If a monk with the crane style feat tree decided on her turn to fight defensively while making a maneuver attempt for which she didn't have the improved feat, would she still benefit from fighting defensively / the crane style feats for the attack of opportunity even though she hasn't made an attack yet?
You dont have to make an attack to be fighting defensively. You just to declare it to benefit from it.
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You use your defensive abilities to make overpowering counterattacks.
Prerequisites: Crane Style, Crane Wing, Dodge, Improved Unarmed Strike, base attack bonus +8 or monk level 7th.
Benefit: You take only a –1 penalty on attack rolls for fighting defensively. Whenever you use Crane Wing to deflect an opponent’s attack, you can make an attack of opportunity against that opponent after the attack is deflected.
You move with the speed and finesse of an avian hunter, your sweeping blocks and graceful motions allowing you to deflect melee attacks with ease.
Prerequisites: Crane Style, Dodge, Improved Unarmed Strike, base attack bonus +5 or monk level 5th.
Benefit: Once per round while using Crane Style, when you have at least one hand free and are either fighting defensively or using the total defense action, you can deflect one melee weapon attack that would normally hit you. You expend no action to deflect the attack, but you must be aware of it and not flat-footed. An attack so deflected deals no damage to you.
As a standard action you decided if you want to fight defensively. Done, it doesn't matter that your attack hasn't happened yet. You've satisfied the Crane Style feat chain and use Crane Wing and then Crane Riposte.
Dang it Wraith and I typed out all of this too.
I just remember a thread awhile back about Fighting defensively / Combat expertise / Defensive weapon property stuff. I thought they had come to the conclusion that if you didn't attack then the bonuses and penalties didn't apply. Thanks for clearing that up.