Do foes and PCs understand consequences?

I try to take it on a per encounter basis. One vampire may be more interested in self preservation, and avoid the cleric. Another may be driven by rage towards the gods and seek to kill the divine characters first.

Usually as intelligent foes gain levels I have them recognize/anticipate all the lower level tricks, but still not expect the PCs newest abilties and tricks (until hit by them at least once).

Real villians tend to know the PCs very well, and act on this intimate knowledge. In addition, foes under the direction of the villian have specific goals and strategies to deal with the PCs as they were when last spotted. Knowing the PCs newest strategy is to constantly push foes into a harmful zone effect may result in a group of dwarven skirmishers that blitz the caster.
 

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Whatever subsequent things that your power might allow you to do in response to the monster's actions are not something you've "done to it" nor a "condition" imposed on it.

Where does one draw the line? For example, the DM may have been intending to have Orcus attack the rogue with his touch of death ability. But the rogue strikes him first with a dance of death (or readies a standard action to hit Orcus with dance of death when he does so). Is the DM expected to follow through with said attack (and have the possibility of Orcus 1-shot himself if he "accidentally" rolls high enough to hit himself with his own death touch?).

How far is the DM expected to follow through? Is he justified in not having foes hit by dance of death follow through with subsequent attacks? What if he just has them use basic attacks rather than encounter/special attacks with more potency?

Say you are a rogue who has just used dance of death. How would you expect the DM to react to the use of this power so that you won't feel shafted, or that he is metagaming? I feel that the best solution would be to revise dance of death as some sort of immediate action counter to preserve its "gotcha!" aspect. This way, there is no conflict of interests.:)
 

But the rogue strikes him first with a dance of death (or readies a standard action to hit Orcus with dance of death when he does so).

A Readied action is an immediate reaction... so if he Readies Dance of Death for "If Orcus uses Touch of Death on me", Touch of Death will happen before the Readied action...

-Hyp.
 

Well, one way is to have a feylock buddy mind-controlling the mobs, and making them swing at the rogue.
But yeah, bottom line is ... the rogue usually doesn't get attacked.

I have a little gripe .. readied actions are reactions, so the touch of death goes off, and the rogue's intended dance of death never triggers.
 

Well, one way is to have a feylock buddy mind-controlling the mobs, and making them swing at the rogue.

Bewitching Whispers is about the only one that could do it.

If you've got Curse of the Dark Delirium on him, then you can already make them attack an ally (so no point in getting him to attack the rogue so that the rogue can make him attack an ally), and the wording of Dark Delirium would actually prohibit Dance of Death from making him attack himself.

So yeah, Artful Dodger gives a benefit to Dance of Death if your target is currently affected by Bewitching Whispers. Which is... kinda situational :)

-Hyp.
 


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