So a friend of mine can take a few teamwork feats that would really help him in combat like Enfilading Fire or Coordinated Shot but because of the prerequisites that would serve no purpose for melee characters (Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, etc) it's pretty impractical for us to take them. Is there an easier way to grant an ally the benefits of a teamwork feat that doesn't include having it myself?
[RPG] way to grant allies the benefit of teamwork feats without having that feat
featspathfinder-1e
Related Solutions
Yes, ranged attacks from spells are typically considered to be "weapon-like". This is definitely true of rays (and almost all ranged touch attack spells are rays) since from the rules:
You aim a ray as if using a ranged weapon
The rules further clarify that rays function as weapons for several other purposes, and the FAQ makes this very explicit:
Do rays count as weapons for the purpose of spells and effects that affect weapons?
Yes [...] rays are treated as weapons, whether they're from spells, a monster ability, a class ability, or some other source
The same rule applies to weapon-like spells such as flame blade, mage's sword, and spiritual weapon--effects that affect weapons work on these spells.
Most ranged touch attacks which aren't rays are things like acid splash -- spells where you actually throw or aim a physical object. Those are even more "weapon-like" than rays, so it's probably simplest to say all ranged touch attacks work like this.
There's another FAQ that indicates you can take "Weapon Focus (ray)" and the like; strictly speaking I guess those wouldn't apply to orb spells like acid splash.
This is all following the precedent set by 3.5; in Complete Arcane it specifies that rays and touch attack spells are "weapon-like" and thus interact with feats in the same way that other weapons do, with a split between ranged/melee type spells.
First of all, I always assumed Bonus=Benefit in the context of solo tactics. Anything else didn't even occur to me.
Regarding your question, the FAQ offers a precedent for Benefit = Bonus in the context of Outflank's secondary ability.
Benefit: [...] In addition, whenever you score a critical hit against the flanked creature, it provokes an attack of opportunity from your ally.
An attack of opportunity is most definitely no Bonus in the sense of the rules. However, the FAQ states, with regard to exactly this part:
Inquisitor: If an inquisitor uses Solo Tactics (Advanced Player's Guide, page 40) with the Outflank feat (APG, page 165), does the enemy provoke attacks of opportunity when hit with a critical hit?
Yes, but only when the inquisitors allies score a critical hit against a foe that they both flank. In this case, the enemy provokes an attack of opportunity from the inquisitor. The reverse is not true, since her allies can only gain bonuses from teamwork feats if they themselves possess them.
So for the purpose of Solo Tactics, "getting an AoO" is considered a Bonus, however "granting your ally an AoO" is not, which to be honest, is a little odd, since the Benefit of the feat clearly describes the latter.
I think the general rule with Solo Tactics can be expressed as
"Anytime it would be good for you if one of your allies had the same Teamwork feat as you, you can pretend he has it."
This is compatible with the FAQ ruling and may or may not be RAI (We might never find out). Some specific Examples as to what this reading means:
- Outflank: "If your flanking buddy ally lands a critical hit,
if he had Outflank, you could make an AoO." - Coordinated Reposition: "If your ally makes a 5 foot step,
if he had Coordinated Reposition, you could also make one as an immediate action" - Escape Route: "If your ally threatens a square,
if he had Escape Route, you could walk right through there without provoking an AoO."
Best Answer
You probably want to split the cost of a ring of tactical precision (Ultimate Equipment 175) (11,000 gp; 0 lbs.) or two. Your buddy wears the ring for an hour, picks one of his teamwork feats, and gives the ring to you. While you're wearing the ring, for 1 day you can use that teamwork feat your buddy picked. (He doesn't lose the feat or anything, though.) You benefit from the teamwork feat your buddy picked, but can only benefit from the teamwork feat in conjunction with your buddy. (For instance, were the fighter that possesses a teamwork feat to have imbued two rings with the same teamwork feat and given one to the cleric and and another to the rogue, the fighter and the rogue in tandem could use the teamwork feat as could the fighter and the cleric, but not the cleric and the rogue.)
Much more expensive—and annoying—is the helmet of the golden general (Ultimate Equipment 357-8) (62,000 gp; 3 lbs.), an intelligent item which can grant the wearer the creator's choice of three teamwork feats, which "[t]he wearer can use... as if [they] were on his feat list," presumably ignoring prerequisites entirely. The feats are chosen when the helmet's created and can't be changed afterward. But during battle the helmet provides constant verbal color commentary and condescending coaching. I suggest immediately somehow muting the central ruby where the words come out.