Please rate Rapid Reload

[Shard O'Glase]

I stand by my new position: you're a powergaming munchkin. [/B]

Good now I know who to listen to in these threads. If in a "is this feat worthwhile" thread do you want to listen to some namby-pamby role-player or a munchkin. Hmmnn since it is about is it a good feat, and not whether or not it makes your hair look nice, I'll go with the munchkin.

 

[Stalker0]

Damn, this thread went to a hell in a handbasket offly fast.

My opinion as before is not to compare the feat to bow feats, we are not trying to turn archers into crossbowsmen. The question is, if I'm a crossbowsmen for whatever reason, would this feat be a good one to choose.

I say yes, its a very good feat for a crossbowsmen.

 

[Shard O'Glase]

Damn, this thread went to a hell in a handbasket offly fast.

My opinion as before is not to compare the feat to bow feats, we are not trying to turn archers into crossbowsmen. The question is, if I'm a crossbowsmen for whatever reason, would this feat be a good one to choose.

I say yes, its a very good feat for a crossbowsmen.

Yes, if you are a crossbowmen it is a good feat to take. That doesn't make it a good feat. Now if it allowed you to freely reload light and handcrossbows any number of times like a bow, then it would be a good feat. As written it is a weak feat, becaue it turns a simple weapon into a sub-par martial weapon. geting an improvemnt on all crossbows as opposed to one specifc weapon like a martial weapon prof isn't a large enough benefit to overcome how much weaker the weapon will be compared to a martial weapon.

So if you have some crossbow schict, and wont use bows because its not in your characters persoanlity to use the better weapon then by all means take this feat it gives you a decent benefit.

 

[Stalker0]

Yes, if you are a crossbowmen it is a good feat to take. That doesn't make it a good feat. Now if it allowed you to freely reload light and handcrossbows any number of times like a bow, then it would be a good feat. As written it is a weak feat, becaue it turns a simple weapon into a sub-par martial weapon. geting an improvemnt on all crossbows as opposed to one specifc weapon like a martial weapon prof isn't a large enough benefit to overcome how much weaker the weapon will be compared to a martial weapon.

So if you have some crossbow schict, and wont use bows because its not in your characters persoanlity to use the better weapon then by all means take this feat it gives you a decent benefit.

Your right its not a good feat. It has a limited use, only for crossbows. But for its limited use I think its preety powerful. So I'd rate it about average.

 

[Pax]

Good now I know who to listen to in these threads. If in a "is this feat worthwhile" thread do you want to listen to some namby-pamby role-player or a munchkin. Hmmnn since it is about is it a good feat, and not whether or not it makes your hair look nice, I'll go with the munchkin.

So your only measure of "good" is "powerful" ... ? Bah.

 

[Gaiden]

To Pax,

In efforts to remain civil I will simply state that I am not going to reply anything you used to refute what I previously stated.

I know that I can say that I am very good at measuring a feat's worth and can plead with you to try and give me the benefit of the doubt and objectively assess my points, but alas, I doubt the effort would get me anywhere.

I freely admit that if you are going to use a crossbow, the feat is a fine feat to take, and that if all you want to do is fire and move, it is also a fine feat to take - it allows you to do both of those things.

I was attempting to compare the feat to other feats and show that it will always be the worst choice. This is not really a function of the feat, but more a function of the weapon as Shard pointed out.

Yes it will allow a low str character to get off multiple attacks in a round or attack and move and deal more damage (all else being equal) than that same character with the bow. The problem is that "all else" is not equal. With your sorcerer example, he would get the feat at 9th level (close enought to 10th for me), and by that time should have sufficient access to magic and items to increase his str to make the feat at the very least equal taking martial prof. bow and again, as I said earlier - in fact worse because you can boost your str even more at that level and actually get a str bonus.

I ran an Undermountain campaign, probably second only to RttToEE (especially since I threw the PCs in at 1st level and beefed up all the encounters and had quite a few nasty traps of my own design). One of the characters, based after Antonio Benderez in El Desperado, took the feat with exotic weapon proficiencies in all the different types of crossbows with a few other things and by all means he was one of the coolest characters in the game. He certainly was not the most powerful, but he could hold his own. More importantly though, he had mass style points. So in terms of rating the feat in terms of roleplaying, the feat is really cool. But in terms of power (as all the other threads like this have been about) it blows.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

Really, all that should be necessary to determine that this is a truly worthless feat for a PC to take is a comparison between Rapid Reload and Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Repeating Crossbow.

For the regular user (the hypothetical super-low strength ranged combat rogue), it allows five attacks before requiring a full round action to reload. That's enough to rapid shot and get off two to five sneak attacks while the opponent is flat-footed. (The most common way for a rogue to make sneak attacks at range). Rapid Reload will get the rogue up to two sneak attacks (crossbow starts out loaded and the rogue either uses rapid shot or iterative attacks).

For the casual user (the low strength sorceror in discussion), the repeating crossbow is also superior in the long run (although he's unlikely to see the difference until 12th level and then he probably won't be running out of spells and need to use a crossbow). However, said sorceror is probably better off using the feat for point blank shot since any sorceror worth his salt should plan on using spells more than crossbows and point blank shot works for spells (lesser energy orbs, melf's acid arrow, flame arrow, energy orb, enervation, disintegrate, Otiluke's Freezing Sphere, etc) as well.

The only are in which the repeating crossbow proves inferior to a light crossbow and rapid reload is cost--which is an issue for NPCs but not for PCs who generally have enough money to buy masterwork equipment after first level, at which point the cost difference is negligable.

 

[ConcreteBuddha]

[HOUSE RULE]

Crossbows ignore the first 5 points of AC from armor. Repeating Crossbows do not exist. (Too high of a Tech level.)

[/HOUSE RULE]


In our campaigns, this feat is not too terrible...

 

[Shard O'Glase]

So your only measure of "good" is "powerful" ... ? Bah.

Um, yeah. I don't need feats to role-play, what I need feats to be though is good. And since feats aren't needed for role-playing the good determiner is something else, power. Add in that IMO most people who role-played wouldn't take innefective feats for style reasons, because there lives are on the line.(and yes I realize many people disagree with this point, I guess i like to role play pros over the cool types) How many seal teams run around with slingshots since they are just so much cooler than guns.

By the time your good enough to qualify for this feat, you've had some insane combat experiences, why the heck would you take an innefective combat feat, either take martial weapon prof Composite long bow, or if you are low str take that exotic wepaon prof repeating crossbow.(thanks for the reminder EB) Though you'd still be much better off taking point blank shot so your spells might be improved as well.