Ranged disarm in combat

[ArchidamusofTW]

Hoping for some help / clarification

In the game I DM one player has a whip with 15 foot range, and is using it to disarm opponents (not a problem there).

However, last night he was standing behind two ranks of allies in a combat and disarming their opponents without any mods to the CMB - we couldn't find anything in the rules to say otherwise, but that seems a little inconsistent with penalties applied for attacking opponents through allies / in melee with allies.

Have we missed something?

[wraithstrike]

A whip is a reach weapon and follow the ranged attack rules for the purpose of soft cover. That should also apply to CMB since it is also an attack roll.

Quote:

When making a melee attack against a target that isn't adjacent to you (such as with a reach weapon), use the rules for determining cover from ranged attacks.

[Haggis13]

This is not covered by RAW, but I would rule based on Cover for melee attacks and the description for CMD:

Cover
"To determine whether your target has cover from your ranged attack, choose a corner of your square. If any line from this corner to any corner of the target's square passes through a square or border that blocks line of effect or provides cover, or through a square occupied by a creature, the target has cover (+4 to AC).

[...]

When making a melee attack against a target that isn't adjacent to you (such as with a reach weapon), use the rules for determining cover from ranged attacks."

CMD
"A creature can also add any circumstance, deflection, dodge, insight, luck, morale, profane, and sacred bonuses to AC to its CMD. Any penalties to a creature's AC also apply to its CMD. A flat-footed creature does not add its Dexterity bonus to its CMD."

Granted, RAW says Cover bonus to AC is untyped, but it is a circumstance bonus for all intents and purposes in my opinion.

[wraithstrike]

Good point Haggis13. I think the RAI is also for untyped bonuses, but it definitely does not say that.

[Claxon]

It doesn't spell it out directly, but it seems pretty clear that the bonus to AC is virtually equivalent to a penalty to your attack/CMB, which would have been the better way to word it.

I think RAI is pretty obvious on this one.