What does any of that have to do with Crossbow Expert? Nothing.
If an Artificer infuses a Sling with Repeating Shot, they no longer have to load it. Again, this is not complex... A spellcasting class feature that uses magic to magically produce and load ammunition for you.
Have you read the sage advice responses? They often reply with something like "we'd say so if a general rule is changed". The general rule here is: you need a free hand to use a one-handed, ranged weapon with the ammunition property.
And the specific rule of Repeating Shot overrides the @#%!ing general rule. Period.
If you're going to be openly pedantic, it would help to have at least a rudimentary understanding of how the system works. 🙄
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
I'd figure out exactly how many attacks the character in question is permitted to make with one hand-crossbow as per RAW, then have him do the same amount of attacks styled as if they were using dual hand-crossbows.
I can only imagine drawbacks from allowing that, as they have both hands full with that approach, and would have to drop or stow one hand-crossbow before they can use a potion or similar.
I'd also make sure the player understands that this is for flavor, only, and that this is not an opening to circumvent rules.
I'm not saying the infusion should say that it ignores the ammunition property entirely. I'm saying it should have added "You don't need a free hand if the weapon is one-handed." Just like it specifies that the ammunition disappears after the attack.
Have you read the sage advice responses? They often reply with something like "we'd say so if a general rule is changed". The general rule here is: you need a free hand to use a one-handed, ranged weapon with the ammunition property.
The general rule is: you need a free hand to load a one-handed, ranged weapon with the ammunition property. If it produces ammo on its own, you don't nees to load it. If you dont need to load it, you don't need a free hand.
It could probably specifically mention that you don't have to load it. Since it is about to be printed, they have a chance to clarify its wording. Otherwise they will have to put it in sage advice after it is official.
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste. It is obvious to me that this was really meant to be used with Firearms where there isn't a feat available and ammunition is expensive and lost when used.
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste. It is obvious to me that this was really meant to be used with Firearms where there isn't a feat available and ammunition is expensive and lost when used.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste. It is obvious to me that this was really meant to be used with Firearms where there isn't a feat available and ammunition is expensive and lost when used.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
You are right, the Infusion does not grant a bonus action attack, but the idea behind dual wielding hand crossbows is to have a bonus action attack the same as using two melee weapons. If you have Crossbow Expert, the second Hand Crossbows you are holding is irrelevant to the number of attacks you would get.
However, with Pistols, there isn't a feat to let you get a bonus action attack. The Infusion would negate the Loading and Ammunition properties to allow you to fire a second pistol as a bonus action.
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
You are right, the Infusion does not grant a bonus action attack, but the idea behind dual wielding hand crossbows is to have a bonus action attack the same as using two melee weapons. If you have Crossbow Expert, the second Hand Crossbows you are holding is irrelevant to the number of attacks you would get.
However, with Pistols, there isn't a feat to let you get a bonus action attack. The Infusion would negate the Loading and Ammunition properties to allow you to fire a second pistol as a bonus action.
I think the bit about crossbow expert being more useful than dual weilding was mentioned earlier. More importantly, you can't do two weapon fighting with ranged weapons (which I think was also mentioned earlier and yet here we are 60 replies later). So infusions or not, you need crossbow expert to be able to attack with bonus action (pistols just can't, so use a shield or something with other hand).
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste. It is obvious to me that this was really meant to be used with Firearms where there isn't a feat available and ammunition is expensive and lost when used.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
You are right, the Infusion does not grant a bonus action attack, but the idea behind dual wielding hand crossbows is to have a bonus action attack the same as using two melee weapons. If you have Crossbow Expert, the second Hand Crossbows you are holding is irrelevant to the number of attacks you would get.
However, with Pistols, there isn't a feat to let you get a bonus action attack. The Infusion would negate the Loading and Ammunition properties to allow you to fire a second pistol as a bonus action.
