I'd say it's a moot point. Snake Style says you can use your Sense Motive check as your AC, not that you must. So guy attacks you, you roll Sense Motive, if it's higher than your AC, use that, if not, use your normal AC.
"when an opponent targets you" is the triggering condition, so I'd interpret that as when the attack is declared but before the roll.
As an aside, I kind of hate rules like that. I don't think I've ever been in a game where GMs and players didn't declare attacks and roll basically simultaneously, which makes adjudicating stuff like this a pain (or more likely just ends up with the requirement being ignored outright).
I'd say it's a moot point. Snake Style says you can use your Sense Motive check as your AC, not that you must. So guy attacks you, you roll Sense Motive, if it's higher than your AC, use that, if not, use your normal AC.
Well it's not moot because you lose your swift action doing it.
Yeah, I forgot you might have multiple attackers or iteratives to deal with. I'd just say you can use it after the roll. I doubt that would break everything.
As an aside, I kind of hate rules like that. I don't think I've ever been in a game where GMs and players didn't declare attacks and roll basically simultaneously, which makes adjudicating stuff like this a pain (or more likely just ends up with the requirement being ignored outright).
I came here expecting a comment on this in the OP honestly. it's even more problematic for play by posts...
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Hello, this question pertains to the Snake Style feat, particularly the section that follows:
"While using the Snake Style feat, when an opponent targets you with a melee or ranged attack, you can spend an immediate action to make a Sense Motive check. You can use the result as your AC or touch AC against that attack. You must be aware of the attack and not flat-footed."I would like to know how late in the process of being targeted by the attack one might declare the use of this power. For comparison, the Swashbuckler's opportune parry and riposte reads:
"The swashbuckler must declare the use of this ability after the creature's attack is announced, but before its attack roll is made."whereas some other abilities in the game state something along the lines of:
"use of this ability can be declared after the roll is made but before the results of the roll are revealed"Now I'm pretty confident that Snake style's wording clearly tends more toward those two example than it does toward, say, the wording of mounted combat which indicated that the feat's use is declared after the hit has been confirmed... but when, specifically, should its active use be declared?
Thanks in advance!
As a style feat, they have to have the Stance invoked when they start combat in that stance. A swift action, by default, to activate a stance. So this action must be declared well before the opponent attacks.
Then the opponent attacks and you make a sense motive as an immediate action and so forth. As written, I'd just tell the player the result of the attack and ask if it hits them, and then they'd use the immediate action or not. "Does 21 hit your AC?" and then they'd either use it or not. Once they said their AC, it would be too late to apply this ability. I know, generous to the player, but seems easier on the GM (me) to handle it that way.