Can a loaded crossbow be carried hung over a shoulder (not in hand)without becoming unloaded?
Can multiple folded nets (6 lbs.) be carried on someones person (notin hand)/in a bag without unfolding?
I would appreciate an official answer or a link to such.
By RAW, nothing says you can't do so. Common gaming practices of having a character always be in armor, even when traveling long distances or setting up for camp, were very uncommon. Characters always having their bow strung in order to fire it at a moment's notice was similarly uncommon as it would damage the bow. Heck, the fact that my character can carry a greataxe, greatsword, halberd, spear and longbow across his back while taking no penalties in combat (as long as he isn't encumbered) is also unrealistic.
Unless your GM wants to create a houserule regarding such, you can carry all the folded nets and readied crossbows your wealth and strength will allow.
By RAW, nothing says you can't do so. Common gaming practices of having a character always be in armor, even when traveling long distances or setting up for camp, were very uncommon. Characters always having their bow strung in order to fire it at a moment's notice was similarly uncommon as it would damage the bow. Heck, the fact that my character can carry a greataxe, greatsword, halberd, spear and longbow across his back while taking no penalties in combat (as long as he isn't encumbered) is also unrealistic.
Unless your GM wants to create a houserule regarding such, you can carry all the folded nets and readied crossbows your wealth and strength will allow.
But carrying a strung crossbow over the shoulder is nonesense as the release is too sensitive to permit that. It would go off pretty often. It has no safety pin.
Likewise carrying a folded net in a belt is like carrying a neatly folded satin sheet. You can surely stuff it in your belt, but it will no longer be neatly folded once you pull it out for use.
Reconstructions of roman gladiatorial fights show that folding and using a net in combat is very tricky unless you only want to use it to swat away your opponents thrusts with it.
I know. It's also silly to think that a pinch of bat guano, a couple of fancy words and some finger wiggling would cause an area within sight to suddenly explode in flames. Or that a world can exist with dozens of sentient species without a single one of them having taken dominance. But that's how things seem to work. I listed a RAW ruling. You are free to houserule otherwise. Just keep in mind that non-magic users already have something of a time trying to keep up after the first few levels and nets and crossbows aren't that powerful to begin with.
But carrying a strung crossbow over the shoulder is nonesense as the release is too sensitive to permit that. It would go off pretty often. It has no safety pin.
Likewise carrying a folded net in a belt is like carrying a neatly folded satin sheet. You can surely stuff it in your belt, but it will no longer be neatly folded once you pull it out for use.
Reconstructions of roman gladiatorial fights show that folding and using a net in combat is very tricky unless you only want to use it to swat away your opponents thrusts with it.
In a game such as this certain allowances have to be made to allow a smooth game. The principal of GOR, or Gameplay over reality comes into play.
For instance, the truth of combat is that different weapons behave very differently. If you are fighting a man with a sword and sheild your ability to fight him is very different if you are weilding a dagger, or if you are weilding a mace. But the combat system does not account for it. Sure weapons do different damage but the difference is way smaller then the real life disparity, and things like the reach of a weapon (not reach weapons but greatsword vs dagger for instance) are just to complicated to implement.
Crossbows are weak enough in the rule without penalyzing them further (by requiring them to be loaded in the first round of combat).
Nets too are not some super weapon that cause issues if they need not be readied before use.
I know. It's also silly to think that a pinch of bat guano, a couple of fancy words and some finger wiggling would cause an area within sight to suddenly explode in flames. Or that a world can exist with dozens of sentient species without a single one of them having taken dominance. But that's how things seem to work. I listed a RAW ruling. You are free to houserule otherwise. Just keep in mind that non-magic users already have something of a time trying to keep up after the first few levels and nets and crossbows aren't that powerful to begin with.
There are meny things that go unmentioned in RAW, but that does not mean they do not apply. If you drop a glass vial from 9' height it will break, but the rules do not say so. If you hold a candle in your hand untill it burns down you will be burned if you do not let go of it, and that is not mentioned either.
