Weapon Mastery in DnD 5e (2024): A Complete Guide

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A tactical breakdown of how to use Weapon Mastery in combat

Co-authored by Legends of Avantris and Glenn Carreau

Last Updated: November 4, 2024 Fact Checked

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What is Weapon Mastery?

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Rules

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Using Weapon Mastery

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Weapon Mastery Properties

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Choosing Weapon Masteries

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Weapon Master Feat

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Final Takeaways

Are you wondering about the ins and outs of Weapon Mastery, one of the few brand new rules introduced by D&D 2024? You’ve come to the right place. Weapon Mastery is a class feature available to fighters, barbarians, rangers, paladins, and rogues; it allows you to learn mastery properties, which add special effects and attacks to the weapons you specialize in. Read on to learn all about Weapon Mastery in D&D 2024, including each mastery property explained and suggestions on the best ways to take advantage of this new rule in battle!

Weapon Mastery Rules (2024) Overview

Weapon Mastery is a new rule for D&D 2024 that lets barbarians, fighters, paladins, rangers, and rogues specialize in different weapons, gaining “mastery properties” that add special effects to attacks. You can swap out learned mastery properties after finishing a Long Rest.

Section 1 of 7:

What is Weapon Mastery in One D&D (2024)?

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Weapon Mastery is a feature that lets you specialize in various weapons. Certain classes have access to this feature, which essentially grants special “mastery properties” (unique effects added to attacks) based on the type of weapon you’re using. Weapon Mastery is designed to give you more strategic options in combat and help you turn battles to your advantage.^{[1]
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- Weapon Mastery is a brand new system for 2024’s rules; unlike most rules in the Player’s Handbook, it’s not a revision of a previous rule!

Section 2 of 7:

Weapon Mastery Rules in One D&D 2024

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Every weapon in the game comes with a specific mastery property. So long as the weapon you’re wielding meets the requirement in your class’s Weapon Mastery feature, you can opt to learn its associated mastery property. From there, you can use those mastery properties in battle as you see fit! You can also swap out weapon mastery properties during Long Rests.^{[2]
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- For example, say you’re using a glaive and have its Graze property learned. If you find a longsword and want to learn is Sap property instead, you can change your weapon choice during a Long Rest by practicing weapon drills.
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Certain classes can learn different mastery properties. Some classes can learn more mastery properties than others, and only for specific types of weapons. Rogues, rangers, and paladins can learn 2 mastery properties at a time. Conversely, fighters begin the game with 3 and barbarians get 2, with both gaining more properties as they level up. The following classes have Weapon Mastery:^{[3]
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- Barbarians (for Simple and Martial melee weapons)
- Fighters (for Simple and Martial weapons)
- Paladins (for Simple and Martial weapons, though it’s based on your weapon proficiencies)
- Rangers (for Simple and Martial weapons, but it’s based on your weapon proficiencies)
- Rogues (for Simple weapons and Martial weapons with the Finesse or Light property, but it’s based on your weapon proficiencies)
- Additionally, certain subclasses get extra mastery properties that don’t count against their regular limit. Check the rules in your chosen subclass to see if you get any free abilities!

Section 3 of 7:

How to Use Weapon Mastery

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Use your learned mastery properties every turn (if you choose to). Weapon mastery properties don’t have limited uses, which means you can choose to use them on any turn in battle, so long as you’re using one of the weapons associated with that property. Beyond that, each mastery property has its own trigger (specified in the section below), so make sure you know the trigger for your property.^{[4]
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- While some abilities can only be used a certain number of times per long or short rest, weapon mastery properties have no such restrictions. If you see an opportunity to use one, go for it!
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Switch weapons mid-combat to use different mastery properties. Assuming you have multiple learned mastery properties, keep in mind that you don’t have to stick to one for an entire battle! In D&D’s 2024 rules, you can draw or stow a weapon each time you attack as part of the action, so if you want to draw a new weapon with a different mastery property, you can do it on your turn.^{[5]
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- If you have the Extra Attack feature, you can also opt to make your first attack with one weapon, then draw a second and make another attack with that instead.
- You can use this to create “combos” with mastery properties—like using Slow on an enemy, then grabbing a different weapon to Push them so you can run away without being followed.

