Tenkar's Minor Magical Tidbits - Backbiter (Revisited)

Sometimes stuff changes from concept to play test, and such is the case with Backbiter, which I wrote up back in August. Initially I saw it as a blade that helped a thief strike better when he backstabbed and it was limited in use to once per day for it's special ability.

That changed before it entered my game.

See, we don't use minis or tokens, so facing is often unknown, and the backstab ability on it's own rarely comes up.

The revised Backbiter gives the thief an opportunity to attempt to backstab an opponent if he surprises an opponent or wins initiative in the first round of combat in an encounter. It gives the thief some bite without being overpowering. It's + 1 bonus make sit little more effective in normal combat than the average blade.

If you use battlemaps, this weapon might be a bit overpowering with the additional backstabbing opportunities. For Theatre of the Mind style play I find it works out fine.