What goes first?

[Egres]

Ok, this is the situation.

Jon, the Monk/Cleric, is fighting against one of his allies, Bob the Fighter.

Jon wants to appear as one of Bob's enemies, for a reason that is useless to be explained here.

Jon is under the effects of a Polymnorph spell, and Bob hasn't recognized him.

For this reason Bob is fighting without limits against Jon, and this is what Jon was looking for in the first time, cause Bob isn't very good at Bluffing.

After a few rounds of fight Jon sees that Bob is seriously wounded, and doesn't want to kill him, but he also knows that, thanks to his "special powers" (the Diehard feat), Bob will continue the fight even under 0 hp.(in fact Bob is at -8 hp)

Jon also knows that Bob is immune to non-lethal damage, thanks to a Magic item.

For his last attack, Jon decides to cast a Silent/Still/Quickened Cure Light Wounds on Bob with a regular attack.

He casts the spell, attacks and deals 1d8+2 damage, that would drop Bob's hp under -10, but his CLW would heal him for 13 points, hoping that Bob will understand that he's fighting against a Polymorphed ally, suggesting him to let himself drop on the field, unconscious but alive.

But here goes the question: what applies first?

The Unarmed Strike damage or the CLW?

As a DM I have ruled that the CLW goes first, cause the Touch, the contact, happens before the full impact of the punch, but I can't find a RAW reference for my point of view.

Can you help me?

Thanks in advance.

 

[robberbaron]

Ooh, that's a toughie.
I would have ruled it the other way round, but that's not very helpful in your situation.
Then again, if I were Jon, I would have pulled my strength, in an attempt to not kill Bob.

 

[Starglim]

Due to his Die Hard feat Bob doesn't have to fall to the ground unless he chooses, whether his hit points are negative or positive, so it would be better in every way for Jon to deal nonlethal damage (that is, no damage) and apply the curing.

If Jon insists or has already declared that he's doing lethal damage, the damage and healing would apply simultaneously, the same as other types of energy associated with a blow such as a flaming sword's fire damage. As for other mixed-damage attacks, the total damage is the sum of the effects of each type.

 

[Egres]

Due to his Die Hard feat Bob doesn't have to fall to the ground unless he chooses, whether his hit points are negative or positive, so it would be better in every way for Jon to deal nonlethal damage (that is, no damage) and apply the curing.

I see your point, but this had already happened, and I need a clarification for future similar cases, like an Harm spell delivered with an Unarmed Strike and such.

 

[Starglim]

I see your point, but this had already happened, and I need a clarification for future similar cases, like an Harm spell delivered with an Unarmed Strike and such.

Not really an issue in 3.5, unless the target makes its save and has about 5 hit points per caster level remaining. In that case .. hmm. I'd rule that the damage from harm can't reduce the target to less than 1 hit point at the time that its damage is applied, that is, simultaneously with the unarmed strike, so as the total result of the strike the target would be reduced to 1 hit point.