Crossbow Expert - Feats in D&D 5e 

The no disadvantage applies to all range attacks, not just crossbow attacks. So standard bows and spells also don't have disadvantage.

there's nothing in the rules that say you can pre-load the crossbow. but there is nothing in the rules that say you CAN'T pre-load it.

I had a player in game I was running a while back who played a Lightfoot halfling battlemaster fighter with urchin background and CB expert who described his class as a Skirmisher, still one of the most versatile builds I've ever seen. one of his favorite things to do was use the "goading attack" on an enemy while being as far away as possible so the enemy has disadvantage on attacks against everybody but him, and can't freaking get to him.

There's another potent combination for this feat that I was surprised they did not realize/discuss; if you use a throwing weapon in your off hand, you can still then have a free hand for the 'ammunition' property to fire the hand crossbow; now, you might say, "But throwing weapons don't do more damage than the crossbow, anyway, so there's no point!" Aside from style, possible magical enchantments, variety of damage types (Bludgeoning or Slashing vs Piercing), and possible different Attack rolls (Str vs Dex) you'd also be wrong thanks to another often forgotten, usually scoffed at weapon... the net. The net works gloriously with this feat; it's regular range is only 5 feet, which means normally you have disadvantage anyways because you're using it in melee range, but this feat fixes that; so, you get right up on an enemy, slap them with the net, and then get that bonus action to fire the crossbow right in their face; this helps because, once they're hit with the net, they are Restrained, which means that crossbow attack immediately has advantage, which is a great help, and specifically sets up a beautiful combo for the Rogue class, since that means you're now adding Sneak Attack dice to that crossbow attack; while nets can be broken relatively easily (only takes a DC 10 Str check), it requires an action, meaning the enemy can't possibly break free before you fire the crossbow that first time, so you're guaranteed at least one attack with advantage that will count as a Sneak Attack, possibly more if they fail to break free, and it also will prevent them from attacking the next turn; it also fits pretty thematically with a clever/sneaky/underhanded thief type fighter the Rogue class so easily fits... I fully expected this gem combination to be in the video and was shocked they didn't think of it, apparently.

If a dagger/handaxe is thrown from main hand, that hand is then free to load/fire the shot from off-hand hand crossbow

Another thing to note about the feat is that it removes the 5ft penalty for ALL ranged attacks. This includes spells. This was pointed out in an an FAQ/Eratta. I can't recall which one.

A collage of valor Bard can be a nasty crossbow expert. They have extra attack, can get swift quiver at level 10, and is a full arcane caster.

As a DM, my solution to the loading while wielding a melee weapon issue was the creation of the "Loading Belt." Essentially, a player has to commission or craft a particular piece of equipment. Generally this is a belt, hence the name, though I suppose it could take the form of a thigh belt, sash, or similar garment. You can load a certain number of bolts into it outside of combat (determined by a combination of material expenditure, craftsman skill, and DM discretion), and then use that to reload a hand crossbow even if both hands are occupied. I'm sure this isn't for every player or DM, but it hasn't been anywhere near game-breaking, the player seemed to be enjoying it quite a lot, and it's honestly just a really cool image.

you forgot the ranged rogue, who is severely helped in landing sneak attack by getting a bonus action attack.

The defining gun combat movie is Equilibrium

This definitely seems like a case of letting the letter of the law override the spirit of the law. There are lots of actions a character can make in D&D and not all of them are spelled out in the rules. As a DM, I'd include loading a crossbow under the "interacting with objects around you" on p. 190 of the PHB, just like drawing or sheathing a weapon. i.e. Just because loading a weapon can be done as part of an Attack action doesn't mean it cannot be done any other way.

So here's how you make Crossbow Expert work while also wielding a Rapier (or weapon of your choice) -Attack with the Rapier (Action) -Drop the Rapier (Free Action/Non-Action) -Attack with the Hand Crossbow, using your now-free hand (Bonus Action) -Pick up the Rapier (Object Interaction) It works, guys. Everything's okay.

Battlemaster rocks with ranged attacks. Precision Shot can be used to completely offset the -5 from Sharpshooter. Distracting Shot can set up your Barbarian buddy for his massive attack. Tripping Shot can bring down that guard running to alert his reinforcements.

