2nd Edition D&D rules - question re. dual wielding for weapon specialists

Sorvan76

Hi, a character (fighter) has popped up in our campaign who is specialised in short swords. She dual wields and is 7th level. How many total attacks can she make per round with short swords? 3 (2 as a specialist plus 1 off-hand) or 4 (2 as a specialist for both weapons). Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Also, are there any 2nd Edition rules advising on this situation?

Many thanks in advance.

sarevok57

well in the bg series, that character would have 3 ( +.5 for specialization, +.5 for being 7th level, and +1 for an offhand weapon) in the bg series again ( and im going to assume this is for 2nd edition as well) the attacks per round bonuses from weapon proficiencies don't apply to the offhand ( probably for game balance) and even if you put a weapon in your offhand that grants another attack per round ( say belm+2 for example) it adds that attack to your main hand, not your off hand - This applies to the bg series again- so in the bg series, you will only ever get one attack with your off hand no matter what your gear/proficiencies are ( with maybe the exception of whirlwind/ greater whirlwind, you might make an off hand attack every 5th attack or so - since attacks per round are pretty much hard capped at 10, so if you have more than 5, it might start the attack round over again just so you can sneak in another offhand-) in 3rd edition dnd you can get multiple attacks with your offhand, up to 3 attacks in your offhand while having 4 in your main hand, and then the epic feat perfect two weapon fighting you can have 4 attacks per round in your off hand, which if you are hasted you would get 5 with your main hand and 4 with your offhand ( pretty OP if you ask me)

Sorvan76

Thank you, sarevok57 for your post. I'm inclined to agree, I'm pretty sure it should only be one extra attack with the off-hand weapon in 2nd Edition regardless of the amount of attacks permitted for specialisation, although still haven't found an official rule that states this! We have a player that insists she's entitled to two attacks with both weapons. We're pretty much enforcing house-rules at the moment (only one attack with off-hand weapon) but she's unhappy at this and maybe she has a point.

sarevok57

well even if you would gain bonuses for your off hand for attacks per round, specialized would only give her an extra half, not full attack, it wouldn't be until grand master that she would get another full one

the_spyder

I'd second @sarevok57 and their assessment of the number of attacks. The logic there is sound.

As far as your player not being happy with that, it's a game. So long as everyone in the group is following the same rules and having fun, they should respect the DM's right to rule as he/she see's fit.