You can cast a spell as an action, bonus action, or reaction... it all depends on the casting time.
The bonus action rule doesn't say you can't cast a spell as an action, it actually says you must cast a spell as an action.
The only time reaction spells can be cast is when their trigger is met.
Not quite. What it says is that IF you cast a spell, it must be an Action, and it must be a cantrip.
And it is certainly possible for a PC to cast a spell as a Bonus Action, like Dragon’s Breath for example, which prompts a villain to cast Counterspell, which would be a valid trigger for the PC to cast Counterspell, but shucks, they cast Dragon’s Breath as a Bonus Action, and since Counterspell fulfills neither of the two requirements:
being a Cantrip; nor
having a casting time of 1 Action;
therefore that PC cannot Counterspell the Counterspell.
You can if your turn is over. If you choose the counterspell you are no longer in your turn so you can. It might involve giving up your action or your movement.
Again, we are not talking about in a round, we are talking about within the same specific turn. So your point is completely irrelevant.
To summarize what I think are the relevant points regarding Bonus Action Spells and Reactions/Reaction spells:
If you cast (or plan to cast) a Bonus Action spell on your turn, can you...
1) Use a (non-spell) reaction on your turn? - Yes! (if you meet a trigger requirement)
2) Ready a Cantrip with the casting time of one action? - Yes! (Leveled spells are out though)
3) Use a reaction to deliver or cast a cantrip with the casting time of one action? Rarely, but possible. You would a) need to ready such a spell with your action and have the trigger occur on your same turn, or b) have the Warcaster feat and make an Attack of Opportunity (possibly triggered by an opponent using their reaction to move), or c) some other ability that specifically allows you to do so. Again, only cantrips with a casting time of one action though, no leveled spells.
4) Use a reaction to cast a spell with the casting time of one reaction? No! (Bonus action spellcasting rule says no other spells during the same turn other than cantrips with a casting time of one action)
5) Use a reaction to do 1, 3, or 4 above on another turn in the same round? - Yes! (as long as you meet the trigger and have a reaction available, as per normal)
I have yet to find a situation the super simple flowchart (from page 3) doesn't cover. So whatever situation you cook up, check it against the flowchart. If it passes, you can do it.
"If the reaction interrupts another creature's turn, that creature can continue its turn right after the reaction." So if it's your reaction, on your turn, it does not interrupt your turn, it is still your turn, and whatever happens, it is still the same turn that continues despite interruptions.
I believe you’ve misinterpreted this. It is referencing a creature that was the target of a reaction, not the creature using a reaction. your reaction Interrupts ANOTHER creatures turn, Or another creatures reaction interrupts your turn, you may continue your turn as scheduled. I don’t think this applies. No one is trying to argue that reactions “interrupt” turns, or interrupting creates whole turns I don’t even understand this hypothetical nightmare you’ve proposed in reaction to nothing.
"A reaction is an instant response to a trigger of some kind, which can occur on your turn or on someone else's." So they occur during someone's turn. Not outside of the turn structure or any silliness like this which does not exist in the rules.
obviously everything happens on SOMEONES turn, but once again we aren’t talking about other creatures turns.
Now, can you please explain how this sentence "You can't cast another spell during the same turn, except for a cantrip with a casting time of 1 action." does not apply to any spell casting ?
I wholeheartedly abide by these rules but Reactions are not part of your turn, you get 1 per round. Reactions do not occur on your turn regardless of when they are triggered and the trigger is what determines when you can use it. I understand this will be a difficult concept to grasp to those with preconceived notions. You’ll either get it or you won’t *shrug*. Trust me, it’s very easy to understand that everything that occurs from the start of your turn to the end of your turn is your turn. But I’ll use this word again, reactions transcend your turn. The same trigger could occur on your turn, another person’s turn, it’s the trigger.
I will be removing myself from this this thread as I have nothing else to offer and don’t want to muddy it up, good day to you all. I will ponder this and may change my mind. Until then, I don’t think my players will complain about having more freedom than others. Actually, assuming I am wrong, I can’t even remember a time in my personal experience where this would have been an issue anyway, at least for our group, so luckily for me I don’t think I’ll have to worry about this.
Also Lyxen, I hope you don’t take this personally pal, you have good points and offer a lot of great advice on these forums and I look forward to more :). Nice exercise to get my brain going for the day lol.
You can keep saying that “reactions transcend your turn” but that doesn’t make it true. Show me one scrap of RAW to backup that claim and I’ll retract my statement, but you can’t.
So I will respond to this, but I am unsubscribing to this thread after and I don’t want to argue with people I like on these forums. You are correct IamSposta.