Irrelevant. You can't use two-weapon fighting with a non-melee weapon to begin with.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Then the discussion about the interaction of the Infusion and Ammunition properties is equally irrelevant in the context of the original question of this thread.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
Don't want to poke the bull, just wondering why the Infusion is especially potent with heavy crossbow. Isn't it the same as the Crossbow Expert Feat? I suppose it could be if you don't have Feats in your game.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
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"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
You would have to have already loaded the hand crossbow and do some juggling mid combat to get a free hand to reload it.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
You would have to have already loaded the hand crossbow and do some juggling mid combat to get a free hand to reload it.
So now we are saying that you can't even do what the Crossbow Expert feat says you can do?
When you use the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you can use a bonus action to attack with a hand crossbow you are holding.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
You would have to have already loaded the hand crossbow and do some juggling mid combat to get a free hand to reload it.
So now we are saying that you can't even do what the Crossbow Expert feat says you can do?
When you use the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you can use a bonus action to attack with a hand crossbow you are holding.
You can do that if it is loaded. The Crossbow Expert feat does not remove the Ammunition property which requires a free hand to reload. As long as the Hand-Crossbow is already loaded you can use the bonus action to shoot with it - but not otherwise. This means if you plan to use a one-handed weapon (anything really) as well as a Hand-Crossbow you would need to juggle.
If you are just using a Hand-Crossbow and nothing else then it's fine - bonus action attack to your heart's content.
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
Don't want to poke the bull, just wondering why the Infusion is especially potent with heavy crossbow. Isn't it the same as the Crossbow Expert Feat? I suppose it could be if you don't have Feats in your game.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
You're fine.
No, it's not the same as the feat. It is an class feature that can be taken by an Artificer, and that Artificer can apply the infusion to a specific weapon--which the Artificer does not need to wield themselves, but the total number of items that a single Artificer can have infused at any moment is limited.
A ranged weapon that has been infused with Repeating Shot ignores the Loading, produces/loads its own ammunition, and grants a +1 attack/damage bonus to the weapon.
Crossbow Expert is a feat that anyone could take, and the benefits apply only to the individual character with the feat. A character with the feat ignores the Loading for only crossbows that they are proficient with (minor distinction, but meaningful). The character does not make ranged attack rolls at disadvantage if the disadvantage is only from being within 5 feet of a hostile creature (applies to all ranged attack rolls, so spells too). When you take the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you may make an attack with a Crossbow, Handthat you are holding as a bonus action.
As far as logistics for making that attack go, it's actually way less restrictive than Two-Weapon Fighting. You only need to make an attack with a one-handed weapon, not a 1H melee weapon; using the hand crossbow counts. Once that's been cleared, to make the bonus action attack you only need to be holding a hand crossbow. Did you just attack with your hand crossbow? Are you still holding it? Shoot it again; the hand crossbow does not need to be in a different hand, or a different weapon, from the one with which you made the original attack.
Swashbuckling with a sword & crossbow absolutely works with that feat.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
You would have to have already loaded the hand crossbow and do some juggling mid combat to get a free hand to reload it.
So now we are saying that you can't even do what the Crossbow Expert feat says you can do?
When you use the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you can use a bonus action to attack with a hand crossbow you are holding.
You can do that if it is loaded. The Crossbow Expert feat does not remove the Ammunition property which requires a free hand to reload. As long as the Hand-Crossbow is already loaded you can use the bonus action to shoot with it - but not otherwise. This means if you plan to use a one-handed weapon (anything really) as well as a Hand-Crossbow you would need to juggle.
If you are just using a Hand-Crossbow and nothing else then it's fine - bonus action attack to your heart's content.
The fact that the errata explaining this is so long shows that they needed to be more clear in the first place lol
The crux of our disagreement, however, lies in point three. As I understand it (correct me if I'm wrong), you assume that the ammunition is the sole component of loading the weapon and that is the full basis for the restriction. But that leaves the question of why they did not say that you can choose to ignore the ammunition property.
I contend that the infusion simply acts as a source of ammunition, just like a quiver, case or other container. Thus, while you don't need to carry the ammunition, you still need to load the weapon. The infusion doesn't say it loads the weapon for you. And as I said before, when loading a crossbow, you don't just need a hand to put in the bolt. [ETA, the same goes for a sling and the bullet, which is another one-handed weapon with the ammunition property] The text does not say that it loads it for you, it does not say that you are allowed to ignore any restriction due to the ammunition property.
