ToME: the Tales of Maj'Eyal

Having exotic weapons available as random loot would help to add flavor and variety to the game. My idea is to have them about 1/4 as common as other weapons. Some types:

Stiletto
Material type: metal
Wielding: mainhand, or offhand, same as dagger
Damage Modifier: 50% cunning, 35% dexterity
Physical Power: slightly less than dagger.
APR: very high, 50-200 based on material.
Crit: 5-15%

Whip
Material type: leather
Wielding: mainhand
Damage Modifier: 100% dexterity
Physical Power: slightly less than swords
APR: 0
Crit: 5-25%

Spear
Material type: wood
Wielding: two handed
Damage Modifier: 60% strength, 60% dexterity
Physical Power: comparable to other two handed weapons
APR: med/high
Crit: med/high

Main Gauche
Material type: Metal
Wielding: offhand only
Damage Modifier: 30% strength, 30% dexterity, 30% willpower
Physical Power: substantially lower than daggers
APR: low
Crit: low
Defence: 5-10

Brand (or torch, or anything flaming)
Material type: metal (or maybe wood)
Wielding: mainhand
Damage Modifier: 80% strength, 20% magic
Physical Power: about the same as a sword
APR: low
Crit: low
Damage is 50% fire, 50% physical
(might give +1 light radius)

Ideas or comments?

While we're at it, boomerangs! I miss boomerangs.

While on the topic, warriors should be able to learn this skill, either through a quest or just purchasing. Its what they do.

I actually sorta wish there wasn't an Exotic Weapons talent. What's the point, really? A talent you can only get from some escorts(I think? Might be wrong...), and which you can only benefit from when wielding tridents and whips, which are fairly rare and not especially good...

Perhaps access to the training can be purchased mid-game, much like how the regular weapon training and the 'shoot' action are available early on. Available to warriors only seems odd, at least how lukep is designing them, since they add options for classes that may not be heavily invested in typical combat stats.

Idea for the brands: count as staves and benefit from associated skills, including Channel Staff. Other elements could be introduced via thematically appropriate weapons, like Severed Stingers that deal poison damage.

Exotic Weapon Mastery would not work well as currently implemented, if these weapons are introduced. Suggestions:

1. Make it unlocked by default, in Combat Training tree.

2. Make it unlockable sometime in the game.

3. Make it a secondary boost in Combat Training tree. This would make exotic weapons be affected by two separate skills, Exotic Weapon Mastery, and (weapon, knife, staff, bow, or sling) Mastery. Would need to be balanced to work, one way I see it would be 0/5 gives you 75% damage, and 5/5 gives you 125% damage.

Personally, I like #3, as it makes classes able to use exotic weapons to some extent with only weapon (etc...) mastery.

Also, an idea that might deserve its own thread. Mid ranged (2-3 tiles) weapons, such as pikes, polearms (maybe bullwhips) etc...

EDIT: Severed Stingers sound cool, maybe icicles, lightning rods, and lightsabres (all need renaming) as well.