Likewise the rules do not state that elves make a living by making toys for a fat man in a red coat. But none the less you do not assume this to be the case ... I take!?
Some aspects of the game are drawn frem real life and do not have to be explained in rules. Rules that explained EVERY THING would be a 40 volume encyclopedia (as Jason already has explained). Some thing we must asume are true to the fantasy world as they are to our own. Those things need to be taken into account for the sake of verusimilitude.
And verusimilitude is an important element to fantasy RPGs. Only when the fantastic meets the mundane is the fantistic trully fantastic.
Another aspect of this is the inbalance nets represent if a character can pack half a dusin of them ready to use. Then what is the point of having tangleffot? Maybe this sort of equipment is unimportant at mid and high levels, compared to the powers of spell casters, but when comparing mundane weaponry balance becomes an issue.
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In my Opinion, anything not stated in the rules is up to the DM to decided. Want that glass vial to break when dropped? go for it, want that candle to burn their fingers? Yep, you guessed it, it is your game.
The DM can rule anything not RAW anyway they want, as long as the story goes on, and is enjoyable. it is all good. How a DM handles stuff like that is part of what makes them a good or bad DM.
My take on the crossbows is that even if they do not go off (reflex save on any movement that would cause a wizard to make a concentration check for spell casting), I would say that the string has been under tension too long and every time they go to use it (without replacing the string) give them a chance of it breaking (in secret, per shot). For example (pulling numbers out of nowhere):
Each 2 hours that it is kept strung, increase the crit failure chance by 1, so after the second hour, the crossbow would fail on a 1-2.
This is the GM's call, because rules to govern this would be incredibly annoying.
You could invent a "wieldiness" rating for each item, and put special consequences for mishandling under each item. I doubt very much that an 8 year old has much use for such a simulation.
I think it is generally assumed that if you walk into a dark cave, scary swamp, enemy fortress, etc. that you load your crossbows, light your torches, fold your nets, cast your long duration spells, or otherwise ready yourself for the possibility of combat an/or exploration.
Otherwise, a lot of those weird questions pop up. Now, if the characters were absolutely comfortable (such as in there own home) and were suddenly ambushed, I would not allow them to start the encounter with their weapon, much less drawn and readied (unless the character in question is known for always having a weapon on hand).
I think it is generally assumed that if you walk into a dark cave, scary swamp, enemy fortress, etc. that you load your crossbows, light your torches, fold your nets, cast your long duration spells, or otherwise ready yourself for the possibility of combat an/or exploration.
Otherwise, a lot of those weird questions pop up. Now, if the characters were absolutely comfortable (such as in there own home) and were suddenly ambushed, I would not allow them to start the encounter with their weapon, much less drawn and readied (unless the character in question is known for always having a weapon on hand).
I generally agree with that. The issue arises when a fighter has been going at the monsters for 5 rounds of vigorous combat with hacking, slashing, falling and jumping going on, and suddenly says "I switch to my heavy crossbow and shoot the enemy mage", "Of course I can shoot it right away... it was loaded all along".
That to me is nonesense!
In my Opinion, anything not stated in the rules is up to the DM to decided. Want that glass vial to break when dropped? go for it, want that candle to burn their fingers? Yep, you guessed it, it is your game.
The DM can rule anything not RAW anyway they want, as long as the story goes on, and is enjoyable. it is all good. How a DM handles stuff like that is part of what makes them a good or bad DM.
At my home game it is never a problem. We all agree on most rules and interpretations and if we disagre the GM rules and we discuss it later.
The reason why it is suddenly a problem is that two weeks from now I am GMing a PFS event with four other GMs.
I think it is important that we as a whole are consistent with our rules interpretations and therefore think it is important to have an official stance on this.
The reason why it is suddenly a problem is that two weeks from now I am GMing a PFS event with four other GMs.I think it is important that we as a whole are consistent with our rules interpretations and therefore think it is important to have an official stance on this.
Then you might ask this over in the Pathfinder Society section of the boards. They have several special rules that are otherwise ambiguous or unspecified for normal play. By RAW, you can have your bow/crossbow/sling/whatever ready at all times. PFS might have a different ruling. I suggest you check there, if only for completeness sake.
