Determine Direction an Arrow came from

[francisca]

So, two PCs walk out of a bar (you can tell this isn't a joke, as they are walking out, instead of in), char #1 gets shot in the chest with an arrow, then falls forward onto his face.

Question: What skill checks would be appropriate for character #2 to determine where the arrow came from? Let's assume that there is no movement within view (no curtains waiving in building across the street, nobody moving about), so char #2 cannot use that for a cue. His only chance is observing the way the arrow struck his companion.

Here is my first hack:

Blind Guess: DC 25 spot check
Stands Char #1 up in place, looks at wound/arrow entry: DC 20 spot
Char #2 was look at char when arrow struck: +2 to either check
Char #2 has Investigator Feat: +2 to either check

Any ideas?

 

[DanMcS]

No skill check required. The general direction is bloody obvious. If an arrow hit you in your chest, it came from in front of you. That narrows it down to about 60 to 90 degrees of arc.

To see the shooter, oppose his hide roll. To hide after sniping is a hide check at -20. Roll your spot, don't forget the distance penalties.

 

[ARandomGod]

No skill check required. The general direction is bloody obvious. If an arrow hit you in your chest, it came from in front of you. That narrows it down to about 60 to 90 degrees of arc.

To see the shooter, oppose his hide roll. To hide after sniping is a hide check at -20. Roll your spot, don't forget the distance penalties.

However, say it was a hit by a sling bullet
(Or warsling skiprock)
Could get very hard to determine direction.

With an arrow, I'd say just look the general direction the feathers are pointing.

With a bullet, I'd say that you get nothing, but you can still make that spot check versus the opponent's hide (-20 penalty to the hide... plus any modifiers the DM feels is appropriate).

 

[DanMcS]

OK, sling bullet, that's fair.

The character should also get a listen check. Our ears are set like they are to track things in 3d. It should be hard, but not impossible, probably DC 20ish.

 

[The Souljourner]

Regardless of the ammunition, based on where it hit you, you can at least narrow it to a 120 degree arc. Unless you were actively spinning in circles at the time you were hit, if a rock hits you in the side of the left arm, it probably came from your left.

So... no skill check to figure out the general area... if you want better than that... I'd say if it's a bolt or an arrow, you could get within about 15 degrees just by looking at the angle of the shaft.

-The Souljourner

 

[francisca]

No skill check required. The general direction is bloody obvious. If an arrow hit you in your chest, it came from in front of you. That narrows it down to about 60 to 90 degrees of arc.

To see the shooter, oppose his hide roll. To hide after sniping is a hide check at -20. Roll your spot, don't forget the distance penalties.

No kidding it is obvious that it came from in front of you. I was looking for an appropriate skill and DC for the second guy to determine which tree/window, etc, it came from, which is not obvious.

Also, if the guy falls flat on his face, possible breaking the shaft and at least displacing it, char #2 won't really be able to tell if it came from ground level, up high, or from around a 120 degree arc.

So I don't think it's quite so easy as just saying "look in front of you."

However, your comments about sound make sense. Hearing the arrow come in might actually be useful in this situation, as we do hear in 3-D.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

So, two PCs walk out of a bar (you can tell this isn't a joke, as they are walking out, instead of in),

This has to be a joke, for no character ever walks out of a bar - they're carried out, dead drunk (well, not always drunk), or sometimes run out (or jump out of the window or something) ;-)

 

[francisca]

This has to be a joke, for no character ever walks out of a bar - they're carried out, dead drunk (well, not always drunk), or sometimes run out (or jump out of the window or something) ;-)

I like the way you think.

 

[Herpes Cineplex]

No kidding it is obvious that it came from in front of you. I was looking for an appropriate skill and DC for the second guy to determine which tree/window, etc, it came from, which is not obvious.

I'd go with the second half of what he said, then: the shooter makes a Hide check at -20, the looker makes a Spot check to try and beat him. Apply the standard distance penalties to the Spot check and maybe give a circumstance bonus to the Hide roll if it's an especially well-prepared sniping spot.


Me, I found DanMcS's answer to be both amusingly snarky and eminently practical. If you're not as amused as I was by the snarky paragraph, at least take a moment to consider the practical paragraph right below it.

--
i'm guessing he included it for a reason
ryan

 

[DanMcS]

Me, I found DanMcS's answer to be both amusingly snarky and eminently practical. If you're not as amused as I was by the snarky paragraph, at least take a moment to consider the practical paragraph right below it.

I may have come off a bit too snarky. But just because there's a spot skill doesn't mean you have to use it for every instance in which characters use their eyes. I guess I was having flashbacks to the time my GM had me roll a series of spot checks, which when I finally succeeded revealed that the room my PC was in had a window through which he might be able to escape. Not a little, up in one corner, 2' by 1' window I had to squeeze through, but a big normal window with curtains and windowframe and you know, pane glass. Bah.

Overuse of skills is as bad as not using them at all.