Stabbing Shot - How Many Penalties?

[Garden Tool]

A few questions about the titular feat:

If I use the Stabbing Shot feat from the APG, do I take the -2 penalty mentioned in the feat's description in addition to the -2 penalty incurred by using Rapid Shot?.

Do I take the usual -4 nonproficiency penalty for using an arrow to make a melee attack? Is this in addition to the -2 penalty imposed by the feat?

If yes to both, I'm taking a -8 penalty to the melee attack (-4 nonproficiency, -2 Rapid Shot, -2 Stabbing Shot). That's pretty awful, considering that the attack consumes my extra Rapid Shot attack.

APG wrote:

Stabbing Shot (Combat)

You can clear the way to continue using your bow.

Prerequisites: Rapid Shot, elf.

Benefit: When adjacent to an opponent and making a full-attack action with a longbow or shortbow (including composite bows), you may choose to make a melee attack against that opponent with a drawn arrow rather than firing it. If the attack hits—whether or not it does damage—your target is pushed back 5 feet away from you. You can then fire arrows from your bow normally, at the original target, or at another target within range. This melee attack replaces the extra attack from Rapid Shot, and all of your attack rolls for the round (the melee attack and the ranged attacks) take a –2 penalty. If your initial attack leaves you with no enemies threatening you, you can make the subsequent ranged attack or attacks without provoking attacks of opportunity.

Thoughts?

[glandis]

Since the Stabbing Shot replaces the extra attack from Rapid Shot, I'd say it obviously gets rid of the -2 from Rapid Shot as well. Nonproficiency .. . looks like they missed covering that, probably Stabbing Shot should say "... melee attack against that opponent with a drawn arrow as if you were firing it" or something like that. *I* would leave the penalty at -2 (it does say "all ... take a -2 penalty", they could have added the -4 nonproficency there), but if someone insisted the melee attack should be at -6, I guess they have an argument.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Stabbing Shot is a trap. Fighters, Monks, and Rangers can all get Point Blank Master. Get that instead. Heck, unless you really encounter that many foes w/ Step Up, just 5 ft step back.

That said, Rapid Shot only gives a penalty to ranged attacks; the -2 for stabbing shot is the authors trying to account for that since you're now using your rapid shot bonus attack for melee.

RAW, you probably take the nonproficiency penalty, but that's dumb. The feat means you're trained to use an arrow specifically for this purpose, I think RAI the -4 is supposed to be waived.

So, to answer your question, it's at -2, or -6 if you have a RAW nazi DM.

[Cheapy]

I think RAW you'd take -6 (-4 from improvised, -2 from the feat).

But I'm fairly sure the intention was that you just take -2.

Go forth and stab!