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Message: <blockquote data-quote="I'm A Banana" data-source="post: 6899306" data-attributes="member: 2067">The wonkiness there is that the assassin hasn't actually done anything for the victim to react to when the victim stops being "surprised." There's no attack yet. The assassin isn't seen or heard (they're still hidden). The target just goes from being surprised to not being surprised and nothing has happened or changed in the world or the fiction to trigger that change. This trope already has a mechanic: it's the monks Unarmored Defense feature + the ninja's attack roll. That's keyed off of Wisdom and keeps that fiction intact (vs. being based on Dexterity, which isn't about awareness). When the assassin misses the monk with their attack, that is the monk's preternatural awareness letting them dodge the attack. There's no contradiction - someone with the Alert feat never suffers the effects of the surprised condition. That doesn't mean they're aware of attacks that haven't actually happened yet (and might now never happen), though.</blockquote>