I want my cleric to use a light crossbow and have this feat. Listening to you guys really helps get the point of how it all works across well

My party understood rules in another way: we judge any ranged weapon as a preloaded and that "load as a part of attack action" - we judge as "preload next shot". If we would play as you say - one handed crossbows will be some kind of nonsense.

"Fighter got the Archery fighting style" .... But so does the Ranger. In fact I think the Monster Slayer ranger archetype works well with Crossbow Expert. You get Archery or Two-weapon fighter. You get the ability to look for weaknesses as a action with Hunter's Sense while you apply Slayer's Prey as a bonus action (it doesn't end even when the target dies), which gives you an extra 1d6 damage on the target and it can be used as many times as you want. If you play with the Weapon Draw rules you can only draw 1 weapon without using an action anyway so you got time to set up for attacks. You set up your target on the first round while drawing a weapon, then you draw your last weapon on the attack round. With the Ranger and Crossbow expert you can become a Abraham Van Helsing character if you pick your favored enemy as Undead.

As a player who has played the Xbow / Sharpshooter combo, one thing our DM did to kinda soft counter this so i wasn't always a god but also let me have my fun was to make encounters with "Fodder" minions and a Big Baddie that had some kinda resistances or spell that would temporarily shut down my xbow for a few turns. What this allowed for was i was able to fight off the minions and still feel like a bad ass while also letting the other players take on the big baddie while feeling like badasses as well. Also another thing to consider with this kinda build is Make the player Keep track of AMMO, the game i was in we were on a boat for several days and eventually after many encounters i ran out of ammo and we didnt get a chance to get to a town yet so i was kinda forced to start conserving ammo / using other methods of combat at times. (i know some DM's dont usually make people keep track of ammo, but for this kinda build its really necessary)

Out of all of the dnd channels I've watched, you guys are the most creative minds I've seen. I love the topics you bring up

for some reason I instantly thought about nott from critical role when I saw this feat... (although sometimes she isn't really a crossbow ''expert'' to be honest...)

You gentlemen have given me an entirely new inspiration for characters! Thank you!

Very powerful combo. While playing Out of the Abyss, my sniper fighter (wielding a hand crossbow) solo-killed a beholder in a single round. The rest of the party kept us all alive during that turn (and prepared to keep us alive for the next couple turns,) but I pumped out all the damage. This combo only works well if you are fighting low AC opponents, or have some way to get a bonus +hit - e.g. a battlemaster fighter.

I was just talking with my DM last night and when I said I want to play a damage dealing character this time (I am usually support or utility type classes) he suggested a Battle Master Crossbow user. Many of the points you made were what sold me on the idea. Pretty stoke about rolling it now, thanks so much for all the info!

Kensai monk??? Now thats john wick

Lol. Funnily enough few nights ago, me and my friend took this feat to ridiculous extents as we started to spitball ideas. This is what we came up. Few basic things set up first. This is completely min maxing build so, consider that. Assumed that the character has 20dex at the start of the game (so won't work in point buy games) to go to the extreme when calculating stuff. Unearthed Arcana is ok to use (as it is in our games with GM approval). Took it to only lvl 5 because that's where our current campaing characteers are. Race: Human (Variant). Starting feat Crossbow expert. Skills are up to you, and attributes too, as long as you max the dex modifier. Class: Fighter. (Proficiency with all weapons and gets extra attacks later down the line. so this was logical choice). Fighting Style: archery to get that +2 to attacks with ranged weapons. Level 3 Martial Archetype: Monster Hunter(Unearthed Arcana), to get those lovely superioruty dices (4x d8 short or long rest to regain). Level 4 - Feat. Sharpshooter(reasons explained in the video actually). And Lvl 5 Get Extra Attack. Background: Your choise. During those 5 levels of play, try to get +2 Hand crossbow. (we have few +2 weapons in the party, price being around 1k gold for the basic +2 weapon) and as good armor as you can. Just wield Hand Crossbow in your hand, other hand free(for the reloads). Combat on Lvl 5: You take attack Action. Apply -5 to attack from Sharpshooter to gain +10dmg. Attack roll: d20 +5(dex mod) + 3(proficiency) +2 (archery style) +2 (+2 weapon) - 5(sharpshooter penalty) = d20+7 Extra Attack: Same bonuses and penalties apply = d20+7 Bonus action from Crossbow Expert: 3rd attack with Hand Crossbow = d20+7 That means your attack roll will be 17 on average. Now note that all these attacks are up to 120ft, with no penalties from cover, other than full, without using any "cooldown" abilities. Also if needed we can roll additional d8 AFTER our attack but before rolling damage, if we want to hit that bad (Monster Hunter Superiority Dice). Assuming all 3 arrows hit, we deal 3x (d6+5(dex mod)+ 2(+2weapon) +10(sharpshooter)) = 20.5 dmg per arrow on average = 61.5dmg on average in total. Without using any special trickery. + we can add extra d8 to any of these attacks for monster hunters superiority dice, as long as we have them to use. Added bonus: Your AC will be between 17AC and 18AC just with non magical armors (granted 18Ac needs platemail which is expensive and 15str to wear). You are healthy, having 34hp+ if you take the half every lvl up. (+ Con modifier you end up with.) To conclude: You will be playing a mobile machinegun (archery) platform with targeting computer and propability calculator that can't be inconvinienced by near by enemies.

