Non-Lethal Weapons and Lethal Attacks

[kinevon]

So, in another thread, someone was claiming that you could take a -4 to your attack with a weapon, like a sap, that does only non-lethal damage, and make it do lethal damage.

Now, I have seen the rule for the reverse, where you can take a -4 to hit with a lethal weapon to do non-lethal damage instead, but I doin't recall ever seeing this rule. Anyone have a citation for it?

Especially since he was claiming that it would allow someone wityh a Strength penalty to damage to do that, and still deal lethal damage, when the damage would normally be reduced to 0 or lower due to a low roll, and therefore become 1 point of non-lethal damage.

Can a viper (small snake, damage for the bite is 1d3-4 or something like that) do this, so it is guaranteed a point of lethal damage, besides the poison?

[Nefreet]

Linky.

That trick doesn't work for the snake, though. It's always trying to deal lethal damage with its bite (the 1d3 part), but the damage penalty (the -4 part) is what's turning that lethal damage into non-lethal.

[kinevon]

Hadn't seen that before, and someone was citing it for being able to do lethal damage with a CdG, even with a low damage roll on a dagger with a Strength penalty to damage.

Like 2 1s on the d4s, and a -2 Str mod, so 1 point of non-lethal per the rules....

[Nefreet]

That's when you're best just going with a Called Shot.