Shoot From The Hip

[AuraSeer]

There's a thread in Rules asking why you can't make an AoO with a ranged weapon. It got me to thinking about the difference between bows and crossbows. Since a crossbow can be preloaded, and is rather easy to aim and fire, I could imagine a trained character taking AoOs with it. So I came up with what I think is a new feat, and I'd like to know if it's interesting to anyone but me.

[size=+1]Shoot From The Hip[/size]
Prerequisite: Weapon Focus (any crossbow)
Benefit: When wielding a loaded crossbow with which you have Weapon Focus, you may use the crossbow to take limited attacks of opportunity at range. If an enemy within one range increment takes a non-movement action which provokes AoO, you may immediately take one 'snap shot' AoO with the crossbow. The shot is made at your full BAB, with a -2 penalty because you have little time to aim.

This shot counts against your alotted number of attacks of opportunity for the round. If you are allowed multiple attacks of opportunity in a round, more than one may be snap shots, but the -2 penalty is cumulative per shot.

Note that you can only take multiple snap shots if you are wielding multiple loaded crossbows, because you cannot reload or switch weapons until your turn. This feat does not reduce the penalties for attacking with two weapons, or for firing a heavy or light crossbow in one hand.

 

[Argus Decimus Mokira]

Hey

Sounds interesting, but is kinda limited for a whole feat. Maybe start the -2 penalty with the second+ AoOs. Also, could you have multiple AoO from the same hand or light xbow if you had Rapid Reload?

Thanks
-Matt

 

[hong]

I think this is a prime example of "feat creep": new feats to represent maneuvers or actions that anyone should be able to do. You should not need a feat to do something like shoot from the hip. You may not be able to do it _well_, but if it's an allowable action in your game, then it should be open to everyone.

If you want to allow snapshots with a crossbow, I'd let everyone do it but at a hefty penalty (say -12 with a heavy crossbow, -6 with light, -4 with hand). The feat would then reduce these penalties by 4, so you take a -8 penalty with a heavy, -2 with a light, or no penalty with a hand crossbow.

 

[hong]

Edit: It wouldn't be a board upgrade without a double post.

 

[AuraSeer]

Sounds interesting, but is kinda limited for a whole feat. Maybe start the -2 penalty with the second+ AoOs. Also, could you have multiple AoO from the same hand or light xbow if you had Rapid Reload?

It's limited on purpose, because a ranged AoO is a very powerful thing to allow. Taking a 5' step does not allow you to avoid this AoO, and even a double move might not get you far enough away. Spellcasters can cast defensively to avoid provoking, but it's rather cruel if you're subjected to AoO every time you try to drink a potion, fire an arrow, or apply a touch spell on a friend.

I started the -2 penalty on the first shot because I didn't want this to be better than Rapid Shot for a crossbowman. In most combats, there will probably be a chance to use this feat every round-- as long as there's even one archer or spellcaster somewhere on the opposing team. A free shot every round at full BAB seems like it'd be too powerful.

Rapid Reload lets you reload as a free action, but you can only take free actions on your own turn. Compare to Quickdraw; if you're unarmed when an enemy runs past you, you cannot quickdraw a weapon to take your AoO. So, once you run out of loaded weapons, you're done using this feat for a round (barring magical assistance).

 

[hong]

Maybe instead of the AoO being triggered on any action, have it trigger if an opponent attacks you. The way you've got it written up currently, the feat seems to produce an effect very much like suppressive fire: do anything silly within an area, and you get hit. This doesn't really fit well with using a crossbow. If anything, it might be more appropriate for someone who's using a normal bow, since the machine-gun archer is a pretty well-established trope in 3[.5]E.

 

[AuraSeer]

I think this is a prime example of "feat creep": new feats to represent maneuvers or actions that anyone should be able to do. You should not need a feat to do something like shoot from the hip. You may not be able to do it _well_, but if it's an allowable action in your game, then it should be open to everyone.

That doesn't seem a very compelling argument. You might say the same about plenty of the core combat feats. Manyshot, Power Attack, Whirlwind Attack, Spring Attack... they all give access to special maneuvers that ordinary characters can't perform. I don't think everyone should be able to take ranged AoOs, just like I don't think everyone should be able to Whirlwind at first level.

Anyhow, someone without the feat can accomplish basically the same thing, by readying an action. This feat can be considered to make the character always 'ready', without having given up his regular action for the round.

 

[hong]

That doesn't seem a very compelling argument. You might say the same about plenty of the core combat feats. Manyshot, Power Attack, Whirlwind Attack, Spring Attack... they all give access to special maneuvers that ordinary characters can't perform. I don't think everyone should be able to take ranged AoOs, just like I don't think everyone should be able to Whirlwind at first level.

Power Attack should definitely be open to everyone, IMO. In fact, if you were going to move to a system where armour provides DR instead of improving your AC, then allowing Power Attack as a default becomes almost necessary unless you want only big bruisers to be effective in combat. The others, though, are pretty cinematic if not totally unrealistic effects. I don't have any problem saying that you need a feat to accomplish these maneuvers.

 

[AuraSeer]

Maybe instead of the AoO being triggered on any action, have it trigger if an opponent attacks you. The way you've got it written up currently, the feat seems to produce an effect very much like suppressive fire: do anything silly within an area, and you get hit.

Hmm. I see what you mean, but that's not quite the image I had in mind. I was trying to imply a kind of enhanced situational awareness.

Picture a dwarven fighter wielding an axe in one hand and a crossbow in the other. He's holding his own in melee, but a hobgoblin up on a ledge pulls out a longbow and takes aim at his back. The dwarf spins, shoots the sniper dead, then takes off in a charge after a fleeing enemy.

Come to think of it, that sort of scenario isn't very likely in D&D anyhow, because of the abundance of hit points. It'd work well in a swashbuckler movie (if you replace the crossbow with a flintlock), but only because Hollywood mooks are always dispatched by one hit.

Looks like the feat needs a lot of work. Oh well, that gives me something to do at work tomorrow.