If you're in my campaign, please don't read this thread.
The trick bow is an ornate lacquered longbow decorated with shades of dark blue and grey. Long ago, it belonged to a famous circus archer who was known far and wide for making outrageously improbable shots with this bow.
This bow is a +1 magical weapon. Once per short rest, the user of this bow may attempt each of the following trick shots by calling them prior to firing. The archer rolls to hit as normal and if successful, makes a contested performance check against an opposed roll by the target. If the target wins the opposed roll, the trick shot fails and is treated as a normal shot. On a critical hit, no contested roll is required. The called shots are as follows:
Disarming shot - Opposed by the target's DEX save. If the archer wins, a wielded weapon of the archer's choice is knocked 5’ away from the target to a spot picked by the archer.
Tripping shot - Opposed by the target's DEX save. If the archer wins, the target staggers and falls prone. Doesn't work against creatures that would not reasonably be knocked prone by an arrow to the knee.
Blinding shot - Opposed by the target's DEX save. If the archer wins, the target takes 1hp of additional bleeding damage and becomes blinded until they can spend a reaction to wipe away the blood from their eyes. Doesn't work against creatures that don't bleed, don't have eyes, or have blindsight.
Distracting shot - Opposed by the target's CON save. If the archer wins, the target must make its next save to maintain concentration at disadvantage. Only works if the target is concentrating at the time.
The archer may also spend a bonus action to take careful aim when firing and thereby get advantage when making the opposed roll.
--------------------
OK, so a little bit of explanation. The party is going to be hitting level five soon and going up against a big end-of-arc dungeon crawl ending in the big encounter that will likely span two sessions. I feel like it's time to trickle out some minor magical items to people that suit their characters. And everyone in my party likes weapons. The archer in the party is a bard, in case you're wondering about potential problems with many archers not having a high performance. I spent about 30 seconds on the actual item description, so feel free to rip that to shreds or ignore it entirely. It's not the final draft.
What I'm vacillating on are:
Should the trick shots reset on a short rest or a long rest? I want to balance usefulness against potential overuse.
Should the trick shots get used up when they are attempted? Or only on a success?
Do you like natural 20 automatically winning the opposed check on a called shot?
Is it overpowered to allow the archer to use a bonus action to take careful aim and roll with advantage?
Do you see problems with any of those four trick shots?
Can you think of any great trick shots I ought to add to this?
More than three trick shot options seems like a lot. I strongly suggest exchanging the contested roll for a dexterity based DC, as you use the phrase "save".
I like the natural 20 idea, but if it you declare after you hit, I think you will see some abuse of that. To avoid that but still give the player some feeling that it is harder to mess up, consider that when you use a trick shot, you gain advantage.
Bleeding damage isn't a thing. Necrotic and piercing damage are.
I would exchange the once per short rest for charges that are regained at dawn. A total of 12 charges, a trick shot costs 3 or 4.
As this appears to be a certain bow owned by single performer, it might be fun to make the bow sentient and give it the personality of the performer.
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
1. I think charges is a reasonable alternative. Two or three charges seem reasonable, renewable at dawn.
2. If you go with charges, I think they should be automatic. If you don't, then I'd think the trick shots are "used" only when they are successful would be reasonable.
*I think the contested rolls may make this a little cumbersome. You might consider giving it a few (or even one) renewable charges that work the rolls. (The question I'm asking myself is "just how magical is this magic bow?" because really I might let a PC with a high DEX score and proficiency attempt some of these called shots with a standard bow, granted the DC would be very high and the save on the receiving end would be relatively low.)
3. Yes, if you're set on that approach, a natural 20 should be a success.
4. Careful aim is an interesting option, and I don't necessarily dislike it. I'm thinking, though, that a called shot implies that the character is going to take careful aim. Maybe the magic of the bow is giving the advantage and that's what expends the charge (or however you decide to operate the magic.)
5. Not yet.
6. How about the two arrow trick? Or the classic split the arrow trick? Or shoot down the arrow-in-flight trick? (There's your reaction shot: as a reaction, you can (attempt to) shoot down an arrow fired at you, breaking the arrow in flight and causing it to miss.)
