[RPG] the biggest weapon wieldable with a Goliath + Wield Oversize Weapon

character-creationdnd-3.5eoptimizationweapons

I was looking at the Goliath race, and noticed the Powerful Build racial trait, which lets me wield a weapon one size category larger without penalty. I also saw the Wield Oversized Weapon feat, which lets me treat a weapon as one size category smaller and lighter than otherwise.

Powerful Build: […] A goliath can use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty. However, his space and reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. The benefits of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, and spells that change the subject’s size category.

Wield Oversized Weapon
You can treat any weapon as if it were one size category smaller than normal and one category "lighter" for the purpose of determining the amount of effort it takes to wield. […]

This feat subsumes the effects of the Monkey Grip feat. The feats' effects do not stack.

Since one affects the weapon, and one affects the character, I think they would stack. So I could use a Huge greatsword basically as a medium two-handed weapon. My DM lets us use epic feats the same as regular ones, so that's not an issue. So, my question is, using these two features, what is the largest possible weapon I can use (The character I was thinking of uses this as the only criteria for a weapon's quality)? Also, how would I go about satisfying the prereqs for Wield Oversized Weapon as quickly as possible?

EDIT: Also, would Gloves of Enlarge Weapon stack with this for a Gargantuan Greatsword?

Best Answer

Looks like a Huge weapon works without penalty

Wield Oversize Weapon says you can treat a weapon as one size category smaller than it is. Thus, you can treat a Huge weapon as if it were Large.

Powerful Build says you can wield weapons one size category larger than yourself without penalty. Since a goliath is a Medium creature, that means a goliath may wield Large weapons without penalty.

Since Wield Oversize Weapon lets you treat the Huge weapon as Large, and Powerful Build lets you wield Large weapons without penalty, you may wield a Huge weapon without penalty.

It does appear that by preventing Wield Oversize Weapon from working with Monkey Grip, the authors were trying to prevent exactly this, which could be an argument for an intent that this shouldn’t work. But by the rules-as-written, that applies only to Monkey Grip, not Powerful Build.

Please note that a size category larger weapon tends to deal only ~1 more damage than its smaller counterpart. There are some exceptions, but it still tends to be small amounts of damage. You can often gain more damage more quickly through other uses of feats. Note also that the size of your weapon does not affect reach (well, larger weapons don’t; too-small weapons do), so you do not get extended reach this way, either.

As for gloves of enlarge weapon, those are a really poor idea. If you meant strongarm bracers, those explicitly do not stack with Powerful Build.