I used the Samurai subclass and multiclassed with Rogue to really give it that Gunslinger feel since so many Westerns are reskinned samurai films. The Fighting Spirit ability also pairs nicely with Sneak Attack for extra damage.

Will probably use Arcane Trickster Crossbow Sniper in Baldur's Gate 3 since I heard it's pretty good at level 4 and Moon Druid is not available.

Fighter can start with Longbow, Rapier, and Hand Crossbow (if I'm reading their rules right) so a Dex build Fighter can quickly end up with Sharpshooter and Crossbow Expert before you max out your Dexterity.

Great video, awesome breakdown of the feat. I wanted to share a thought about Hunter’s Mark and crossbows. Hunter’s Mark is worthwhile if on rounds you apply it, you shoot with a heavy crossbow. Assuming 20 dex and extra attack you can achieve 2d10+2d6+10, which is just a touch higher on average than 3d6+15. On a subsequent turn you can pull out the hand crossbow and hold the heavy crossbow (to hold, not shoot) in your offhand for a whopping 6d6+15. If your target dies, you can stow the hand crossbow as an object interaction to rinse and repeat. I fully acknowledge that sharpshooter breaks this math and that being up against weaklings vs bosses in terms of HP matters too.

It also makes alot of sense for an eldrich knight and arcane trickster, as they get additional attacks and do not need to juggle their weapons to cast their spells. The eldrich knight can even fireball the room and shoot the survivors.

I have used this feat to reflavor the hand crossbow to a knife thrower to get around the lackluster throwing weapon rules. Also when my other character who was using a heavy crossbow got expert and then extra attack I flavored the swap to hand crossbow as adding extra arms to their crossbow (like Varric's crossbow in dragon age) that allowed more attacks but less power power (d10 to d6).

15:50 What is funny, is thet irl its the exact oposite, longbow is more like an assalt rifle, whist a proper crosbow is a sniper, and a single hand crosbow is an offie toy. in real life.

On the subject of pre-loaded crossbows: I feel it is a matter of circumstances, if your weapons are put away your crossbow is not loaded, if you have your weapons ready for combat before the combat ensues I would hope you have loaded your crossbow. Also, I have seen others point out here the Dual Wielder feat allows you to draw or stow 2 one-handed weapons when you would normally only be draw or stow one.

You forgot that this can benefit spell casters. The 2nd part of the feat is that ranged attacks don't have disadvantage. This also applies to ranged attacks

So one thing that jumped out at me was the oversight in the rules about preloaded crossbows. I just finished re-reading Elminster: Making of a Mage and one of the things that stood out for me was both Elminster and Farl carrying multiple preloaded hand crossbows while thieving in Hastarl. Considering the Forgotten Realms is now the default setting in D&D 5E and Ed Greenwood made the Forgotten Realms I would tend to use that as my "in-text" justification for carrying preloaded crossbows regardless what WotC says. (Although I will admit trying to make heads or tails of the magic in that novel is a headache given all the literal deus ex machina.)

And this, ladies and gents, is how the Rogue do.

I used to play AD&D in High School (1983 to 1985), and it saved me from getting into the trouble that idle youth provides. I am now 52 and looking to start playing again. I have a lot of catching up to do on the new rules, and your great channel is helping do just that. Thank you.

playing a xbow expert battlemaster right now, its great.