If anybody wants a more realistic approach,
it seems certainly plausible to have "Net Pouches" that they stay well-folded in.
Like-wise... Cross-bows well COULD have a "safety", though travelling over-land with cross-bows permanently cocked would eventually weaken them. But in the scope of and hour or two investigating a ruin, etc, that doesn't need to come up.
The issue arises when a fighter has been going at the monsters for 5 rounds of vigorous combat with hacking, slashing, falling and jumping going on, and suddenly says "I switch to my heavy crossbow and shoot the enemy mage", "Of course I can shoot it right away... it was loaded all along".
That to me is nonesense!
I agree.
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16
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("You didn't say you were lighting the torches, so you're effectively blind. You are eaten by a grue.")
Grandfather,
I've GMed a lot of Pathfinder Society scenarios, and organized play before that. And my experience suggests that you're looking to solve the wrong problem. You probably don't need to worry about how the other GMs at the convention are going to rule. They aren't your responsibility, and you're not theirs.
Rather, you want to address what your players will be expecting. If one of the PCs has a net as her weapon, explain to her before the party enters the danger zone that you'll be expecting her to take measures to keep the net untangled. If a player is running a character with a crossbow, ask him to tell you when he's pulling and knocking the bolt. And so on, with all the rulings that you imagine players might get confused about, unfamiliar as they are with your style.
'Cause, I gotta say, if I'm a player, and I feel that my GM is screwing me over with a surprise hard-ass ruling , it's not going to matter to me that all the other tables are getting mad at their GMs, too.
You need to ask yourself, as a GM, if this level of detail adds anything to the game. Or does it just bog the game down with something that needs to be tracked and ends up detracting from the fun?
My players sometimes ask if they can shoot their crossbow round 1, was it loaded, and so on. I just tell them, I don't know, you tell me. Was it loaded? It's not my crossbow, it's your characters.
I have better, bigger, more fun things to manage in the game than the readiness level of their crossbows. Once combat has begun, it's easy to track. Outside of combat, it's easier and more fun for everyone to just assume it's loaded and move on.
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The other tricky element here is game-balance. If I'm an archer and I can't just whip-out my bow and start shooting on round-1, I'm less-effective than the rest of the group.
Stringing bows, folding nets, and cranking crossbows isn't fun. Shooting things is fun. You'll note there's no rules about sharpening or oiling swords in the game either.
I certainly agree that it's unrealistic and it bothers me to some extent, but the game ends up being more fun for me and the rest of my friends without tracking the minutia of weapon maintenance.
A strung bow isn't a problem until it's been strung over 24 hours, a loaded crossbow on the other hand raises the question "how's the bolt staying in the groove without falling out?" unless carried at the ready. As a primary "archer" I doubt you're going anywhere without your bow/crossbow/sling or whatever range weapon you specialize in at the ready. The character that uses any such weapon as a back up I would penalize alone by having him need to pull the bow over his head and off his shoulder or lay a bolt in the grove or even pull the net from the pouch.
when it comes to switching weapons, there is a 1 round delay in readiness. i do believe its in the 3.5 rule setting and thats how my group has always ran our games. my fighter will use his sword in hand, but if its dropped in favor of using my crossbow I forfeit my next attack round in order to use it. same goes with pulling my shortsword unless i have quick draw as a feat. As for a constant readied cross bow, no, not allowed when I GM. while under constant tension the string stretches (real life effect) and causing the range and damage to be dropped considerably. also the constant tension on the metal of the bow section will cause a permanent warp also contributing in the malfunctioning of the bow(again, real life fact). thats why the 1 round delay for light crossbow, 2 rounds if heavy. also lets not forget gravity is in play as well. the only thing that will hold the bolt in place is the nock, the bolt would just fall off if pointed down (again, real life info)
I own a hand crossbow and have owned a standard hunting/target shooting crossbow.
