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Are these feats applicable to a Repeating Crossbow in PFS?
Rapid Reload
Choose a type of crossbow (hand, light, heavy) or a single type of one-handed or two-handed firearm that you are proficient with. You can reload such a weapon quickly.Prerequisites: Weapon Proficiency (crossbow type chosen) or Exotic Weapon Proficiency (firearm).
Benefit: The time required for you to reload your chosen type of weapon is reduced to a free action (for a hand or light crossbow), a move action (for heavy crossbow or one-handed firearm), or a standard action (two-handed firearm). Reloading a crossbow or firearm still provokes attacks of opportunity.
If you have selected this feat for a hand crossbow or light crossbow, you may fire that weapon as many times in a full-attack action as you could attack if you were using a bow.
Normal: A character without this feat needs a move action to reload a hand or light crossbow, a standard action to reload a one-handed firearm, or a full-round action to load a heavy crossbow or a two-handed firearm.
Crossbow Mastery
You can load crossbows with blinding speed and even fire them in melee with little fear of reprisal.Prerequisites: Dex 15, Point-Blank Shot, Rapid Reload, Rapid Shot.
Benefit: The time required for you to reload any type of crossbow is reduced to a free action, regardless of the type of crossbow used. You can fire a crossbow as many times in a full attack action as you could attack if you were using a bow. Reloading a crossbow for the type of crossbow you chose when you took Rapid Reload no longer provokes attacks of opportunity.
The question is, does a Heavy Repeating Crossbow count as a Heavy Crossbow (or does a LRC count as a LC)? There are many arguments for and against in the forums so I'm looking for an official, PFS-legal answer, if one exists. If not, hit that FAQ button!
Ok ill take a stab at this.
Yes it all would. There is a heavy type and a light type repeating crossbow. Heavy crossbow has the same time to reload as a heavy OR light repeating crossbow and the difference between heavy and light repeating crossbow is one u can duel weild and one u have to hold with 2 hands.
The main difference to prevent 1st level uberness between a repeating and reg crossbow is the price of the weapon amd the ammo.
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God to I hate telling you this but no. By RAW rapid reload cannot be placed on a Heavy Repeating Crossbow *glares menacingly at design staff*
That being said you can use Crossbow Mastery on it. I've used this work around on my Crossbow spec'd ranger since you can get it that way without needing the qualifications.
This is one of those MANY THINGS involving repeaters that I've wanted addressed like this (along with changing the proficiency feat to more closely match that of fire arms).
Now if this a home game I would say just talk to your GM and see if he cares. Usually you can get lucky and this isn't a problem.
No, it's for a PFS character. It seems clear that Crossbow Mastery would let you reload your repeater as a free action but you'd lose the AoO benefit since if couldn't take Rapid Reload for a repeating crossbow, which is silly.
I'm not convinced, however, that by RAW you can't take Rapid Reload for a Repeating Crossbow. A Repeating Heavy Crossbow is still a Heavy Crossbow, and although the method of reloading is different the action is the same. I think it's a matter of unclear definition which, in PFS, means "expect table variation".
As a regular PFS GM, I'd have no problem letting it ho at my table. However, there are others that might not so I'd like to hear as many arguments for or against as possible (and in a perfect world, get an FAQ ruling) before I take the feats with one of my characters.
Personally I'd be 100% OK with someone taking RR with a repeating crossbow, but since you're specifically asking for arguments against, this is the best I can do:
RAW argument: It says crossbow, not repeating crossbow. If they wanted rapid reload to affect repeating crossbows they'd have included repeating crossbows in the description.
RAI argument: RR lists different reload speeds for light and heavy crossbows. Since light and heavy repeating crossbows are both reloaded with a full-round action, it seems odd that applying RR means the two previously identical reload speeds now differ. Therefore I think "light/heavy crossbows" in the feat description is not intended to include repeaters, and that repeating crossbows do not qualify for rapid reload.
Since you can't take rapid reload with a repeating crossbow you can't benefit from the "no AoO" clause under Crossbow Mastery. If you take RR with a normal crossbow, you can reload a repeating crossbow as a free action since Crossbow Mastery lists "any crossbow", but you'd be provoking attacks of opportunity when you do.
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When I look at the Weapons Table in the CRB or on the Official Paizo SRD site it see that ALL of the crossbows in question are named with the following convention;
Crossbow, Light.
Crossbow, Heavy.
Crossbow, Repeating Heavy.
Crossbow, Repeating Light.
They are all crossbows.
Feats that apply to crossbows also apply to Repeating crossbows.
Of course there are people who will argue this until they're blue in the face and insist on Designer clarification - as if it could be more clear.
Playing Devil's advocate again:
When I look at the Weapons Table in the CRB or on the Official Paizo SRD site it see that ALL of the spears in question are named with the following convention;
Spear.
Spear, short.
Spear, long.They are all spears.
Feats that apply to spears also apply to longspears and shortspears.
Of course there are people who will argue this until they're blue in the face and insist on Designer clarification - as if it could be more clear.
Arguing that "repeating" is simply an adjective is short-sighted. The game draws a very real difference between a repeating crossbow and a normal crossbow. They have different stats, require different proficiencies to use properly, and are listed separately in the weapon chart. Numerous classes get proficiency with one, but not the other. Weapon Focus: Heavy Crossbow would not work with a repeating heavy crossbow any more than WF: Shortsword would work with a longsword.
In this case "repeating" helps separate, distinguish and classify the crossbows. They are completely different weapons, and should be treated as such.
/end devil's advocate.
For what it's worth I actually would consider WF: Heavy crossbow and WF: Repeating heavy crossbow two different feats - I wouldn't let the bonus cross over.
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Weapon Focus Heavy Crossbow would not apply to or affect a Heavy Repeating Crossbow anymore than it would a Light Crossbow.
Why would anyone suggest otherwise?
The one thing they all have in common is that they are crossbows; so when a general feat, such as rapid reload or crossbow mastery applies to the group of weapons it applies to the group of weapons.
The only other feats I can think of off the top of my head that function in this manner are the Martial Versatility/Martial Mastery feats.
Weapon Focus Heavy Crossbow would not apply to or affect a Heavy Repeating Crossbow anymore than it would a Light Crossbow.
Why would anyone suggest otherwise?
Well, you kind of did suggest that earlier:
Feats that apply to crossbows also apply to Repeating crossbows.
At least that's how the last three posters have read it. It's actually a fairly simple mistake to make since there is a precedence - composite and normal bows share feats, for example. However, clearly normal and repeating crossbows do not work this way. Anyway, back to the thread topic.
The one thing they all have in common is that they are crossbows; so when a general feat, such as rapid reload or crossbow mastery applies to the group of weapons it applies to the group of weapons.
That's what we're trying to figure out - whether or not Rapid Reload is a "general feat" and can be used with any crossbow, or only with the crossbows listed in the feat description (hand/light/heavy) and with crossbows (like the double crossbow) stated as working elsewhere.
It's noteworthy that the description lists three crossbows it works with by name and includes all firearms, but explicitly does not mention repeating crossbows or explain how they step down in reload speed despite having different reload speeds, and that the "normal" note in the feat,
Normal: A character without this feat needs a move action to reload a hand or light crossbow, a standard action to reload a one-handed firearm, or a full-round action to load a heavy crossbow or a two-handed firearm.
omits the normal reload mechanism for repeating crossbows.