Is there a feat that allows you to subtract a number from your AC and add it to your attack roll?
up vote
16
down vote
favorite
Is there a feat that's the opposite of the Combat Expertise feat? I'm looking for a feat which would allow you to subtract a number from your AC and add it to your attack roll.
dnd-3.5e feats armor-class attack-roll
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
add a comment |
up vote
16
down vote
favorite
Is there a feat that's the opposite of the Combat Expertise feat? I'm looking for a feat which would allow you to subtract a number from your AC and add it to your attack roll.
dnd-3.5e feats armor-class attack-roll
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
add a comment |
up vote
16
down vote
favorite
up vote
16
down vote
favorite
Is there a feat that's the opposite of the Combat Expertise feat? I'm looking for a feat which would allow you to subtract a number from your AC and add it to your attack roll.
dnd-3.5e feats armor-class attack-roll
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
Is there a feat that's the opposite of the Combat Expertise feat? I'm looking for a feat which would allow you to subtract a number from your AC and add it to your attack roll.
dnd-3.5e feats armor-class attack-roll
dnd-3.5e feats armor-class attack-roll
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
edited Dec 4 at 22:06
V2Blast
18.8k251117
18.8k251117
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
asked Dec 4 at 20:08
Sam
22118
22118
add a comment |
add a comment |
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
up vote
13
down vote
accepted
It's not really a feat but more of an action you can choose in combat. If you use the charge attack and move at least 10ft and have an unobstructed path to your target you can move up to double your movement speed and make a single attack that gains +2 to the attack roll but suffer -2 to AC until your next turn. I used to do that with my half orc barbarian to guarantee a hit on the first attack.
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
add a comment |
up vote
21
down vote
As @KRyan says, there is no such feat. However, what you're looking for does exist in a class feature. 3 levels of War Chanter allow you to use Bardic Music to Inspire Recklessness in yourself and your allies, letting you (and them) take a penalty to AC up to your BAB and add it to your attack bonus.
You may also be interested in the Shock Trooper feat, which (among other things) lets you take your Power Attack penalty from AC instead of BAB when charging, allowing you to sacrifice your AC for damage.
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
add a comment |
up vote
9
down vote
No such feat exists. If it did, nearly everyone (who wants to make attacks, that is) would take it, because it would be amazing. You would see it recommended constantly, listed in every martial-class handbook, and so on, but you do not.
Combat Expertise is a really poor feat—even if you have it, most of the time it is the wrong choice to activate it. Quite simply, AC is a weak defense—most characters rely on non-AC defenses rather than waste the money it costs to keep AC relevant at mid-to-high levels. Meanwhile, attack bonus allows you to kill things, which is the greatest defense in the game—things cannot hurt you once they are dead. The only reason Combat Expertise gets taken at all is because of the feats that require it—and even once you have it, it’s rarely a good choice to use it.
Therefore, “flipping” Combat Expertise is not balanced—inverting an unreasonably bad trade becomes an unreasonably good one.
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
7
down vote
There is a Reckless Offense feat that adds +2 to all attack rolls at the expense of a penalty of -4 to your Armor Class. The exchange is active until your next turn.
The feat is from the psionic feats list but it is a general feat that requires only +1 base attack bonus.
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ifUsing("editor", function () {
return StackExchange.using("mathjaxEditing", function () {
StackExchange.MarkdownEditor.creationCallbacks.add(function (editor, postfix) {
StackExchange.mathjaxEditing.prepareWmdForMathJax(editor, postfix, [["\$", "\$"]]);
});
});
}, "mathjax-editing");
StackExchange.ready(function() {
var channelOptions = {
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "122"
};
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
createEditor();
});
}
else {
createEditor();
}
});
function createEditor() {
StackExchange.prepareEditor({
heartbeatType: 'answer',
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader: {
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
},
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
});
}
});
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2frpg.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f136781%2fis-there-a-feat-that-allows-you-to-subtract-a-number-from-your-ac-and-add-it-to%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
13
down vote
accepted
It's not really a feat but more of an action you can choose in combat. If you use the charge attack and move at least 10ft and have an unobstructed path to your target you can move up to double your movement speed and make a single attack that gains +2 to the attack roll but suffer -2 to AC until your next turn. I used to do that with my half orc barbarian to guarantee a hit on the first attack.
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
add a comment |
up vote
13
down vote
accepted
It's not really a feat but more of an action you can choose in combat. If you use the charge attack and move at least 10ft and have an unobstructed path to your target you can move up to double your movement speed and make a single attack that gains +2 to the attack roll but suffer -2 to AC until your next turn. I used to do that with my half orc barbarian to guarantee a hit on the first attack.
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
add a comment |
up vote
13
down vote
accepted
up vote
13
down vote
accepted
It's not really a feat but more of an action you can choose in combat. If you use the charge attack and move at least 10ft and have an unobstructed path to your target you can move up to double your movement speed and make a single attack that gains +2 to the attack roll but suffer -2 to AC until your next turn. I used to do that with my half orc barbarian to guarantee a hit on the first attack.
