IBut for the thrown weapon attack (and the equipped thrown weapons) those should have an actual equipment slot, similar to the Ranged Weapons which remain equipped.
The issue with this, is that throwing is something that can be used for more than simply throwing a specific "Thrown Weapon"
Which is why it's not coloured as an attack. Throwing things like health potions is a pretty common tactic for healing allies.
In addition, simply throwing objects from your inventory without the need of equipping them can be useful (I've often had a Barbarian carry around a few daggers to give a STR based ranged attack to keep Rage going for example. Not to mention having a weapon in the inventory to throw in lieu of your returning weapon when attacking from stealth where the "Returning" feature doesn't work)
Not to mention throwing nearby objects or enemies is a thing.
The "Throw" mechanic is overall based on a rather generic action, which is why it's so clunky when using it as a primary method of combat.
It makes Fighters in particular feel like they can't do the sort of in-combat juggling to change weapons on the fly while they're in the midst of the fight, which is sorta the fighter type hallmark to me
Swapping weapons in combat has always been based around a feat that enabled it as a bonus action though. BG3 is actually rather nice in that it lets you swap between melee/ranged weapons as a free action, which isn't the norm for D&D
Right now the main benefit of something like the Returning Pike seems to be distance (usually exceeding what can be achieved with a bow or crossbow) and also reliability to hit, with consistent damage.
The main benefit is that it's a STR based attack. Which with Tavern Brawler becomes insanely strong. With Returning Pike negating the one weakness of having actual "Ammo" to consider (Of course, Eldritch Knight has its Weapon Bond to make any weapon function that way)
I can't help but feel like they locked it in a bit too much by using the Javelin or Returning Pike as the archetype, as opposed to the old standards for BG missile weapons: the Dart, the Throwing Dagger, and the Throwing Axe/Hammer.
To be honest, this is simply an overarching issue with the game and it's lack of item diversity. There's a lot of focus onto very specific weapon types (I.e. Daggers, Longswords, Shortswords, Greatswords, Rapiers, Maces, Spears, Longbows) and very little of other types.
As a side note, there actually is a returning Warhammer in the game, the Dwarven Thrower. It just happens to only be accessible in Act 3 where Nyrulna is available so there's little reason to bother with it over the superior Trident (Even more so given the Dwarven Thrower requires a Dwarf character to use it to get its bonus)
Also, interestingly enough, Darts do exist in the game files. Functioning as ranged weapons similar to Shortbows (Only, doing 1d4 damage) with +1 and +2 variants to boot. They just didn't include them in the game proper. I assume due to the mechanics regarding them (I.e. Things like Tavern Brawler working with them which would obfuscate the need for the "Returning" weapons)
Torches same deal. It shouldn't need to be in the hand. Torches in hand look cool, but it's not worth the tedium.
The main problem with torches is that single weapons suck. The only reason to even have a single weapon equipped is if you're utilizing a Shield for some bonus AC (Which is normally only done by casters who don't use weapons for combat anyway... Even Tank characters often eschew shields because they can get tons of AC without them)
So having a torch equipped means you're missing out on your off hand weapon or ability to 2 hand something. If single weapons were actually viable, then having a torch equipped but having it not count as a weapon (Allowing for single weapon bonuses such as One Handed Fighting Style) would be decent. With the option to actually use the torch as a weapon for times where that can actually be viable (I.e. Shillelagh cantrip)
Also what would help is if torches didn't auto-ignite surfaces you stood on for some reason. Making it so you had to explicitly use the dip function to ignite ground surfaces would help prevent equipped torches from being a time bomb for when you forget about it and step on some oil/alcohol/webs and blow yourself up...
Of course, the actual need for torches is kind of minimal given how abundant darkvision is and the very small amount of time it takes to get a blessing in the Shadowlands to make the curse irrelevant...