Anyway, interesting bow. I hope you'll share the final version after you've given it to a player.
Thanks for the great feedback. Any reference to bleeding is purely for descriptive purposes. And although I like the idea of forcing the enemy to use their reaction to clear their eyes, if I'm going to cut the list down to three trick shots, the blinding shot feels to me to be the weakest one thematically and possibly the most needlessly complicated. Any trick shot would have to be called prior to making the attack roll. If it's a critical, the trick shot would auto-succeed. It could be that I need to work on my wording to make that more clear. Doing recharges at dawn with trick shots having a fixed cost seems like a good way to smooth out that whole system. Instead of 12 charges with each shot costing 3 or 4, I'd just say 3 or 4 charges with each shot costing 1 charge. The question remains whether to charge them on the attempt or on a successful use of the item. I guess most magic items charge them whether the use is successful or not.
Sentient bow... Food for thought.
Tell me more about your first comment, please. Are you saying I should consider requiring a DEX save of a preset DC? I like the idea of two people rolling and the one with the better result winning. Maybe I misunderstand your suggestion. Or maybe I just like something that may end up creating unnecessary additional game mechanics during combat. I'll take a hard look at that. It could be that I'm going down the wrong path by basing this on performance. It felt right since performance is CHA based and it's something the character would be relatively strong at. That might make it too specific for the user though. Is that a bad thing? I don't know. At any rate, could I get you to write out one trick shot using the syntax you intended so I can understand your suggestion better?
Sounds like pre-release another draft of the item is soon to come.
Thanks for the great feedback. Any reference to bleeding is purely for descriptive purposes. And although I like the idea of forcing the enemy to use their reaction to clear their eyes, if I'm going to cut the list down to three trick shots, the blinding shot feels to me to be the weakest one thematically and possibly the most needlessly complicated. Any trick shot would have to be called prior to making the attack roll. If it's a critical, the trick shot would auto-succeed. It could be that I need to work on my wording to make that more clear. Doing recharges at dawn with trick shots having a fixed cost seems like a good way to smooth out that whole system. Instead of 12 charges with each shot costing 3 or 4, I'd just say 3 or 4 charges with each shot costing 1 charge. The question remains whether to charge them on the attempt or on a successful use of the item. I guess most magic items charge them whether the use is successful or not.
Definitely a better system; I agree with you about the blinding shot.
Tell me more about your first comment, please. Are you saying I should consider requiring a DEX save of a preset DC? I like the idea of two people rolling and the one with the better result winning. Maybe I misunderstand your suggestion. Or maybe I just like something that may end up creating unnecessary additional game mechanics during combat. I'll take a hard look at that. It could be that I'm going down the wrong path by basing this on performance. It felt right since performance is CHA based and it's something the character would be relatively strong at. That might make it too specific for the user though. Is that a bad thing? I don't know.
Having a contest in the middle of combat will slow things down, DCs keep things more streamlined. Like with the Battlemaster, the DC is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your dexterity modifier. I understand the idea behind the contest being performance based, but as a DM, I would say they would roll a performance check using their dexterity modifier instead of their charisma, as this is a more physical act than one about charming or being persuasive.
At any rate, could I get you to write out one trick shot using the syntax you intended so I can understand your suggestion better?
How so? I am more than happy to write my own version of the item, but I'm not sure which syntax you're referring to.
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I'm still hanging onto the idea of a performance check because I imagine the trick shot was developed to impress an audience as a display of skill. I'm not 100% on this, but it still feels right to me. We'll see if that opinion evolves. Here's where I am on the item now:
Riley Fuzzle was a famous gnome archer who traveled the land performing feats of wondrous accuracy with his bow. One night over drinks, he was dared to shoot the hat off a wizard drinking alone on the far side of a tavern. Riley took careful aim at the unsuspecting wizard and let his arrow fly. The rest of the story varies based on who is telling it, but in all versions, when the dust settled, the hat of the furious wizard was pinned to the wall. The bow lay on the floor, but Riley was nowhere to be found and he was never seen again. Riley Fuzzle's trick bow is an ornate lacquered longbow decorated with patterns of midnight blue and grey. It feels perfectly balanced and has an easy draw.
