Vorpal Glaive
D&D 5e · 2024·Weapons·Legendary·Requires attunement
Base weapon damage before your ability modifier. Use the calculator to include hit chance and critical hits.
Damage calculator
Hit chance
70%
Expected damage / attack
8.33
Attack bonus
+8
Average normal hit: 11.5 · Average critical hit: 17 · Critical chance: 5%.
- Category
- Martial weapon
- Damage type
- Slashing
- Reach
- 10 ft.
- Magic attack bonus
- +3
- Weight
- 6 lb
- Attunement
- Required
- Rarity
- Legendary
- Price
- Not specified
Magic: Displayed damage is before applicable ability modifiers. Conditional extra damage applies only when its trigger and target requirements are met.
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 Vorpal Glaive does
- Strength 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 +3 weapon damage averages 8.5 before your ability modifier and extra effects. Hit chance matters too: compare expected damage per attack rather than the die alone.
- 10-foot reach gives you more positioning options, including a larger reach for Opportunity Attacks.
- 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 +3 bonus to attack rolls and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. In addition, the weapon ignores Resistance to Slashing damage. When you use this weapon to attack a creature that has at least one head and roll a 20 on the d20 for the attack roll, you cut off one of the creature's heads. The creature dies if it can't survive without the lost head. A creature is immune to this effect if it has Immunity to Slashing damage, if it doesn't have or need a head, or if the GM decides that the creature is too big for its head to be cut off with this weapon. Such a creature instead takes an extra 30 Slashing damage from the hit. If the creature has Legendary Resistance, it can expend one daily use of that trait to avoid losing its head, taking the extra damage instead. This is the Glaive variant.
Full item details & properties
Magic properties
- Activation
- Attack a creature and roll 20 on the attack d20.
- Consumable
- No
- Attack Rolls
- +3. Attacks made with this weapon
- Damage Rolls
- +3. Included in displayed damage; add the applicable ability modifier separately.
- Conditions & limits
- Displayed damage is before applicable ability modifiers. Conditional extra damage applies only when its trigger and target requirements are met. Graze on a miss uses only the applicable ability modifier; it does not trigger on-hit or attack-d20-20 effects.
- Resistance bypass
- Ignores Resistance to Slashing damage; does not ignore Immunity.
- Decapitation
- On a 20 on the attack d20, cut off one head. The creature dies only if it cannot survive that loss.
- Exceptions & Legendary Resistance
- Slashing Immunity, no needed head, or GM size ruling use extra 30 Slashing damage instead, subject to normal defenses. A creature with Legendary Resistance can spend one daily use to take the extra damage instead of losing its head.
Weapon details
- Damage
- 1d10 + 3 slashing
- Weapon class
- Martial Melee
- Additional reach
- 5 ft.
Properties
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.
Reach
A Reach weapon adds 5 feet to your reach when you attack with it, as well as when determining your reach for Opportunity Attacks with it.
Two-Handed
A Two-Handed weapon requires two hands when you attack with it.
Weapon mastery
Graze
If your attack roll with this weapon misses a creature, you can deal damage to that creature equal to the ability modifier you used to make the attack roll. This damage is the same type dealt by the weapon, and the damage can be increased only by increasing the ability modifier.
You need a feature, such as Weapon Mastery, that unlocks this property for you.
Tags & related references
Compare alternatives
Same edition, using your calculator inputs above. Special properties and character features can change the choice.
Same base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity
Holy Avenger (Glaive)8.33 expected damage / attack70% hit chance1d10 +3 slashing · +3 magic attack · 10 ft. reach · Conditional extra damage; see rulesNot specified · 6 lbSame base weapon; compare its bonuses and rarity
Defender (Battleaxe)7.58 expected damage / attack70% hit chance1d8 +3 slashing · +3 magic attack · 5 ft. reachNot specified · 4 lbUses the same attack ability; compare handling and damage
Defender (Club)6.08 expected damage / attack70% hit chance1d4 +3 bludgeoning · +3 magic attack · 5 ft. reachNot specified · 2 lbUses the same attack ability; compare handling and damage
Ordinary attacks only. Matching extra-damage conditions follow your input; alternatives keep their default bonus allocation.
Vorpal Glaive FAQ
Does Vorpal Glaive 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.