The one thing I have thought about is the attack of opportunity the opponent should get when someone switches weapons or while loading their crossbow. you need two hands to pull the string weather light or heavy crossbow, basically while loading one is and should be considered flatfooted as you are not actively defending yourself while trying to load the next shot. an archer using a shortbow at least can move, but medieval crossbows, crank or hand bull, had a foot hold to assist in loading (the U shaped thing at the front of the crossbow. Oh did I mention I have a minor in medieval history focused on weaponry and military tactics....:)
when it comes to switching weapons, there is a 1 round delay in readiness. i do believe its in the 3.5 rule setting and thats how my group has always ran our games. my fighter will use his sword in hand, but if its dropped in favor of using my crossbow I forfeit my next attack round in order to use it. same goes with pulling my shortsword unless i have quick draw as a feat. As for a constant readied cross bow, no, not allowed when I GM. while under constant tension the string stretches (real life effect) and causing the range and damage to be dropped considerably. also the constant tension on the metal of the bow section will cause a permanent warp also contributing in the malfunctioning of the bow(again, real life fact). thats why the 1 round delay for light crossbow, 2 rounds if heavy.
That's why I only pointed out a strung bow, having it drawn at full or even partial pull for a prolonged period can damage it although I think that can readily be "explained" when enchanted with magic as to it being able to withstand the strain. The question still remains though of how the ammunition is being held in place without actually being held in the characters hands?
Not allowing a crossbow user to have his weapon at the ready puts him at an unfair disadvantage just because of real life dynamics. All other weapons can be at the ready to use without incurring quality damage aside from the crossbow but the advantages of the weapon do not give reason for such a heavy penalty, it's already a slow shooter compared to the bow and has a shorter range.
the reason for crossbows are armor penetration. I actually give negatives to short/longbow users when facing an opponent in full plate unless they specify they are using armor piercing arrows and even then they still get a negative. the crossbow receives no negative and will get an addition to the to hit score for soft armor types, as it should be according to the real life reason and use for crossbows.
the reason for crossbows are armor penetration. I actually give negatives to short/longbow users when facing an opponent in full plate unless they specify they are using armor piercing arrows and even them they still get a negative. the crossbow receives no negative and will get an addition to the to hit score for soft armor types, as it should be according to the real life reason and use for crossbows.
That's a house ruling though and I'm sure your rulings on archery in general are significantly better than what's offered in RAW right now. I believe the OP is looking for a RAW or RAI answer though.
Yes and I gave it. There is a 1 round penalty for switching to another weapon unless "quick draw" is taken as a feat for that weapon.
Yes and I gave it. There is a 1 round penalty for switching to another weapon unless "quick draw" is taken as a feat for that weapon.
I didn't want to sound as if you weren't answering the OP, I believe it's not only a changing of weapons during an encounter but also having a weapon at the ready before an encounter that the OP is asking about. I'm an archer myself and find many flaws in the ranged combat rules that either require an official modification or house ruling alteration but see no ruling that would actually prevent readied weapons before an encounter even if they are readied hours in advance.
I have a tenancy to use my knowledge of real world weapon fighting styles along with my real world knowledge of weapons combat dictate my DM and player styles.
example; dagger vs shortsword, both close range thrust/slashing weapons. equal fighting style.
but a dagger vs greatsword, my money is on the dagger if the fighter using it knows what he is doing. the greatsword need room to be effective (range/space) it needs to be swung to do its job. the guy with the dagger just needs to stay within a half arms reach to win the fight as the dagger needs less reach. by doing so the fighter with the greatsword is at a disadvantage as it is not a slashing weapon, it is a hacking weapon like an axe. these are things I know to be true to life, and I sometimes have a hard time not implementing them in game. I have issues with the RAW thing at times....lol
as for readied weapons, if my players do not specify they are reading their weapons before entering the possible encounter location, then they do not have it readied, simple and the monster/NPC gets that extra round or 2 to really screw with them or cast defensive spells....:)
I dont think there is any argument about carrying a Crossbow 'at the ready', but 'at the ready' is in your hands, not slung.
