Guidance during non turn-based encounters


Rules Discussion


I have a druid that likes to toss around Guidance in scenarios where the party is not really fighting: during chase encounters, research encounters, talking to NPCs to help with social skill checks, etc.

I've allowed it, but should I be allowing it?

The guidance spell specifically has a duration of "until the start of your next turn"

So, in a non-linear encounter where people aren't really "taking turns" but rather moving organically through a discussion, chase, or research, does Guidance really apply or, should I be looking at the spell as I am: as long as a player use the bonus when they are speaking, recalling knowledge, or making some other roll that is relevant to the encounter, it's fine?


markrivett wrote:

I have a druid that likes to toss around Guidance in scenarios where the party is not really fighting: during chase encounters, research encounters, talking to NPCs to help with social skill checks, etc.

I've allowed it, but should I be allowing it?

The guidance spell specifically has a duration of "until the start of your next turn"

So, in a non-linear encounter where people aren't really "taking turns" but rather moving organically through a discussion, chase, or research, does Guidance really apply or, should I be looking at the spell as I am: as long as a player use the bonus when they are speaking, recalling knowledge, or making some other roll that is relevant to the encounter, it's fine?

Well, if it's in encounter mode, you should be going turn-by-turn in some capacity. Even if it's not combat, subsystems like chases and other systems with the Victory Point structure are meant to be turn-by-turn, even if those turns take longer than the usual combat time of 6 seconds.

If you consider your stuff not in encounter mode, then at the very least they'd be doing it in exploration mode, in which cause they'd be considered performing the Repeat a Spell activity. And so long as they're taking the occasional breather to prevent the fatigue from Casting/Sustaining for longer than 10 minutes at a time, they should be good to go!


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Ezekieru wrote:
markrivett wrote:

I have a druid that likes to toss around Guidance in scenarios where the party is not really fighting: during chase encounters, research encounters, talking to NPCs to help with social skill checks, etc.

I've allowed it, but should I be allowing it?

The guidance spell specifically has a duration of "until the start of your next turn"

So, in a non-linear encounter where people aren't really "taking turns" but rather moving organically through a discussion, chase, or research, does Guidance really apply or, should I be looking at the spell as I am: as long as a player use the bonus when they are speaking, recalling knowledge, or making some other roll that is relevant to the encounter, it's fine?

Well, if it's in encounter mode, you should be going turn-by-turn in some capacity. Even if it's not combat, subsystems like chases and other systems with the Victory Point structure are meant to be turn-by-turn, even if those turns take longer than the usual combat time of 6 seconds.

If you consider your stuff not in encounter mode, then at the very least they'd be doing it in exploration mode, in which cause they'd be considered performing the Repeat a Spell activity. And so long as they're taking the occasional breather to prevent the fatigue from Casting/Sustaining for longer than 10 minutes at a time, they should be good to go!

Not for Guidance. That bolsters you against further castings for an hour. Personally, I'd allow it to apply to anything you could reasonably do in one round, or where the decisive moment of the task happens in one round. A chase round takes longer than six seconds but the specific moment you're jumping over the alley doesn't.

Making an Impression would take too long. But Request could work. (Actually based on another cantrip, casting a spell midconversation is enough of a faux pas to offset the bonus.)


Captain Morgan wrote:
Not for Guidance. That bolsters you against further castings for an hour. Personally, I'd allow it to apply to anything you could reasonably do in one round, or where the decisive moment of the task happens in one round. A chase round takes longer than six seconds but the specific moment you're jumping over the alley doesn't.

Yeah, that's my thought too.

If the action that Guidance is being applied to takes 3-actions or less to use, then they can time Guidance so that it can assist the check. If it takes longer than that, it isn't going to work.

A similar ability is the Ancestry feat Nanite Surge and it has the same restriction. It can only be used on a check that takes 3 actions or less to use.

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