Bastard Sword bug?

[rangerjeff]

Hey there, just building Amiri the Iconic barbarian for a friend who plays her, and noticed what I think is something odd about the behavior of the bastard sword in HeroLab. A bastard sword is only exotic if wielded one handed. An item which is a size category too large for a character can be wielded in two hands if it is a one-handed weapon (two-handed weapons which are too large for your character cannot be wielded.) So, a medium character wielding a large bastard sword is using it as an exotic weapon (one handed, requiring exotic proficiency or -2 to attack) in order to be able to wield it at all.

When adding a large bastard sword, correctly the only option for wielding it is Both hands. Incorrectly, wielding it with both hands removes the penalty for not having exotic proficiency with bastard sword. Amiri does need the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Bastard Sword) feat to remove this penalty to hit.

 

[ShadowChemosh]

A bastard sword is a one handed weapon. If you wield it in two hands it is treated as an martial weapon. It does not matter "why" you wield it in two hands. So just because at size large its two-handed always does not change the RAW rule that when wielded in two-hands its only a martial weapon.

So if you plan is to always two-hand a bastard sword, which is the case for size large, you don't need exotic weapon feat if you have martial training for being a fighter or barbarian.

I think your under the assumption that the Exotic Weapon feat changes the weapon which is not true. The weapon is always treated as one-handed weapon as that is what it shows on the weapon table. Its just has a special rule that says if in two-hands its treated as a martial weapon.