Readied Crossbows

[Demiurge]

I want to give crossbows a bit of a boost. IIRC, in 1e D&D a surprised character with a readied crossbow got to fire in the 2nd surprise segment. How about upping this to let them fire first in any round? Is this too good? Of course, I'd give such characters a chance of accidental discharge if the happen to slip and fall.

[zarathustra]

I'd be more likely to give a +2 to init- they still have to not be surprised and aim the thing and react quicker than the next guy which are all possibilities given the relatively abstract nature of combat.

It is also a road I avoid in C&C since then you have knocked arrows to worry about, is that different to a readied sword or a dagger in the fingertips ready to throw, how long can a drawn bow be readied (obv crossbow is more or less all day)?

If you just want to boost c-bows and have a confident answer to the logical extensions then should be fine. If you are lazy like me it is just one of the reasons I went to C&C that I wanted to forget some of the little details like that. YMMV.

[serleran]

The rules already state that a readied missile attack can be released prior to an initiative roll much in the same way that a long reach weapon gets first strike. Therefore, I see no additional need for this... though, it is something I also do. I allow the crossbow to be readied for 1 hour. Bows, I allow for 3 rounds.

[Demiurge]

The rules already state that a readied missile attack can be released prior to an initiative roll much in the same way that a long reach weapon gets first strike. Therefore, I see no additional need for this... though, it is something I also do. I allow the crossbow to be readied for 1 hour. Bows, I allow for 3 rounds.

Serl:

I knew about the reach weapon exception, but I can't find the one for readied ranged weapons in the "initiative" or "ranged combat" sections. Do you recall where it is mentioned?

Thanks.

[koralas]

I guess this depends on what you mean by "readied crossbow".

If you mean the character is intently waiting for someone to enter their field of fire, and then shoot, I would tend to yes, as that is the players intent. Many game systems have a specific mechanic for this, usually called over watch. For this, the character is intent on surveying a limited field of view, I would give it no better than a 90 degree arc, for example waiting for someone to enter a hall or doorway. Another factor is movement, if remaining still, the character would gain no penalty to hit, if moving, for every 5' in that round, they incur a -1 penalty, further they can move no further than 1/4 of their normal movement or they loose their over watch status. The character can take no other actions that round, other than speaking. Of course, make sure they are not commenting on things they wouldn't know, like things happening outside of that 90 degree arc. There are drawbacks to over watch as well, as listed above, but also, how quick is that hair trigger? I would let the player call out a Wisdom check to determine if that the being entering their field of fire is friend or foe. Don't volunteer it, just let the player know that something has stepped into sight. Let them ask if it is friend or foe, then require the check. If they don't ask, or fail the check, they shoot, and possibly cause some hurt to someone/thing that is friendly, or possibly, formerly friendly. In this case, the character firing automatically has surprise on the intruder, and fires first, then the remainder of the normal surprise round is resolved, then the character can act at the end of the round to ready a weapon, shield, etc. but cannot attack again until the following round. For this automatic surprise, the being must be (when entering field of fire) within range of the missile, and out of range of a melee attack. If it is in range of a melee attack when entering the field of view, or has a missile weapon readied (and is in "over watch" itself), first check to see if that creature is surprised, unless there is a reason it knows the character is in that area. Next roll for surprise for any other situation that may be called for. Finally if the being entering the field of fire is not surprised by the presence of the character in over watch, roll a special initiative for just those two to determine who gets to go first

On the other hand, if you mean simply walking with the crossbow cocked and a bolt readied, then no... normal surprise rules would take place. Same goes for any other missile weapon.

[serleran]

The rules already state that a readied missile attack can be released prior to an initiative roll much in the same way that a long reach weapon gets first strike. Therefore, I see no additional need for this... though, it is something I also do. I allow the crossbow to be readied for 1 hour. Bows, I allow for 3 rounds.

Serl:

I knew about the reach weapon exception, but I can't find the one for readied ranged weapons in the "initiative" or "ranged combat" sections. Do you recall where it is mentioned?

Thanks.

Apparently it is a serleranization of the stated rules, where range becomes crossed with reach. My mistake. It is not explicitly stated in the rules. I do recall something like it being in previous iterations of the predecessors but that does not mean pirate to C&C.