Hand Crossbow 5e weapon

Martial ranged weapon · 1d6 piercing · Vex mastery (2024)

What changed in 2024

• Gains the Vex mastery property (new in 2024).

Average damage

• 1d6: 3.5 on average.
• With a +3 ability modifier: 6.5 per hit; a critical hit doubles the dice, for 10.

Roll it yourself in the dice roller.

Its properties

Ammunition

2014: You can use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from the weapon. Each time you attack with the weapon, you expend one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition from a quiver, case, or other container is part of the attack (you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon). At the end of the battle, you can recover half your expended ammunition by taking a minute to search the battlefield. If you use a weapon that has the ammunition property to make a melee attack, you treat the weapon as an improvised weapon (see "Improvised Weapons" later in the section). A sling must be loaded to deal any damage when used in this way.

2024: You can use a weapon that has the Ammunition property to make a ranged attack only if you have ammunition to fire from it. The type of ammunition required is specified with the weapon's range. Each attack expends one piece of ammunition. Drawing the ammunition is part of the attack (you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon). After a fight, you can spend 1 minute to recover half the ammunition (round down) you used in the fight; the rest is lost.

Light

2014: A light weapon is small and easy to handle, making it ideal for use when fighting with two weapons.

2024: When you take the Attack action on your turn and attack with a Light weapon, you can make one extra attack as a Bonus Action later on the same turn. That extra attack must be made with a different Light weapon, and you don't add your ability modifier to the extra attack's damage unless that modifier is negative. For example, you can attack with a Shortsword in one hand and a Dagger in the other using the Attack action and a Bonus Action, but you don't add your Strength or Dexterity modifier to the damage roll of the Bonus Action unless that modifier is negative.

Loading

2014: Because of the time required to load this weapon, you can fire only one piece of ammunition from it when you use an action, bonus action, or reaction to fire it, regardless of the number of attacks you can normally make.

2024: You can fire only one piece of ammunition from a Loading weapon when you use an action, a Bonus Action, or a Reaction to fire it, regardless of the number of attacks you can normally make.

Mastery: Vex (2024)

If you hit a creature with this weapon and deal damage to the creature, you have Advantage on your next attack roll against that creature before the end of your next turn.

A character can use this only if a feature lets them use the weapon’s mastery property. Other Vex weapons · all mastery properties.

Who is proficient

Classes proficient with the hand crossbow, from their class proficiencies: Barbarian, Bard, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue.

Compared with other martial ranged weapons

All weapons · Weapon properties · Making an attack · Two-weapon fighting