Post/Author/DateTime	Post
war_thog 04-10-08, 08:38 AM	Came up in a session the other day. The DM thought that animals, seeing as they get natural attacks, no longer may make unarmed strikes. Apparently he thinks the MM says that animals lose their unarmed attacks when they get claws/bites/etc. I told him this was a crock of ****, however I cant find anything in a book to explicitly prove either side right. Could someone point me to a reference that could clear this up? Thanks.
RavenDrake 04-10-08, 10:09 AM	There is no rule I am at all aware of which expressly forbids an unarmed strike to creatures with natural weapons. An unarmed strike is defined as "A successful blow, typically dealing nonlethal damage, from a character attacking without weapons." Since character and creature can, effectively, be used interchangablly, I would say that any creature who chooses to attack without availing themselves of a weapon, whether manufactured or natural, is capable of deliveirng an unarmed strike. But, that unarmed strike must obey all of the normal combat rules for an unarmed strike, including non-proficiency penalties for creature not proficient with at least simple weapons such as animals and vermin.
jaelis 04-10-08, 10:24 AM	There are no rules for how unarmed strikes work with animals etc. It's reasonable to apply the general rules, though I think it's sensible in general to say that all creatures are naturally proficient with their unarmed strikes. It is also reasonable to say that unarmed strikes are fundamentally weapons (being listed on the weapons table), and that only creatures that can use weapons can use unarmed strikes. I think this is a better interpretation, myself.