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Message: <blockquote data-quote="James Gasik" data-source="post: 8588824" data-attributes="member: 6877472">The game doesn't try to rule how fast things move in velocity.  How fast is a lightning bolt?  An arrow?  A magic missile? A character fleeing after being hit by Dissonant Whispers?All we know is that everything is resolved in a loosely defined 6 second combat round.  In this thread I have pointed out that lightning bolts are not too fast to react to (certainly not 270,000 mph) because people can make Dexterity saves to avoid half damage.I pointed out that instantaneous spells can take longer to resolve than "an instant", in the case of Dissonant Whispers, which damages you, then forces you to take a reaction to move.I have pointed out that "instantaneous" is only defined in the magic rules, and page 203 of the PHB only discusses it as a duration, and why it can't be dispelled.But other instantaneous effects like counterspell can prevent them.  Shield can even be cast as a reaction to avoid magic missile damage, which, as it lacks a saving throw and doesn't target AC, could be argued as being too fast to react to.I pointed out reactions are never timed.  They happen after their trigger.  What that trigger can be is a particular event you can perceive.  There is no guidance on this otherwise.  Let's say I ready an action to cast Fireball.  I have a Wall of Force up.Can I stop concentrating on Wall of Force (something that takes no action) before I attempt to cast Fireball in response to my trigger?  The rules don't say either way.All of this and more, and still people insist that reactions work in a way that cannot be proven without applying extra language to the rules.  That somehow "instant" means "zero time" despite the fact that it must take some time, or no one could counterspell it or make a Dexterity saving throw against it.Now as this is 5e, and individual DM's can make rulings, that's fine if that is what you believe. That's fine if that's how your groups play it.But there is room for other interpretations that are equally valid without trying to bring in real world physics in an abstract combat system that literally makes no sense in reality.D&D time is relative.  Characters can deliver epic soliloquies and monks can dash 80 feet in the same time it takes a 1st level character to fire a nocked arrow from a bow or a wizard to cast a magic missile.  It doesn't make any sense to begin with, and was never intended to.</blockquote>

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