I want to create a Battle Master fighter who uses a crossbow as his main weapon.
By RAW, you can use a Battle Master maneuver with a ranged weapon as long as the description does not say the maneuver requires a melee weapon or a melee weapon attack.
Thematically, I got some explanation on how some maneuvers function with ranged weapons. For example, the Trip Attack could be an arrow to the knee, which would force the target to fall.
But I have some trouble, thematically, on how you can push someone with a ranged weapon and the Pushing Attack maneuver. Is that up to my DM's discretion?