D&D 5E (2024) Does your table use concentration with Ready a Spell?

[ECMO3]

I had a player quit over this today.

RAW if you use ready action to cast a spell you need to hold concentration until the trigger event:

When you Ready a spell, you cast it as normal (expending any resources used to cast it) but hold its energy, which you release with your Reaction when the trigger occurs. To be readied, a spell must have a casting time of an action, and holding on to the spell’s magic requires Concentration, which you can maintain up to the start of your next turn. If your Concentration is broken, the spell dissipates without taking effect.

The player in question wanted to ready Truestrike while concentrating on Hex. I told him he had to drop concentration. The PC said that is unreasonable and I should houserule it. I would have been open to that discussion on making it a houserule during session 0, but not in the middle of a combat. He said no one plays that way and actually left the game over it.

What do you think?

 

[Knaves Quill]

It makes sense to hold a spell ready has such, and it is a counter weight for gaming the more oppurtune time to trigger a spell. RAW works fine. It's how I run it myself.

Your player quitting over that is a fture fit over something else saved. No biggie.

 

[Whisper-Kitten]

Sounds like he is better off removed from your game.

 

[bedir than]

I think this form of Concentration makes more sense than "oh this spell needs your attention" of standard 5e even!

 

[BruceWright]

Let him quit to a table where they don't use RAW for this, since he seems to know so many.

 

[Minigiant]

I think this form of Concentration makes more sense than "oh this spell needs your attention" of standard 5e even!

And of all spells. You are readying a spell to be used by your hand with a weapon. That's 3 additional things to pay attention to.

 

[Stormonu]

I wasn't aware of this rule, myself.

However, I don't feel its something worth leaving a game over. If they would leave over this minor a ruling, I don't think I'd want them in my game anyways.

 

[Whisper-Kitten]

I wasn't aware of this rule, myself.

However, I don't feel its something worth leaving a game over. If they would leave over this minor a ruling, I don't think I'd want them in my game anyways.

Yeah, I have no place for tantrums in my games either. "Don't be a dick" is literally the first rule I tell people in session zero.

 

[Stormonu]

As I think more on the actual rule, I don't think I'd use it - at least for cantrips or non-concentration spells (readying a Fireball, for example). If the spell being readied is a concentration spell, I'd likely have it take up concentration as part of readying.

My reasoning is if a fighter wouldn't have to "maintain concentration" to ready a sword attack, I don't think it makes sense to have the spellcaster have to do so.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

One tweak I might make to the rule (haven't decided yet, and it hasn't really come up) is to allow you to keep holding onto it longer than the start of your next turn. I wouldn't allow it indefinitely, and going longer than normal might be a great use for a Constitution check.