Aiming bonus to ranged attack rolls

[Grayhawk]

I'm not looking for a new feat, rather a mechanic available to all, that lets them get a bonus to their ranged attack rolls when aiming for a certain amount of time.

Here's my first draft:

'Aiming a ranged weapon is a full-round action that lets you make a single ranged attack with a +2 bonus. You suffer an AC penalty of -2 until your next action.'

But I feel that it's too good, as the archer often won't feel the penalty to his AC when standing out of melee range.

Maybe 'Aiming' (as described above) should first be an option at BAB+6, the balancing factor being that you give up any additional attacks.

How would you go about this?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Aim
As a move-equivalent action, you can aim a ranged weapon. As long as you do not move or otherwise lose your concentration, and your opponent does not move more than 5 feet, you receive a +1 circumstance bonus to your next ranged attack roll against that target. You may both aim and brace a weapon against the same target, stacking the circumstance bonuses for each.

Improved Aim [Feat]
Prerequisites: Wisdom 13, Far Shot.
Benefit: You may move up to 30 feet while aiming without losing your bonus. If you are attacked or your concnetration is otherwise disrupted, you may make a Concentration check (DC15 or 10 + damage dealt) to retain your aiming bonus.

Normal: If you move or your concentration is disrupted, you lose your aiming bonus.

 

[Grayhawk]

Improved Aim [Feat]
Prerequisites: Wisdom 13, Far Shot.
Benefit: You may move up to 30 feet while aiming without losing your bonus. If you are attacked or your concnetration is otherwise disrupted, you may make a Concentration check (DC15 or 10 + damage dealt) to retain your aiming bonus.

Normal: If you move or your concentration is disrupted, you lose your aiming bonus.

Compared to Weapon Focus your feat seems a bit weak (giving the same bonus, but only under specific circumstances as well as having higher prereq's).

But since Weapon Focus 'only' grants a +1 bonus, aiming should propably do the same.

How about:

'Aiming a ranged weapon is a full-round action that lets you make a single ranged attack with a +1 bonus. You lose your dex bonus (if any) to AC until the beginning of your next turn.'

You may both aim and brace a weapon...

Is 'bracing' in the core rules? If so, where?

 

[Norfleet]

A piddly +1 bonus for all that effort is simply laughable, considering that +1 makes little or no difference, and for all the attacks you ARE giving up for it, you're more likely to cause more damage simply by firing away flat out. Making two or more attacks rolls is generally worth more than +1 to a single attack roll, particularly as this "aiming" doesn't derive any other forms of collateral benefit, like a headshot.

It would be more useful if aiming allowed you to, as an FRA, trade all of your iterative attacks for a single attack at the combined bonus of all of the BAB you traded in for it. So if a fighter at +14/+9/+4 does the "aiming" thing and has a dexterity of 18, for a +4, he performs a single attack at +31, instead of 3 attacks at +18/+13/+8.

 

[Kemrain]

'Aiming a ranged weapon is a full-round action that lets you make a single ranged attack with a +2 bonus. You suffer an AC penalty of -2 until your next action.'

This basically means that if you aim a shot, everyone shooting at you gets to aim, for free, without a penalty of their own.

I'm not sure that adding the bonuses from your iterative attacks to your primary attack is a good idea, either, as that will practically guarantee a hit, and the shooter may well be using an arrow of slaying or something. Also, what would keep crossbowmen from doing this every time, as they can't make a full attack with an Xbow anyways?

- Kemrain the Apprehensive

 

[Grayhawk]

This basically means that if you aim a shot, everyone shooting at you gets to aim, for free, without a penalty of their own.

That's right. When facing multiple bowmen it might not be the best idea to stand perfectly still for 1 round to get an aiming bonus. Don't you think this makes sense?

I'm not sure that adding the bonuses from your iterative attacks to your primary attack is a good idea, either, as that will practically guarantee a hit, and the shooter may well be using an arrow of slaying or something. Also, what would keep crossbowmen from doing this every time, as they can't make a full attack with an Xbow anyways?

I agree that adding up all your BAB's would result in a way too high bonus. If aiming should be a 'free' option (meaning no feat cost), like charging, it should only grant a bonus of +1 or +2, IMO.

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Compared to Weapon Focus your feat seems a bit weak (giving the same bonus, but only under specific circumstances as well as having higher prereq's).

I suppose if you like using the same weapon all the time, Weapon Focus is better.

My aiming rules are from Grim Tales, which doesn't assume that a character is the sum total of his kewl equipment. From time to time one might want to aim with something other than a composite longbow.

The Aim action can be used with any ranged weapon (and stacks with Weapon Focus, of course).

A fighter who wants to specialize with the bow would have plenty of feats to pick up Improved Aim (and Improved Brace) along with the usual assortment.

Is 'bracing' in the core rules? If so, where?

Also from Grim Tales; adapted from Spycraft (as is Aim).

In summary, brace is a standard action that you can repeat from round to round, adding +1 each time, up to your full BAB; ie, if your BAB is +3, you can brace for no more than a +3 bonus. Like aiming, bracing won't work if you or your target move more than 5 feet.

Admittedly, these rules are more suited to firearms (or crossbows) than longbows and shortbows.

Wulf