Help Understanding the Ready Action

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

WaterBob.

You're wrong.

Accept it.

When you take the readied action - which is a standard action on your own turn - you are allowed to select any Standard, Move, or Swift action that you want to perform and the circumstances under which you will perform it. Then, later on in the round, when it is not your turn, you are allowed to perform that action. You do not "pay" for that action again; you have already done so by taking the Ready action on your turn.

On your turn, you are allowed to take a move action and a standard action.

You can therefore take a move action to move up to your speed, and then take any standard action you want. The Attack action is one such standard action. Ready is another. Thus, just like you can move your speed and attack once, you may also move your speed and ready.

 

[Water Bob]

You seem to be thinking that because readying is classified as a standard action that a character who uses it is being granted TWO standard actions in a round when the readied action occurs, but that isn't really what's happening.

Yes, that is what I was thinking because of the sentence in the rules "Readying is a standard action". Then, the rules say you can ready a standard, move, free, or swift action.

And, becuase of my example, where the spear is readied for a charge, then used to attack when the charger triggers the attack.

Most of the rules in 3.5 are written pretty clearly. This one, not so much.

WaterBob.

You're wrong.

Accept it.

I already did! Post #15, at the bottom of the first page of the thread!

People seem to be ignoring that, for some reason.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Oh, well, there you go.

 

[Water Bob]

Here's a question. Tell me if you think this is legal.

Branoc is in melee with a foe. Branoc uses a short sword in one hand and a small shield in the other.

On Branoc's turn, he attacks and kills his foe with his short sword. Could Branoc then make a ready action to shield bash any other foe who enters his threat range?





Here's another way of looking at the same question.

Branoc uses a short sword and a dagger in combat--two weapon combat. On his first attack, he hits and kills his foe. Then, he readies his dagger attack on any foe who would enter his danger space.

Legal or no?

I'm thinking "no", but let's see what you fine folks have to say.

 

[Greenfield]

Ready Action is more a mental thing than anything else. You "use" a Standard Action to do it simply because you're putting that SA in your pocket to use later. In essence, you're standing and waiting, mentally prepared to respond to a given trigger situation. You take you SA when that situation occurs.

In your latest example, Branoc uses his Standard Action to attack a foe and kill him. He used it, it's done, gone, goodbye, kaput.

He has no SA available to Ready. He can still move if he hasn't yet, and if he killed the guy with one swing, 5 ft. step if it took more, but that's it. After that he's done.

Same if he was TWF. He used his SA, so he doesn't have one to reserve for later use.

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Branoc is in melee with a foe. Branoc uses a short sword in one hand and a small shield in the other.

On Branoc's turn, he attacks and kills his foe with his short sword. Could Branoc then make a ready action to shield bash any other foe who enters his threat range?

No, he cannot [most of the time]. Readying is a standard action; attacking is a standard action. Accordingly, once he has attacked, Branoc no longer has a standard action to spend to ready another attack.

If he has another standard action, somehow, then he can do this.

Branoc uses a short sword and a dagger in combat--two weapon combat. On his first attack, he hits and kills his foe. Then, he readies his dagger attack on any foe who would enter his danger space.

Legal or no?

No, for the exact same reason.

 

[Water Bob]

No, for the exact same reason.

That's another game hiccup, isn't it. Branoc can attack his foe using a full round action using the short sword and the dagger.

But, if Branoc wants to use his short sword on a foe then ready his dagger for use later in the round, it's not allowed.

I gueeesssss I could see that this might be a time issue--that by waiting (readying), Branoc runs out of time to use his second weapon that round.

 

[anest1s]

That's another game hiccup, isn't it. Branoc can attack his foe using a full round action using the short sword and the dagger.

But, if Branoc wants to use his short sword on a foe then ready his dagger for use later in the round, it's not allowed.

I gueeesssss I could see that this might be a time issue--that by waiting (readying), Branoc runs out of time to use his second weapon that round.

Well, a hydra should be able to ready action half of her heads if that was true, just because her first target is dead. So why not wait for the cleric to come to heal the lucky guy, and continue the attacks then? Nothing to lose! She wouldn't be able to attack anywayz.

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

Branoc is in melee with a foe. Branoc uses a short sword in one hand and a small shield in the other.

On Branoc's turn, he attacks and kills his foe with his short sword. Could Branoc then make a ready action to shield bash any other foe who enters his threat range?

Nope. Once he's used his standard action by attacking he doesn't have another standard action to devote to the Ready action. If he doesn't use his standard action to shield bash or attack on his turn then he can instead Ready on his turn to be able to shield bash or attack when it is no longer his turn.

Branoc uses a short sword and a dagger in combat--two weapon combat. On his first attack, he hits and kills his foe. Then, he readies his dagger attack on any foe who would enter his danger space.

Legal or no?

That would be no. Once he attacks he's used his standard action for his turn (even if he didn't use all of his attacks that a standard action might allow) and can no longer Ready. If he wants to Ready either an attack or some other action he cannot first use up his standard action by attacking.

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

I gueeesssss I could see that this might be a time issue--that by waiting (readying), Branoc runs out of time to use his second weapon that round.

Again, the amount of time spent in a round on various actions is controlled by limiting characters to either a standard action + a move action, or else using just a full-round action. Initiative only determines which actions are resolved before/after other actions without directly concerning itself with the amount of time a given action takes to perform.