This longbow is a +1 magical weapon with four charges. When using the bow, you may expend one charge to attempt a trick shot, which you call prior to firing. Make your attack roll and, if successful, the target must make a saving throw with a DC of (10 + your performance). Failure means the trick shot succeeds. If the target makes the save, the trick shot fails, but the arrow still hits its target. A critical hit automatically succeeds on the trick shot. The trick shots are as follows:
Disarming shot - If the target fails a DEX save, a wielded weapon of your choice is knocked 5’ away from the target to a location you pick.
Tripping shot - If the target fails a STR save, they stagger and fall prone. Doesn't work against creatures that would not reasonably be knocked prone by an arrow to the knee.
Distracting shot - If the target fails a CON save, they must make their next save to maintain concentration at disadvantage. Only works if the target is concentrating at the time.
Every morning at dawn, the bow regains all four charges.
I've come around on the idea of a static DC as opposed to a contested roll. I mixed up the checks to be DEX, STR, and CON in order to give some variety and allow an astute archer to pick the shot that works best against a given enemy. As for sentience, the item's backstory leaves the door open without immediately committing one way or the other.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Not all those who wander are lost"
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
If you're in my campaign, please don't read this thread.
The trick bow is an ornate lacquered longbow decorated with shades of dark blue and grey. Long ago, it belonged to a famous circus archer who was known far and wide for making outrageously improbable shots with this bow.
This bow is a +1 magical weapon. Once per short rest, the user of this bow may attempt each of the following trick shots by calling them prior to firing. The archer rolls to hit as normal and if successful, makes a contested performance check against an opposed roll by the target. If the target wins the opposed roll, the trick shot fails and is treated as a normal shot. On a critical hit, no contested roll is required. The called shots are as follows:
The archer may also spend a bonus action to take careful aim when firing and thereby get advantage when making the opposed roll.
--------------------
OK, so a little bit of explanation. The party is going to be hitting level five soon and going up against a big end-of-arc dungeon crawl ending in the big encounter that will likely span two sessions. I feel like it's time to trickle out some minor magical items to people that suit their characters. And everyone in my party likes weapons. The archer in the party is a bard, in case you're wondering about potential problems with many archers not having a high performance. I spent about 30 seconds on the actual item description, so feel free to rip that to shreds or ignore it entirely. It's not the final draft.
What I'm vacillating on are:
"Not all those who wander are lost"
More than three trick shot options seems like a lot. I strongly suggest exchanging the contested roll for a dexterity based DC, as you use the phrase "save".
I like the natural 20 idea, but if it you declare after you hit, I think you will see some abuse of that. To avoid that but still give the player some feeling that it is harder to mess up, consider that when you use a trick shot, you gain advantage.
Bleeding damage isn't a thing. Necrotic and piercing damage are.
I would exchange the once per short rest for charges that are regained at dawn. A total of 12 charges, a trick shot costs 3 or 4.
As this appears to be a certain bow owned by single performer, it might be fun to make the bow sentient and give it the personality of the performer.
Also, official items use the second person (you).
Tooltips | Snippet Code | How to Homebrew on D&D Beyond | Subclass Guide | Feature Roadmap
Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
1. I think charges is a reasonable alternative. Two or three charges seem reasonable, renewable at dawn.
2. If you go with charges, I think they should be automatic. If you don't, then I'd think the trick shots are "used" only when they are successful would be reasonable.
*I think the contested rolls may make this a little cumbersome. You might consider giving it a few (or even one) renewable charges that work the rolls. (The question I'm asking myself is "just how magical is this magic bow?" because really I might let a PC with a high DEX score and proficiency attempt some of these called shots with a standard bow, granted the DC would be very high and the save on the receiving end would be relatively low.)
3. Yes, if you're set on that approach, a natural 20 should be a success.
4. Careful aim is an interesting option, and I don't necessarily dislike it. I'm thinking, though, that a called shot implies that the character is going to take careful aim. Maybe the magic of the bow is giving the advantage and that's what expends the charge (or however you decide to operate the magic.)
