Full round spells

[Outcast]

Lets say i cast a blade barrier, when do i decide where it takes place.
In the begin when i cast the spell i have to say where its goin to be.
Or at the end of the full round i decide where its goin to be.
So do you have to say at the start of castin which area you are attackin/castin whatsoever.

Outcast

 

[Bauglir]

I believe you place the spell when you finish casting it, although I'm not sure.

 

[Outcast]

anyone else can confirm this?

 

[Christian]

The character must make all pertinent decisions about a spell (range, target, area, effect, version, etc.) when the character begins casting.

(d20 SRD, Magic Overview, under the 'Casting Time' header.)

 

[dcollins]

The rules actually contradict themselves on this point. Christian's quote above appears on PHB p. 148 under "Casting Time". Further down on the same page, this sentence appears under "Aiming a Spell":

However, you do not have to select your target until the moment you finish casting the spell.

I believe the Sage has gone back-and-forth on this issue, most recently emphasizing the latter quote with a "load-the-gun-first, shoot-the-gun-later" analogy.

 

[Hypersmurf]

Note, however, that it is only the target for which there is contradiction.

'Version' of spell, effect, area, etc are unambiguous - they must be chosen at start of casting. If you're casting Summon Monster, you need to decide what you're summoning as soon as you begin.

However... according to the explanation of "Area", you can define an area in two ways. The first is absolute - "I want my blade barrier to appear there, centred in that 5' square."

The other way is descriptive. From memory, the example is something like "I cast my fireball twenty feet into the region of darkness".

I, personally, feel that if that's how you're defining the location of the spell, then if the darkness moves before you finish casting, the spell is still aimed "twenty feet into the region of darkness".

If I cast my Summon Monster spell and declare that my Djinni will appear "alongside the enemy hill giant", then it doesn't matter if the hill giant moves to the other side of the battlefield... as long as he remains within the range of the spell, my Djinni will appear beside him.

However, if I declare that my Djinni will appear there (which happens to be beside the hill giant when I start casting), and the hill giant moves, then the Djinni still appears there upon completion (which is no longer beside the hill giant).

Just be careful casting a Blade Barrier designed to appear centred on someone who could, conceivably, charge you before the spell goes off...

-Hyp.