Section 4 of 7:

Weapon Mastery Properties

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Cleave Use Cleave to make an additional attack against a second target, which must be adjacent to the first one you attacked. On the second attack, you can roll damage for the weapon but can’t add your ability modifier unless it’s negative.^{[6]
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- Weapons: Greataxe, halberd
- Tips on using it: Cleave is excellent for crowd control, especially anywhere the fighting is thickest, allowing you to bring the fight to multiple opponents in a single action.
- Since the halberd also has the Reach property, you can use it to Cleave enemies with a greater range than the average weapon.
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Graze When you miss an attack with your weapon, use Graze to deal damage equal to the ability modifier you used to make the roll (allowing you to deal a small amount of damage despite missing). This ability is an easy way to improve the consistency of your damage!^{[7]
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- Weapons: Glaive, greatsword
- Tips on using it: Combine Graze with abilities that let you make multiple attacks per turn, like the Polearm Master or Sentinel feats (or the Extra Attacks some classes get, like fighters).
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Nick Nick allows you to make the extra attack you get from wielding two Light weapons as part of the initial attack action. This plays into the 2024 rules on dual-wielding; dual-wielding weapons with the Light property allows you to make a bonus action attack with a different Light weapon than the one you initially attacked with. So, with Nick, that extra attack simply doesn’t cost a bonus action.^{[8]
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- Weapons: Dagger, light hammer, sickle, scimitar
- Tips on using it: Plan your turns around finding other uses for your newly freed-up bonus action (like Cunning Action for rogues). You can also combine Nick with the Dual Wielder feat to add more damage to off-hand attacks.
- Note: You can’t make a third attack as a bonus action with Nick; you can simply use your bonus action for something else!
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Push Shove a creature 10 feet straight away from you when you strike it. Best of all, the push is automatic; the creature can’t make a saving throw against it. However, you can only push enemies with a size rating of Large or smaller (meaning Large, Medium, Small, or Tiny).^{[9]
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- Weapons: Greatclub, pike, warhammer, heavy crossbow
- Tips on using it: Use this handy ability to shove enemies into environmental hazards that’ll deal automatic damage (like lava pits or cliffs).
- You can also use it to avoid Opportunity Attacks by moving enemies out of your reach, or save cornered allies by pushing enemies away from them.
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Sap Hit an enemy and use Sap to inflict disadvantage on that enemy’s next attack roll, so long as it occurs before the start of your next turn. This can weaken enemies temporarily and make their next attack less effective since disadvantage means rolling a d20 twice and taking the lower result.^{[10]
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- Weapons: Mace, spear, flail, longsword, morningstar, war pick
- Tips on using it: Use Sap to distract enemies so your spellcaster allies have time to pull off devastating spells (and get those enemies out of the way permanently).
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Slow When you hit a creature and deal damage, use Slow to reduce its movement speed by 10 feet until the start of your next turn. That means the creature will move around the battlefield more slowly, which can help keep enemies from cornering you or running away.^{[11]
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- Weapons: Club, javelin, light crossbow, sling, whip, longbow, musket
- Tips on using it: Pair Slow with ranged weapons like the light crossbow so you can take quick shots at enemies, then run outside their movement range (since their speed is reduced).
- Note: Speed reductions with Slow don’t stack—so you can’t hit an enemy twice and expect to reduce their speed by 20 feet, and so on.
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Topple After hitting a creature, use Topple to force it to make a Constitution saving throw. If the creature fails, it’s knocked Prone (meaning it’s knocked off its feet). The DC for the Constitution save is 8 + the ability modifier you use to make the attack + your Proficiency Bonus. However, keep in mind attacking Prone enemies from more than 5 feet away will impose disadvantage on your roll.^{[12]
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- Weapons: Quarterstaff, battleaxe, lance, maul, trident
- Tips on using it: Use Topple with a melee weapon so you can knock enemies to the ground with your first attack, then roll with advantage on the rest of your attacks (since attacking Prone enemies within melee range grants advantage).
- As a fighter, you could get extra mileage out of Topple by knocking an enemy over and then using your Action Surge to make even more attacks.
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Vex After hitting a creature (and dealing damage), use Vex to get advantage on your next attack roll, so long as you do it before the end of your next turn. This ability allows you to focus on a single foe and keep wearing them down with attacks (or defeat tougher enemies on the battlefield).^{[13]
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- Weapons: Handaxe, dart, shortbow, rapier, shortsword, blowgun, hand crossbow, pistol
- Tips on using it: As a rogue, use Vex to ensure you’ll get a Sneak Attack (which deals lots of additional damage) on your next turn since you need advantage to get Sneak Attacks.

