[RPG] What happens when multiple Eldritch Knights bond to the same weapon

dnd-5esummoningweapons

One of my players is an Eldritch Knight. She is bound to her magical weapon.

The rule clearly says that one knight can be bonded to a maximum of two weapons. However, it does not look like there is a limit to the number of knights who can bound to the same weapon.

In other words, if an Eldritch Knight steals the weapon of another, is given enough time to perform the ritual, now both knights have the ability to summon the weapon, is that correct?

Assuming that by bonding to the weapon you don't break another, would there be a spell one can use to break another knight's bond?

Further, I could imagine that could be practical for two knights who know each others and have one powerful magical weapon (say +3 flame blade…) one of them could somehow tell the other he's done with the weapon so the other can summon it and use it on his turn.

Actually, since it uses a bonus action, both knights could use the exact same weapon during a fight: knight A summons the weapon and strikes with it, knight B summons the weapon and strikes with it, repeat…

Best Answer

Yes, there's nothing (in the rules, anyway) preventing multiple Eldritch Knights from bonding with a single weapon.

Once you have bonded a weapon to yourself, you can’t be disarmed of that weapon unless you are incapacitated. If it is on the same plane of existence, you can summon that weapon as a bonus action on your turn, causing it to teleport instantly to your hand.

You can have up to two bonded weapons, but can summon only one at a time with your bonus action. If you attempt to bond with a third weapon, you must break the bond with one of the other two.

However, if the weapon is a magic weapon that requires attunement, only one person can be attuned to it.

As for breaking someone else's bond with a weapon, this is probably only possible with a well-worded Wish. Dispel Magic is the go-to spell for getting rid of annoying magic, but it only works on ongoing spells, which the bond clearly isn't:

At 3rd level, you learn a ritual that creates a magical bond between yourself and one weapon. You perform the ritual over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. The weapon must be within your reach throughout the ritual, at the conclusion of which you touch the weapon and forge the bond.

Similarly, the bond isn't a curse, so Remove Curse won't help. You can render the bond useless by being on a different plane of existence to the Eldritch Knight, or being in an Antimagic Field. On the bright side, depending on how your DM interprets the phrase "you can't be disarmed of that weapon", it might be impossible for the other Eldritch Knight to summon it while you're holding it.

The co-operating knights can take turns to use it, but again, depending on how your DM interprets the phrase "you can't be disarmed of that weapon", they might need to drop it at the end of their turns so that it can be summoned by the other knight. Even if they don't have to do this, they're still going to have problems making opportunity attacks, since only one of them will actually be holding a weapon at any given time.