Dude, you are being pedantic. I have not made this assumption in any of my posts, nor has anyone else. The Repeating Shot infusion does say it loads the weapon for you:
Repeating Shot
Item: A simple or martial weapon with the ammunition property (requires attunement)
This magic weapon grants a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with it when it’s used to make a ranged attack, and it ignores the loading property if it has it.
The weapon requires no ammunition; it magically produces one piece of ammunition each time you make a ranged attack with it, unless you manually load it. The ammunition produced by the weapon vanishes the instant after the it hits or misses a target.
It ignores Loading... that literally means it is being loaded for you. The ammunition is produced by the weapon each time that you make a ranged attack... that's not a quiver. The Ammunitioncannot be removed from a ranged weapon intended to be used with ammunition, or it ceases to function in more ways than just the ammo itself.
A ranged weapon without Ammunition is a thrown weapon. It is a Javelin; use once & retrieve. Gonna throw your crossbow? Didn't think so.
Without Ammunition, it would also not be possible to retrieve any physical ammunition after battle.
A ranged weapon without Ammunition functions differently when used in a melee attack. A Crossbow, Heavy would normally be treated as an improvised weapon, dealing 1d4 damage, if used in a melee attack. Without that property, suddenly you can smack someone with it for 1d10. That's not gonna happen.
A ranged weapon infused with Repeating Shot produces its own magical ammunition, and loads it for you automatically. This is not difficult
Not unless you homebrew a mechanic that would allow the character to somehow reload both, as a bonus action. Maybe they could sacrifice both their bonus and movement to achieve this. You could consider if the character has access to Haste and the feat Crossbow Expert I guess mechanically that could work. It would really be up to the D.M on this one.
repeating shot weapon says you ignore the loading property and it makes its own ammunition.
Well that simplifies things, and I learned of a new item so thank you. I'd still like to try and explore if Haste coupled with Crossbow Expert would be another viable option. Though both of these would still depend on your DM, so having a conversation with them is your best bet.
This is NOT a new item. This is not an available item at all, really. This is a placeholder to represent a weapon that has been infused by an Artificer's class feature.
You guys are arguing about this but the actual answer to the original question is simply no. By that I mean there is no adventures league legal way to dual wield hand crossbows. The only way to do it is using UA material, unofficial Ebberon content, or home brew. That might change when the new Ebberon book comes out but that's the way it is at the moment. Let's see what the book says when this content is official.
Yes, the question at hand has been resolved for quite awhile now. At the end of the day, hand crossbows are not a melee weapon, and will never be eligible for two-weapon fighting. UA & Eberron content don't change that either.
New Item or not, I was just learning of it so new to me. Still you focused on the least important part of my comment. I'm still interested in seeing if Haste coupled with Crossbow Expert is a viable option. If you have thoughts on that I'd be very interested to hear them
If you have the Crossbow Expert feat it removes the Loading property so you can shoot multiple times per turn. So yes if you have haste and the feat you can use the Haste action to shoot again.
Justageek: I only focused on that portion because the "item" that's being talked about now is not actually an item at all. It is a placeholder for a regular version of a ranged weapon that has been affected by an Artificer's specific class feature. This is not something that you can pick up in a shop. It isn't even something you can find in the world. It's not an item at all. I just don't want people to be confused about that.
Frankly, it was a horrible decision to put that on DDB in the first place. It is going to confuse people.... just like with the Revenant Double-Bladed Scimitar. The Artificer infusions ought to be handled the same way that Pact/Hex weapons are: toggled option on applicable base items. 🤷♂️
If you just want to have the same # of attacks as someone using Two-Weapon Fighting, you must have the Crossbow Expert feat.
If you want to use anything in the hand which is not holding the Crossbow, Hand, you must have an Artificer infuse the weapon(s) with Repeating Shot.
If you want the same # of attacks and have both of your hands occupied (2x crossbows, crossbow & shield, 1H & crossbow, etc.) you must have both Crossbow Expert and Repeating Shot infused weapons(s).
