Weapon like supernatural abilities?

[Yogibear41]

Complete Arcana has a section about weaponlike spells that states when a spell requires and attack roll and deals damage certain feats/abilities can be applied to it.

My question is: Is there anything like this for supernatural abilities?

Say I have a spellcaster who has Favored Enemies or Sneak attack, but also employs Reserve feats that require attack rolls. Would I be able to apply the FE or Sneak attack bonus to said Reserve feats when I used them in much the same way I would be able to apply them to spells used in the same manner?

[Psyren]

It's not spelled out anywhere but it's clear they intended weaponlike anything to be usable with sneak attack. As an example, the Splinterwaif's supernatural ability to spit a splinter of wood at its foe benefits from its sneak attack ability despite being neither a weapon nor spell.

[Nifft]

I don't have a rules cite handy, but I THINK that precision damage applies once per attack roll (regular or touch).

That would apply equally to [Reserve] feat effects which require an attack roll.

[Thurbane]

From the SRD:


Sneak Attack
If a rogue can catch an opponent when he is unable to defend himself effectively from her attack, she can strike a vital spot for extra damage.

The rogue’s attack deals extra damage any time her target would be denied a Dexterity bonus to AC (whether the target actually has a Dexterity bonus or not), or when the rogue flanks her target. This extra damage is 1d6 at 1st level, and it increases by 1d6 every two rogue levels thereafter. Should the rogue score a critical hit with a sneak attack, this extra damage is not multiplied.

Ranged attacks can count as sneak attacks only if the target is within 30 feet.

Rules Compendium says this:


Precision damage applies on any attack that meets the requirements of the ability that grants the damage.

For what it's worth, the Official FAQ documents says this (underlining mine):


Does a rogue apply sneak attack damage when throwing alchemist fire or casting a spell such as acid splash?
Yes. The bonus damage from sneak attack, skirmish, or sudden strike applies to any attack that requires an attack roll, even touch attacks.

So yes, AFAIK you can use any reserve feat that requires an attack roll and deals damage (Acidic Splatter, Invisible Needle etc.) to trigger Sneak Attack, if you meet all the other requirements.

[Yogibear41]

Cool, although to be honest for what I had in mind, I was more curious about favored enemy damage, I suppose if the rule applies to sneak attack it should also apply to that as well though.

[Nifft]

Cool, although to be honest for what I had in mind, I was more curious about favored enemy damage, I suppose if the rule applies to sneak attack it should also apply to that as well though.

RC p.42 considers both Sneak Attack and Favored Enemy damage to be Precision Damage, so yes.

[Psyren]

Favored Enemy specifies "weapon damage" which is different from sneak attack's wording, so I'm less sure about this one. It's also not precision damage, so the rules cite above wouldn't apply.

[Nifft]

Ah, right -- RC p.136 refers to precision damage and also favored enemy damage, but doesn't say that the one is the other. My mistake, thanks.

RC p.137 isn't really clear on whether [Reserve] feats are spells or weapons or what. They're clearly (Su) rather than (Sp), but beyond that ...



The D&D game includes a wide array of supplements that enable you to incorporate different power sources into your game. Rules Compendium doesn’t include material from all these sources, since you need the supplement the power source appears in to use that power source effectively. Here are some general concepts that apply to these power sources with respect to other effects and abili- ties in the game.

• If an ability provided by the power source functions like a spell, it follows the rules for spells. For example, a psionic power functions like a spell.
• If an ability has a type—extraordinary, spell-like, or supernatural—it follows the rules that apply to that type of special ability. For instance, a warlock invocation is considered a spell-like ability.

[DrMotives]

All sneak attack, favored enemy, et al. should work with reserve feats as well as a warlock's eldritch blast. They explicitly work with touch attack spells.