I used a feral winged tiefling with a battlemaster fighter and this feat, plus sharpshooter, it was a masacre.

Ohooo! Starting to get into the nitty gritty builds, nice!

I just wanted to thank you guys for this and all the other videos you post. I am currently playing a character with Crossbow Expert, and it was very useful to know what the third part of the feat actually means. Like many other people, I interpreted it as a way to follow the slash of a sword with the shot of a crossbow only to stand corrected. I still like the way the rule should actually be used, and I look forward to two shots per turns with my hand crossbow.

I love this level of in-depth content. Keep it up Dungeon Dudes !!

Nice video guys! Crossbow Expert allows you to throw a net at a target within 5ft (without the usual disadvantage) using the attack action and follow up with a hand crossbow attack as a bonus action (potentially with advantage if the net hits the target). This also pairs nicely with sharpshooter because you could now throw the net up to 15ft although you could not apply the sharpshooter damage to it. A restriction to this is that you may only attack once during the attack action if you throw a net. This restriction only applies to classes with the extra attack feature.

And I'm for sure gonna do a Roland (from the Dark Tower trilogy by Stephen King) crossbow expert character with reflavored hand crossbows

You guys give the clearest and most interesting explanations- no extra fluff (annoying voices, stupid jokes, lecturing on "how to be a nice player" in EVERY video ... etc). I really prefer this- favorite D&D channel

a movie with fantastic close quarters gunplay, Equilibrium

This video made me smile so much! I feel like a beast as a human/ranger/crossbow expert/sharp shooter combo character. But now I know to watch out for the weather. :P I do also have the darkvision spell so night/dark won't bother me too much :D

In terms of Role Play I really like the idea of a small character taking advantage of this feat, shooting needle like munitions to kill the enemy. just google minicrossbow...

As opposed to John Wick, you could also go the thought of Grammaton Cleric from Equilibrium (2002). They used gun Katas to fight with in that movie. The movie is very cool and the style is just built for a subclass for fighter.

It's actually pretty hilarious how there are feats that are this specific for crossbows,yet the only magical ranged weapon in the entirety of 5th edition outside of those boring +1,+2 and +3 weapons is the Oathbow.

If you are playing a Crossbow Expert in 5e and your DM has banned Boots of Flying, ask if you could get Slippers of Spider-Climb. Basically work the same when you are in a dungeon and it's more fun role play wise when your character just starts running along the walls and shooting the enemies out of reach

We had a LOT of other class and build ideas that we couldn't fit into video, including ideas for Warlocks (which we shot, only to realize that you can't make a Pact Weapon a hand crossbow!), Bards, and Rogues! We'd love for you to share any build ideas, spells, or tricks you think work great with Crossbow Expert!

Great video! I've been brainstorming a Kobold Beastmaster who rides an old Blood Hound and this really solidified the idea of using a single hand-crossbow to fight in melee! He'll probably multiclass into a few levels of either Rogue (if I want him to focus on stealth/scouting) or Fighter (if the party needs a hardier front liner). I have no interest in powerbuilds but the ideas you guys covered we're still really helpful and interesting!

If you take the dual wielding feat, you get +1 AC when dual wielding a rapier and a hand crossbow, and you can draw or stow two weapons a turn as a free action rather than just one. You can make attacks with the rapier, stow your blade, fire the crossbow as a bonus action, and then re-draw your sword, still as a free action, and regain your +1 AC for when you’re attacked

You can in fact attack with rapier and fire a hand crossbow. You drop the rapier (free action) , you can still pick up the rapier as you move using your object interaction. So, yes it can be done.

I think this could be really easily reskinned for a lil flintlock/musket style pistol too. And to avoid the empty handed loading, you homebrew the ability to preload and have the character have multiple pistols (or hand-cross bows) they can draw & shoot them drop (rather than reloading) 😁 AVAST! so much flavor

I've been a DM for about 6 years now. I didn't even think about that there are no rules for preloaded crossbows. I have a player like likes the rapier/crossbow combo, which would put quite the damper on them. Great video guys

PS - Kelly "Swashbuckler" McLaughlin - Swashbuckler/Battle Master OP (not necessarily related to this particular video, though synergies may exist)

My DM and I worked out an interesting compromise to the hand crossbow attacking. Crossbow expert also removes the restrictions given by “loading”, meaning you don’t need to worry about that restriction to the weapon. Since you’re essentially making two weapon attacks with a hand crossbow by using this feature, and by most other rulings you would have to leave a hand free, I’m allowed to dual wield the hand crossbows. It doesn’t have any real effect on combat and allows me to role play a desperado character I have in mind, thought it might help someone going looking for alternate solutions to this

Very well thought out video topic. Great job.