I personally wouldnt be allowing people to roll with loaded crossbows slung over their backs, as the bolts would be dropping out, there is no 'safety' and a range of other problems.
A loaded crossbow in hand ready to brass up the BBEG = no worries.
I dont think there is any argument about carrying a Crossbow 'at the ready', but 'at the ready' is in your hands, not slung.
I personally wouldnt be allowing people to roll with loaded crossbows slung over their backs, as the bolts would be dropping out, there is no 'safety' and a range of other problems.
A loaded crossbow in hand ready to brass up the BBEG = no worries.
As primary weapons I'd still consider them "ready" even if the character had to put his net on the ground to pull open the huge doors or sling his crossbow over his shoulder to lift the trapdoor moments before the encounter. It's an assumption but I believe one that we can all agree upon that such a character would do whatever is needed to have his weapon at the ready as quickly as possible.
As primary weapons I'd still consider them "ready" even if the character had to put his net on the ground to pull open the huge doors or sling his crossbow over his shoulder to lift the trapdoor moments before the encounter. It's an assumption but I believe one that we can all agree upon that such a character would do whatever is needed to have his weapon at the ready as quickly as possible.
As you say, moments before. This infers he had a few moments to unsling (more likely pick up) his crossbow and ready his net before moving to engagement.
Where the trouble lies is that people are suggesting that the Xbow can be carted around indefinitely slung in the loaded and readied (action) state while they cart around something else in their hands.
like i said, I will not allow for a Xbow to be loaded indefinitely without suffering serious penalties.
oh and sorry if in a bit long winded.....lol
I dont think there is any argument about carrying a Crossbow 'at the ready', but 'at the ready' is in your hands, not slung.
I personally wouldnt be allowing people to roll with loaded crossbows slung over their backs, as the bolts would be dropping out, there is no 'safety' and a range of other problems.
A loaded crossbow in hand ready to brass up the BBEG = no worries.
That is the core of the topic.
Readied in hand is always ok by me.
But items (net/crossbow) in storage or slung can hardly be cobsidered ready (folded/loaded)
I dont think there is any argument about carrying a Crossbow 'at the ready', but 'at the ready' is in your hands, not slung.
I personally wouldnt be allowing people to roll with loaded crossbows slung over their backs, as the bolts would be dropping out, there is no 'safety' and a range of other problems.
A loaded crossbow in hand ready to brass up the BBEG = no worries.
That is the core of the topic.
Readied in hand is always ok by me.
But items (net/crossbow) in storage or slung can hardly be cobsidered ready (folded/loaded)
It's most likely rule benders that won't agree with you on those points. As Vikking said, there's a penalty for changing weapons (that can be overcome with Quickdraw or dropping the readied weapon) that I would still impose due to common sense laws of needing to load the weapon (you can't "load" a longbow and then sling it over your shoulder). Even if allowed to have a net folded in a pouch or tucked under a belt I think you'd need to further secure it to remain neatly folded (tied together through the netting for example) that would impose a slowdown to have it ready. Quickdraw I see as a feat applying to "simple" melee weapons (swords/daggers/axes/maces/etc) and not ranged or preparation weapons.
Quick draw when it pertains to archers, think Legolas pulling his bow from slung possession. He is quick and draws an arrow at the same time allowing him to fire the first shot without penalty. He would also have quick draw for pulling arrows as well. he draws and fires smoothly.
this may not make sense as I just got home from GMing a game starting at 11am, its now 11pm and Im tired as i woke up at 6am. Ill reread this tomorrow and change it if it doesnt....lol
Quick draw when it pertains to archers, think Legolas pulling his bow from slung possession. He is quick and draws an arrow at the same time allowing him to fire the first shot without penalty. He would also have quick draw for pulling arrows as well. he draws and fires smoothly.
this may not make sense as I just got home from GMing a game starting at 11am, its now 11pm and Im tired as i woke up at 6am. Ill reread this tomorrow and change it if it doesnt....lol
It makes sense, although I think the "quickdraw" and fast loading may be tied together with Rapid Shot or Rapid Reload rather than Quickdraw... Maybe I'm to tired to be thinking straight, it's past 5am.
no you are right with the rapid reload/shot. I was referring to the drawing of the bow from its slung position and being able to shoot the first shot in the same round.
