Please verify: you can threaten while unarmed.

[Whimsical]

As far as I can determine, you can threaten, take opportunity attacks, and be a flank buddy while unarmed in 4th edition D&D. Correct?

 

[Hathorym]

As far as I can determine, you can threaten, take opportunity attacks, and be a flank buddy while unarmed in 4th edition D&D. Correct?

I have not found anything in the rules to the contrary? However, unarmed does not mean "I just fired my bow and if I drop it, I'll be unarmed and can make opportunity attacks." I think some care should be taken there to stop abuse.

 

[WhatGravitas]

I have not found anything in the rules to the contrary? However, unarmed does not mean "I just fired my bow and if I drop it, I'll be unarmed and can make opportunity attacks." I think some care should be taken there to stop abuse.

Well... a bow can be used as an improvised weapon. The same is true for your feet.

And yeah, the warlock in our campaign is a flank buddy and kicks people around (albeit pretty inefficiently... but a OA is a OA), since he's too busy with his hands holding a wand and carrying stuff around.

Cheers, LT.

 

[Crazydwarf]

Well... a bow can be used as an improvised weapon.

Acctually no...Not by RAW (PHB. p.215)
However I'd allow it and I'm sure my group would agree.

Punching, kicking, headbutting...Possibly biting is all counted as improvised weapons. So aslong as the character has arms I'd say he's armed
atleast for rules purpouses like this.

 

[Mr. Teapot]

We had one fight where our halfling wizard took out like four minions using unarmed Opportunity Attacks.

Even if you have something in your hands, you could kick someone as an unarmed attack. I think, at least: in 3rd ed, it specified that any part of your body could be used for an unarmed attack. 4th ed is less clear on unarmed attacks.

You're not likely to actually hit with an unarmed attack (no proficiency bonus), especially since the people most likely to be unarmed (spellcasters and the like) are the worst at basic melee attacks anyway. But for flanking purposes you just have to threaten, which you can indeed do, as far as I can tell.

 

[RigaMortus2]

Well... a bow can be used as an improvised weapon.

Cheers, LT.

Not per RAW.

Improvised weapons aren’t weapons you train with—they’re objects
you pick up to hit someone with.

A bow is a weapon you train with.

 

[tanj]

A bow is a weapon you train with.

You seem to have a very strange idea of how a bow is used.

 

[Mort_Q]

That's a weird way of writing rules. I guess they don't want you whacking someone over the head with you +2 bow as a melee attack to avoid the OA, and then have you try to claim that you get the bow's +2 or something.

An imporovised attack is not proficient and does the same damage regardless... so really, it doesn't matter, save in the story telling.

 

[Crazydwarf]

There seems to be some confusion here.
This is the bit I had in mind from PHB. P.215

Weapons in all four categories are further categorized
as melee weapons, which you use to attack
foes within reach of the weapon, or ranged weapons,
which you use to fire at more distant enemies. You
can’t use a ranged weapon as a melee weapon.

 

[tanj]

Well that answers that. I still like the idea of using a bow as an improvised weapon. Mechanically there wouldn't be much difference between using a bow as an improvised melee weapon and attacking unarmed, but I find the idea amusing.