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Hello everyone,
I couldn't find anything similar with the search feature or a glance through this section, so I made a new thread. So...
I am reading through the feats section of my PFRPG book, when I notice that now Combat Expertise is base attack bonus dependent on its bonus. I also notice that Deadly Aim and Power Attack are also this way. This isn't my misunderstanding, though.
My trouble comes in where it says that I may choose to take a -1 penalty for a +1 dodge bonus... then says the penalty and bonus increase. It doesn't explicitly state it, but does this mean that I cannot choose which penalty to take for what bonus. Am I stuck with a -3 at BAB +8, or can I choose to take a lower penalty for a lower bonus still?
Thanks for the help
Studpuffin
My understanding is NO you cannot choose what bonus to choose. You can see this as they removed the very specific text from the 3.5 feat description, saying for every one BAB you subtract you get +1 to damage (for PA, and I do not have my PHB handy)
3.p however only says as your BAB goes up and reachs a certain point the negative becomes higher. No text about choosing the modifier. If it were some for some (1 for 1 for example) then I would say yes.
This brings balance to the feat as PA was Uber, in my games we houseruled your PA was maxed at your STR mod or BAB whatever was lower (just like PF beta)
As I have seen Fighters at 14th level pump 100+ damage each hit using PA with a twohanded weapon this stands to seem very balanced in game play especially as Fighters are SO MUCH cooler now.
It is also my understanding that you get the listed bonus/penalty when you activate the feat. So for example at 4th level you have only the choice of +4/-2 if you activate your power attack.
I've also understood that you cannot choose the penalty/bonus when using any of those feats, but what has brought me to wonder, is that some
examples in the official PF books state otherwise.
An example in the Tome of Secrets, there is a 16th lvl fighter facing a dragon. And he is using PA with a greatsword for -2/+6...
I've also understood that you cannot choose the penalty/bonus when using any of those feats, but what has brought me to wonder, is that some
examples in the official PF books state otherwise.An example in the Tome of Secrets, there is a 16th lvl fighter facing a dragon. And he is using PA with a greatsword for -2/+6...
That might be a typo...
From the FAQ over at d20pfsrd.com:
Power Attack
Q: When using the Power Attack feat could someone opt to take the lesser penalty/benefit of the feet? Could a fighter with a BAB of +4 choose either -1/+2 or -2/+4? Or could they only do the -2/+4?
A: You cannot. The feat is meant to be turned either on or off with and it just increases with level now.
So you have to accept a specific penalty at a given level/BAB. IMO, this applies to all the feats you mentioned.
I see a few benefits of this, primarily book-keeping and the lack of addition/substraction on the go.
In Pathfinder, if you have, say, Power Attack, you can just not down two sets of attack bonus and damage, instead of having to make a calculation every time you choose to use the feat.
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Power Attack is uber? Its one of the most overlooked feats in my group, but the more I post on Paizo the more I am finding that my group's play style tends to be very different than everyone elses experience.
I'm probably going to houserule this one.
It also prevents min-maxing the damage vs AC ratio.
A number of my players have used complex excel spreadsheets or elaborate charts to work out what the best modifier to take vs a certain AC.
Really? That seems... unnecessary. Are they supposed to know their opponents AC going into a fight?
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It's hard not to eventually figure out. When player 1 misses on a 20 and player 2 hits on a 21 you know the AC is 21. At least in the games I've played there's always been at least one player that wrote down the lowest to hit number that scored, as well as the highest number that missed.
Hmmm, unnecessary meta gaming. All or nothing seems needlessly simplistic.
Hmmm, unnecessary meta gaming. All or nothing seems needlessly simplistic.It's hard not to eventually figure out. When player 1 misses on a 20 and player 2 hits on a 21 you know the AC is 21. At least in the games I've played there's always been at least one player that wrote down the lowest to hit number that scored, as well as the highest number that missed.
Different strokes for different folks. I know at my table there are a couple of players who keep track (in their heads) what the likely AC of an oppoenent is. I don't see it as metagaming, as combatants in RL will always be evaluating their opponent, trying to gauge their strengths and weaknesses.
We also have a player that has a lot of trouble keeping track of the bonuses and penalties that apply to his character through the combat. Having to deal with Bless, Aid, Bull's Strength, Smite Evil, etc etc, is already tricky enough. Throwing in Power Attack, and having to make an on-the-fly choice about how much of a penalty to take, and it's just too much and bogs down the game for him and everyone else.
Also note this is not a knock on said player. He does a great job playing his character, he has fun playing, and we have fun playing with him. What more could we ask?
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Different strokes for different folks. I know at my table there are a couple of players who keep track (in their heads) what the likely AC of an oppoenent is. I don't see it as metagaming, as combatants in RL will always be evaluating their opponent, trying to gauge their strengths and weaknesses.
We also have a player that has a lot of trouble keeping track of the bonuses and penalties that apply to his character through the combat. Having to deal with Bless, Aid, Bull's Strength, Smite Evil, etc etc, is already tricky enough. Throwing in Power Attack, and having to make an on-the-fly choice about how much of a penalty to take, and it's just too much and bogs down the game for him and everyone else.
Also note this is not a knock on said player. He does a great job playing his character, he has fun playing, and we have fun playing with him. What more could we ask?
Do we play at the same table ?