[Cosmos] Weapon - Kiloton

The heaviest assault model from PressTech Industries, weapons from this product line incorporates a small nuclear engine into its business end.

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Kiloton
Weapon (any power-weapon), technomancy, uncommon (optional attunement)

Atomic Smash. This weapon has 2 charges and regains all expended charges daily at dawn. While you wield this weapon, you can use an action to expend any number of charges to produce an explosive blast in a 20-foot radius sphere centered on you. Each creature in the area except you must make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 1d8 radiant damage and 1d8 necrotic damage for each charge expended. On a success, a creature only takes half as much damage. Deadly radioactive energy lingers in the sphere's area until the start of your next turn — for the duration, any creature in the area (including you) is poisoned until it exits the area.

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Optional Attunement. If you choose to attune to this weapon, you can magically recharge its integrated arcane battery. While you wield the weapon, you can use an action to expend a spell slot of any level, causing the weapon to regain a number of charges equal to the level of the spell slot expended, up to its maximum.

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Megaton (Rare Variant). The rare version of this weapon has 4 charges instead of 2, and its DC is 15 instead of 13.

Gigaton (Very Rare Variant). The rare version of this weapon also grants a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it. It has 5 charges instead of 2, and its DC is 17 instead of 13.

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DESIGN COMMENTARY

This weapon is part of several that aims to expand on and give some of the Cosmos futuristic weapons added use and flavor. This one is the power-weapon, which uses a propelled head and replaces most bludgeoning melee weapons. For this one, the thought of literally smacking a nuke was really exciting.

Being a non-attuned weapon its power measurement is fairly straightforward. A +1 weapon (uncommon) with its persistent attack/damage bonus is similar to ~2 casts of a 1st-level spell per day — each thunderwave deals ~18 damage (2d8 times two targets) and a +1 weapon hits ~30-40 times per day for about that much bonus damage.

Each use of Kiloton's Atomic Smash, I compare to a 1st-level spell - same damage as a thunderwave, plus a temporary poisoned condition that can easily be avoided with movement cost (plus it can also affect you and allies). Ultimately at this level, two uses of this property makes sense as for an Uncommon, no-attunement item.

If attuned, each replenishment of Atomic Smash grants 1 charge per spell level. A bit more situational since each charge of Atomic Smash is slightly less powerful than a 1st-level spell. Mostly flavor.

All in all, pretty sick.