Sun Blade

D&D 5e · 2014·Weapons·Rare·Requires attunement

Weapon damage

1d8 +2 radiant

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

6.4

Attack bonus

Average normal hit: 9.5 · Average critical hit: 14 · Critical chance: 5%.

Category: Martial weapon
Damage type: Radiant
Reach: 5 ft.
Magic attack bonus: +2
Weight: 3 lb
Attunement: Required
Rarity: Rare
Price: Not specified

Magic: Bonus Action while grasping hilt: create or dismiss blade.

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 Sun Blade does

Strength or 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 1d8 +2 weapon damage averages 6.5 before your ability modifier and extra effects. Hit chance matters too: compare expected damage per attack rather than the die alone.
Using two hands changes the weapon die from 1d8 to 1d10. Compare that damage gain with keeping a hand available for a shield or another task.
The extra damage is conditional: Only when hitting an Undead with the active blade.. Enable it only when that condition is met; otherwise compare the weapon’s ordinary hit.
This item uses one of your attunement slots. Compare its benefit with the other items you want to keep attuned.

This item appears to be a longsword hilt. While grasping the hilt, you can use a bonus action to cause a blade of pure radiance to spring into existence, or make the blade disappear. While the blade exists, this magic longsword has the finesse property. If you are proficient with shortswords or longswords, you are proficient with the sun blade. You gain a +2 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this weapon, which deals radiant damage instead of slashing damage. When you hit an undead with it, that target takes an extra 1d8 radiant damage. The sword's luminous blade emits bright light in a 15-foot radius and dim light for an additional 15 feet. The light is sunlight. While the blade persists, you can use an action to expand or reduce its radius of bright and dim light by 5 feet each, to a maximum of 30 feet each or a minimum of 10 feet each.

Full item details & properties

Rules for this edition

Proficiency: A martial melee weapon; proficiency allows adding your Proficiency Bonus to its attack rolls.

Magic properties

Activation: Bonus Action while grasping hilt: create or dismiss blade.
Consumable: No
Attack Rolls: +2. With this weapon; use any target-specific or allocation rule below.
Damage Rolls: +2. Included once in the displayed weapon damage; add the applicable ability modifier separately.
Extra damage: 1d8 radiant. Only when hitting an Undead with the active blade.
Radiant blade: Active blade has Finesse and deals Radiant instead of Slashing; Shortsword or Longsword proficiency is sufficient. Sunlight 15/15 ft.; action adjusts each radius by 5 ft., minimum 10 and maximum 30 ft.

Weapon details

Damage: 1d8 + 2 radiant
Weapon class: Martial Melee
Two-handed damage: 1d10 + 2

Properties

Versatile(1d10)

This weapon can be used with one or two hands. A damage value in parentheses appears with the property—the damage when the weapon is used with two hands to make a melee attack.

Finesse

When making an attack with a finesse weapon, you use your choice of your Strength or Dexterity modifier for the attack and damage rolls. You must use the same modifier for both rolls.

Tags & related references

RadiantRare →Attack Roll BonusDamage BonusMagicalMartial WeaponMelee WeaponRadiant WeaponRequires AttunementSunlightFinesse →Versatile →Weapon →

Compare alternatives

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

Sun Blade · current6.4 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d8 +2 radiant · +2 magic attack · 5 ft. reach · Conditional extra damage; see rulesNot specified · 3 lb Longsword (+2)6.4 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d8 +2 slashing · +2 magic attack · 5 ft. reachNot specified · 3 lb

Same base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity

Nine Lives Stealer (Longsword)6.4 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d8 +2 slashing · +2 magic attack · 5 ft. reachNot specified · 3 lb

Same base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity

Whip (+2)5 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d4 +2 slashing · +2 magic attack · 10 ft. reachNot specified · 3 lb

Both use Finesse; compare reach and damage

Rapier (+2)6.4 expected damage / attack65% hit chance1d8 +2 piercing · +2 magic attack · 5 ft. reachNot specified · 2 lb

Both use Finesse; compare reach and damage

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

Sun Blade FAQ

Does Sun Blade 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.