AoO craziness - I just noticed

[Malin Genie]

If a character is held while in melee, her melee opponents do not gain an AoO on her (even though the rationale behind AoOs is a free attack granted by virtue of someone dropping their guard....)

But if the character, paralysed as she is, casts a silent still spell, she draws an AoO.

How am I supposed to justify the AoO rules to my players when there's this kind of craziness popping up....?

 

[Dingleberry]

It might help to think of an AoO as provoked not by an opponent simply "dropping his guard," but rather actively doing something that exposes a particular vulnerability in his defense. In other words, an opponent has to do something to provoke an AoO.

Besides, held opponents already have a lot of problems, notably including exposure to CDG.