D&D 5E Take the Ready action.

[el-remmen]

This whole conversation is that the only house rule I instituted when deciding to run 5E without having played it yet was to grandfather ready and delay (or versions of them, anyway) from 3E.

Delay: You do nothing, but can go on any later initiative after anyone else on that initiative has already acted. This becomes your new place in the initiative.

Ready: You may move and then declare a trigger for your action (but if you want to move more - even if you haven't used up all your "normal" movement - you have to dash). When the trigger happens you interrupt it, resolving your action first. This is your new place in initiative. Edit to add: I allow people to ready bonus actions because I allow PCs to take bonus actions in place of actions more readily (but you can't do the same bonus action twice in a turn and if you cast two spells one must still be a cantrip).

Reactions are kept just for class and other special abilities + spells and for opportunity attacks.

Has been working great for nearly two years so far.

 

[Flamestrike]

This whole conversation is that the only house rule I instituted when deciding to run 5E without having played it yet was to grandfather ready and delay (or versions of them, anyway) from 3E.

Delay: You do nothing, but can go on any later initiative after anyone else on that initiative has already acted. This becomes your new place in the initiative.

Ready: You may move and then declare a trigger for your action (but if you want to move more - even if you haven't used up all your "normal" movement - you have to dash). When the trigger happens you interrupt it, resolving your action first. This is your new place in initiative. Edit to add: I allow people to ready bonus actions because I allow PCs to take bonus actions in place of actions more readily (but you can't do the same bonus action twice in a turn and if you cast two spells one must still be a cantrip).

Reactions are kept just for class and other special abilities + spells and for opportunity attacks.

Has been working great for nearly two years so far.

And what about saves and other effects including reaction refreshes that occur at the start/ end of your turn?

If I delay my turn, does my reaction reset? Do I have to make an ongoing save for Hold Person, even though I'm not actually having a turn?

I personally see no reason to implement anything other than the RAW which works fine for his purpose (and surprise).

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Right, care to explain how only you know how surprise works?

My point is I didn't know how Surprise worked until I read that reddit thread, and it wasn't from bringing in rules from previous editions.

Because it's not hard. If you're surprised you can't do anything until after the end of your first turn. It's not hard.

Thanks for proving my point. That's not how it works. That's similar to how it works, but it's not how it works.

As long as you don't bring in rules from previous editions it's not confusing to anyone I've ever played with.

What are you trying to say here?

I can see two possible meanings:

1) Everyone who has an issue with Surprise is a dumbass bringing in rules from previous editions.

or

2) It didn't happen to me so it never happened.

I find it hard to believe you mean either, but I'm not seeing really any other clear way to read it.

I have no idea what "not transparent" even means

Really?

It's pretty basic English, maybe kinda modern, but like, last thirty years modern, not last ten or last five or last two. In this case it means if you look at the Ready rules you don't immediately fully understand them (I'm skeptical anyone at all instantly got that they could only make one attack even if they had multiple attacks).

 

[mrpopstar]

You do have to be familiar with the interaction of the rules for class features (Extra Attack), the order of combat (your turn: bonus actions), reactions, actions in combat (Ready), and making an attack (melee attacks: two-weapon fighting) to understand that you can't make more than one attack with a readied action.

That's not an insignificant amount of cross-referencing, all of which could have easily been avoided with a simple "you can make one melee or ranged attack" included in the description of the Ready action.

 

[mrpopstar]

And it does take looking at speed as an attribute, movement as a resource, and move (a distance up to your speed) as a special/additional action to understand how Dash is intended to work.

Edit: Added emphasis.

 

[Oofta]

My point is I didn't know how Surprise worked until I read that reddit thread, and it wasn't from bringing in rules from previous editions.

Thanks for proving my point. That's not how it works. That's similar to how it works, but it's not how it works.

What are you trying to say here?

I can see two possible meanings:

1) Everyone who has an issue with Surprise is a dumbass bringing in rules from previous editions.

or

2) It didn't happen to me so it never happened.

I find it hard to believe you mean either, but I'm not seeing really any other clear way to read it.

Really?

It's pretty basic English, maybe kinda modern, but like, last thirty years modern, not last ten or last five or last two. In this case it means if you look at the Ready rules you don't immediately fully understand them (I'm skeptical anyone at all instantly got that they could only make one attack even if they had multiple attacks).

Not sure what to say. I read the surprise rules and they were clear. The only people who ever got confused by them were people that played previous editions, it was resolved with a quick conversation. YMMV and all that. Sorry if I simply don't get how it could be particularly confusing.

 

[Flamestrike]

Not sure what to say. I read the surprise rules and they were clear. The only people who ever got confused by them were people that played previous editions, it was resolved with a quick conversation. YMMV and all that. Sorry if I simply don't get how it could be particularly confusing.

Agree with this. It was the same with hiding and the ready action.

People were mostly stuck in rules of earlier editions, and unable (or unwilling) to understand how the new rules worked.

I was one of them, till I read the rules carefully and then looked at them in the bigger picture when it all clicked.

 

[Reynard]

This conversation makes me want to revisit using side initiative or other alternates.

 

[mrpopstar]

You do have to be familiar with the rules for ability checks (contests and passive checks), using each ability (Dexterity (Stealth) and Wisdom (Perception) checks), and vision and light (lightly obscured and heavily obscured) to understand how hiding works.

@Oofta and @Flamestrike, I'm starting to feel foolish! LOL

I don't think I was ever stuck, unable or unwilling, but I certainly needed to reread once or twice and ask a few clarifying questions.

 

[Reynard]

You do have to be familiar with the rules for ability checks (contests and passive checks), using each ability (Dexterity (Stealth) and Wisdom (Perception) checks), and vision and light (lightly obscured and heavily obscured) to understand how hiding works.

@Oofta and @Flamestrike, I'm starting to feel foolish! LOL

I don't think I was ever stuck, unable or unwilling, but I certainly needed to reread once or twice and ask a few clarifying questions.

I think you are making it too hard on yourself and thinking of it a little backwards.

If the party says they want to sneak up on or past the guards and you allow the check, you have in making that decision established that appropriate conditions exist. You don't need to check lighting or cover. At this moment, in these circumstances, hiding is a thing so surprise is a possibility.