I have 2 quick questions about being prone: are you actually able to perform an att of opp while prone and are you flanking with an ally while down ?
I know the core says you cant perform att of opp if denied your dex bonus to your armor class so in effect if you cant make an att of opp while prone you dont have your dex bonus either to ac and flanking is based on your threatened squares so if you dont have threatened squares you cant perform any att of opp and arent flanking or am I reading too much into the rules ?
Please clarify where you are getting the information that being prone denies your dexterity bonus to AC and/or removes your ability to threaten squares? The Prone condition does not apply any of these effects, and I am unable to locate these passages in the Attack of Opportunity sections, nor any sections pertaining to this subject.
You don't lose your Dexterity Bonus while Prone, I think you're thinking of Pinned.
This the text for Prone:
Prone: The character is lying on the ground. A prone attacker has a –4 penalty on melee attack rolls and cannot use a ranged weapon (except for a crossbow). A prone defender gains a +4 bonus to Armor Class against ranged attacks, but takes a –4 penalty to AC against melee attacks.
You still threaten and can attack and make AoOs.
Can you perform an attack of opportunity while prone and do you flank while prone ?
Yes and yes.
Doesnt seem you should be able to if flat on your back and how can you have a dex bonus to ac if not able to dodge/weave if off your feet ?
Haven't you seen the movies where the guys roll on the ground doing acrobatic tricks and avoid getting stabbed?
The second part is hypothetically connecting not being able to make an att of opp while prone (if the case) and because of that being denied dex bonus to ac, and if you cant make an att of opp do you in fact threaten those squares around you thus not being able to gain flanking.
If you are denied your DEX you can still make an attack of opportunity.
If you are ever given a condition (like Flat Footed or Dazed) where you can't act normally (take actions to attack), then you dont threaten, then you can't make an AoO.
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Im reading too much into the rules and should have left the question as the first part.
Can you perform an attack of opportunity while prone and do you flank while prone ?
Yes and Yes. See below.
Doesnt seem you should be able to if flat on your back and how can you have a dex bonus to ac if not able to dodge/weave if off your feet ?
I understand you might be using a bit of hyperbole, but being prone doesn't equate to being flat on your back, and it doesn't equate to the game condition of being helpless, being denied dex, nor being flat "footed." Being prone provides specific penalties. It is relatively easy for a character to become prone, and relatively easy (stand up) to remove those penalties. Those penalties are therefore rather moderate in extent.
The second part is hypothetically connecting not being able to make an att of opp while prone (if the case) and because of that being denied dex bonus to ac, and if you cant make an att of opp do you in fact threaten those squares around you thus not being able to gain flanking.
Let's get the chain of logic straight. You can attack any square you threaten. You threaten if that square is within your reach and if you are armed in a manner that threatens (armed with a weapon, holding a spell, have a natural attack, a humanoid with Improved Unarmed Strike, etc.) You can make an attack of opportunity if a creature provokes such an attack in a square you threaten. You cannot make an attack of opportunity if you are flat footed unless you have Combat Reflexes. You can make an attack of opportunity if you are denied Dex to AC.
So, you can make an attack of opportunity if you threaten the square where the target is when it provokes the AoO unless you are flat footed. Prone provides penalties to your attack. Prone makes it easier for opponents to hit you. Prone prevents you from using most ranged weapons. Prone limits your mobility.
Prone doesn't make you flat footed. How do we know this? Because flat footed is the condition in which you haven't acted yet in initiative. Some effects (the spell grease, for example) can make you flat footed; I've always thought this is an error and it should just deny you your Dex. Since prone doesn't say you are flat footed, you aren't.
Prone doesn't limit your ability to threaten squares. How do we know this? It doesn't force you to drop your weapon. It specifies that your attacks are penalized; this implies that you you can still attack. Since you still have a weapon, can still attack with it, and since nothing about prone says you don't threaten, you still threaten. It might be reasonable to say you are effectively unarmed for some weapons while prone; doing so would be a house rule, which is fine if you like that level of realism. If you like that stuff, you might also like the rules for fighting in cramped spaces from the 3.5 book Drow of the Underdark.
Regarding flanking, you provide flanking for an ally if you are positioned correctly and if you threaten the defender. Prone doesn't change your position. Prone doesn't change whether you threaten. Assuming you are in the correct location, Prone doesn't change whether you provide flanking. If you introduce a house rule that limits whether a character threatens while prone for the sake of realism, you would also eliminate the ability of a prone character from flanking in the same situation.