Readying Attacks

[Cyri'kazzen the Drow]

Hi all.

Ok I have another question for everyone. In the PHB, Readying attacks is described and is quite valuable when trying to disrupt spellcasters.

However, it makes no mention of disrupting ranged attacks. You can get AoO against ranged attacks if you are in melee with them, so my understanding is that it requires some sort of concentration to use a ranged attack. Why couldn't someone Ready an attack on the elf archer in the back of the party hoping to disrupt his deadly shooting? Again it makes no mention of this possibility so perhaps it is not allowed or am I not seeing it? What do you think?

 

[Darklone]

Hmm. I see nearly no problem to ready a charge to sunder or disarm the bow of the archer back there.

 

[Cyri'kazzen the Drow]

What about readying another ranged attack and trying to affect the concentration of the elven archer so that they might lose their own ranged attack? Is that allowed? Nothing in the PHB specifies this unless I missed it

 

[Pielorinho]

Very few actions require concentration checks to complete; using spells and (I think) spell-like abilities are among the only ones that normally do so.

Using a ranged attack, like drinking a potion, retrieving a fallen item, or attempting a disarm, is an action which provokes an AoO but does not require a concentration check to complete. If you're still alive after the AoO on you is over, you can finish your action.

You cannot disrupt an archer by readying an action to shoot him. Note that you could disrupt the archer by readying an action to cast a wall of force between her and her target, or to cast hold person on the archer, or to partial-charge and grapple the archer. There are plenty of ways to cause the archer's attempt to fail; causing damage to the archer won't do it, unless you manage to kill the archer.

Daniel

 

[Alomir]

Using a ranged attack, like drinking a potion, retrieving a fallen item, or attempting a disarm, is an action which provokes an AoO but does not require a concentration check to complete. If you're still alive after the AoO on you is over, you can finish your action.

Just for completeness - from Hypersmurf's post here (third post in the thread), you can disrupt an attempt to use a potion or oil - a successful AoO on the potion user requires a concentration check to complete the action.

 

[Pielorinho]

Just for completeness - from Hypersmurf's post here (third post in the thread), you can disrupt an attempt to use a potion or oil - a successful AoO on the potion user requires a concentration check to complete the action.

Weird -- I had no idea. What a stupid rule, by the way! It doesn't list a DC for the concentration check, and it doesn't mention what happens to the potion on a failed concentration check.

Surely the DC isn't tied to the potion's effect: it shouldn't be more difficult to drink a potion of cure serious wounds than to drink a potion of cure light wounds. But do you lose the potion when you fail the concentration check? And are wizards really better at drinking potions than fighters (since the wizard, unlike the fighter, will have ranks in concentration)?

Rule Zero strikes again.
Daniel

 

[LokiDR]

What would the DC of that check be, I wonder. 15 + damage?

 

[Maitre Du Donjon]

[...]or to partial-charge and grapple the archer. [...]

Daniel

You can ready a charge?

I thought you could only ready standard actions AND that you could only take partial actions in very specific circumstances...

man, something new everyday...

Maitre D

 

[Pielorinho]

You can ready a charge?

I thought you could only ready standard actions AND that you could only take partial actions in very specific circumstances...

man, something new everyday...

Ready [Standard][AoO: No]
Description: The ready action lets a character prepare to take an action later, after a character's turn is over but before a character's next one has begun. Readying is a standard action, so a character can move as well. It does not provoke an attack of opportunity (though the action that a character readies might do so).
Only partial actions can be readied. See the table in the description of "Start full round action" for a list of standard partial actions.

Unless you moved earlier in the round, you can ready a partial charge. (If you moved earlier in the round, there's a strong argument against allowing a partial charge, since your movement will probably not be all in a straight line; however, this argument has been done to death before, and we probably shouldn't resurrect it in this thread except to acknowledge its existence)

Daniel

 

[Maitre Du Donjon]

Oops my bad. Ready is a standard action that lets you prepare a partial action for later. duh me.

Maitre D