Wysperra:
Forgot to mention why Repeating Shot is powerful on a Fighter: 1d10 damage, from range, up to as many attacks as they have unlocked via Extra Attack. If the Fighter is teamed up with an Artificer, Repeating Shot is a no-brainer. The Fighter with a Crossbow, Heavy doesn't care about the bonus action feature of Crossbow Expert; they just want to fire their ballista more. The removal of Loading is the main point of interest for this very specific situation.
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You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
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What does any of that have to do with Crossbow Expert? Nothing.
If an Artificer infuses a Sling with Repeating Shot, they no longer have to load it. Again, this is not complex... A spellcasting class feature that uses magic to magically produce and load ammunition for you.
And the specific rule of Repeating Shot overrides the @#%!ing general rule. Period.
If you're going to be openly pedantic, it would help to have at least a rudimentary understanding of how the system works. 🙄
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
If it is just for flavor, I'd allow it.
I'd figure out exactly how many attacks the character in question is permitted to make with one hand-crossbow as per RAW, then have him do the same amount of attacks styled as if they were using dual hand-crossbows.
I can only imagine drawbacks from allowing that, as they have both hands full with that approach, and would have to drop or stow one hand-crossbow before they can use a potion or similar.
I'd also make sure the player understands that this is for flavor, only, and that this is not an opening to circumvent rules.
More Interesting Lock Picking Rules
The general rule is: you need a free hand to load a one-handed, ranged weapon with the ammunition property. If it produces ammo on its own, you don't nees to load it. If you dont need to load it, you don't need a free hand.
It could probably specifically mention that you don't have to load it. Since it is about to be printed, they have a chance to clarify its wording. Otherwise they will have to put it in sage advice after it is official.
Other than for the look, I don't see much of a reason to dual wield hand crossbows any way. The Crossbow Expert feat gives you a bonus action attack so you don't gain anything for having two anyway. And using the Repeating Shot infusion on 2 weapons just avoid taking a feat seems like a waste. It is obvious to me that this was really meant to be used with Firearms where there isn't a feat available and ammunition is expensive and lost when used.
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
The Repeating Shot infusion does not grant you a bonus action attack. If you want a bonus action attack with a Crossbow, Hand, you must take Crossbow Expert.
It is an incredibly potent infusion if you have a Fighter (in particular) wielding a Crossbow, Heavy, or any class with Extra Attack.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
This thread has been a ride
"Not all those who wander are lost"
You are right, the Infusion does not grant a bonus action attack, but the idea behind dual wielding hand crossbows is to have a bonus action attack the same as using two melee weapons. If you have Crossbow Expert, the second Hand Crossbows you are holding is irrelevant to the number of attacks you would get.
However, with Pistols, there isn't a feat to let you get a bonus action attack. The Infusion would negate the Loading and Ammunition properties to allow you to fire a second pistol as a bonus action.
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
I think the bit about crossbow expert being more useful than dual weilding was mentioned earlier. More importantly, you can't do two weapon fighting with ranged weapons (which I think was also mentioned earlier and yet here we are 60 replies later). So infusions or not, you need crossbow expert to be able to attack with bonus action (pistols just can't, so use a shield or something with other hand).
Irrelevant. You can't use two-weapon fighting with a non-melee weapon to begin with.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
Then the discussion about the interaction of the Infusion and Ammunition properties is equally irrelevant in the context of the original question of this thread.
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
Don't want to poke the bull, just wondering why the Infusion is especially potent with heavy crossbow. Isn't it the same as the Crossbow Expert Feat? I suppose it could be if you don't have Feats in your game.
Regarding the Crossbow Expert Feat what or how would you use a different one-handed weapon to make an attack such that you use your bonus action to shoot with your hand crossbow? Would that be akin to the iconic pirate or marine pistol/cutlass thing?
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
You would have to have already loaded the hand crossbow and do some juggling mid combat to get a free hand to reload it.
Mega Yahtzee Thread:
Highest 41: brocker2001 (#11,285).
Yahtzee of 2's: Emmber (#36,161).
