Targeting through allies.

[fadedsteps]

Sorry if this has been posted before.

How does targeting attacks work through allies?

Lets assume a defender is up front keeping the enemies at bay and the rest of the party is spread behind.

Can a magic missle, bow, or anything else be targeted through the defender?

I am especially confused about reach weapons through allies.

Any help?

 

[hong]

Sure. You could do it in 3E, you can still do it in 4E. Heck, you don't even take a cover penalty for firing through your buddy.

 

[VannATLC]

I hope you mean 'around' or 'over' hong.. else I'm not sure I'd ever feel safe if my character was in front of yours.

At least it creates good Keanu moments.

 

[Zurai]

I hope you mean 'around' or 'over' hong.. else I'm not sure I'd ever feel safe if my character was in front of yours.

At least it creates good Keanu moments.

No, he means "through". What, you mean you havn't seen the Halfling racial power Through The Legs Shot?

()

 

[quindia]

As far as I can tell, there is nothing to stop you from firing arrows at a kobold surrounded by your buddies. It's part of the over simplification of the game, (also existed in 3e BTW) that I'm not fond of.

It would be easy to house rule the old -4 for firing into melee or pulling the cover rules for 4e.

 

[Xect]

It would be easy to house rule the old -4 for firing into melee or pulling the cover rules for 4e.

But then you'd most likely just houserule the feats that negated the -4, and all you'd get was the old feat tax on ranged characters.

I have a problem with the lack of 'cover' only insofar as characters are static, which only happens when fighting basilisks and other creatures of that sort.

 

[Tony Vargas]

Perfectly. You can fire through allies at no penalty. It's a little odd, actually, the increased emphasis on tactics could have benefitted from thinking about youre allies' lines of fire, and the idea of increased mobility being desireable in combat would also be consistent with getting out of the way or setting up shots.

But, it is simpler - one or two fewer modifiers to worry about - and that was also a major design goal.

 

[webrunner]

Remember, a five foot square is 25 square feet. Your average character isn't taking up most of that space.

 

[VannATLC]

Good call.

I might houseroule that immobilized characters grant cover bonuses to all. I find it trite that they *don't* lose their Int/Dex Reflex and AC bonuses.

Houserules, Houserules.

 

[Xect]

I might houseroule that immobilized characters grant cover bonuses to all. I find it trite that they *don't* lose their Int/Dex Reflex and AC bonuses.

I think you should go higher than immobilized for that effect. Immobilized just means they can't leave their square. Stunned, perhaps?

I don't plan on calculating cover for anything short of downright petrification. But then again, I like to stick to the rules as written (or intended), and I'm not a fan of reducing character effectiveness without good reason.