[RPG] Are lances and nets and versatile weapons considered one-handed weapons

dnd-5eweapons

The Bladesinging Wizard gets the Training in War and Song feature, which states (SCAG, p. 142; emphasis mine):

[…] You gain proficiency with one type of one-handed melee weapon of your choice […]

Similarly, there is the Dual Wielder feat, which states (PHB, p. 165; emphasis mine):

[…] You can draw or stow two one-handed weapons when you would normally be able to draw or stow only one […]

Could a Wizard then choose the lance or Versatile weapon to gain proficiency in? (They can't choose the net because it's ranged.)

Could somebody with Dual Wielder draw/stow a lance, net, or Versatile weapon? None of them have the Two-Handed property, but they do have either the Special or Versatile properties so I'm unsure how this works out. Do nets and lances and Versatile weapons count as one-handed weapons?

The following question already exists but it only establishes that a lance while mounted counts as a one-handed weapon:

Best Answer

The rules implicitly assume that non-two-handed weapons are one-handed

The two-handed property says:

This weapon requires two hands when you attack with it.

For weapons without the two-handed property, I can't find anything in the rules that directly says they are considered one-handed. However, although there is no explicit "one-handed" weapon property, there is strong circumstantial evidence that the designers consider all non-two-handed weapons to be one-handed weapons. First, the Crossbow Expert feat and the ammunition property both which make explicit reference to "one-handed weapons". In addition, the rules for melee attacks say:

A melee attack typically uses a handheld weapon such as a sword, a warhammer, or an axe.

Similarly, the rules for improvised weapons also reference holding the weapon in your hands:

An improvised weapon includes any object you can wield in one or two hands, such as broken glass, a table leg, a frying pan, a wagon wheel, or a dead goblin.

And assuming that all PCs have 2 hands (which is currently the case for all official playable races), the only ways to wield a handheld weapon are with either 1 hand or 2.

Finally, a few official rulings in the Sage Advice Compendium also reference one-handed weapons, such as:

Dual Wielder

Can my character wield two heavy weapons if she has the Dual Wielder feat? No. The Dual Wielder feat lets you wield two one-handed weapons. Every heavy weapon in the Player’s Handbook also has the two-handed property.

This ruling strongly implies that any non-two-handed weapon is considered a one-handed weapon, or else it wouldn't be eligible for two-weapon fighting. In general, although it's never explicitly stated, the intent seems to be that every weapon either requires 1 or 2 hands to wield, so any handheld weapon that isn't two-handed must be one-handed.

(This answer was adapted from my answer to another question.)

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