Clubhouse: The Shearing Pen

[Infiniti2000]

Ooc

Page 141 of the PH does not allow you to retrieve a shield as part of movement. It only allows you to ready or loose a shield, which is not equivalent to retrieving a shield from your back. The only way it would work, is if you group together the retrieving and readying as simply readying. I.e. it takes only a single move action (that can be combined with regular moving if you have a BAB of +1) to haul a shield from your back and affix it to your arm.

 

[Gansk]

Ooc

ugulu brought up this point to me in his e-mail for equipment status. He wanted to have the shield in his hand, but not readied. Under what circumstances could the shield be in hand along with a two-handed missile weapon? Is it for crossbow users so they can choose to ready the shield and then fire with one hand? I told ugulu to put the shield on his back because it amounted to the same move to ready it.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Ooc

Well, the rules specifically equate Readying a shield as "strapping on" and loosing a shield as "removing it from the arm and dropping it." Of course, you don't actually have to drop it (that's merely an extra free action), but the act of stowing it on your back, or retrieving it from your back, clearly is not included. That's equivalent to stowing/retrieving an item, which is a move action and cannot be combined with a move.

 

[Gansk]

Ooc

You make a good point, what I am trying to understand is the ramifications of the rule when it is strictly interpreted that way as opposed to taking a shortcut and letting people wear shields on their back.

We have been taking the shortcut in the main battle and nobody except ugulu made a clear distinction about where their shield would be because we have not been strictly interpreting the rule. So at the very least I have to interpret the rule using the shortcut until the end of this edition of the ToC.

I can change the rule to the strict interpretation, but I want to be able to clearly explain what people's options are when they have -

A shield and a bow
A shield and a crossbow

Can they have the shield in their hand at the beginning of combat, but not readied? What are their options if they want to use the missile weapon with that configuration?

If this is the way that you play in your game, then you have already thought through these scenarios, right? My brain is having trouble locking on to this concept.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Ooc

No problem. A consistent ruling is the best choice. Let's go with it the way it is now rather than change it.

If you have a shield in your hand, you can't use that hand to fire a bow (that requires two hands). Actually, it would never make sense to just have a shield in hand and not readied. It would only be in transition from stowed to not stowed.

Yes, this is the way we play it in our game, and people with shields rarely don't use them. When they do, it would typically be to drop them and then pick them up again. Note that something like a buckler, you can shoot a bow with it still in hand.

"Can they have the shield in their hand at the beginning of combat, but not readied?"

Yes.

"What are their options if they want to use the missile weapon with that configuration?"

a. Drop the shield (Free) and use the missile weapon. Say the bow is in the other hand, then I allow a move action to hold the weapon in two hands and then you can fire it (quick draw makes this a free action).

b. Stow the shield and then shift/draw the missile weapon.

I have a fighter 6/ranger 10 IMC that uses TWF, archery, and shields about 50/30/20%. He has quick draw which helps this a lot, but the shield use can get tricky, so he leaves equipment lying around a lot. He always remembers to pick it up, though, or other members will help out if they are in a rush to retreat (e.g.). The fighter 15 is a sword&board (battleaxe actually), and has no ranged weapons at all (bizarre I know), so he's not a concern. He doesn't have quick draw, though, so when he wants to pull out a potion or something, he has to drop his axe or basically take extra actions to sheathe his weapon, etc.

 

[Gansk]

Let's go with it the way it is now rather than change it.

Do you want to change over in the CR 1 edition of the ToC? There will probably still be monsters using shields in that tournament.

A different question for Greybar - can you help us out in the Abyssal Arena with the vasuthant? You're the only one with the MM III. Thanks in advance.

 

[ugulu]

Another demand for Greybar: please explain the cool clicky button/spoiler trick to gadget-loving geeks like me.

 

[Greybar]

It's in the VBcode help section, but it's called sblock for spoiler block. So

[ sblock ] stuff [ / sblock ] without the extra spaces.

 

[Infiniti2000]

Do you want to change over in the CR 1 edition of the ToC? There will probably still be monsters using shields in that tournament.

It's up to you. It doesn't matter much when both opponents have shields and ranged weapons/spells. It will matter when one doesn't. But, consistency is the key, so I don't mind either way. I think you've set up precedence that once you are confident of the real rule, you try to run it that way, so if you agree with me about the rule, then I'd suggest you run it that way. Do you want to post in Rules first to get consensus or perhaps counterarguments?

[sblock] ugulu is a poo-poo head [/sblock]

 

[Greybar]

So.. Re: the ToC 0.5
I was surprised to see that according to the SRD, you can use Heal skill to stabilize someone who is negative, but nothing for people at 0 or higher. I was hoping to find something for Dana there, since she actually has the Heal skill.

Is it just a really common house rule that you can use Heal to get 1 hp back through first aid?