In the game Im running one of my players has a ranger with quick draw and rapid shot. when he switches from his sword to his bow, he drops the sword and can draw the bow in the same round (due to quick draw) he is allowed 1 shot for that round (rapid shot) as long as he has not used all of his attacks before dropping his sword. the following round he will get his full number of attacks with his bow.
He gets 4 attacks per round currently, so if he attacks twice with sword, uses 1 attack action to drop his sword and draw the bow, last attack action to fire.
He then starts the next round with his bow and will get all his attacks with all bonuses he may have that gives him extra shots.
I only allow this because he does have both quick draw and rapid shot. before he took rapid shot, he could not fire in that same round sequence as his last attack action would be to draw the arrow.
Now as I see it, if he had a heavy cross bow, it would be
1 attack with sword, drop and pull xbow (quick draw), load xbow, fire xbow.
The heavy xbow takes can be fired every other round (thats at 1 attack per round). At 4 attacks per round it will fire twice per round 1st at the 2nd attack mod (the first is used to load), then at the last attack mod. with rapid shot/reload, he will get 1 extra shot every other round at his highest attack mod.
that how I play it out. it works for my group.
I can't find the link at the moment, but at least one crossbow using group in Africa used what amounts to a wad of natural gum stuck to the crossbow stock. They would take a bit when loading the crossbow and stick the bolt in place so that moving through the heavy plant growth would not knock it loose.
Some european siege crossbows had an extra bit to keep the bolt from falling out when the crossbow was aimed at an extreme down angle as might occur when firing down from a parapet or down a murder-hole.
I can't find the link at the moment, but at least one crossbow using group in Africa used what amounts to a wad of natural gum stuck to the crossbow stock. They would take a bit when loading the crossbow and stick the bolt in place so that moving through the heavy plant growth would not knock it loose.
Some european siege crossbows had an extra bit to keep the bolt from falling out when the crossbow was aimed at an extreme down angle as might occur when firing down from a parapet or down a murder-hole.
Both examples are of ready "in hand" weapons. I have no beef with that.
Its the loaded-but-dangling-on-my-back-without-going-off scenario I cannot agree with.
Both examples are of ready "in hand" weapons. I have no beef with that.Its the loaded-but-dangling-on-my-back-without-going-off scenario I cannot agree with.
+1 on this.
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Unless your players or yourself is really hung up on this, just let it go.
A net or crossbow being "ready" rarely change the game a huge deal. Adding realism can help with games, but more often is hinders games. Or else people would make huge deals about freshness of rations, is something water proof, is something flammable, is something conductive, how encumbered is characters when carrying treasure, etc.. It's not worth the effort to keep track of those things, and it's not worth the effort to keep track of weapon readiness.
Not to mention, having non-spellcasters be hindered due to "realism" sucks while the wizard can cast any number of spells to make the combat end instantly. Because in order to balance that out, spellcasters have to keep track of how fresh their ingredients are, and then they can argue the fresher the guano, the more damage a fireball is, and etc etc etc.
It's too annoying to keep track of, and it opens the door to unwitting abuse from the other end.
Or else people would make huge deals about freshness of rations, is something water proof, is something flammable, is something conductive, how encumbered is characters when carrying treasure, etc..
That would be me... :p
Most of these things are pretty self regulating though, so it doesn't add THAT much time.
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Yes and I gave it. There is a 1 round penalty for switching to another weapon unless "quick draw" is taken as a feat for that weapon.
Maybe I'm misunderstanding you here, but you don't select quick draw as a feat for a specific weapon, as you would for say weapon focus. It applies to any particular weapon you are drawing. I've read your wording as requiring Quick Draw to be tied to a specific weapon. If I've misunderstood you, ignore and move on :)
No I didnt mean for it to appear as if quick draw is specific to a single weapon, sorry about that.
