I think that's not a bad idea for the weapon. Scrap Princess tried to do some of the math involved, and concluded that it would make it statistically about the same as the d6 damage done by bows/crossbows. And it would be a whole lot cooler.
Of course, a few people on the thread thought he meant slings firing exploding ammunition like grenades. That could be cool, too.
Anyway, sticking with Claytonian's original idea, I might allow this, with the proviso that only manufactured sling bullets get exploding dice. If you run out and restock with rocks from the local stream, they only do a standard 1d4 damage.
David used rocks from the local stream, though.
ReplyDeleteDavid only knocked Goliath out with the sling. Then he cut Goliath's head off with his own sword.
ReplyDeleteSlings are more powerful than people give them credit for, particularly against unarmored opponents. In the Biblical account the stone actually embedded itself in Goliath's forehead. He may not have been dead when David cut off his head but he wasn't far from it. There are accounts of shot breaking bones and penetrating skin. The ancient medical writer Celsius had a section in his book about removing shot from soldiers bodies. These accounts resulted predominantly from the use of lead shot, often with inscriptions on them like some airmen put on modern bombs. Poke around this site: Slinging.org. It has a lot of good info on the sling.
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