Is a readied Spring/Flyby Attack possible?

[Nathan]

The following question has come up in a game I am playing in:

Is it possible for a character with a feat like Spring/Flyby/Swim-By Attack to ready an application of the feat, i.e. to ready a move in between of which an attack shall be executed?

I'd say no because an application of this feat consists of a move and a standard action and the ready action only allows you to ready either a move or a standard action.

Another player in the game, however, argues as follows: Readying is possible as you only have to ready the move action. The attack simply happens inside the move, so overall it only counts as a move action.

His argument seems to imply that a feat like Flyby Attack combines two actions into one action, which I don't think I can agree with.

What do you think?

Nathan

 

[Hypersmurf]

With the most recent wording of Spring Attack (in the Special Edition PHB), it's clear that Spring Attack involves both a move action and a standard action.

Similarly, Flyby Attack is unambiguously two actions.

-Hyp.

 

[hong]

What's the new wording?

 

[Legildur]

What's the new wording?

Check post #5 in the following thread:

Readying a Spring Attack?

 

[Nathan]

With the most recent wording of Spring Attack (in the Special Edition PHB), it's clear that Spring Attack involves both a move action and a standard action.

Similarly, Flyby Attack is unambiguously two actions.

-Hyp.

Thanks for the quick answer!

So to sum up, this is the consensus:

1) In 3.0, a Spring Attack was a standard action (in 3.0 terms). In particular, it couldn't be readied.

2) In the first printing of 3.5, they simply had the 3.0 version copied over. This means that it became ill-worded as there is no attack action anymore. Furthermore, one might argue that utilising the benefit of the feat took only a move action (in 3.5 terms), this allowing it to be readied and making it much more powerful than the 3.0 version.

3) That this was not the intent of the game designers can be seen from the fact that the wording has changed in to second printing of 3.5. The reference to the non-existing attack action has been dropped and any use of the feat counts as a move action together with a standard action (in 3.5 terms). Thus, it takes as long as the original 3.0 version and it cannot be readied.

4) There has never been any argument about the feats Flyby and Swim-By Attack as they use up a move action and a standard action and thus cannot be readied.

Please correct me, if I my résumé is wrong.

 

[Hypersmurf]

2) In the first printing of 3.5, they simply had the 3.0 version copied over. This means that it became ill-worded as there is no attack action anymore. Furthermore, one might argue that utilising the benefit of the feat took only a move action (in 3.5 terms), this allowing it to be readied and making it much more powerful than the 3.0 version.

One couldn't argue that it took only a move action, but one could certainly argue that it took only a standard action - namely, the Attack action.

The Attack action certainly still exists in 3.5; the difference is that the definition of a standard action (of which the Attack action is one) changed.

In 3E, a standard action (such as the Attack action) included both movement and a 'doing', like an attack. In 3.5, a standard action (such as the Attack action) is just the 'doing', and movement is usually a separate move action. With the original wording of 3.5 Spring Attack, the feat essentially added movement to the standard action, which meant you could, technically, ready your Attack action, and thanks to Spring Attack, move before and after it.

The rewording in the Special Edition PHB has fixed this error.

-Hyp.