No I have a problem with diarrhea of the brain and what Im thinking or what I mean has a tendency to seem mixed up at times....lol
Or else people would make huge deals about freshness of rations, is something water proof, is something flammable, is something conductive, how encumbered is characters when carrying treasure, etc..That would be me... :p
Most of these things are pretty self regulating though, so it doesn't add THAT much time.
+1
Unless your players or yourself is really hung up on this, just let it go...
As I have stated previously; in my home game it is not a problem.
At a 0 slot game last week one other player wanted to make a character carrying around 6-8 nets and able to throw a new one each round (or more with quickdraw. In such a situation, involving PFS games I think it is important to have such a matter propperly settled, since I believe many GMs (obviously not all) would hinder such tactics on account of weapon readiness. In such a game the character in mention can go from an entangling menace in one game to a wannabe gladiator the next.
Can a loaded crossbow be carried hung over a shoulder (not in hand) without becoming unloaded?
No offence ment but oh, come on... please make use of common sense.
Do you always need rules to clarify if something is possible or not? Do you really need official rules for every possibility within a game?If you hang a loaded crossbow over your shoulder one thing which will happen for sure: The bolt will immediatly drop down.
Take a look at pictures of old crossbows and you´ll know what I mean. There is also no easy way in means of preventing a bolt from dropping. If you think there is a way for mountig some kind of fixation then keep in mind that whatever prevents the bolt from dropping will also prevent the crossbow from firing. The string which fires the bolt will be blocked.
Permanently having a crossbow readied isn´t a great idea. The material of the bow as well as the string will wear out, making the weapon unprecise and ineffective...
well at least this would happen in reality. Surely there are limits how far reality should apply to a game. Those limits have to be settled by the GM or better by cooperation of the GM and players.
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I have a tenancy to use my knowledge of real world weapon fighting styles along with my real world knowledge of weapons combat dictate my DM and player styles.
example; dagger vs shortsword, both close range thrust/slashing weapons. equal fighting style.
but a dagger vs greatsword, my money is on the dagger if the fighter using it knows what he is doing. the greatsword need room to be effective (range/space) it needs to be swung to do its job. the guy with the dagger just needs to stay within a half arms reach to win the fight as the dagger needs less reach. by doing so the fighter with the greatsword is at a disadvantage as it is not a slashing weapon, it is a hacking weapon like an axe. these are things I know to be true to life, and I sometimes have a hard time not implementing them in game. I have issues with the RAW thing at times....lolas for readied weapons, if my players do not specify they are reading their weapons before entering the possible encounter location, then they do not have it readied, simple and the monster/NPC gets that extra round or 2 to really screw with them or cast defensive spells....:)
See its these rulings that bother me....
I have seen Greatsword styles that use the sword more like a staff than a hacking, ax-like weapon. They are used to block quickly and effectively and would do a fine job against a dagger weilding foe. There are Greatsword tactics don't rely only on hacking at the opponent with huge, cumbersome blows. It involved a good amount of keeping the metal between you and your foe and using its reach to good advantage.There are many different styles of usage for weapons and when a DM decides that their own limited experience is the be-all-end-all of how those weapons work, I find that to be just another ridiculous houserule.
I had a DM that was an SCAer and he always imposed rules that nerfed certain weapons, yet when I, as a 10 year martial artist with personal training in dozens of weapons, disputed his "factual knowledge" of the weapons it was his game, his rules, no discussion. I don't claim to know everything about weapons but I have seen some surprising stuff done with weapons that opened my eyes a bit to allow for different usages than I may have seen. Spears have a ton of different styles for usage. Swords have more styles of usage than any one person could know. Knife fighting has probably more styles of usage than swords. To use one's personal, limited and often compromised view of how weapons work to impose houserules about weapons is silly to me.
Now on subject....carrying around a loaded crossbow on your back while dungeoncrawling is not a possibility. If the player wants to buy a specially modified crossbow for that purpose then there can be a discussion about it. I don't know everything about crossbows and maybe a certain society has figured out a way....and there is always magic in D&D to help out.