Voluntarily lowering CMD

[Merm7th]

I have a rules question but it is specifically for PFS.

I have a whip magus with quick reposition. A barbarian goes before me and charges the baddie. Next it's my turn and I plan to reposition the barbarian back a few squares out of the way of my fireball. Can the barbarian intentionally lower his CMD? It seems he should be able to lose the Str and Dex bonus as he is not avoiding the hit or resisting the maneuver. To the extreme, and even more likely not PFS legal, if he intentionally puts his arm in the path of the whip and uses his strength to aid in this reposition, could he add his Dex and Str to my reposition roll?

[Claxon]

The rules don't adequately cover this.

I don't have a PFS specific answer, so expect table variation with this sort of thing.

However, take note that the easiest way for a PFS GM to handle this is probably to say that Reposition says:

Quote:

You can attempt to reposition a foe to a different location as a standard action

Reposition, and other combat maneuvers, are limited to foes and therefore cannot be used on an ally, such that your attempted usage is not legal.

[Arachnofiend]

Yeah, the fact that reposition specifies a foe as the target means you cannot use it on an ally at all.

[Merm7th]

Copy that. I missed that part in the standard preposition rule. Thanks

[tchrman35]

Arachnofiend wrote:

Yeah, the fact that reposition specifies a foe as the target means you cannot use it on an ally at all.

It was my impression that the first line of a description like that is generally regarded as fluff text, and it's not necessarily mechanically useful.

Am I mistaken?

[Byakko]

You can definitely use this on an ally, not just a foe. The nouns used only reflect typical use of the maneuver.
As far as temporarily reducing your CMD, there are no specific rules. It'd be very reasonable to not include dex or str modifiers... but expect table variation.

[OilHorse]

I dunno Byakko, the idea of the maneuver is that you are threatening your opponent with your weapon and forcing them to move from the spot they occupy.

Doesn't sound like something you do to your ally.

[John Mangrum]

In my game, I rule that a willing ally can voluntarily forgo its Dexterity bonus (and any associated dodge bonus) to its CMD. An unconscious ally is treated as a helpless target (so the character making the combat maneuver check automatically succeeds as if they'd rolled a natural 20).

[wraithstrike]

The game assumes this is against an enemy. There is no rule for what you want.