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Can this be done? This question was inspired as I was reading the discussion about the new paladin preview.
Could a dragon or any opponent declare (maybe not declare if you don't want the PCs subjected to some meta tempting) that they are holding an action to attack upon any sign of aggression before the combat actually begins? They would essentially be giving themselves intiative unless someone else had done the same and then those individuals would roll against each other.
Another question that just cropped up. Flyby Attack. If a dragon makes a flyby claw attack targeting the groups paladin. The dragon has reach so the he can make the attack without being threatened by any melee characters without similar reach right?
What do you think?
Tam
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Yes and no. If you Hold an action, you just before or just after a someone elses turn.
If you Ready and action, you actually interupt their turn.
Now, if it is the surprize round, you can ready or hold, but since you only get 1 standard or 1 move action, you can't also move. Also, if you don't have a weapon out, or quick draw, you can't get a weapon. So if your paladin readied to attack if they attack, (yes they can), the target must be in range already, or you have a bow or something to attack at range.
What I mean is yes, they can ready or hold an action to do so, but unless they have the ability to get a weapon out fast, and the enemy is close enough to actually hit, they might not be able to actually use the readied or held actions. A better tactic might be to ready a move action to go somewhere that if they try to charge you, would make the charge illegal. Because you interupt their charge, they begin moving, than you move, and if they can't continue with the charge rules, (straight line, etc . . .), they essentually have to stop and take a -2 ac for their wasted charge. Yes, it's mean, but it works.
As for the other, you can ready to attack a creatures limbs when they attack you, but normally, no.
Can this be done? This question was inspired as I was reading the discussion about the new paladin preview.
Could a dragon or any opponent declare (maybe not declare if you don't want the PCs subjected to some meta tempting) that they are holding an action to attack upon any sign of aggression before the combat actually begins? They would essentially be giving themselves intiative unless someone else had done the same and then those individuals would roll against each other.
What do you think?
Tam
I would say that attacking as soon as the opponent shows a sign of agression is what initiative is. The roll is all about who is the quickest to respond to the situation. Initiative isn't who's the first to draw their weapon. It's who's the first to strike (or cast a spell, or whatever).
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I would say that attacking as soon as the opponent shows a sign of agression is what initiative is. The roll is all about who is the quickest to respond to the situation. Initiative isn't who's the first to draw their weapon. It's who's the first to strike (or cast a spell, or whatever).
I'd have to agree. Otherwise this would become a slippery slope of everyone delaying their action prior to a combat.
Add to this both Delay and Ready are special initiative actions. With Delay, I would deem this to be an action that requires the initiative sequence to be already determined, not prior to it.
With readying an action, it does state "Your initiative result becomes the count on which you took the readied action." So even if you are not in combat, you are determining the point in the round you are able to use the readied action. If your initiative sucks, you could burn off the readied action at the very start of the following round to bump your position in the initiative sequence up, but at the cost of basically losing a round.
EDIT: As Beckett stated, this goes out the window with a surprise round.