Ready action

[Yig]

Are you limited to standard action when you ready an action ?

Can my warmage use ready action to cast a metamagiced spell since that take me a full round ?

Just curious

 

[Hypersmurf]

Are you limited to standard action when you ready an action ?

From the SRD:
Readying an Action: You can ready a standard action, a move action, or a free action.

No Full Round actions.

Can my warmage use ready action to cast a metamagiced spell since that take me a full round ?

No.

Just like you can't ready a Full Attack action, which is also a full round action.

-Hyp.

 

[Yig]

Cool.

It came up last session so I just wanted to be sure.

We played it like you said.

 

[RigaMortus2]

Isn't there a rule where you can Ready a full-round action, but it doesn't go off until a round later anyway? It takes up 2 standard actions...

Example:

Player: I Ready and action to cast a spell if BBEG does X...
DM: BBEG does X
Player: I cast Summon Nature's Ally (Standard Action) - Still casting
Next initiative set goes
Player: Completes spell (Standard Action) and has a Move action left.

No?

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

Which would be pretty much the same thing as delaying, no?

AR

 

[Rystil Arden]

Which would be pretty much the same thing as delaying, no?

AR

I think the difference (if you allow this) is that if you ready, the spell goes off in the next round before the BBEG's turn, and if you delay, it goes off in the next round after the BBEG's turn.

 

[RigaMortus2]

Another instance this comes up is if you are Psionic and want to get your focus back, and do something in the round. For example, I move 30 feet away from my target and take a Standard action to get my psionic focus back (which is normally a full round to do). Next round I complete it with a Standard Action and have another Move action left. Rather than wasting the entire round psionic refocusing, I can psionic refocus and move out of harms way.

 

[Rystil Arden]

Another instance this comes up is if you are Psionic and want to get your focus back, and do something in the round. For example, I move 30 feet away from my target and take a Standard action to get my psionic focus back (which is normally a full round to do). Next round I complete it with a Standard Action and have another Move action left. Rather than wasting the entire round psionic refocusing, I can psionic refocus and move out of harms way.

That's not exactly germaine to Altamont's argument, as it doesn't compare ready to delay, but it is certainly a good use of breaking up a full-round action.

 

[Silveras]

Which would be pretty much the same thing as delaying, no?

AR

Not at all.
Delaying means you "defer" your entire turn (Standard Action + Move Action, or Full-Round Action, etc.) for a while; and creatures can get into a sort-of bidding war, trying to make each other go first. If you delay, your opponent acts fully before you; you do not get to "interrupt" its action.

Readying, however, prepares only a Standard Action for immediate execution when a specific trigger occurs. It interrupts the sequence of initiative and can interrupt your opponent's turn (for example, coming between its Move Action and Standard Action).

The rule RigaMortus2 mentioned is a memory of 3.0, when Partial Actions were allowed and you could "begin" and "complete" a full-round action as two rounds of partial actions when you were limited to partial actions only. I do not recall if this is spelled out specifically in 3.5, but I would expect that its applicability is limited to cases where one is similarly limited in how they can act.

 

[Hypersmurf]

The rule RigaMortus2 mentioned is a memory of 3.0, when Partial Actions were allowed and you could "begin" and "complete" a full-round action as two rounds of partial actions when you were limited to partial actions only. I do not recall if this is spelled out specifically in 3.5, but I would expect that its applicability is limited to cases where one is similarly limited in how they can act.

From the 3.5 SRD:
Start/Complete Full-Round Action
The “start full-round action” standard action lets you start undertaking a full-round action, which you can complete in the following round by using another standard action. You can’t use this action to start or complete a full attack, charge, run, or withdraw.

Not limited at all to cases where you're restricted. You can move thirty feet and begin loading your heavy crossbow in round 1, and complete loading your heavy crossbow and move another thirty feet in round 2.

-Hyp.