I was looking at feats for my backup character, and was wondering:
Would the Spell Sniper feat affect the range of a Dragonborn's racial breath weapon?
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1A broader question instead – András Nov 06 '18 at 08:10
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1For future reference: What counts as a spell? – Purple Monkey Nov 06 '18 at 09:13
2 Answers
No, it wouldn't
The Spell Sniper feat (PHB p. 170) includes this ability:
When you cast a spell that requires you to make an attack roll, the spell's range is doubled.
The dragonborn's Breath Weapon trait (PHB p. 34) is not a spell. If it were a spell, it would either refer to an existing spell (in italics, typically) or explicitly say it is a spell. (See: What counts as a spell?) It is not even magical, because it does not refer to any spells and it does not say it is magical.
The Breath Weapon ability also does not involve an attack roll. You just pick an area originating from yourself, and enemies in that area make a saving throw. There is no mention of an attack roll.
As such, on account of not being a spell and not involving an attack roll, the Breath Weapon's range is not affected by Spell Sniper. Both conditions would need to be met for Spell Sniper to apply.
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No, it wouldn't
The dragonborn's breath weapon is neither a spell nor a "ranged weapon."
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1Your answer could be more detailed and you should quote the relevant rules to back up your explanation. – Ruse Nov 06 '18 at 07:34
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I just realized that this answer is tailored to the original version of the question (which mentioned the Sharpshooter Feat). As the question has since been edited, part of this answer (about it not being a "ranged weapon") may now be confusing to a reader. – Gandalfmeansme Nov 06 '18 at 23:00