Lowest 9: JoeltheWalrus (#312), Emmber (#12,505) and Dertinus (#20,953).
So
So now we are saying that you can't even do what the Crossbow Expert feat says you can do?
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
You can do that if it is loaded. The Crossbow Expert feat does not remove the Ammunition property which requires a free hand to reload. As long as the Hand-Crossbow is already loaded you can use the bonus action to shoot with it - but not otherwise. This means if you plan to use a one-handed weapon (anything really) as well as a Hand-Crossbow you would need to juggle.
If you are just using a Hand-Crossbow and nothing else then it's fine - bonus action attack to your heart's content.
Mega Yahtzee Thread:
Highest 41: brocker2001 (#11,285).
Yahtzee of 2's: Emmber (#36,161).
Lowest 9: JoeltheWalrus (#312), Emmber (#12,505) and Dertinus (#20,953).
You're fine.
No, it's not the same as the feat. It is an class feature that can be taken by an Artificer, and that Artificer can apply the infusion to a specific weapon--which the Artificer does not need to wield themselves, but the total number of items that a single Artificer can have infused at any moment is limited.
A ranged weapon that has been infused with Repeating Shot ignores the Loading, produces/loads its own ammunition, and grants a +1 attack/damage bonus to the weapon.
Crossbow Expert is a feat that anyone could take, and the benefits apply only to the individual character with the feat. A character with the feat ignores the Loading for only crossbows that they are proficient with (minor distinction, but meaningful). The character does not make ranged attack rolls at disadvantage if the disadvantage is only from being within 5 feet of a hostile creature (applies to all ranged attack rolls, so spells too). When you take the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you may make an attack with a Crossbow, Hand that you are holding as a bonus action.
As far as logistics for making that attack go, it's actually way less restrictive than Two-Weapon Fighting. You only need to make an attack with a one-handed weapon, not a 1H melee weapon; using the hand crossbow counts. Once that's been cleared, to make the bonus action attack you only need to be holding a hand crossbow. Did you just attack with your hand crossbow? Are you still holding it? Shoot it again; the hand crossbow does not need to be in a different hand, or a different weapon, from the one with which you made the original attack.
Swashbuckling with a sword & crossbow absolutely works with that feat.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.
The fact that the errata explaining this is so long shows that they needed to be more clear in the first place lol
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
New Item or not, I was just learning of it so new to me. Still you focused on the least important part of my comment. I'm still interested in seeing if Haste coupled with Crossbow Expert is a viable option. If you have thoughts on that I'd be very interested to hear them
If you have the Crossbow Expert feat it removes the Loading property so you can shoot multiple times per turn. So yes if you have haste and the feat you can use the Haste action to shoot again.
Mega Yahtzee Thread:
Highest 41: brocker2001 (#11,285).
Yahtzee of 2's: Emmber (#36,161).
Lowest 9: JoeltheWalrus (#312), Emmber (#12,505) and Dertinus (#20,953).
Justageek: I only focused on that portion because the "item" that's being talked about now is not actually an item at all. It is a placeholder for a regular version of a ranged weapon that has been affected by an Artificer's specific class feature. This is not something that you can pick up in a shop. It isn't even something you can find in the world. It's not an item at all. I just don't want people to be confused about that.
Frankly, it was a horrible decision to put that on DDB in the first place. It is going to confuse people.... just like with the Revenant Double-Bladed Scimitar. The Artificer infusions ought to be handled the same way that Pact/Hex weapons are: toggled option on applicable base items. 🤷♂️
Using a Crossbow, Hand, bottom line is:
Wysperra:
Forgot to mention why Repeating Shot is powerful on a Fighter: 1d10 damage, from range, up to as many attacks as they have unlocked via Extra Attack. If the Fighter is teamed up with an Artificer, Repeating Shot is a no-brainer. The Fighter with a Crossbow, Heavy doesn't care about the bonus action feature of Crossbow Expert; they just want to fire their ballista more. The removal of Loading is the main point of interest for this very specific situation.
You don't know what fear is until you've witnessed a drunk bird divebombing you while carrying a screaming Kobold throwing fire anywhere and everywhere.