A weaponized net is an uncommon advanced ranged weapon. It requires two hands to use effectively.
You can use this weapon to Disarm or Trip with the Athletics skill even if you don’t have a free hand. This has a reach of 10 feet and adds the weapon’s item bonus to attack rolls as an item bonus to the Athletics check. If you critically fail a check to Disarm or Trip using the weapon, you can drop the weapon to take the effects of a failure instead of a critical failure. If you critically succeed a check to Disarm, you still need a free hand if you want to take the item.
The net has a rope attached to it, typically 30 ft long.
With a 2-action activity, you can tie the rope around your wrist, although this is not necessary to use it.
As an action, you can throw a net over a 10-foot square up to 10 feet. When you throw a net, you make a ranged attack against the Reflex DC of each creature under the net. Each target that you hit is under the net and flat-footed.
As an action, you can draw the string on a net. If there is only one creature under the net, and they are Medium or smaller, they are restrained. If they are Large, they cannot make attacks that require two arms. If they are Gargantuan, they begin suffocating.
As an action, you can feed the rope. This changes the maximum distance between you and the target. You may attempt to pull the target closer to you. If supporting the combined Bulk of the target and all their gear would not give you the encumbered condition, you can pull the target up to 10 feet. If you can support the weight, you can pull the target 5 feet. Otherwise, you cannot pull the target.
A creature trapped under the net cannot move further away from you than the trailing end of rope.
The net has an Escape DC of 17, or 21 if the drawstring is pulled. It has a Hardness 4, 16 Hit Points, and a Broken Threshold of 8. On a critical failure to deal damage to the net, roll an attack with the weapon against the target.
If you can make attacks of opportunity, you can take them against a target under your net with a melee attack roll. On a hit, they take no damage, but any additional effects from your attacks of opportunity (such as disrupting a manipulate action) still apply.
A net must be folded to be thrown effectively. The first time you throw your net in a fight, it is unfolded. After the net is unfolded, you take a –4 circumstance penalty on attack rolls if it is thrown again. It takes 2 two-action activities on consecutive turns for a proficient user to fold a net and 4 three-action activities for a non-proficient one to do so.
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Is it too powerful, too weak, too exploitable, or too complex? Is there a better way for me to write up rules accounting for net size and composition? I cut that the first time because the words were too confusing. In summary, what do you think?
