@JeremyECrawfordI would like to hear more behind the design benefits for “free hand” – problematic to favor xbow+blade or shield wielder?
Thinking on this… is the free-hand design mainly to encourage a true free hand as an option, vs shield/wpn?

— Alphastream (@Alphastream) May 18, 2015

@AlphastreamI’m not seeing the benefit of tracking that free hand in play.
As a DM, I rarely enforce such little rules, except when a player is abusing them to hog the spotlight or damage the narrative.

— Jeremy Crawford (@JeremyECrawford) May 19, 2015