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
It's not really a feat but more of an action you can choose in combat. If you use the charge attack and move at least 10ft and have an unobstructed path to your target you can move up to double your movement speed and make a single attack that gains +2 to the attack roll but suffer -2 to AC until your next turn. I used to do that with my half orc barbarian to guarantee a hit on the first attack.
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
edited Dec 5 at 7:10
V2Blast
18.8k251117
18.8k251117
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
answered Dec 4 at 22:27
Thomas Mundane
1579
1579
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
add a comment |
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
2
2
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
A good point! Doesn’t scale, but it is the kind of trade discussed here. And no feat cost.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 0:17
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
Thank you everyone! I've been researching in the books all day. I did finally run across a solution though, if anyone ever wants to have this kind of flexibility with their character. It's a combination of feats, power attack, combat expertise, unerring strike, and reckless attack (not to be confused for the lesser Reckless Offensive). Allows you to shift up to your base ATK from anywhere to anywhere, between ATK, DMG, & AC.
– Sam
Dec 5 at 2:41
4
4
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam You mean this homebrew feat Reckless Attack? Be sure to run that by the DM first!
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 5 at 6:40
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
@Sam If going for charging and Power Attack, definitely look at Complete Warrior’s Shock Trooper feat. Also Complete Champion’s lion spirit totem alternate barbarian class feature.
– KRyan
Dec 5 at 13:20
add a comment |
up vote
21
down vote
As @KRyan says, there is no such feat. However, what you're looking for does exist in a class feature. 3 levels of War Chanter allow you to use Bardic Music to Inspire Recklessness in yourself and your allies, letting you (and them) take a penalty to AC up to your BAB and add it to your attack bonus.
You may also be interested in the Shock Trooper feat, which (among other things) lets you take your Power Attack penalty from AC instead of BAB when charging, allowing you to sacrifice your AC for damage.
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
add a comment |
up vote
21
down vote
As @KRyan says, there is no such feat. However, what you're looking for does exist in a class feature. 3 levels of War Chanter allow you to use Bardic Music to Inspire Recklessness in yourself and your allies, letting you (and them) take a penalty to AC up to your BAB and add it to your attack bonus.
You may also be interested in the Shock Trooper feat, which (among other things) lets you take your Power Attack penalty from AC instead of BAB when charging, allowing you to sacrifice your AC for damage.
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
add a comment |
up vote
21
down vote
up vote
21
down vote
As @KRyan says, there is no such feat. However, what you're looking for does exist in a class feature. 3 levels of War Chanter allow you to use Bardic Music to Inspire Recklessness in yourself and your allies, letting you (and them) take a penalty to AC up to your BAB and add it to your attack bonus.
You may also be interested in the Shock Trooper feat, which (among other things) lets you take your Power Attack penalty from AC instead of BAB when charging, allowing you to sacrifice your AC for damage.
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
As @KRyan says, there is no such feat. However, what you're looking for does exist in a class feature. 3 levels of War Chanter allow you to use Bardic Music to Inspire Recklessness in yourself and your allies, letting you (and them) take a penalty to AC up to your BAB and add it to your attack bonus.
You may also be interested in the Shock Trooper feat, which (among other things) lets you take your Power Attack penalty from AC instead of BAB when charging, allowing you to sacrifice your AC for damage.
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
answered Dec 4 at 21:22
Miniman
110k26495695
110k26495695
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
add a comment |
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
1
1
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
Additionally, the classic barbarian Rage does almost exactly this (also a class feature).
– Mathaddict
Dec 4 at 21:24
add a comment |
up vote
9
down vote
No such feat exists. If it did, nearly everyone (who wants to make attacks, that is) would take it, because it would be amazing. You would see it recommended constantly, listed in every martial-class handbook, and so on, but you do not.
Combat Expertise is a really poor feat—even if you have it, most of the time it is the wrong choice to activate it. Quite simply, AC is a weak defense—most characters rely on non-AC defenses rather than waste the money it costs to keep AC relevant at mid-to-high levels. Meanwhile, attack bonus allows you to kill things, which is the greatest defense in the game—things cannot hurt you once they are dead. The only reason Combat Expertise gets taken at all is because of the feats that require it—and even once you have it, it’s rarely a good choice to use it.
Therefore, “flipping” Combat Expertise is not balanced—inverting an unreasonably bad trade becomes an unreasonably good one.
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
9
down vote
No such feat exists. If it did, nearly everyone (who wants to make attacks, that is) would take it, because it would be amazing. You would see it recommended constantly, listed in every martial-class handbook, and so on, but you do not.
Combat Expertise is a really poor feat—even if you have it, most of the time it is the wrong choice to activate it. Quite simply, AC is a weak defense—most characters rely on non-AC defenses rather than waste the money it costs to keep AC relevant at mid-to-high levels. Meanwhile, attack bonus allows you to kill things, which is the greatest defense in the game—things cannot hurt you once they are dead. The only reason Combat Expertise gets taken at all is because of the feats that require it—and even once you have it, it’s rarely a good choice to use it.
