeoning). I'd also point out that they were made in both one-handed and two-handed versions. There might be other printed versions in other books.
enygmatic_me 03-17-07, 02:23 AM	Barring finding it, and considering the description in Wikipedia, you could probably just go with short sword and change the damage type to slashing and just say it is this weapon. For further alterations you could change the critical to 20/x3 to represent the jagged wounds it would leave.
Ryu Katsuragi 03-17-07, 02:24 AM	Greatclub stats, I'd say. Mainly because from the picture in the PHB (as wrong as they are), show the greatclub as being a wooden club with nails embedded in it.
draconic_swine 03-17-07, 11:53 AM	I like the idea of greatclub stats. Having it do two damage types also makes it a slightly more useful weapon, although I'd making it slashing and bludgeoning, not piercing and bludgeoning, for two reasons: (1) The obsidian blades seem more like slashers than piercers to me, and (2) No other PHB weapon combines slashing and bludgeoning in any way. Gives this weapon its own little niche.
dengarbountyhunter 03-17-07, 02:55 PM	Hmmm... I wouldn't base any weapon stat on the greatclub, despite esthetical similarity, because the greatclub is the worst weapon in the game. Well, light hammer isn't too good either, but alas, bludgeoning weapons get no love... Back to the subject, I'd stat the macahuatl as a one-handed martial weapon (1d8, 20/x3, slashing and bludgeoning) or a two-handed martial weapon (1d12, 20/x3, slashing and bludgeoning), because it was made in one-hander and two-hander versions. Yup, it's slightly better than the greataxe... okay, maybe 1d10 for the two-hander, but I wouldn't decrease the damage of the one-hander or else it will be a martial weapon balanced like a morning star.
taradusis 03-17-07, 03:00 PM	You could go to the 2ED download site and download the whole 2Ed maztica setting for free?Includes the 2Ed rules for the macha.There's 3 maztica adventures at the same site but they're all 2ED as well.
Watchman 03-17-07, 03:50 PM	Just for the record, I would suggest you do not make it very good. It should be only barely better than a club of the comparable size, because that's really exactly what it is - a Stone Age sword-club that can't hold a candle to even semi-decent metal weapons. Nevermind now that most of its users were actually more interested in captives (for sacrifice and/or slavery) than corpses and were thus perfectly happy with its relatively low killing power. Aimed for the limbs usually, I understand, to disable the foeman for capture. I would suggest taking the stats of a club of the appropriate size (D6/x2 crit for the one-hander right ?) and giving them the 19-20 crit range on account of the things nonetheless having a fairly long cutting edge like swords. And adding rules concerning the fact the obsidian chips that make up the edge really don't like meeting metal, or much any hard dolid surface; one swing at any metal armour (or something comparable) pretty much ought to leave the "blades" on one side of the weapon in a condition where it no longer performs meaningfully better than a club of the appropriate size... No, these weapons would not be very competetive compared to the standard well-developed Iron Age D&D war gear. This is only to be expected given the sheer difference in technology level involved.