Certain basic feats that should exist (IYO) but don't

[Kerrick]

For instance, I've always expected there'd eventually be a straightforward low-prereq, no-frills feat that reduces arcane spell failure by a certain percent, or alternatively, one that allows casting in light armor.

I came up with this one a couple months back...

Armored Spellcaster [General]
You can cast spells in armor with less chance of failure.
Prerequisite: AP Light, Medium, or Heavy.
Benefit: If you are wearing armor or a shield with which you are proficient, the chance of arcane spell failure is reduced by 20%. If you are wearing armor and a shield, this reduction applies to the total percentage, not both items.
Special: You can take this feat up to three times; the second and third feat reduce the chance by 10%, for a total reduction of 40%.

A feat which lets you sheathe a weapon as a free action.

Just make it part of Weapon Focus - you can draw a weapon as part of the move action, so why not add in sheathing it as a free action?

I don't have time to look for them exactly right now, but there are a goodly number of PrCs that require you to have a certain casting ability and then require skill ranks that no caster has as class skills, thus delaying entry to the PrC for quite some time unless you multiclass and lose a caster level.

That's usually the fault of bad design, unless the skills are specifically used in the PrC.

I'd like to see a pair of feats, one each that reduce the on-hand and off-hand attack penalties from Two Weapon Fighting to 0, burning 3 feats to reduce those penalties to 0 seems fair.

Three? Pfft. They got of the TWO feats to get to -2/-2 because it was too much; having THREE to get to +0/+0 is way too much. If you want to limit it, give it high prereqs - Dex 17 and BAB +10, frex.

Deadeye Shot-
You can take a penalty on a ranged attack (no more than your BAB) to add a bonus to your ranged damage. (this feat is often used by snipers). This feat only works with bows, crossbows, and firearms (no hatchets or slings. See power throw from complete adventurer for that).

Isn't that in PHBII?

Add dex for damage on ranged weapons. Str increases damage on melee, I want someone with a bow or dagger to be able to increase their damage for having a greater stat.

I'm with hong on this one - it'd be too much of a boost for rogue-types, who already get sneak attack/skirmish/whatever the hell they're calling it these days. I've thought it about it myself, and I can't justify giving someone a damage bonus based on Dex. Sure, you could say it's precision-based, but that could be more accurately modelled by having a "precise strike" feat.

Combat abilities to perform targeted attacks.

Called shots. You don't need a feat for that. Although, if you wanted to avoid the -4 penalty, you could roll it into the precise strike feat I noted above.

move to a door (partial movement)
open the door (move action)
walk through the door (rest of movement)

we're talking dungeon doors, most of the time, which are usually stuck. The rest of the time, you're not just going to kick in the door unless you know for sure that there's nothing on the other side waiting for you (to include traps) or you want to surprise them. Not to mention that your hands are likely full (don't forget, most doors have a latch to keep them closed), so yes - it should take a move action to open them. Even if you're kicking/bashing the door in, you have to set yourself to get maximum effect. And... have you tried piling through a door as a group? Kinda hard to do - that's why people always get trampled in riots and fires.

You could rule that moving through the door is a 5-foot step, though - chances are that you're going to stop, even momentarily, to look around, take in the situation, and then act; there's also a good chance that something is within 10 feet of the door, making a single attack feasible.

 

[Voadam]

The 1 level of the skill's class is the balancing factor on some PrCs, though. I'm not talking about multiclassers like Arcane Trickster--it's some of the more subtle PrCs that are limited to a caster only by ranks. I've seen several.

The ones I've seen are designed for bards, but they don't say so, relying upon skill ranks in perform and whatever to keep wizards and sorcerers out while technically allowing anyone with arcane casting and the right skills in.

Still, even bard classes with full arcane casting are mostly not that big a deal.

 

[sirwmholder]

TYPO

 

[Angerland]

I don't know about a new feat but I think the idea of using turning attempts to power other things should be a class ability for Clerics, especially since if your not fighting undead that ability is useless and even if you are it is really hard to turn most undead.

something like this maybe:
Level 1-5= spend turn attempt to add +1 to a hit, dmg, spell Dc or save. usuable x/day = to wis bonus

6-10= +2
11-15=+3
16-20= +4

I think the various divine feats that are out in books do a good job of trying to cover most of these but at the cost of precious feats from the cleric. maybe this qould push the clerics even further into a power class, I don't know.

 

[Darklone]

The Dashing Swordsman, of course.

Here!

Edit: More damage for ranged attacks: I'd love to see something similar to Crossbow sniper for all ranged combatants. If possible, not as a feat but as a general rule.

 

[Felon]

It just seems a no-brainer, in that there are many feats which let you use stat X instead of stat Y, and I can't think of any way that Cha to damage would be overpowered. I'd assume some paladins would take it.

Well, any charismatic character would be liable to take it, unless it was qualified in some way. Just a no-prereq blanket bonus to all damage rolls is a pretty sweet deal.

Note that Weapon Finesse only applies to weapons with a relatively low-damage-output.

 

[Felon]

Power Attack, up to 5 points, without doubling on a two-handed weapon. The feat would then allow PA above 5 (if your BAB is high enough), and double damage on a two-hander. Anyone should be able to swing wildly, sacrificing accuracy for power, to a point.

I think True20 handles it right by providing an "All-Out-Attack" option that operates like defensive fighting in reverse.

Weapon Finesse. Any weapon that is currently "finessable" should give you the option of attacking with Dex automatically, rather than requiring a feat. The Weapon Finesse feat, then, should apply to only a single weapon each time you take it, and should allow you to finesse a weapon that is not normally finessable.

I dunno, Dex is already so very useful. Not sure I think it's so bad for a high Dex character to cough up a feat to gain yet another benefit.

 

[Felon]

Deadeye Shot-
You can take a penalty on a ranged attack (no more than your BAB) to add a bonus to your ranged damage. (this feat is often used by snipers). This feat only works with bows, crossbows, and firearms (no hatchets or slings. See power throw from complete adventurer for that).
Prereqs- Precise Shot.

Although this may be mechanically balanced, it makes little sense that a sniper should suffer an attack penalty for what amounts to taking aim. You can swing or hurl a weapon with excessive force, trading off accuracy for impact, but the same concept doesn't apply to projectile weapons.

Rather, I would suggest a feat for aiming that allows a character to add Dex to damage by forfeiting his Dex bonus to AC.

 

[Raven Crowking]

Weapon Finesse. Any weapon that is currently "finessable" should give you the option of attacking with Dex automatically, rather than requiring a feat.

I do this....except that it is not optional. If you fight with a rapier or a whip, your Dex is more important than your Str for attacks.

 

[Mouseferatu]

I do this....except that it is not optional. If you fight with a rapier or a whip, your Dex is more important than your Str for attacks.

What about the other finessable weapons, like daggers? Do you enforce this for, essentially, all light weapons? Or are rapiers and whips the only ones where Dex is required?