I can't believe they went that way with hand crossbows.
As DM, if you were to sheathe your melee weapon while engaged in melee combat (in a situation that would require you to take the Disengage Action to avoid an Opportunity Attack), my ruling would be that you trigger an Opportunity Attack.
As a certain Dark Lord of the Sith once said: You are unwise to lower your defenses.
In your example above, if you are moving from target to target to make your melee attacks, you haven't accounted for taking Disengage Actions (or the movement).
The Crossbow Expert Feat eliminates disadvantage for making a ranged attack within 5 feet of a hostile creature.
It does not eliminate the need for Disengaging, or make you immune to Opportunity Attacks.
I think that the Rules as Intended mean that when in melee combat, you have to actively maintain your melee engagement or use the Disengage Action to leave your threatened square. As long as you are in that threatened square your opponent is attacking. You can't just sheathe your weapon while somebody is in your face attacking you with a melee weapon; at least if you don't want to give them a free shot at you that is.
So I guess then, as Obryn said, Rapier+hand-crossbow is out to a certain extent. One could be holding both and attack with both in the same round (with Crossbow Expert Feat), but only once, and then would have to sheathe the rapier in order to reload the hand-crossbow, or stow the hand-crossbow in order to draw a second weapon the following round
That's illogical. If you're not trying to "win points" then why keep replying? You have the choice to not reply. As charismatic as many posters feel they may be, there's no way anybody here can make you do anything against your will.
That means you're still replying because you choose to. Because there is something you want.
Are you trying to get MerricB to say he was wrong? Is that what you want?
The problem with that though, is I don't believe he thinks he's wrong
So why else keep posting, keep pursuing that apology? Isn't the very pursuit of that apology, metaphorically speaking, "trying to win points"?
There are plenty of other possibilities, with the one that seems most likely to me being it was merely an expression of his emotions.
Engaging in mind-reading of other posters is always a recipe for bad things, especially in a medium devoid of cues such as vocal tone, inflection, and body language.
You likely came to ENWorld for a reason (unless a random dice roll made you come here ).
Do you really want the totality of your experience and history here to be an insulting first post, one not about the subject being discussed, and followed by nothing but arguing over that first post? (And at the risk of offending you more (though not my intention), aren't those the very definitions of trolling and thread-crapping?)
What is it you want out of ENWorld? I can't help but think that so far you haven't had the experience you were looking for. Maybe it's time to let it go and start over.
How about this to get the ball rolling:
What are your thoughts on Crawford's interpretations?
I don't know what they are. I hit this thread by accident.
How do you think it will impact the game?
How does it impact your view of the game?
Does this impact how you'll play the game in the future?
And Welcome to ENWorld.
The problem with that though, is I don't believe he thinks he's wrong, and everybody else that has replied to you (except Dausuul) have also said they don't think he was wrong (including me). The odds of getting what you want (if that's what you want) are slim to none; likely a futile endeavor. So why else keep posting, keep pursuing that apology? Isn't the very pursuit of that apology, metaphorically speaking, "trying to win points"?
.
I'm sure that an expert xbow user could load a small xbow with 1 hand while holding something in the other. slip the bow between the knees cock it and slide in the bolt. Presto! granted realism is out the window in terms of melee combat, but not unreasonable if they are at range.
I wouldn't characterize firing a crossbow point-blank at somebody's face as lowering your defences.
I think the assumption is that the bearer of the feat is standing toe to toe with his/her opponent.
Imposing an opportunity attack for sheathing a weapon, and not moving out of reach, doesn't make a lot of sense if you consider that a character that doesn't have a melee weapon in the first place isn't going to incur an opportunity attack just for standing there...
and as I said above, the character with Crossbow Expert still has a crossbow pointed at his/her opponent, and the idea is that he/she is trained to use the crossbow in a melee context.
If you continue to lecture me, I will continue to respond. Otherwise you will probably never see me again.
Ahh...now I understand. As long as everybody shuts up and lets you have the last word, everything will be fine.
Good luck with that.
I'm out.
But until then, I have to refute your points.
No, you don't.
I'm a lawyer who specializes in copyright matters. For a long time, I got involved with each and every discussion on ENWorld's boards in which someone advocated some form of IP violation, even if it was minor. I'd see some of the various anti-copyright/pro-piracy catchphrases, and- quick as I could- I'd don my armor, mount my white Percheron, and charge into the the fray. And I wouldn't leave until the other side relented.
Then I saw this.
View attachment 68444
After that, I'd still post in those threads. But I was brief and to the point. Sometimes, I merely posted a link or 2 to other, prior discussions. And then I'd let go.
For me, this has translated into a slightly better sleep schedule and better control over my blood pressure. IOW, I'm healthier since I learned to let go of Internet debate death spirals. Even if I'm 100% right; even if I'm 100% misunderstood, there comes a time to simply let it be.