DND_Reborn
The High Aldwin
Another aspect where "the stars aligned" in this circumstance is the fact that cyclops only speak Giant and the caster happened to know the language. Not something you would expect that often. So, being able to communicate the request in this instance was pretty unique.
The DM ruled issuing a quick request was a bonus action.
By comparison, FYI, "too powerful" compared to other 4th level spells and other charm spells. It has phenomenal upside (1 hour, no concentration, no repeated saves, no material component). Even with advantage, the average creature has maybe a 50/50 chances of saving overall. With such a long duration, it definitely is powerful to remove one target from the fight, even if you can't convince it to aid your side afterwards. It took what should have been a moderate encounter and made it less than easy.
Now, part of this could be our play style as well. We often only have one or maybe two encounters between a long rest (unless we are doing a dungeon crawl or in a hot spot). The side effect of this means our characters can unload their best stuff without too much fear of being in trouble later on (it does happen occasionally, but not very often).
The DM ruled issuing a quick request was a bonus action.
By comparison, FYI, "too powerful" compared to other 4th level spells and other charm spells. It has phenomenal upside (1 hour, no concentration, no repeated saves, no material component). Even with advantage, the average creature has maybe a 50/50 chances of saving overall. With such a long duration, it definitely is powerful to remove one target from the fight, even if you can't convince it to aid your side afterwards. It took what should have been a moderate encounter and made it less than easy.
Now, part of this could be our play style as well. We often only have one or maybe two encounters between a long rest (unless we are doing a dungeon crawl or in a hot spot). The side effect of this means our characters can unload their best stuff without too much fear of being in trouble later on (it does happen occasionally, but not very often).