Nine Lives Stealer (Heavy Crossbow)

D&D 5e · 2024·Weapons·Very Rare·Requires attunement

Weapon damage

1d10 +2 piercing

Base weapon damage before your ability modifier. Use the calculator to include hit chance and critical hits.

Damage calculator

Hit chance

65%

Expected damage / attack

7.1

Attack bonus

Average normal hit: 10.5 · Average critical hit: 16 · Critical chance: 5%.

Category: Martial weapon
Damage type: Piercing
Normal / long range: 100 / 400 ft.
Magic attack bonus: +2
Weight: 18 lb
Attunement: Required
Rarity: Very Rare
Price: Not specified

Magic: Displayed damage includes the default magic bonus, before applicable ability modifiers.

Calculator assumptions & rules

One attack against a creature. Natural 1 misses; natural 20 hits and doubles damage dice, not flat modifiers. Expected damage includes misses and critical hits. Advantage uses the higher of two d20s; Disadvantage uses the lower. Magic bonuses shown on the item are counted once.

Uses only the weapon’s ordinary hit and the listed on-hit extra dice, when enabled. Class features, Sneak Attack, fighting styles, mastery effects, damage on a miss, special critical-hit effects, ongoing damage, resistance and immunity are excluded. Check the full rules below for additional effects.

Changing calculator inputs does not change the item’s rules or create a new page URL.

What Nine Lives Stealer does

Dexterity can drive this martial weapon’s attack and damage rolls. Add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll only if you are proficient.
The base 1d10 +2 weapon damage averages 7.5 before your ability modifier and extra effects. Hit chance matters too: compare expected damage per attack rather than the die alone.
The normal range is 100 feet and the maximum is 400 feet; attacks beyond normal range have Disadvantage. The calculator lets you model the attack mode separately.
This weapon needs two hands when you attack, so a wielded shield conflicts with that attack setup.
This item uses one of your attunement slots. Compare its benefit with the other items you want to keep attuned.

You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. Life Stealing. The weapon has 1d8 + 1 charges. When you attack a creature that has fewer than 100 Hit Points with this weapon and roll a 20 on the d20 for the attack roll, the creature must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or be slain instantly as the sword tears its life force from its body. Constructs and Undead succeed on the save automatically. The weapon loses 1 charge if the creature is slain. When the weapon has no charges remaining, it loses this property. This is the Heavy Crossbow variant.

Full item details & properties

Magic properties

Activation: Make attacks using this weapon.
Consumable: No
Attack Rolls: +2. With attacks made using this weapon
Damage Rolls: +2. Included once in the displayed default damage; add applicable ability modifiers separately.
Life Stealing trigger: Target has fewer than 100 Hit Points when attacked; roll 20 on the attack d20; requires a remaining charge.
Life Stealing save: DC 15 Constitution or slain instantly. Construct and Undead automatically succeed.
Initial charges: 1d8 + 1 (2–9); roll for this instance.
Charge expenditure: 1 only when a creature is slain by the life stealing property.
Charge recovery: No recharge specified
At zero charges: Only Life Stealing is lost; the weapon retains its +2 attack and damage bonuses
Conditions & limits: Displayed damage includes the default magic bonus, before applicable ability modifiers. Life Stealing requires remaining charges, a target with fewer than 100 Hit Points when attacked, and a 20 on the attack roll's d20. An expanded Critical Hit range alone does not trigger it. The target makes a DC 15 Constitution save or is slain instantly. Constructs and Undead automatically succeed. A charge is spent only if this property slays the creature. Initial charges are rolled as 1d8 + 1, not fixed at nine. The entry provides no recharge. At zero charges only Life Stealing is lost; the +2 magic bonuses remain.

Weapon details

Damage: 1d10 + 2 piercing
Weapon class: Martial Ranged
Range: 100 / 400 ft. (normal / long)
Ammunition: Bolt

Properties

Ammunition(Range 100/400; Bolt)

You can use a weapon that has the Ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from it. The type of ammunition required is specified with the weapon's range. Each attack expends one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition is part of the attack (you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon). After a fight, you can spend 1 minute to recover half the ammunition (round down) you used in the fight; the rest is lost.

Heavy

You have Disadvantage on attack rolls with a Heavy weapon if it's a Melee weapon and your Strength score isn't at least 13 or if it's a Ranged weapon and your Dexterity score isn't at least 13.

Loading

You can fire only one piece of ammunition from a Loading weapon when you use an action, a Bonus Action, or a Reaction to fire it, regardless of the number of attacks you can normally make.

Two-Handed

A Two-Handed weapon requires two hands when you attack with it.

Weapon mastery

Push

If you hit a creature with this weapon, you can push the creature up to 10 feet straight away from yourself if it is Large or smaller.

You need a feature, such as Weapon Mastery, that unlocks this property for you.

Tags & related references

PiercingPushVery Rare →Attack Roll BonusConditional Instant SlayingDamage BonusFinite Charge ItemMagicalMartial WeaponNine Lives StealerRanged WeaponRequires AttunementAmmunition →Heavy →Loading →Two Handed →Weapon →

Compare alternatives

Same edition, using your calculator inputs above. Special properties and character features can change the choice.

Nine Lives Stealer (Heavy Crossbow) · current7.1 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d10 +2 piercing · +2 magic attack · 100 ft. rangeNot specified · 18 lb Heavy Crossbow (+2)7.1 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d10 +2 piercing · +2 magic attack · 100 ft. rangeNot specified · 18 lb

Same base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity

Heavy Crossbow (+3)8.33 expected damage / attack70% hit chance1d10 +3 piercing · +3 magic attack · 100 ft. rangeNot specified · 18 lb

Same base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity

Nine Lives Stealer (Hand Crossbow)5.7 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d6 +2 piercing · +2 magic attack · 30 ft. rangeNot specified · 3 lb

Uses the same attack ability; compare handling and damage

Nine Lives Stealer (Light Crossbow)6.4 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d8 +2 piercing · +2 magic attack · 80 ft. rangeNot specified · 5 lb

Uses the same attack ability; compare handling and damage

Ordinary attacks only. Matching extra-damage conditions follow your input; alternatives keep their default bonus allocation.

Nine Lives Stealer FAQ

Does Nine Lives Stealer require attunement?

Yes. You need to attune to this item to use the properties that require attunement.

Is the listed price a guaranteed purchase price?

The source does not specify a price for this entry. Ask your GM about availability and cost.