5. Not yet.
6. How about the two arrow trick? Or the classic split the arrow trick? Or shoot down the arrow-in-flight trick? (There's your reaction shot: as a reaction, you can (attempt to) shoot down an arrow fired at you, breaking the arrow in flight and causing it to miss.)
Anyway, interesting bow. I hope you'll share the final version after you've given it to a player.
Recently returned to D&D after 20+ years.
Unapologetic.
Thanks for the great feedback. Any reference to bleeding is purely for descriptive purposes. And although I like the idea of forcing the enemy to use their reaction to clear their eyes, if I'm going to cut the list down to three trick shots, the blinding shot feels to me to be the weakest one thematically and possibly the most needlessly complicated. Any trick shot would have to be called prior to making the attack roll. If it's a critical, the trick shot would auto-succeed. It could be that I need to work on my wording to make that more clear. Doing recharges at dawn with trick shots having a fixed cost seems like a good way to smooth out that whole system. Instead of 12 charges with each shot costing 3 or 4, I'd just say 3 or 4 charges with each shot costing 1 charge. The question remains whether to charge them on the attempt or on a successful use of the item. I guess most magic items charge them whether the use is successful or not.
Sentient bow... Food for thought.
Tell me more about your first comment, please. Are you saying I should consider requiring a DEX save of a preset DC? I like the idea of two people rolling and the one with the better result winning. Maybe I misunderstand your suggestion. Or maybe I just like something that may end up creating unnecessary additional game mechanics during combat. I'll take a hard look at that. It could be that I'm going down the wrong path by basing this on performance. It felt right since performance is CHA based and it's something the character would be relatively strong at. That might make it too specific for the user though. Is that a bad thing? I don't know. At any rate, could I get you to write out one trick shot using the syntax you intended so I can understand your suggestion better?
Sounds like pre-release another draft of the item is soon to come.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Definitely a better system; I agree with you about the blinding shot.
Having a contest in the middle of combat will slow things down, DCs keep things more streamlined. Like with the Battlemaster, the DC is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your dexterity modifier. I understand the idea behind the contest being performance based, but as a DM, I would say they would roll a performance check using their dexterity modifier instead of their charisma, as this is a more physical act than one about charming or being persuasive.
How so? I am more than happy to write my own version of the item, but I'm not sure which syntax you're referring to.
Tooltips | Snippet Code | How to Homebrew on D&D Beyond | Subclass Guide | Feature Roadmap
Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
I'm still hanging onto the idea of a performance check because I imagine the trick shot was developed to impress an audience as a display of skill. I'm not 100% on this, but it still feels right to me. We'll see if that opinion evolves. Here's where I am on the item now:
Riley Fuzzle was a famous gnome archer who traveled the land performing feats of wondrous accuracy with his bow. One night over drinks, he was dared to shoot the hat off a wizard drinking alone on the far side of a tavern. Riley took careful aim at the unsuspecting wizard and let his arrow fly. The rest of the story varies based on who is telling it, but in all versions, when the dust settled, the hat of the furious wizard was pinned to the wall. The bow lay on the floor, but Riley was nowhere to be found and he was never seen again. Riley Fuzzle's trick bow is an ornate lacquered longbow decorated with patterns of midnight blue and grey. It feels perfectly balanced and has an easy draw.
This longbow is a +1 magical weapon with four charges. When using the bow, you may expend one charge to attempt a trick shot, which you call prior to firing. Make your attack roll and, if successful, the target must make a saving throw with a DC of (10 + your performance). Failure means the trick shot succeeds. If the target makes the save, the trick shot fails, but the arrow still hits its target. A critical hit automatically succeeds on the trick shot. The trick shots are as follows:
Every morning at dawn, the bow regains all four charges.
I've come around on the idea of a static DC as opposed to a contested roll. I mixed up the checks to be DEX, STR, and CON in order to give some variety and allow an astute archer to pick the shot that works best against a given enemy. As for sentience, the item's backstory leaves the door open without immediately committing one way or the other.
"Not all those who wander are lost"