Is it possible to use the Bludgeoner feat on a ranged bludgeoning attack, or does some other rule make it melee only?
There is nothing about the feat that specifies it must be melee or ranged only, it just says attacks with a bludgeoning weapon. You just have to pick a ranged weapon that does bludgeoning damage. If you wanted to do nonlethal damage with a bow, you would need to purchase blunt arrows.
Or just use a sling.
As I said, you can just pick a ranged weapon that does bludgeoning damage. But since slings are awful 90% of the time and the preferred go-to ranged weapon is a bow, blunt arrows are probably what you want.
Bludgeoner does not, IMO, override the melee weapon clause for non-lethal damage.
Benefit: You take no penalty on attack rolls for using a lethal bludgeoning weapon to deal nonlethal damage.
Normal: You take a –4 penalty on attack rolls when using a lethal weapon to deal nonlethal damage. You cannot use a lethal weapon to deal nonlethal damage in a sneak attack.
Special: A rogue with this feat can use a lethal bludgeoning weapon to deal nonlethal damage with a sneak attack.
To get that benefit of no penalty to attack, you still have to meet the requirements to take that nonlethal attack with a lethal weapon in the first place:
You can use a melee weapon that deals lethal damage to deal nonlethal damage instead, but you take a –4 penalty on your attack roll.
Ian Bell, there are specific rules that override general rules like that one.
Example:
These arrows have rounded wooden tips that deal bludgeoning damage rather than piercing. An archer can use a blunt arrow to deal nonlethal damage (at the normal –4 attack penalty for using a lethal weapon to deal nonlethal damage).
Ian Bell, there are specific rules that override general rules like that one.
Example:
These arrows have rounded wooden tips that deal bludgeoning damage rather than piercing. An archer can use a blunt arrow to deal nonlethal damage (at the normal –4 attack penalty for using a lethal weapon to deal nonlethal damage).
I don't know of any such exception for slings.
Gisher, Ian Bell was not referencing slings specifically, he was referencing the general rules as a blanket statement after people were discussing Blunt Arrows (which has that clause) and Slings (which does not). At best his statement was incomplete.
Gisher, Ian Bell was not referencing slings specifically, he was referencing the general rules as a blanket statement after people were discussing Blunt Arrows (which has that clause) and Slings (which does not). At best his statement was incomplete.
Got it.
Note that if you were hoping to use bludgeoner to jump into the worthwhile non-lethal feats you're going to have mixed results. Sap Adept and Sap Master only require a bludgeoning weapon, but Enforcer is pickier:
Yeah. I guess you could try to get some mileage out of stuff like Surprise Attack, but that's an awful lot of investment for not too much payoff.
Shatter Defenses does only require a hit rather than a melee hit. If somebody could figure out how to get that train rolling it might be pretty cool. Is there any way to get people shaken from more than 30 feet away?
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Weapon of Awe (level 2 cleric, 1 min/lvl):
You transform a single weapon into an awe-inspiring instrument. The weapon gains a +2 sacred bonus on damage rolls, and if the weapon scores a critical hit, the target of that critical hit becomes shaken for 1 round with no saving throw. This is a mind-affecting fear effect. A ranged weapon affected by this spell applies these effects to its ammunition.
Best I can come up with in a quick search.