Section 5 of 7:

Choosing Effective Weapon Masteries

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Pick weapons (and masteries) that enhance your character’s skills. Before choosing your weapon mastery properties, think about the role you want your character to fill in the party and how you like to fight during battles. Are there weapons and masteries that can make the tactics and abilities you already use more powerful?^{[14]
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- For example, melee warriors who fight on the front lines could opt for masteries that give them greater control of the battlefield (like Cleave and Push) and add damage to their melee attacks (like Topple).
- A warrior using ranged weapons could use masteries that add effects to each arrow or bolt strike (like Slow, Push, and Vex).
- A warrior focused on protecting allies could combine Slow and Sap to make enemies less threatening and mobile on the battlefield.
- A duelist wielding two weapons could use Nick to deal more damage and take down single targets faster.
- A warrior specializing in taking down large, tough enemies could combine Topple and Vex to get advantage on both melee attacks and subsequent hits.

Section 6 of 7:

Feats for Weapon Mastery

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Any class can take the Weapon Master feat to use Weapon Mastery. Do you wish you could play around with different Weapon Mastery options, but aren’t playing a class with that feature? There’s one workaround: at level 4 (or any level that allows you to pick a feat), take the Weapon Master feat, which lets you use the mastery property of a Simple or Martial weapon of your choice, as long as you’re proficient.^{[15]
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- Just like the basic Weapon Mastery rules, you can change your learned mastery property after finishing a Long Rest when you have this feat.
- There’s also a Weapon Master feat from the 2014 rules, but it works much differently (granting proficiency with 4 weapons of your choice).

Section 7 of 7:

Final Takeaways

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Overall, Weapon Mastery is a promising rule that adds intrigue to combat. For martial classes like fighters and barbarians, it offers new opportunities to strategize in battle. Since combat can get repetitive for those classes, Weapon Mastery represents a way to keep things interesting! Many players approve of the rule and consider 2024's Weapon Mastery well worth adopting for the value it adds to the game.
- Ultimately, it's up to each D&D group whether they want to use Weapon Mastery or stick with 5e's 2014 ruleset. Whatever you choose, make sure everyone is on the same page.

Join the Discussion...

What are the best DND weapons?

Jess Hamlet
Board, Card, and Dice Game Expert

Regarding which are the best D&D weapons, the real answer is a boring “whatever best fits your character build and backstory.” Maybe your sorcerer has a scimitar from his homeland that he enchants with green flames to increase damage. Or your rogue’s poison-tipped daggers are her weapon of choice.

That being said, with a blank character sheet, some weapons are a little more inherently useful than others. You want to make sure you have both a reliable melee and a ranged weapon. Short bows are excellent, as long bows need a bit more room to work. A great axe does the most damage (d12) of any basic weapon, so if your character can wield it, that’s a great choice.