Therefore, “flipping” Combat Expertise is not balanced—inverting an unreasonably bad trade becomes an unreasonably good one.
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
9
down vote
up vote
9
down vote
No such feat exists. If it did, nearly everyone (who wants to make attacks, that is) would take it, because it would be amazing. You would see it recommended constantly, listed in every martial-class handbook, and so on, but you do not.
Combat Expertise is a really poor feat—even if you have it, most of the time it is the wrong choice to activate it. Quite simply, AC is a weak defense—most characters rely on non-AC defenses rather than waste the money it costs to keep AC relevant at mid-to-high levels. Meanwhile, attack bonus allows you to kill things, which is the greatest defense in the game—things cannot hurt you once they are dead. The only reason Combat Expertise gets taken at all is because of the feats that require it—and even once you have it, it’s rarely a good choice to use it.
Therefore, “flipping” Combat Expertise is not balanced—inverting an unreasonably bad trade becomes an unreasonably good one.
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
No such feat exists. If it did, nearly everyone (who wants to make attacks, that is) would take it, because it would be amazing. You would see it recommended constantly, listed in every martial-class handbook, and so on, but you do not.
Combat Expertise is a really poor feat—even if you have it, most of the time it is the wrong choice to activate it. Quite simply, AC is a weak defense—most characters rely on non-AC defenses rather than waste the money it costs to keep AC relevant at mid-to-high levels. Meanwhile, attack bonus allows you to kill things, which is the greatest defense in the game—things cannot hurt you once they are dead. The only reason Combat Expertise gets taken at all is because of the feats that require it—and even once you have it, it’s rarely a good choice to use it.
Therefore, “flipping” Combat Expertise is not balanced—inverting an unreasonably bad trade becomes an unreasonably good one.
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
answered Dec 4 at 20:13
KRyan
216k28540930
216k28540930
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
|
show 1 more comment
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
@Miniman Eh, that’s only “close” if you were specifically imagining this feat being paired with Power Attack to mitigate the attack penalties of Power Attack. Which I agree, is the most obvious use for such a feat (and probably one of the best ones), but it isn’t necessarily related.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:13
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
War Story: I had a PC in a recent short E6 campaign that used Combat Expertise to some good effect—in conjunction with the feat Stone Power—, after he drew aggro using the feat Master of Mockery. Combined with a broadblade shortsword, 5 ranks in Tumble, and a special ability that increased his Combat Expertise's effect by 50%, it wasn't terrible, he contributed, and other folks still got to play. To be fair, though, the foes were just dudes with bows and not casters.
– Hey I Can Chan
Dec 4 at 21:34
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
@HeyICanChan Yeah, E6 helps Combat Expertise where the cost is lower and the alternative options for defenses more limited. I’ve been considering it in my E6 tank... but still have found better things to do with my feats so far. Thanks for the reminder of Master of Mockery, though; that could prove useful.
– KRyan
Dec 4 at 21:37
1
1
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
In D&D there are plenty of things that can hurt you a lot more once they are dead. Vampires, for example.
– Erik
Dec 5 at 10:47
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
Reminds me of the Aggressive trait: -1 AC for +2 Initiative. I've yet to find a character for which it's not a good trade, which is not a great sign of "balance".
– Matthieu M.
Dec 5 at 12:44
|
show 1 more comment
up vote
7
down vote
There is a Reckless Offense feat that adds +2 to all attack rolls at the expense of a penalty of -4 to your Armor Class. The exchange is active until your next turn.
The feat is from the psionic feats list but it is a general feat that requires only +1 base attack bonus.
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
add a comment |
up vote
7
down vote
There is a Reckless Offense feat that adds +2 to all attack rolls at the expense of a penalty of -4 to your Armor Class. The exchange is active until your next turn.
The feat is from the psionic feats list but it is a general feat that requires only +1 base attack bonus.
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
add a comment |
up vote
7
down vote
up vote
7
down vote
There is a Reckless Offense feat that adds +2 to all attack rolls at the expense of a penalty of -4 to your Armor Class. The exchange is active until your next turn.
The feat is from the psionic feats list but it is a general feat that requires only +1 base attack bonus.
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
There is a Reckless Offense feat that adds +2 to all attack rolls at the expense of a penalty of -4 to your Armor Class. The exchange is active until your next turn.
The feat is from the psionic feats list but it is a general feat that requires only +1 base attack bonus.
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
answered Dec 5 at 8:46
AGrzes
24217
24217
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
add a comment |
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
Right. This is the counterpart to Fighting Defensively and requires a feat. There is no other feat that makes this commensurate with Combat Expertise.
– Wyrmwood
Dec 8 at 18:05
add a comment |
Thanks for contributing an answer to Role-playing Games Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Some of your past answers have not been well-received, and you're in danger of being blocked from answering.
Please pay close attention to the following guidance:
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function () {
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2frpg.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f136781%2fis-there-a-feat-that-allows-you-to-subtract-a-number-from-your-ac-and-add-it-to%23new-answer', 'question_page');
}
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function () {
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
});
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
