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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tzarevitch" data-source="post: 6411231" data-attributes="member: 1792">Your scenario actually encompasses 2 possible scenarios. Let's use precise initiative rolls and assume PC cleric's original initiative was 25, NPC1 was 20, NPC2 was 15. Cleric delays on 25 because nothing has happened yet. NPC1 downs the fighter on 20. Cleric then decides to act on 19. That is a proper use of delay. He's not metagaming or using any knowledge he would not have had had he rolled 19. The only difference is the luck of the roll. High rolls are supposed to be beneficial. There is no reason to penalize him by forcing him to go at that point. If the above happens and Cleric wants to act once he sees NPC2 go over to coup de gras the fighter, that is not a proper use of delay. NPC2 started acting and the cleric is effectively trying to take his full suite of actions in the middle of NPC2's turn after he learns NPC2's nefarious plan.  That is metagaming. The player is trying to learn what NPC2 is doing and interrupt it during NPC2's turn and still get a full allotment of actions. The only way you can interrupt an action like this is to guess the fighter is in danger ahead of time and declare a readied action. If NPC2 does not attack the fighter again, the cleric wastes the readied action, but that is the risk he assumed when he readied. In this scenario, if the cleric delayed, once NPC2 starts his turn the cleric can't act until after NPC2 is done.</blockquote>