RichardAK
2012-11-04, 02:11 AM
There is an epic feat in Dragon Magazine #297 (p. 28) called Destructive Attack that permits death attacks, and, by extension, sneak attacks, on undead, constructs, and plants. Its exact wording is as follows:
You can destroy plants, undead, and constructs with your death attack.
Prerequisites: Death attack ability, Improved Death Attack, Power Attack, Str 21+.
Benefit: You can make death attacks against plant, undead, and construct targets. If the target fails to resist your destructive attack, it is destroyed (reduced to 0 hit points). The target struck suffers any sneak attack damage as well, even though plants, undead, and constructs are normally immune to sneak attack damage; this damage comes from the sheer power of the assassin's destructive attack.
Normal: Without this feat, an assassin's death attack cannot harm plants, undead, or constructs; these creature types are immune to sneak attack damage.
There is also a spell called Sniper's Eye (Spell Compendium pp. 193-194) that reads as follows (emphasis added):
SNIPER’S EYE
Transmutation
Level: Assassin 4
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round/level (D)
Holding the glass lens before you, you take a series of slow, deep breaths. Whispered words of arcane power seep past your lips with each exhalation. As you complete the spell you feel infused with deadly ability. When you cast sniper’s eye, you gain the following benefits.
• +10 competence bonus on Spot checks.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• The ability to make a ranged sneak attack at a range of up to 60 feet, rather than 30 feet.
• The ability to make a death attack with a ranged weapon rather than
just with a melee weapon. The target must be within 60 feet.
This spell doesn’t grant you the ability to make a sneak attack or death attack if you don’t already have that ability.
Sniper’s eye attunes you completely to the vantage point you had when you cast the spell. You understand the nuances of the breeze and every angle and shadow—from that spot. If you move even 5 feet from the place where you cast the spell, you lose the benefits of sniper’s eye until you return to that spot.
Focus: A magnifying glass lens.
So here's the issue: Sniper's Eye permits you to make death attacks with ranged weapons, some of which, notably crossbows, do not allow you to add your strength bonus to the damage. That's no problem, since death attacks do not normally depend on strength. Destructive Attack allows you to make death attacks, and sneak attacks, on targets normally immune, but depends on the tremendous physical force behind the attack. That's no problem, because death attacks can normally only be made with melee weapons, which all permit strength bonuses to damage. The problem, if there is one, comes in when the feat and the spell are used together. Should someone be allowed to cast Sniper's Eye and then use a crossbow, or any other ranged weapon that does not permit a strength bonus to damage, to make a death attack, using the Destructive Attack feat to target a creature normally immune to death attacks? It seems to me that, RAW, the answer should be yes, since Destructive Attack does not specify otherwise. At the same time, it seems obvious that, RAI, this should not be allowed.
Personally, if I were DMing, I would rule that, to use this spell and this feat together, one must use a ranged weapon that permits at least a +5 strength bonus to damage, since that's the bonus that comes from a 21 strength. Does anyone else have a perspective on this?
You can destroy plants, undead, and constructs with your death attack.
Prerequisites: Death attack ability, Improved Death Attack, Power Attack, Str 21+.
Benefit: You can make death attacks against plant, undead, and construct targets. If the target fails to resist your destructive attack, it is destroyed (reduced to 0 hit points). The target struck suffers any sneak attack damage as well, even though plants, undead, and constructs are normally immune to sneak attack damage; this damage comes from the sheer power of the assassin's destructive attack.
Normal: Without this feat, an assassin's death attack cannot harm plants, undead, or constructs; these creature types are immune to sneak attack damage.
There is also a spell called Sniper's Eye (Spell Compendium pp. 193-194) that reads as follows (emphasis added):
SNIPER’S EYE
Transmutation
Level: Assassin 4
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round/level (D)
Holding the glass lens before you, you take a series of slow, deep breaths. Whispered words of arcane power seep past your lips with each exhalation. As you complete the spell you feel infused with deadly ability. When you cast sniper’s eye, you gain the following benefits.
• +10 competence bonus on Spot checks.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• The ability to make a ranged sneak attack at a range of up to 60 feet, rather than 30 feet.
• The ability to make a death attack with a ranged weapon rather than
just with a melee weapon. The target must be within 60 feet.
This spell doesn’t grant you the ability to make a sneak attack or death attack if you don’t already have that ability.
Sniper’s eye attunes you completely to the vantage point you had when you cast the spell. You understand the nuances of the breeze and every angle and shadow—from that spot. If you move even 5 feet from the place where you cast the spell, you lose the benefits of sniper’s eye until you return to that spot.
Focus: A magnifying glass lens.
So here's the issue: Sniper's Eye permits you to make death attacks with ranged weapons, some of which, notably crossbows, do not allow you to add your strength bonus to the damage. That's no problem, since death attacks do not normally depend on strength. Destructive Attack allows you to make death attacks, and sneak attacks, on targets normally immune, but depends on the tremendous physical force behind the attack. That's no problem, because death attacks can normally only be made with melee weapons, which all permit strength bonuses to damage. The problem, if there is one, comes in when the feat and the spell are used together. Should someone be allowed to cast Sniper's Eye and then use a crossbow, or any other ranged weapon that does not permit a strength bonus to damage, to make a death attack, using the Destructive Attack feat to target a creature normally immune to death attacks? It seems to me that, RAW, the answer should be yes, since Destructive Attack does not specify otherwise. At the same time, it seems obvious that, RAI, this should not be allowed.
Personally, if I were DMing, I would rule that, to use this spell and this feat together, one must use a ranged weapon that permits at least a +5 strength bonus to damage, since that's the bonus that comes from a 21 strength. Does anyone else have a perspective on this?