I figured the Tower Shield answer would be no.
If you can use a table or ladder or bucket as a weapon, I'd allow a tower shield, but I'd also apply the modifiers for a weapon that is inappropriately sized for the user.
So, attack away at -6.
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Of course, because of this ruling people will once again try to use a single reach weapon to do a whirlwind attack at both reach and non-reach by switching threat ranges in the middle of the whirlwind attack (despite the fact that you check who you are threatening at the start of the whirlwind attack).
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Rings big enough to work as improvised brass knuckles would be pretty damn big and hard to miss.Yup! Not to mention the reason brass knuckles are so dangerous is due to the added weight and support it gives to the fingers. The rings would add a little sting, but you still are missing on the support the knuckles give to the inner hand, which allows the outer portion of the brass knuckles to remain rigid. It's similar to putting a roll of quarters in your hand before hitting them...
The points you raise re: brass knuckles versus heavy rings are neatly reflected in the attack and crit penalties for using an improvised weapon.
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Seriously, if you want to use a weapon to attack and threaten at both reach and adjacent without having to spend free actions, spend the three feats, and get yourself a whip.
Ah... Using the haft as a improvised weapon is by far the LEAST effective option you can use. Hence my curiosity on why the need for a grip change to prevent it. You can spend 0 feats and 20gp, put on a boulder helmet and at worst are -4 to hit with it but get the enhancements on it. It's a logic thing, NOT trying to get some sneaky benefit from using a polearm.
So what you are saying is a person swinging to hit with the haft instead of the point of the weapon would be less effective while doing so? It's almost like they would be using an improvised weapon instead of a manufactured one. As for how far down you would be holding your hand...a wider stance works with a thrusting weapon. If you try such a wide grip with a slashing weapon, your own body is going to get in the way of swinging with your full power. Of course, in real life to get full power you would actually shift your grip mid-swing to maximize leverage while still achieving range...Actually, you are still incorrect. Swinging a weapon to use an end 6' away from you requires different dynamics than swinging it to use the part in the middle at 3' away from you especially since those middle bits are both not designed to hit with, and not designed to take a full force hit on something else. And your forward hand is probably, normally, holding it there so it doesn't do anything weird when you are attacking with the nasty part at the end.
Yep. A quick crosscheck or haft strike with the last bit beyond your second hand.
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Is there somewhere in the rules that changes the hardness and HP of a weapon depending on if you are attacking the blade or haft? I'm curious, especially since one of my characters is intending to get an adamantine glaive at some point.
If you attack with the haft of your Adamantine Glaive as an improvised weapon, its hardness would only be 5 (which would also not benefit from the increased hardness that magical enhancements provide).
Is there somewhere in the rules that changes the hardness and HP of a weapon depending on if you are attacking the blade or haft? I'm curious, especially since one of my characters is intending to get an adamantine glaive at some point.If you attack with the haft of your Adamantine Glaive as an improvised weapon, its hardness would only be 5 (which would also not benefit from the increased hardness that magical enhancements provide).
There has to be some sense applied though.
It mainly means even though you have an adamantine spear, you can´t overcome hardness 10 like that when attacking with the shaft as improvised weapon, just like any specials keyed to the spear would not apply.I would be very careful though to now go on and sunder the spear shaft like a wooden item without magical enhancements at that moment though.
Same is probably true for any disarm attempts or similar things.
That´s a very peculiar topic, because there are no rules that i´m aware of that you could somehow make the shaft of a spear better.
After all, a magical spear probably doesn´t only include the magical spearhead, but an overall good spear. Adamantine and wood are separetely called out there though. Now can you make a darkwood/adamantine spear? Or a complete adamantine spear? Perhaps that needs another FAQ.
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"Weapons and armor normally made of steel that are made of adamantine have one-third more hit points than normal. Adamantine has 40 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 20."
So, because a spear is not normally made 100% of steel, it doesn't get the adamantine HP/Hardness bonus.
"Any wooden or mostly wooden item (such as a bow or spear) made from darkwood is considered a masterwork item and weighs only half as much as a normal wooden item of that type. Items not normally made of wood or only partially of wood (such as a battleaxe or a mace) either cannot be made from darkwood or do not gain any special benefit from being made of darkwood. ... Darkwood has 10 hit points per inch of thickness and hardness 5."
Spears are explicitly called out as benefitting from darkwood, so you could have a darkwood/adamantine spear, with the darkwood Hp/Hardness and adamantine for dr/sunder attempts.
