Initiative and Readying Spells

[imneuromancer]

When confronted with a door (or similar situation where two sides aware of each other will fight immediately once an action is taken), the classic action that players make is to say, "my character readies an X spell for when the door open", or some other "readied action".

However, the door opens, and then everyone rolls initiative.

Or do they? If someone readies an action for when another action happens (i.e. "I ready a fireball for when the fighter opens the door"), then is there any special initiative rules for that? If not, what is the point of
"readying" a spell other than flavor text?

OK, to add another wrinkle: what about full-round actions, like Summon Nature's Ally? Starting to ready a spell is a standard action (and therefore you can ready it), but then how does that interact with initiative? can the spell complete and then you cast another spell on your post-door-opening initiative, or is the completion of the spell the readied action unto itself?

Further, can you "hold" a summon like that for several rounds? in essence "readying" for an even until the event goes off? And, again, how does that interact with initiative?

[Roguenewb]

I believer that technically, you can only ready standard actions, so summon monster and such will be off the table for most, but not all, PCs. When a readied action goes off in a non-combat setting, it occurs like an immediate action, and then the surprise round (if one) begins.

[Daftendirekt]

RAW, you cannot ready actions outside of combat. At best, person who 'readies' might get a surprise round.

[Righteous Doggy]

I would think that if you were to ready summon monster, I'd have to wonder why you wouldn't just cast it the round before you open the door...

Regardless, delaying pushes your initiative back to when that event happens, and forced you back on initiative until you stop delaying yourself.

You cannot ready a full action btw, and you are waiting until that event to act(also changes initiative)

Heres the specifics.
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/specialInitiativeActions.htm

[imneuromancer]

I believer that technically, you can only ready standard actions, so summon monster and such will be off the table for most, but not all, PCs.

I thought that, too. I guess I should have mentioned that on p. 142 of the PHB there in the "start/complete full-round action" section, it states that you do a full-round action as a series of standard actions. Use a standard action in this round (and ready the spell) to the spell goes off in the next round (taking your standard action).

So I think I answered my own last question about how you could ready a Summons.

Having said that, it still doesn't solve the "ready action initiative roll" thing. Let's say combat starts and then the fighter closes the door. Both sides start prepping and readying actions for when the door opens again. Door opens. Basically that would mean that ALL of the combatants that readied actions would now have their initiative compressed together. Because of the way initiative works, that would mean everyone then goes in order of imitative modifier.

If that's the way it should go, then cool. It just seems rather odd.

[Greyfeld85]

"I get ready to launch a fireball as soon as the door opens," is fluff and roleplaying. Whether you get your action off before the enemies on the other side of the door is dependent entirely on your initiative roll. Since both groups are aware of each other, both groups are "readying" themselves for combat, so it comes down to who reacts first.

[Righteous Doggy]

I thought that, too. I guess I should have mentioned that on p. 142 of the PHB there in the "start/complete full-round action" section, it states that you do a full-round action as a series of standard actions. Use a standard action in this round (and ready the spell) to the spell goes off in the next round (taking your standard action).

So I think I answered my own last question about how you could ready a Summons.

Having said that, it still doesn't solve the "ready action initiative roll" thing. Let's say combat starts and then the fighter closes the door. Both sides start prepping and readying actions for when the door opens again. Door opens. Basically that would mean that ALL of the combatants that readied actions would now have their initiative compressed together. Because of the way initiative works, that would mean everyone then goes in order of imitative modifier.

If that's the way it should go, then cool. It just seems rather odd.

We call that a surprise round :P.

[KillianHawkeye]

When confronted with a door (or similar situation where two sides aware of each other will fight immediately once an action is taken), the classic action that players make is to say, "my character readies an X spell for when the door open", or some other "readied action".

In a situation like that where both parties are aware of the other and nobody is surprised, saying "I ready an action" is basically meaningless. Everybody is going to be preparing for combat in some way. To see who actually acts first, you just roll initiative as normal. Essentially, initiative works the same way when everybody is aware as when nobody is.

[Wookie-ranger]

"I get ready to launch a fireball as soon as the door opens," is fluff and roleplaying. Whether you get your action off before the enemies on the other side of the door is dependent entirely on your initiative roll. Since both groups are aware of each other, both groups are "readying" themselves for combat, so it comes down to who reacts first.

What if you reverse it?
"I open the door as soon as our wizard casts fireball and i see the small bead flying towards me"
combat does not start until someone opens the door, which is done at the moment when the wizard finishes casting his spell. ( now just pray that the door was not locked :smalleek:)


more realistically.
If both groups ready actions, initiative should be rolled normally to see what readied actions are done first. Makes little sense in a round based game, but technically all action of a round happen at the same time.
If one side however did not ready an action they would go last in initiative, since all the readied actions come first.
This is RAI not RAW.




Edit for grammar.

[prufock]

If both parties are aware of one another, technically all of them could have readied actions, which basically means they all go at once. Since "everything happens at once" doesn't work well in a turn-based system, just have them roll initiative before the door opens.