D&D General The Sharpshooter feat and multiple attacks

[Greenstone.Walker]

With regards to taking that -5 penalty for Sharpshooter, it doesn't take much to overcome it.

That's my observation as well. There seems to be many more ways to get +To Hit as an archer than as a melee fighter.

The level 12 archer in my game had (IIRC) +12 attack bonus without magic items. He used -5/+10 as a default on every attack.

 

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

In my games, super long range attacks aren't much of a factor. Cover can be, though usually the ranged attacker just chooses a target that isn't in cover. So this feat really comes down to the -5/+10 option.

Not every ranged weapon is a longbow. The hand crossbow for example has a short range of just 30', so not having disadvantage on long range attacks helps a lot.

 

[Bacon Bits]

Not every ranged weapon is a longbow. The hand crossbow for example has a short range of just 30', so not having disadvantage on long range attacks helps a lot.

Especially when Crossbow Expert gives you an extra hand crossbow attack at 1d6+15 damage.

 

[jgsugden]

Depends on whether those attacks would have killed a significant number of the opponents in the first three rounds.
However, bear in mind that if you're up against high-AC opponents, you can just not use the power attack option...

Again, in my example it still made sense and was below the point of diminishing returns in terms of AC. Further, remember that it isn't just the first few rounds that are impacted - it is all remaining rounds. if you delay the kill on the first big hitter by a round, then the guy you might have finished on the first round dies on the second - but the one that otherould have died on the second survives til the third ...

This is the phenomena that people underestimate. Sharpshooter creates higher variance in the game, and that can really hurt if you get unlucky at the start of combat.

 

[Oofta]

Especially when Crossbow Expert gives you an extra hand crossbow attack at 1d6+15 damage.

Ugh. Dual wielding hand crossbows and then complaining because you have to have a free hand to load the things ... don't get me started on the a toy crossbow that should only work as a poison delivery device.

 

[Bacon Bits]

Ugh. Dual wielding hand crossbows and then complaining because you have to have a free hand to load the things ... don't get me started on the a toy crossbow that should only work as a poison delivery device.

No, you don't have to dual wield anything. You can use a single hand crossbow as the only weapon in hand, and it satisfies the requirement of Crossbow Expert:

• When you use the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you can use a bonus action to attack with a hand crossbow you are holding.

That's the official Sage Advice ruling, too:

Does Crossbow Expert let you fire a hand crossbow and then fire it again as a bonus action?​

It does! Take a look at the feat’s third benefit. It says you can attack with a hand crossbow as a bonus action when you use the Attack action to attack with a one-handed weapon. A hand crossbow is a one-handed weapon, so it can, indeed, be used for both attacks, assuming you have a hand free to load the hand crossbow between the two attacks.

---

Now, if you want me to say if I think the above is a good ruling, or if it's really a defensible interpretation given how convoluted that third benefit is, well... you'll be waiting awhile, I'm afraid.

 

[James Gasik]

That having been said, there's a fair amount of characters in media who dual wield hand crossbows (somehow), which no doubt fuels people's desire to do so. No matter how ridiculous the concept.

Public Enemy #1, Diablo's Demon Hunter.

 

[Bacon Bits]

That having been said, there's a fair amount of characters in media who dual wield hand crossbows (somehow), which no doubt fuels people's desire to do so. No matter how ridiculous the concept.

Oh, I'm one of them. I love a good John Woo gunfight. I think it's a very fun image, which I admit is very subjective.

That is why I find it so frustratingly stupid that after the earlier ruling I posted was made, they also made this ruling that you still have to have a hand free:

Sage Advice Compendium

D&D Beyond - Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition Tools, Rules, Races, Classes, Items, Spells, Monsters, and More

www.dndbeyond.com

And yeah, that's not wrong. But it's also the stupidest timeline. It's broken in a very dumb way, but only when you're maximally boring. This combined with the Shield Master ruling and the paladin unarmed smite ruling almost have me convinced that Crawford's goal is to make such brain dead and unbelievable rulings that people stop asking him questions. I mean most of the Sage Advice answers are things best left to the DM.

 

[kigmatzomat]

Sharpshooter may not be technically legal with thrown weapons. Thrown weapons are not considered "ranged weapon attacks", they're "ranged attack with a melee weapon" depending on whom you ask.

But then there is the dart, which is specifically a thrown weapon with no melee component. And, if you have the supplement with it, the boomerang. (No idea what it's from, it shows up in Beyond)

And the net, though I would expect no-damage weapons can't get damage boosts.

 

[Corinnguard]

And, if you have the supplement with it, the boomerang. (No idea what it's from, it shows up in Beyond)

This is from Level Up's Adventurer's Guide: There are many forms of boomerang. This club has the thrown property (range 100/300), and cannot be used as a melee weapon. A boomerang designed to flush out or distract prey goes a shorter distance (range 50/150), but on a miss it returns to the location it was thrown from at the end of the turn.

Like the dart, the boomerang cannot be used as a melee weapon. I can see it ignoring cover by flying around whatever obstacle the target is using for cover, as it doesn't fly in a straight line. But using it in a ranged attack would require more precision than using a crossbow or a bow. So using the Sharpshooter feat with a boomerang sounds a bit iffy IMO.