Troll trying to eat monk

[werk]

Good Catch! One more of those little 3.0 hold overs that some of us did not notice 3.5 changed

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/specialInitiativeActions.htm#ready

Thanks, but it does beg the question...how was the troll aware of the party? They don't have tremorsense, and it's not easy to see through filthy troll-water well enough to know what's going on.

I guess if they had a light-source, and the cave or whatever was dark... Maybe he was peeking at them, alligator style, and dipped below the surface when they got close enough to spot him? That would cause ripples, but maybe the water was not calm...

Trying improved grab techniques with a creature without improved grab will have less than spectacular results.

 

[irdeggman]

Ready is what kind of action?

What kinds of actions can you perform on a surprise round?

Ergo...you can ready during surprise, so long as you are not the one that is surprised.

Source would be the PHB.

But before you execute the readied action (all of your actions from the "surprise round") everyone would be rolling initiiative and would proceed from there.


"Any combatant aware of the opponents can act in the surprise round, so they roll for initiative." PHB pg 137

 

[Bad Paper]

Good Catch! One more of those little 3.0 hold overs that some of us did not notice 3.5 changed

but, um, combat had not started.

Let's say I am a sorcerer under superior invisibility or whatever it's called (un-smellable, etc), and I sneak up on the party and ready a counterspell against the party's wizard.

Possible? I may be waiting forever. Combat hasn't started. The wizard may lazily decide to bust out his water breathing or whatever, but I believe that would still require an initiative check, wouldn't it?

 

[werk]

If you are aware, and your foes are not, you get to determine when initiative starts. Generally the surprise round actions would be whatever you were readying. There's no real difference between readying an action to attack someone when they get close enough, and just declaring that you will attack someone when they get close enough, thus beginning initiative.

I'm not saying readying on the surprise round is a GOOD idea, I'm just saying that it technically can be done...with no real net benefit.

 

[irdeggman]

I'm not saying readying on the surprise round is a GOOD idea, I'm just saying that it technically can be done...with no real net benefit.

Correct, which is what I was pointing out.