My wife plays a wizard. We hear Orcs coming up the hall. The wizard decides to ready a spell for when the door opens. So she casts the spell and holds it until 10 seconds later the door opens initiating the trigger. BOOM the fireball goes off. Combat begins. Can she cast on the first round of combat even though she released the energy of the readied spell as a triggered reaction?
My first inclination is, YES, because she didn't cast the spell at the beginning of combat, she did that when she readied the spell. She just released its energy as a REACTION to the door opening, outlined on page 193.
I would love to hear the official word on this if someone would be so kind to share.
The problem is that taking a ready action should only happen in combat. Normally not a huge deal if the DM allows it, but readied spells are a bit trickier. Using your example, she casts the spell and then 10 seconds later the trigger appears. After 6 seconds (a combat round) the spell fizzles and the spell slot is lost because the trigger didn't happen in the first "round". (6 seconds) It would then need to be recast/readied for the additional 4 seconds.
But...it all comes down to how the DM starts combat in this situation. You hear them, and they don't hear you. What I would do is have everyone roll initiative when the door is opened. The orcs all have the surprised condition in round 1, and the players can act however they wish. This would include her casting fireball. In round 2, everyone goes normally.
But to answer your actual question, yes, she can cast on the first round if there was a spell cast prior to combat. Actions are not tracked outside of combat, so it doesn't matter if it was action, reaction, or bonus action spell.
The problem is that taking a ready action should only happen in combat. Normally not a huge deal if the DM allows it, but readied spells are a bit trickier. Using your example, she casts the spell and then 10 seconds later the trigger appears. After 6 seconds (a combat round) the spell fizzles and the spell slot is lost because the trigger didn't happen in the first "round". (6 seconds) It would then need to be recast/readied for the additional 4 seconds.
If I'm remembering correctly doesn't the official ruling on readying spells also say that you are allowed to concentrate on the readied spell (presumably allowing you to continue to hold it ready as long as you maintain concentration)?
Or perhaps I am remembering that wrong? I remember it came up recently in a campaign of mine and that was the conclusion we had agreed on
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That’s what I do. Readying a spell takes concentration. So therefore, as long as you keep concentration, the spell is readied. That’s how I rule it. You have to think, the 6-second turns are energy bursts. What happens if you can focus instead?
Kaboom, they do take concentration as part of the rules for readying a spell, but still just a one round time limit. So let's say on initiative 20 you ready a spell. From initiative 20 until the spell is triggered you are concentrating. If you are hit before the spell goes off you need to make a CON check or it fizzles. If the trigger doesn't happen before your next turn starts it fizzles. As far as I know there are no rules for readying a spell outside of combat. Out of combat it's just telling the DM "When _____ happens I want to cast ______."
My wife plays a wizard. We hear Orcs coming up the hall. The wizard decides to ready a spell for when the door opens. So she casts the spell and holds it until 10 seconds later the door opens initiating the trigger. BOOM the fireball goes off. Combat begins.
The official word is that combat begins when the mage starts casting fireball.
Whether or not the orcs get to do anything before the fireball hits them will depend on Initiative and Surprise. As a GM, I'd roll Wisdom\Perception for the Orcs to see if they are surprised by the PCs behind the door. One of the PCs is casting a spell, which isn't stealthy, so the chance of the orcs being caught unaware is probably low.
Allowing player sa "free turn" by readying stuff before combat begins stops being fun when the GM uses it against them. Always tell the players, "Look, if you want to do it this way, the NPCs get to do it as well, are you all OK with that?"
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My wife plays a wizard. We hear Orcs coming up the hall. The wizard decides to ready a spell for when the door opens. So she casts the spell and holds it until 10 seconds later the door opens initiating the trigger. BOOM the fireball goes off. Combat begins. Can she cast on the first round of combat even though she released the energy of the readied spell as a triggered reaction?
My first inclination is, YES, because she didn't cast the spell at the beginning of combat, she did that when she readied the spell. She just released its energy as a REACTION to the door opening, outlined on page 193.
I would love to hear the official word on this if someone would be so kind to share.
The problem is that taking a ready action should only happen in combat. Normally not a huge deal if the DM allows it, but readied spells are a bit trickier. Using your example, she casts the spell and then 10 seconds later the trigger appears. After 6 seconds (a combat round) the spell fizzles and the spell slot is lost because the trigger didn't happen in the first "round". (6 seconds) It would then need to be recast/readied for the additional 4 seconds.
But...it all comes down to how the DM starts combat in this situation. You hear them, and they don't hear you. What I would do is have everyone roll initiative when the door is opened. The orcs all have the surprised condition in round 1, and the players can act however they wish. This would include her casting fireball. In round 2, everyone goes normally.
But to answer your actual question, yes, she can cast on the first round if there was a spell cast prior to combat. Actions are not tracked outside of combat, so it doesn't matter if it was action, reaction, or bonus action spell.
Ah, i totally missed the part about the READY ending at the end of the round. Thank you for your help. I understand now.
Yeah. When preparating for combat, the only spells that aren’t stupidly expensive to use for readied actions are cantrips because of that.
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If I'm remembering correctly doesn't the official ruling on readying spells also say that you are allowed to concentrate on the readied spell (presumably allowing you to continue to hold it ready as long as you maintain concentration)?
Or perhaps I am remembering that wrong? I remember it came up recently in a campaign of mine and that was the conclusion we had agreed on
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That’s what I do. Readying a spell takes concentration. So therefore, as long as you keep concentration, the spell is readied. That’s how I rule it. You have to think, the 6-second turns are energy bursts. What happens if you can focus instead?
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Kaboom, they do take concentration as part of the rules for readying a spell, but still just a one round time limit. So let's say on initiative 20 you ready a spell. From initiative 20 until the spell is triggered you are concentrating. If you are hit before the spell goes off you need to make a CON check or it fizzles. If the trigger doesn't happen before your next turn starts it fizzles. As far as I know there are no rules for readying a spell outside of combat. Out of combat it's just telling the DM "When _____ happens I want to cast ______."
The official word is that combat begins when the mage starts casting fireball.
Whether or not the orcs get to do anything before the fireball hits them will depend on Initiative and Surprise. As a GM, I'd roll Wisdom\Perception for the Orcs to see if they are surprised by the PCs behind the door. One of the PCs is casting a spell, which isn't stealthy, so the chance of the orcs being caught unaware is probably low.
Allowing player sa "free turn" by readying stuff before combat begins stops being fun when the GM uses it against them. Always tell the players, "Look, if you want to do it this way, the NPCs get to do it as well, are you all OK with that?"