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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Fanaelialae" data-source="post: 5723186" data-attributes="member: 53980">The D&D rules preclude you from attacking with ranged weapons in melee combat!What does high dex fighter plan to do; shift every round in order to gain ranged attacks without suffering opportunity attacks?  What if he's flanked or backed against a wall?  It isn't as though you can just make ranged attacks whenever the heck you want without provoking, and giving your opponents free shots against you is poor tactics.Unless you have a character built to take advantage of ranged combat (which, by necessity, means he's not as good at melee combat as a melee specialist), ranged combat is an inferior choice unless the encounter starts at a great distance (minimum 70 feet).  IME, the vast majority of encounters begin between 25 and 50 feet.  Ranged weapons deal less damage than their melee counterparts (Composite Longbow vs Greatsword).  They force one to choose between range (being able to make attacks at distances that deny their opponent attacks due to movement) or being able to make opportunity attacks (because thrown weapons don't have great range increments).  The only significant advantage that ranged weapons have if that they can give you free attacks while you enemy is moving if you're far enough.Yes, please throw a 1d3 rock at my greatsword wielding fighter.  Considering his poor dexterity, I'm sure he could use the laugh.This is D&D.  While there are certainly situations where difficult terrain might be a concern, it is not the norm.  If you kick a chair in my path, on my turn I'll just walk around it.  Even when difficult terrain is a concern, it typically reduces movement speed rather than requiring dexterity checks.  What is your fighter trying to do, lure mine out onto a clothesline?  And on a related note, how the heck is you fighter running around like a cinematic energizer bunny on speed without provoking opportunity attacks from my fighter?  Because let me tell you, if you're provoking from me every round to kick chairs and throw rocks at me, I'm pretty sure my tactic of taking an attacks every round will triumph.I have yet to encounter a DM who makes it that easy to blind a target.  Even if he did, a 1 round blinding favors me.  You waste your standard action blinding me, while I can still take my attack on my turn (albeit, with significant penalties).  Blinding for 1d4 rounds is very generous.  At that point you may as well allow every Tom, Dick, and Harry to cast Blindness because combat usually only lasts 3-4 rounds in 3.x.  You're neglecting to consider the fact that if you choose to blind me, you're giving up your attack for that round.I already admitted that the high dexterity fighter has the advantage with regard to initiative.  However, let's assume for a moment that the initiative roll is a life-or-death throw.  You win the roll, my character dies; I win the roll, your character dies.  Would you really be willing to risk the life of a beloved character on a single die roll like that?  Even if I were playing the high dex fighter, I certainly wouldn't take those odds because there's too much chance associated with those rolls.  It happens all too often that a player rolls for a "sure thing" and is shocked to see a natural 1 or 2, and this is far from a sure thing.In any case our experiences appear to be very different, because we don't seem to to see eye-to-eye and I rather doubt at this point that we will.</blockquote>

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