CCamfield said:
Well, you make some good points there. But both of the feats are available to anyone with a BAB of +1 and Dex 13. So a first level fighter could potentially be getting those three shots off in one round. Comments?
No, he would only be able to get off two in one round. With an arrow already in the crossbow (assuming light or hand) then he fires it, uses the Rapid Reload or Quick Load feat (they are essentialy the same feat just different prereqs) to load another bolt and use Quick Shot (the other Mercenaries feat in question) to fire the second bolt at the -3 with double range penalties if any apply. I've read the special addendum at the end of Quick Shot and it doesn't make sense, since you can only use Quick Shot once per round so I'd suggest ignoring that last part. The only way it would make sense is if the character in question had a BAB of at least +6/+1. If the prerequesites bother you then you can change them but really all this combo does is allow a 1st level fighter to use a weak version of Rapid Shot with a crossbow.
So, 1st round with a bolt loaded. Fighter has a BAB +1 and a Dex mod of, say, +4 for a total of +5.
He fires his first shot at +5, then Rapid Reloads and takes his Quick Shot at +2. He still has a move-equivalent left so he can either reload his crossbow or move.
Now, lets look at the same fighter using Point Blank Shot & Rapid Shot with a bow;
BAB +1, +4 Dex, and we'll assume a target within 30' so +1 from PBS for a total of +6.
Fires his first shot at +6 and Rapid Shots a second at +4. Since he isn't concerned about reloading, he can move or perform any other move equivalent action.
After careful consideration (and taking into account the fact that the Special under Quick Shot is somehow bogus) I see nothing wrong with these two feats as written.
Edit; damn typos