Feat Selection

[Atemus]

When you acquire new feats, do you have to use them right away? Or can you save them for when you qualify for a specific feat?

Also, what ways are there to acquire breath weapons? I know about the Gout of Flame feat, as well as the Dragon Shaman class, and the Half-Dragon racial ability (or is it a feat?). Any other ways that you guys know of? If it's setting specific, please note it as so.

[Kuulvheysoon]

Well besides the ways that you mentioned, there's also the Dragonfire Adept (base class, Dragon Magic), Talon of Tiamat (Prestige class, Draconomicon) and the Breath Weapon feat for sorcerers in Races of the Dragon (expend a spell slot for 2d6 damage per spell level).

And the half-dragon breath weapon is a racial ability (usable 1/day). There's a feat in Races of the Dragon (requires 6HD, half-dragon) which ups the usage to once every d4 rounds.

[Ryulin18]

You have to place your feat straight away. There is no saving it or waiting. That would be a power builders dream though.

You could just ask your DM if you can once, see what he says.

And I know nothing of breath weapons

[Zaq]

The easiest ways to get a breath weapon are the Dragonfire Adept base class in Dragon Magic (gets an at-will breath weapon at level 1, and most of the class is dedicated to making that breath weapon bigger, better, and more interesting, mostly with fun debuff effects) or the dragonborn race/template/thing in Races of the Dragon (one of the options is a breath weapon usable every 1d4 rounds, and the damage scales. The type is chosen when you use it, but it can only be a line.) Dragon Shaman is a poor cousin to the Dragonfire Adept (only good for metabreath shenanigans, really, and I call those shenanigans).

As stated, you cannot "save" feats to meet prereqs later. The closest you can do is the Dark Chaos Shuffle, but that's generally considered to be firmly in high-op territory, so it's not something one just springs on one's DM.

[kardar233]

Also, you can cast Dragon Breath (as a 5th-level spell, IIRC) for a breath weapon usable every d4 rounds of an element you choose.

[nedz]

There's the fourth level Sorceror spell Dragon Breath, in the SpC

[Malachei]

Retraining could be an option

[Zaq]

Retraining could be an option

Using the 3.5 retraining rules in PHB2, you have to have qualified for the feat you retrain into at the time you got the original feat, which doesn't help the OP.

[Lostbutseeking]

Some of the draconic bloodlines in UA offer breath weapons.

[rot42]

It is occasionally possible to get around the restriction on not qualifying for a feat at a convenient level with levels in a class that grants a feat and specifies that the granted feat can be anything if you have already selected that feat. Marshal comes to mind.

A couple of soulmelds grant breath weapons. Ask your DM about the Open Chakra feat. There is also a draconic graft (a bit pricey for what it does, but works for any build). And whatever else is listed at the Lists of Stuff: http://www.minmaxboards.com/index.php?topic=1412.