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Dungeons & Dragonshas a reputation for being one of the most complex games in existence. Although it’s meant to take place in a fantasy world with fantastical creatures, players are still subject to the iron fist of physics. This means there are limitations to what you can and can’t do.
One of these limitations involves dual-wielding. It’s not always possible to swing two weapons around at once. However, there are class and race abilities that can help out in this regard. Some feats are open to almost all sorts of builds. And, one of them grants your character the skill needed to dual-wield weapons.
Updated June 30, 2025 by Jack Filsinger:Dual-wielding in DND Fifth Edition has changed decently since the release of the 2024 Player’s Handbook. We’ve updated this list with new rules for dual-wielders and added tips on how to gain access to dual-wielding in DND.
What Is Dual-Wielding?
Dual-wielding is a method of fightingin Dungeons & Dragonsthat allows players to fightand deal damagewith two separate weapons. They can hold each weapon in one hand during combat.
In order to officially dual-wieldwithin the mechanics of the game,there are a few different options.The standard method is touse Light weapons.
This is available to absolutely every type of character.
The only restriction is that the weaponsyou use to dual-wieldmust have the Light propertyascribed to them. If each weapon has the Light property, thenthe process looks like this.
It should be mentioned thatwhen you make your second attackwith a Light weapon, youdo not add your Strength or Dexterity modifierto the damage rollunless the modifier is negative.
Additionally,your off-hand weapon isn’t influenced by any abilities or featsthat would give your character an additional attack.
For example,a level five Fighterwielding a short sword (main) and a dagger (off-hand)can attack twicewith the sword,but would still need to use their Bonus Action to attack with the dagger.
It can be an appealing tactic if your character decides toequip two lightweight throwing weaponsas it willlet you throw an additional projectile.
The problem is that no matter how you spin it,dual-wielding in this way requires you to sacrifice your Bonus Actionjust to make it viable. This meansyou’ll be sacrificing a whole list of other Bonus Actions,reducing your versatility.
How To Use The Dual-Wielder Feat
The more advanced method of dual-wielding is totake the Dual Wielder feat.This excellent featis a super solid pick.
When a character gains this, theyget the ability known as Enhanced Dual Wielding.They gain the following bonuseswhen fighting with two weapons.
The Dual Wielder Feathas two prerequisites. First,you must be level four or above. Second,you must have a Strength or Dexterity score of 13+.
How To Use Two-Weapon Fighting To Dual-Wield
The third method by which players can get access to dual wielding isthrough their class features.Some classes get access to Fighting Stylesat certain levels.
Paladin
Level Two
For each of these classes,you’re able to select a Fighting Styleat the corresponding level. When you do so,choose the Two-Weapon Fighting style.
In doing so, you’ll beable to add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attackyou make with your off-hand weapon.
In Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything,there is a feat known as Fighting Initiate. If you select this feat,you may choose a Fighting Style optionfrom the fighter class. This meansyou can pick the Two-Weapon Fighting styleevenif you’re not a fighter, ranger, or paladin.
However,you must have proficiencywith martial weaponsto do so.
How To Maximize Dual-Wielding
Through any of the above methods,you can dual-wield as soon as you get your hands on two weapons. But, you may be wonderingwhat the best way to dual-wieldis once you can.
How Does Dual-Wielding Effect Damage?
First, it’s worth notingthat Light weapons do deal less damagethan other types of weapons. When you dual-wield,you’re trading in one-time damage for better action economy, or more specifically,for more attacks.
Whether it may be obvious,Dual-Wielder is tailor-made for melee buildsthat constantlyfindthemselves in the middle of the fray.
It’s all abouthitting as many times as possiblesince you’ll frequently be sacrificing your Bonus Actionto output more damage.
What Are The Best Classes For Dual-Wielding?
Despite what it offers, Dual-Wielding is not for everyone and isbetter suited to certain classes than others. Here are someclasses worth exploring as a Dual-Wielder.
The Fighter
One class you should consideris the fighter, simply due to the fact that they get Extra Attacks as they level up.
The more they get,the higher their damage,andadding Dual-Wieldingto thiswill increase your damage exponentially.
The Barbarian
The second class you should look atis the barbarian. While this may seem an odd choice since the Bonus Action is usually reserved for entering Rage, remember that once entered, it lasts for one minute (ten rounds of combat).
That means that the barbarian can charge in swinging with their main weaponand top things off byadding their additional weapon that can benefit from the Rage bonus damage.
The Rogue
Another class to consider when picking Dual-Wielderis the rogue class.Though naturally seen as stealthy and dexterous,the rogue is able to gain huge bonuses to attack damageby sneak and ambush tactics.
Giving them dual-wield mastery allows themto spread out their powerful strikes over multiple hits for additional damage.
