Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="billd91" data-source="post: 4620287" data-attributes="member: 3400">If DMs are closing the option down if there's no feat, then I don't they're doing a very good job. Take a look at the feats for combat maneuvers like bull rush, overrun, sunder, etc. They take an action, that has some drawbacks, and remove the drawbacks/provide bonuses on resolving the action. That's the model that should be followed in resolving actions that aren't specified in the 3.5 rules. Assess the move, assign some mechanic, and&nbsp; if it's a generalizeable enough action that the PC might want to improve, develop a feat to make it a little more advantageous.There are some things that should be feat only - things that significantly dodge the rules like spring attack. But if it's something you could envision an enthusiastic adventurer trying, and having some chance of success doing without advanced training, then it fits the mold of being a general special attack/combat maneuver available to anybody.The trick here is interpreting what the PC wants to do and discriminating between general maneuver that should be OK and attempt to break the rules and get an advantage that's fundamentally unfair. So in the case of the jump down and attack with surprise/force - I'd say make your jump check and move silently check and then probably treat it like a charge. If the jump fails, you didn't jump far enough, but - hey - you still moved and that might be worth something. If the move silently failed, it wouldn't be a surprise. I still might assign the ever popular +2 circumstance bonus for being particularly unexpected, if not completely undetected and thus causing loss of Dex bonus. And the charge? Well, you are dropping in with gravity to speed you along and that seems charge-like enough for me.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="billd91, post: 4620287, member: 3400"] If DMs are closing the option down if there's no feat, then I don't they're doing a very good job. Take a look at the feats for combat maneuvers like bull rush, overrun, sunder, etc. They take an action, that has some drawbacks, and remove the drawbacks/provide bonuses on resolving the action. [b]That's[/b] the model that should be followed in resolving actions that aren't specified in the 3.5 rules. Assess the move, assign some mechanic, and if it's a generalizeable enough action that the PC might want to improve, develop a feat to make it a little more advantageous. There are some things that should be feat only - things that significantly dodge the rules like spring attack. But if it's something you could envision an enthusiastic adventurer trying, and having some chance of success doing without advanced training, then it fits the mold of being a general special attack/combat maneuver available to anybody. The trick here is interpreting what the PC wants to do and discriminating between general maneuver that should be OK and attempt to break the rules and get an advantage that's fundamentally unfair. So in the case of the jump down and attack with surprise/force - I'd say make your jump check and move silently check and then probably treat it like a charge. If the jump fails, you didn't jump far enough, but - hey - you still moved and that might be worth something. If the move silently failed, it wouldn't be a surprise. I still might assign the ever popular +2 circumstance bonus for being particularly unexpected, if not completely undetected and thus causing loss of Dex bonus. And the charge? Well, you are dropping in with gravity to speed you along and that seems charge-like enough for me. [/QUOTE]

Verification