I once played with a kobold fighter in an Adventurer’s League game who had both Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter. I forget what his subclass was or anything, but Pack Tactics makes picking a kobold an amazing idea in my opinion.

Nicely done guys. Thanks so much. Hopefully my DM doesn't see this and get any ideas lol.

i used this combo with my assassin rogue and it was absolutely devastating, getting those surprise attacks off then running in and unloading poisoned or flaming bolts into their stomach. i also bought a modification for both my hand crossbows that autoloads them and holds 10 bolts per canister. so by the time we finished the campaign i was duel wielding +3 hand crossbows with +2 flaming bolts.

watch "Equilibrium" for Gun Kata

I wanted the Crossbow expert rapier/handcrossbow combo and was bummed out when my DM mentioned the ammunition property which would hinder me. So I did some digging around and found out that Jeremy Crawford considers dropping a weapon a free action, since it 'requires no appreciable effort' to let go of something. And picking something up off the ground is an Interaction. So in your turn, you can attack with the rapier, drop it, fire the handcrossbow and pick the rapier back up again. I discussed this with my DM and we agreed that for the sake of brevity in combat, he would just allow me to skip this narrative bit every turn and just use a rapier and a handcrossbow with my feat ^^

Had to delete prior comment as I found text that I didn't realize was in the book. So that being said. Interesting thought for you guys. UA archetype of Fighter, Brute with 2 levels of Ranger for 2 casts of hunters mark a day, advantage on initiative and targets that havent acted in combat yet, and favored enemy +2 damage boost. That bonus damage from Brute would really shine with the Crossbow Expert hand crossbow build I think. Gonna guess since you don't like the competition for the bonus action you would probably like pure Fighter/Brute over the multi-class. Which does make sense. This requires some homebrewery with a DM but tinkering and tinker tools are a thing. So what about having tinkered hand crossbows or crossbow even that has been built attached to a bracer on your forearm to shoot when you pull a special trigger or something of the like? Then allowing you to Akimbo Hand Crossbows or run n gun with a melee weapon and hand crossbow.

Going through White Plum Mountain at 8th level with a decent sized group and I tested out the crossbow expert sharpshooter combination on a tabaxi battle master. Criminal background, the idea was him to be a sort of enforcer type character. I believe during the giant crab boss battle, I did over a hundred damage using action surge and sharpshooter and a maneuver or two (which worked well, since our wizard accidentally burst the bubble with a fireball), so we managed to escape the combat with the trident in pretty decent time without all boiling to death. It's a fun combination, sharpshooter and crossbow expert

I kinda like the image of the single hand crossbow and empty offhand by a Crossbow Expert user. Kinds reminds me of a more medieval version of a "fan the hammer," sort of western gunslinger. EDIT: and then, two seconds after I post this, they mention EXACTLY what I was thinking. X3

I really like Crossbow expert for a Rogue. Variant Human 1st level crossbow expert Rogue gets two chances to get a sneak attack off, and if they hit with both, it's still more damage than dual wielding shortswords.

Good show keep up the good work, from Cole Harbour Nova Scotia

This is such a blast of a video watching it now! The Dudes looks so young and Kelly talking about rapiers and hand crossbows and it not really working but knowing how he plays Wilhelm with Monty's house rule that buffs crossbow expert but doesn't break the game is awesome!

Can you guys do a tips for surviving in the underark? Desert? Or just different environments in general?

I have made several characters that have single or dual wielded 'handcrossbows' as secondary weapons. Just use wrist mounts, then you can either dual wield, have a shield, or an open hand to reload/cast with war caster and still benefit from all of the feats description.

