So we were fighting an enemy and I was surprised that the enemy did not have this feat, so I showed it to the GM and he used it. Although we found a medium of which to how the feat worked for the scenario in question and we moved on from it, I'm not convinced it was RAW/RAI.
Here's the relevant RAW:
As an immediate action while you are grappling an adjacent creature, you can make a grapple combat maneuver check against that creature to gain cover against a single attack. If you are successful and the attack misses you, that attack targets the creature you used as cover, using the same attack roll. You cannot use this feat against a creature grappling you, and the cover you gain ends after the attack you gained cover against is resolved.
The way we ruled it was that the creature makes a grapple check against the grappled target's CMD. If he is successful, he gets cover from a single attack (which the creature designates). If he makes the check, the next attack that misses him would instead be checked against the grappled one's AC and HP. It seems mostly on point.
But the hangup I have with this is whether 'cover' is being used as a game term or is described as a sort of flavor text. My instincts tell me the former, since it says you 'gain cover,' which implies use of a game term but I can also see it being the latter, since it then goes on to specifically describe the ramifications of the creature being used as 'cover,' which means it would otherwise overrule the general game term.
Has anyone seen this feat used in the likes of PFS scenarios? How did they run this feat in that situation?
You get the cover bonus to AC, which means the attack is more likely to miss you and try and hit the guy you're grappling.
Yes, you get a +4 Cover bonus to AC. If the attack misses you then it targets the creature you used as Cover. By my reading of the feat the attack doesn't need to miss by 4 or less to result in it targeting the creature you used as cover. It just needs to miss you (by any amount). I don't think the description of the additional effect which occurs when the attack misses does anything to detract from or change the fact you get Cover against the attack. There's just an additional effect which happens if the attack misses.
I took this feat recently in a home game, reasoning that it might be more fun than Rapid Grappler. So far this has proved true. My PC also has the advantage of being able to use Crane Wing and Riposte to make an AoO against the attacker since his levels in Feral Gnasher mean he can keep his hands free and make AoOs while grappling with his mouth.
Two questions which I'd imagine might come up are whether failing the grapple check for Body Shield releases the grappled foe and whether the grapple check for Body Shield inflicts Constrict damage. I'd say no to the first since creatures which can make multiple grapple attempts per round (typically due to Greater Grapple) only need to succeed on one of them to keep you grappled and the grapple attempt for Body Shield isn't described as maintaining the grapple anyhow. I would (and do) apply the Constrict damage if the grapple check succeeds though.