The points you raise re: brass knuckles versus heavy rings are neatly reflected in the attack and crit penalties for using an improvised weapon.Rings big enough to work as improvised brass knuckles would be pretty damn big and hard to miss.Yup! Not to mention the reason brass knuckles are so dangerous is due to the added weight and support it gives to the fingers. The rings would add a little sting, but you still are missing on the support the knuckles give to the inner hand, which allows the outer portion of the brass knuckles to remain rigid. It's similar to putting a roll of quarters in your hand before hitting them...
This gives me an idea for a magic item.
This also seems to answer the question on threatening with improvised weapons.
to be honest, I would rather let a guy with a pole arm or longspear use the butt end of the weapon this way, than go with armored spikes shenanigans of trying to kick at people.
I would think shifting the grip on your weapon (or not needing to in the first place) would be far easier than shifting footing/readiness to kick stuff accurately/effectively on a moments notice (like is necessary for a AoO)
I think what it means for changing grip is more along the lines of "choking up" and are out of position to threaten at reach, rather now you are threatening adjacent, and you have to simply chose from round to round which you are threatening.
a simple feat, maybe with catch off guard or improved improvised wep. as a prerequisite? should allow you to threaten at reach and adjacent simultaneously…. totally prefer this to armor spikes….
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I wouldn't describe them as shenanigans.
I never liked the whole spiked armor threaten everywhere loophole.
It can't be disarmed, it's every hard to sunder, it's always ready/available, it's very cheap and it doesn't require feat investment to work, with the expressed purpose of circumventing a designed in 'weakness' of using a reach weapon….
Yea I'd call that shenanigans.
I figured the Tower Shield answer would be no.
Why? Literally any physical object can be an improvised weapon, provided you can hold it. What's so different about the tower shield?
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Why do you think it does that?
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So, unarmed strikes are "shenanigans"?
What about the Dwarven Boulder Helmet?
Is anything that does not require an actual hand, "shenanigans"?
Do you look to the player with Improved Unarmed Strike, and say "Are using your feet, to kick people? That's total B.S. man!"?
Unarmed strikes require a free hand, unless you're a monk.
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Unarmed strikes require a free hand, unless you're a monk.So, unarmed strikes are "shenanigans"?
What about the Dwarven Boulder Helmet?
Is anything that does not require an actual hand, "shenanigans"?
Do you look to the player with Improved Unarmed Strike, and say "Are using your feet, to kick people? That's total B.S. man!"?
Rubbish.
Unarmed strikes require a free hand, unless you're a monk.So, unarmed strikes are "shenanigans"?
What about the Dwarven Boulder Helmet?
Is anything that does not require an actual hand, "shenanigans"?
Do you look to the player with Improved Unarmed Strike, and say "Are using your feet, to kick people? That's total B.S. man!"?
Citation, please.
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Unarmed strikes require a free hand, unless you're a monk.So, unarmed strikes are "shenanigans"?
What about the Dwarven Boulder Helmet?
Is anything that does not require an actual hand, "shenanigans"?
Do you look to the player with Improved Unarmed Strike, and say "Are using your feet, to kick people? That's total B.S. man!"?
Utter B.S.
I can hardly think of any other rules misunderstanding more inane than this.
Anyone, and I mean anyone, with a pair of legs, can kick someone, even if they are holding an object in both hands.
Even a Commoner, without the Improved Unarmed Strike feat, holding a pitchfork with two hands, can kick someone.
UE: "An unarmed strike is an attack such as a punch or a kick where the attacker is not using a weapon to make the attack."
Now he MAY be talking about two weapon fighting and a 'hand of effort'.
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Maybe.
I just can't believe that anyone could somehow believe that the Pathfinder world is filled with people completely incapable of kicking, without years of training.
Heh. Who needs to kick? I don't know about you, but I have been hip checked to pretty awesome effect in the real world. Damage and a free bullrush in every hip.
Sorry, guys. I must've been thinking about elbowing, kneeing and headbutting (which a monk can do, but a regular unarmed strike won't do).
Sorry, guys. I must've been thinking about elbowing, kneeing and headbutting (which a monk can do, but a regular unarmed strike won't do).Got a citation for that?
Compare graystone's Ultimate Equipment quote on unarmed strikes to "monk's attacks may be with fist, elbows, knees, and feet."
The FAQ makes it clear that an unarmed strike is considered an 'attack with the body', has no offhand and can be made even when the hands are in use.
you can unarmed strike with absolutely anything you want to, within reason.