Looking forward to the stream tomorrow :)

Coming to this a bit late but fun fact: you can make a working rapier and hand crossbow build due to the weird rules about dropping and picking up weapons :P step 1 - make your rapier attacks step 2 - drop your rapier (this does not even cost a free action, it's absolutely costless according to Jeremy Crawford on his twitter) step 3 - use your bonus action to fire your hand crossbow as you now have a free hand step 4 - use your free action (which you still have at this point) to pick your rapier back up You'd perhaps describe this with a bit more flair to make it interesting (like dropping your weapon 'upwards' e.g. letting go during the swing so it travels up, and your 'pick up' action could be neatly catching it out of the air as it comes back down...) et voila: a very stylish/ridiculous rapier and hand bow user that should function RAW :P Edit: an alternative description could be letting go during the last attack, leaving it stuck in your opponent, shooting them with the hand bow and then pulling it out of them to retrieve it afterwards XD

You guys should check out the movie Equilibrium, it is head and shoulders above JW2 showcasing a ranged weapon as a close combat martial arts. Still a good video, thanks.

Well, your breakdown of the CBE/SS combo has put the idea in my head for a character (probably Warlock or something) that uses the Spell Sniper feat, and possibly CBE to be a terror on the battlefield. I might make something like a Paladin (Possibly Conquest, that seems fun) with a bit of Warlock for powerful Eldritch Blast.. Perhaps see if they can't make themselves a specialty wand to let them ignore the Disadvantage in melee. Now you have a Plate wearing, gun-toting holy warrior that thinks that what is best in life is to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of their women.

You forgot to mention that ever so delicious Precision attack that the battlemaster can pull out to negate all of that -5 of sharpshooter, but otherwise great video! Any chance that you could take a gander at the magic initiate feat? I think it is the most underappreciated feat of them all and I'd love to hear your thoughts on it :)

Blood Hunters can do fun things with Crossbow Expert. Like Rangers, Blood Hunters can get the Archery fighting style at level 2 and an extra attack at level 5. At level 10 they get a Darkvision bonus plus extra mobility in poorly lit places, which gets around one of the environmental disadvantages DMs can impose. Blood Hunters also add various types of magical damage die to every attack with Crimson Rite (without having to blow a bonus action at the start of battle like Hunter's Mark), and pump up the damage on big enemies with Blood Curse of the Marked, so you can get the most out of those extra attacks. If you go with Order of the Profane Soul, Crossbow Expert also helps you cast spells at close range, like firing point-blank Eldritch Blasts. And you can use Diabolic Channel to cast a spell through your ranged weapon attack (like a bolt that, if it hits, also automatically hits with _all_ the beams of a Scorching Ray), then fire a second shot with your bonus action; one mean thing to do is to fire a _Hold Person_ bolt, then get within 5 feet and fire at advantage for an automatic critical hit.

Guys, the feat is what allows you to break the rules by using the 'rapier-hand crossbow' attack. Because you have the feat it says you can attack with a one handed weapon AND attack with a hand crossbow, literally explaining that it circumvents you needing a hand free because you are such a badass

Hexblade crossbow expert is very nice. Hexblades can use their curse and their hex to add lots of extra damage, their damage counts as magical if you take pact of the blade (which you will), and you can get extra attack at 5th level with thirsting blade. What's more, their spellcasting allows them to deal with non-ideal circumstances if needed unlike rogues and fighters.

The huge amount of ammunition the character is using is concerning, its hard not to wonder if people are overlooking this.

Great one! I'm thinking on a "Val Helsing" build. You know that your enemies willa be strong, and you want to do as much damage form a distance, before going in hand to hand combat. A hero who prioritizes focusing on the tactically important enemies, especially undead and magic users.

Umm you kidding right Equilibrium is really the true gun fu film

I wouldn't say The Matrix defined Gun-Fu. It did a lot of awesome wirework and beautiful cinematography involving guns, but Equilibrium is more what I picture when you're describing crossbow expert being used at close range. :) Really torn on whether to roll Archery based Fighter or Hunter on my next character though.

Blink is also very annoying spell to deal with, and is often overlooked by players

Looking at the PHB, as it is written the ammunition property says you need a free hand to load a one-handed weapon. This means that a heavy crossbow would still work with the crossbow feat ignoring the loading property and being able to make multiple attacks as it is a two-handed weapon just as a longbow or shortbow have the ammunition property yet can make multiple attacks because they are two-handed weapons.

Ummm... First?

