DMs Help ME Sorcerer Just Picked Contingency!

[MerakSpielman]

I think the player is assuming it is easy to figure out. Frankly, I'd assume that it meant any time I, as DM, said "roll initiative" that the player was instantly invisible. That's a perfectly reasonable interpretation, and not an overpowered use of Contingency. No need to get anal about the exact wording.

 

[kwiqsilver]

Personally I prefer a character initiated trigger. I have a wizard with a chain contingency. When I yell "melee!" (usually when I encounter some spell resistant enemies), Haste, Tenser's Transformation, and Iron Body all pop into existence.

 

[Otterscrubber]

Sounds like a perfectly logical use of contingency to me. The whole point of the contingency spell is to save your bacon.

Perhaps you might want him to break it down for you but I think it's clear when he would want it to happen. If someone attacks him, casts a spell that causes him to make a saving throw or tries to drain an ability or level then greater invis would occur. The spell states that: "The conditions needed to bring the spell into effect must be clear, although they can be general." This sounds exactly like the conditions set forth by your player.

Sounds like you just don't like the spell that much. If that's the case you should try to work it out with your player out of game so that there is no resentment or in game tension with its use.

 

[jgsugden]

Note that you can speak as a free action, even during the turns of other creatures:

Speak
In general, speaking is a free action that you can perform even when it isn’t your turn. Speaking more than few sentences is generally beyond the limit of a free action.

A contingency set to a command word goes off at the user's command. Most DMs would rule that you can't speak while flat-footed, but once you're not, you can speak whenever you like. For instance, when you combine these two, you end up with a spell that can be cast as a non-action, even during the turn of another creature.

I recommend that this count towards the 1 quickened spell per turn rule, however (counting against the upcoming turn).

 

[andargor]

Personally I prefer a character initiated trigger. I have a wizard with a chain contingency. When I yell "melee!" (usually when I encounter some spell resistant enemies), Haste, Tenser's Transformation, and Iron Body all pop into existence.

Then only Tenser's Transformation would apply:

The spell to be brought into effect by the contingency must be one that affects your person and be of a spell level no higher than one-third your caster level (rounded down, maximum 6th level).
...
You can use only one contingency spell at a time; if a second is cast, the first one (if still active) is dispelled.

The Iron Body Contingency cannot be cast, and Tenser's Transformation replaces Haste. And I guess you are at least 18th level to do this.

For my part, my trigger is "hostile creature within 10ft of me". Ok with the DM. IMC, we can't speak out of turn, so command words won't work.

EDIT: Ah, sorry, misread. But Chain Contingency still has a 6th level limit. Haste and Tenser's Transformation would be ok.

Andargor

 

[questionmark]

To clarify, my pc wanted to turn invisible "when combat starts" I thought that would turn him invisible when his initative come up in the first round.
This is where our quandry begins When does combat start for the PC?

A. when his first turn to act begins

B. when a party member gets attacked

We used the example of an imp. invisible bad guy that the party has no clue about attacks one of the pcs. Has combat started "in game" at that point, thus triggering the spell?

What about entering combat? You see a rogue robbing a merchant you choose to intervene when does combat start then?

I am trying to be thorough so I can best run the game and not pull the rug out from a pcs feet. Figuring out the wording is important so we can expect the spell to work and when to make it fail. The only problem I have with the spell is that I dont really understand it, hence the posting.

 

[mhd]

For my part, my trigger is "hostile creature within 10ft of me". Ok with the DM. IMC, we can't speak out of turn, so command words won't work.

How does your DM treat this, does it work on invisible hostile creatures? Hidden ones? Creatures that are hostile towards you, but don't have intentions of applying this hostilty now? (The BBEG while meeting in public)

 

[questionmark]

To clarify, my pc wanted to turn invisible "when combat starts" I thought that would turn him invisible when his initative come up in the first round.
This is where our quandry begins When does combat start for the PC?

A. when his first turn to act begins

B. when a party member gets attacked

We used the example of an imp. invisible bad guy that the party has no clue about attacks one of the pcs. Has combat started "in game" at that point, thus triggering the spell?

What about entering combat? You see a rogue robbing a merchant you choose to intervene when does combat start then?

I am trying to be thorough so I can best run the game and not pull the rug out from a pcs feet. Figuring out the wording is important so we can expect when the spell will work and when to make it fail. The only problem I have with the spell is that I dont really understand it, hence the posting.

 

[Shadeus]

Note that you can speak as a free action, even during the turns of other creatures:A contingency set to a command word goes off at the user's command. Most DMs would rule that you can't speak while flat-footed, but once you're not, you can speak whenever you like. For instance, when you combine these two, you end up with a spell that can be cast as a non-action, even during the turn of another creature.

Very cool. Good quote Jgsugden.

 

[andargor]

How does your DM treat this, does it work on invisible hostile creatures? Hidden ones? Creatures that are hostile towards you, but don't have intentions of applying this hostilty now? (The BBEG while meeting in public)

Good point, the invisible part hasn't occured yet. We can See Invisible all the time. But if it would occur, I am confident the DM would only allow the Contingency to trigger when I'm aware of the creature. So an Improved Invisible creature would probably get a shot at me before the trigger.

As for "hostile", up until now it means "aggressive and attacking", so during combat only.

Andargor