Armor Spikes Used Defensively

[Weeble]

PHB p.105

Armor Spikes: You can have spikes added to your armor. They allow you to deal 1d6 points of piercing damage (x2 crit) with a successfull grapple attack. The spikes count as a martial weapon. If you are not proficient in them, you suffer a -4 penalty on grapple checks when you try to use them. You can also make a regular melee attack (or off-hand attack) with the spikes, and they count as a light weapon in this case.
An enhancement bonus on a suit of armor does not improve the spikes' effectiveness, but the spikes can be made into magic weapons in their own right.


What if a defender with armor spikes is attacked by an opponent's grapple? Could this deal damage to the attacker who is grappling? In the rules, damage can only be dealt with a successful grapple ATTACK. I assume this doesn't mean on an opposed grapple check, or when the defender with spikes is making this check. I found no info in the DMG related to this, and only the ruling on p. 105 in the PHB (recited above).
Does anyone know of some Sage advice or other rule I missed?

 

[AGGEMAM]

Correct, you can only do it on your attack, but are you under the assumption that a grapple only lasts a round?

If you been grappled, then instead of breaking free you could opt to damage your opponent instead.

 

[Weeble]

yeah, the grapple could continue, but I just wondered if the armor spikes could do damage to someone grappling against the defender with them, the first round or any round after. So I guess no would be the answer.

 

[Daevin]

Id give someone with armor spikes an aoo w/ the spikes when someone grapples them even if the opponent has improved grab or improved grapple. Would probably give them both (spikes and regular) AOOs when someone tried to grapple them w/o those feats... which would only work if they had combat reflexes =)