Fade into Violence

[DreadPirateMurphy]

Does anybody here have any idea what good the "Fade into Violence" feat is supposed to do? It is on page 79 of the PH2. As far as I can tell, it lets you bluff a foe into ignoring you if a) you are empty-handed, wear light or no armor, and do not attack, and b) the foe threatens both you and an ally.

This only works with 1 foe per encounter.

There are only 2 scenarios that I can figure. The first is a healer or party buffer (like a bard) who wanders into melee range of the bad guy. The second is to allow somebody to get close enough to sneak attack or flank. Both of these scenarios seem very dangerous, since there are so many pre-conditions and it only works with a single adversary.

Am I missing something?

 

[ivocaliban]

It obviously works best for small characters with quick draw or when fighting larger, powerful foes (BBEG). The only real benefit I can see in this regard is for roguish types (with some version of sneak attack) who uses this ability to gain an advantage of position, perhaps to allow allies to flank the villain until the rogue can get off a deadly sneak attack. In the meantime, the rogue let's the fighter take all the punishment. Assuming he's good at it, the rogue should be able to enter any combat without worrying about getting cut to pieces right off the bat.

Sounds great for cowardly merchant npcs. (Salmoneus from Hercules: The Legendary Journeys?) Still, I agree that it seems to have fairly limited use. I'd be interested to see what others think, as well.

EDIT: It also works fairly well with the custom Yellowbellied Coward PrC found in the house rules section. Seems appropriate. Useful for the party, no. Useful for keeping said Coward alive, yes. At least until the battle is over and the fellow taking all the punches turns on him.