Bull Rush, AOOs & Group Sneak Attack

[Canaan]

This question involves two of my players, one of which is a fighter, the other is a Nightsong Infiltrator with the group sneak attack class ability.

The player playing the fighter asked me the following hypothetical:

If I took Improved Bull Rush, could I bull rush an opponent in such a way as to bring the opponent within 5 feet of the Nightsong Infiltrator granting the Nightson Infiltrator an AOO and granting both of us a sneak attack?

I'm puzzled. Can anyone help?

 

[the Jester]

First of all, to make this work, you'd have to bull rush your enemy through a square of the NI's threatened area, rather than just into one (it's leaving a threatened square that provokes, not entering one).

*Goes to grab Complete Adventurer to look over the NI...

As long as you push the enemy into flanking, your allies can take advantage of Teamwork Sneak Attack.

 

[Hypersmurf]

And remember, the Infiltrator has a 25% chance of hitting you with that AoO...

-Hyp.

 

[Graf]

And remember, the Infiltrator has a 25% chance of hitting you with that AoO...

-Hyp.

??
I thought we’d finally reached the point where DnD didn’t have anymore of those ‘you’re highly trained combatant will accidentally strike and kill his friend/drop his weapon/spontaneously slip and fall down once every x number of attacks’.

Sorry if this was supposed to be a joke, it’s a pet peeve.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

??
I thought we’d finally reached the point where DnD didn’t have anymore of those ‘you’re highly trained combatant will accidentally strike and kill his friend/drop his weapon/spontaneously slip and fall down once every x number of attacks’.

Sorry if this was supposed to be a joke, it’s a pet peeve.

It's not a joke.

It's a penalty that applies only when an ally is in direct body contact with an enemy and is pushing him past you.

You might want to avoid reading the grappling rules, as well ...

 

[Canaan]

Thanks for the replies. So what I'm hearing is that it won't work because the Fighter and NI would have to be flanking and they can't flank unless the fighter bull rushes the enemy into the NI's square. If the fighter bull rushes through the square to give the NI an AOO, they won't be flanking, so no Teamwork Sneak Attack. Right?

 

[Hypersmurf]

Thanks for the replies. So what I'm hearing is that it won't work because the Fighter and NI would have to be flanking and they can't flank unless the fighter bull rushes the enemy into the NI's square. If the fighter bull rushes through the square to give the NI an AOO, they won't be flanking, so no Teamwork Sneak Attack. Right?

It could work if the Nightsong Infiltrator is Large or has a Reach weapon...

-Hyp.