These are rules I am thinking of using for pinning a target to an object in my games. What do you think?
Pin Down: A range attack can be used to pin a target down to a surface. The attack gets a – 2 penalty if the target is closer than 30 ft. The penalty increases by 2 for every 30 ft. increment. So a target 80 ft. away applies a – 6 penalty to the shot. If you successfully hit the target you roll damage to see if you penetrate the hardness of the surface you pinned the target to. Example: For a 1st level warrior (longbow + 3 (1d8/x3) to pin a rogue that is 20 ft. away and has AC 16 to ground (harness 3), he would have to roll a 15 or better to hit, and cause at least 4 points of damage (note: at least one point of damage must be done to the object.) for the arrow to stick into the ground. The target is treated as entangled while they are pinned by the attack, and can not move from that spot until the weapon is removed. The target can remove the range weapon as a move action, thus ending the entangled condition.
Feats
Greater Pin Down
Your pin down attacks hurt the targets.
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim, Improved Pin Down
Benefit: When you pin down a target you can choose to have the damage in excess of the hardness needed to overcome the hardness of the object you pinned the target to cause damage to the target. (Example: You inflict 8 points of damage to pin a target to a wooden wall. The wall has hardness 5 so you do 2 points of damage to the target with the attack.) Additionally, for the target to remove the weapon they must pull it away or through their flesh causing damage equal to the weapons normal damage. Note By choosing this option you reduce the DC of the Strength check to remove the weapon down to equal the hardness of the object plus 1. (Example: The target was pinned to a wooden wall, so the DC for the Strength check would be 6 instead of five.)
Improved Pin Down
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim
Benefit: When you successfully pin down a target with a range attack, the target must make a successful Strength check as a full round action to remove the weapon that has entangled them. The DC of the Strength check is equal to the damage that entangled them.
(edited to fix some of the math in the feat descriptions.)
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Good lord, two feats? Do you write for Paizo or something?
Here's my suggestions:
Make the act "Pin Down" a combat maneuver. Remove the penalty from range (range weapons already have built-in range penalties so a second penalty is redundant). Remove the Hardness/Damage bit. It's a meaningless extra step that doesn't really add anything. Change the penalty to entangled for 1 round (ammunition normally breaks on impact so I think that's more than fair as a compromise). Maybe an additional round for every 5 by which you beat the CMD.
For "Greater Pin Down" again, remove all the Hardness stuff. Remove the "Note". Just "removing the arrow causes the target to take damage".
For "Improved Pin Down" remove the Strength check. Taking a Full-Round is already painful enough.
In both cases I would say avoid adding in "Target takes damage and is entangled". From reading it look like you intend for this to be a attack replacement and it's insane that an archer should be allowed to Full Attack for full damage AND entangle everyone. I'd make Pin Down a standard action if you want it to deal damage on contact.
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There's Abadar's Crossbow's Advanced Benefit.
Thank you Johnnycat93, I thought about making it a combat maneuver, but thought that the fact that Strength is used to determine the modifier it would seem odd for a range attack, but there is a feat already to switch the modifier to Dexterity. So I am going with the combat maneuver version of pin down. I was also thinking why can't melee attacks to the same thing, so I opened the combat maneuver up for melee attacks as well.
Combat Maneuver
Pin Down: As a standard action you can attempt to use a weapon to pin a target to an adjacent surface. Unless you have the Improved Pin Down feat this maneuver provokes attacks of opportunity.
If your attack exceeds the target’s CMD, the target is entangled by the weapon and can not move from that place. The entangled condition can be ended by using a move action to free the weapon from the target.
Feats
Greater Pin Down
Your pin down attacks hurt the targets.
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim (for range weapons) or Power Attack (for melee weapons), Improved Pin Down
Benefit: You receive a + 2 bonus on checks made to pin down a target. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by Improved Pin Down. When the weapon is removed from the target the weapon damages the target. Note: Only enhancement bonuses are added to this weapon damage.
Improved Pin Down
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim (for range weapons) or Power Attack (for melee weapons)
Benefit: You do not provoke attacks of opportunity when you try to pin down a target, and you gain a + 2 bonus on checks made to pin down targets. Additionally, when you successfully pin down a target with an attack, the target must take a full round action to remove the weapon that was used to entangle them.
Normal: The target must use a move action to end the entangled condition, and you provoke an attack of opportunity when trying to pin down a target.
There's already an FAQ that lets one use a relevant modifier when performing a maneuver with a weapon, so an archer would be able to add DEX without needing Agile Maneuvers.
It's a little unclear: does successfully performing the maneuver allow you to damage your opponent in addition to the entagled, or is it just entangled?
You should probably note, for melee weapons, that they will be having to let go of their weapon with a successful Pin Down.
The idea is that no damage is done to the target of the pin down. It's like pinning a target by their clothes or a joint in their armor. The Greater Pin Down was suppose to be how they could damage the target.
Is this better?
Combat Maneuver
Pin Down: As a standard action you can attempt to use a weapon to pin a target to an adjacent surface. Unless you have the Improved Pin Down feat this maneuver provokes attacks of opportunity.
If your attack exceeds the target’s CMD, the target is entangled by the weapon and can not move from that place, but takes no damage from the attack. The entangled condition can be ended by using a move action to free the weapon from the target. Note that melee attackers have to leave their weapon in place (it takes a move action to remove the weapon for the attacker also) or the entangled condition ends.
Feats
Greater Pin Down
Your pin down attacks hurt the targets.
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim (for range weapons) or Power Attack (for melee weapons), Improved Pin Down
Benefit: You receive a + 2 bonus on checks made to pin down a target. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by Improved Pin Down. When the weapon is removed from the target the weapon damages the target. Note: Only enhancement bonuses are added to this weapon damage.
Improved Pin Down
Prerequisite: Deadly Aim (for range weapons) or Power Attack (for melee weapons)
Benefit: You do not provoke attacks of opportunity when you try to pin down a target, and you gain a + 2 bonus on checks made to pin down targets. Additionally, when you successfully pin down a target with an attack, the target must take a full round action to remove the weapon that was used to entangle them.
Normal: The target must use a move action to end the entangled condition, and you provoke an attack of opportunity when trying to pin down a target.
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Yeah, it's all nice and pretty like I like to see.
It's a strong maneuver (about in-line with tripping someone) so I'm sure at some point someone's going to be trying to abuse it.
Yeah, thanks for your help. I am sure it will get abused. Combat maneuvers have a sweet spot in mid levels where they get abused, but then they lose some of their luster at higher levels. I look forward to seeing it in play.