Power Attack and Readied Actions, when do you declare?

[RigaMortus2]

Personally for ease of adjudication I would rule that at the beginning of the charge action the attacker indicates the Power Attack he's wanting to use and he is subject to the penalties and benefits for the duration of his action and the remainder of combat until his next turn.

But simply using the attack action is not when you apply Power Attack. It is before you make the attack roll.

I charge with the intent to Power Attack. I haven't declared I am doing so yet, or for how much (my action is interrupted before I get to make my attack roll). Your Ready goes off to disarm me. Since I haven't declared how much I am power attacking for (let alone that I am definately doing the power attack), how do you know what my negatives are to my opposed attack roll vs disarm?

 

[Vuron]

But simply using the attack action is not when you apply Power Attack. It is before you make the attack roll.

I charge with the intent to Power Attack. I haven't declared I am doing so yet, or for how much (my action is interrupted before I get to make my attack roll). Your Ready goes off to disarm me. Since I haven't declared how much I am power attacking for (let alone that I am definately doing the power attack), how do you know what my negatives are to my opposed attack roll vs disarm?

I think you are viewing the process of power attacking and a ready action interrupting as a bit too instantaneous.

The way I've always envisioned power attack is like really laying into a blow (the +x to damage)without being so concerned about the recovery time of your weapon and whether that leaves you open to counters (the -x to AC). So when you begin to commit to an attack and actually follow through on the attack there is a discernable space of time that the defender can use a ready action to interrupt the attack.

 

[RigaMortus2]

I think you are viewing the process of power attacking and a ready action interrupting as a bit too instantaneous.

The way I've always envisioned power attack is like really laying into a blow (the +x to damage)without being so concerned about the recovery time of your weapon and whether that leaves you open to counters (the -x to AC). So when you begin to commit to an attack and actually follow through on the attack there is a discernable space of time that the defender can use a ready action to interrupt the attack.

I am just going by what is written and how I read it. So long as you have not made your attack roll, you can decide to use Power Attack or not. Because any point "before the attack roll" would qualify as "before the attack roll".