There is an agreement in my group when it comes to high damage potential combos like this. Quite simply, if the PCs can do it, so can the NPCs. This makes some players cautious, whereas others embrace it, and look forward to facing off against NPCs with similar abilities. Makes for some pretty awesome one on one encounters. (There is an often unspoken agreement that if an enemy was obviously designed to be a mirror to one of the PCs, then they should be left alone to their epic duel.)

It literally says you ignore the loading property hence the loading is a non-issue. Ya'll need Jesus

One use of this feat is Drow warlock or sorcerer (or wizard) who can cast shadow blade. If you need a single target down fast in a confined space. First turn: Cast Shadow Blade. It is light, finesse and has the thrown property. Then draw your hand crossbow Second turn: Get into close range and throw the blade, then fire the hand crossbow since you now have a free hand. Third turn: Regain the blade (bonus action) and attack with it Repeat steps two and three. This does work well with multi-attack (sorry blade-locks) but does work well if you need to attack fast, hard and in a confined space that makes Hex or similar undesirable. Note: This would work with any sorcerer, warlock or wizard who has hand crossbow proficiency but Drow automatically get it. Bards can also use this strategy with magical secrets but may have better options such as spiritual weapon.

My group has a rouge/ranger/fighter character and he uses crossbow expert with sharpshooter and a hand crossbow. My artificier gave his crossbow an infusion so that it automatically reloads. Lots of fun :D

Crossbow expert, sharpshooter, heavy crossbow, levels in arcane archer and assassin rouge, that's a range of 0-400ft, if you fire at max range that's going to add sneak attack and as an assassin rouge it's a critical, that's alot of dmg. Oh and action surge. I'm quite excited to play this

Homerule I know But I count daggers as ‘extra light’ A dagger can be held while firing a bow/hand crossbow, a rapier but only adding as a +1 block against ‘thin blades’ (rapier, dagger, shortsword, scimitar, ect) It also asks the question of when mag fed crossbows come into place

College of the sword bard multi classed with thief rogue works great with this too! You get the ranged flourish for two attacks then two bonus action attacks! Bards are fun for role play too!

My Crossbow Expert is a level 12 Rogue (Assassin), level 5 Fighter (Battle Master) with Precision Attack (helps negate -5 on Attack rolls from Sharpshooter), Feinting Attack (when she has to draw her scimitar and wants her Sneak Attack damage up close) and Maneuvering Attack (to put her allies into position at range). She's got a +16 in Stealth, Medium Armor Master for 19 AC, and Sharpshooter gives her Heavy Crossbow a 400 foot range. Oh, and she's also got the Alert feat too for the initiative boost and so nothing can get the drop on her. A pair of Goggles of Night eliminates the darkvision disadvantage she has for being a Human Variant. Boots of Spider Climbing means she can evade most traps by just walking along the ceiling, and can pretty much snipe from above with impunity. Before I'm done, I think she'll have Skulker too. Combine all this with the fact that she's the party's central skill character (tracker, investigator, lookout, scout, trap disarmer, etc.) and she sees a LOT of action. Best of all, it all fits with the fact that she's a bounty hunter and is used to working in the shadows and background. Needless to say, I frustrate my DMs sometimes, but hell, bounty hunters are, *by their nature*, supposed to be awesome. XD

It's a free action to interact with one object, including weapons, and it does say in the handbook that attacking includes drawing out your weapon to make the attack, so you can technically use the rapier/crossbow combo (with the DM's personal ruling), although unless you have a monk, it's not a good idea to be in that close of range anyways.

The battle masters precise strike maneuver can compensate for the penalty through hit from sharpshooter

I used a pistol in SkT with this feat. As a Kensei/Swashbuckler. Sneak from 5ft away, then extra attack. Then, potion of speed to kick for Kenseis +2 to ac for a round. My character constantly dropped his whip to load, interaction action to pick it up for the unarmed strike.

Thanks fellas. This video combined with your rogue video inspired my next character. I made an archery fighter, then multi classed with a rogue. Thus get proficiency in martial weapons but get Assassin features from the rogue. Taken crossbow experts and sharpshooter feat. Thus I have the ultimate crossbow sniper Assassin, all at level 5. Back story of a deserted militia soldiers living underground to avoid being caught following desertion.

I love that you guys embrace optimization in combat but also understand just how big narrative is in D&D.