I just always thought of reactions as their own separate thing. But anything that happens within the walls of your turn, is your turn. It just seemed too simple lol.
I just always thought of reactions as their own separate thing. But anything that happens within the walls of your turn, is your turn. It just seemed too simple lol.
You understand it correctly. If a reaction happens on your turn, it is still your turn. As far as I know, the only reaction that changes whose turn it is would be the samurai's capstone Strength Before Death feature and that is a HUGE exception to the normal rule.
I still see the 2 rules conflicting with each other...
If you want to follow the Bonus Action rule then you cannot follow the Reaction rule.
And if you want to follow the Reaction rule you cannot follow the Bonus Action rule.
Just because the majority has chosen to honor the Bonus Action rule over the Reaction rule doesn't solve the contradiction. I would have gone with the Reaction rule because they can be cast fewer times. Their trigger has to be met. Making for very limited situations in which they can be used. If I am falling, and only if I am falling can I use the Reaction of Feather Fall but now I can't even do that if a Bonus Action spell was cast on my turn... guess I just fall to my death.
This reasoning is counter intuitive to how the rules are meant to be used.
Another example is if I cast a Bonus Action spell on my turn and an enemy uses Counterspell to stop it... guess I can't Counterspell their Counterspell
I don't understand how the Bonus Action rule can be followed... but not the Reaction rule.
Why does one rule supercede another?
I am neither for or against any of these rules... if you were following the Reaction rule over the Bonus Action rule, I still have the same questions, why one rule over another? These are both exception rules over the normal rule, they are on the same page of the PHB.
You can cast a spell as an action, bonus action, or reaction... it all depends on the casting time.
The bonus action rule doesn't say you can't cast a spell as an action, it actually says you must cast a spell as an action.
The only time reaction spells can be cast is when their trigger is met.
Not quite. What it says is that IF you cast a spell, it must be an Action, and it must be a cantrip.
And it is certainly possible for a PC to cast a spell as a Bonus Action, like Dragon’s Breath for example, which prompts a villain to cast Counterspell, which would be a valid trigger for the PC to cast Counterspell, but shucks, they cast Dragon’s Breath as a Bonus Action, and since Counterspell fulfills neither of the two requirements:
being a Cantrip; nor
having a casting time of 1 Action;
therefore that PC cannot Counterspell the Counterspell.
You can if your turn is over. If you choose the counterspell you are no longer in your turn so you can. It might involve giving up your action or your movement.
Again, we are not talking about in a round, we are talking about within the same specific turn. So your point is completely irrelevant.
You said the order of events can't happen. I was showing you that that particular instance order of events can happen. True, not during the same turn but it can still happen.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
Reactions are not an exception to the general rules, they are the general rules. The limit on what you’re able to cast in combination with a bonus action spell is the exception to that general rule.
I very sincerely have no idea how this can be unclear to you or anyone. You’ve consistently failed to provide any justification for your statement that reactions are a specific exception to something else. What is the reaction description an exception to? Please, enlighten us.
Bonus action spells get specific about spell economy, when bonus action spells are cast. I won't repeat it, we all know the text by now.
HOWEVER!
Reaction spells ALSO have a specific rule, and I won't quote the whole text so I can emphasize the SPECIFIC part: "...the spell description tells you exactly when you can do so."
Now, do any reaction spells provide a description of EXACTLY WHEN that contradicts the Bonus Action spell specific rule? Here's a list of reaction spells:
The only spell that can really be used in combat during your turn is Counterspell. It has the following rule for when it can be cast: " - which you take when you see a creature within 60 feet of you casting a spell"
So there are 2 specific rulings for Reaction spells:
Requires a trigger
The spell says when you can use it
As far as I see it, there are two sets of specific rules, meant to supersede the general spell casting rules. Both of these specific rules contradict each other. There is no precedent (that I know of) that says what specific rule applies first.
If you use your reaction to cast counterspell (because the spell defines when you can cast it as a reaction), then you break the bonus action spell rule.
If you don't let the player use the counterspell reaction because of the bonus action spell rule, then you break the specific counterspell rule.
So no one in this thread is correct. Doesn't matter what you choose, you break one rule or the other.
Now, let me move on to actual game play. Combat can be tedious and ruin immersion for many. Most people (I'm generalizing) prefer combat to be fast paced and full of tension and uncertainty. DM's strive to keep the action going and keep players engaged. There's nothing that's going to bring combat to a screeching grinding halt more suddenly than a DM that stops combat to tell a player he can't use his reaction because the spell he cast was a bonus action. This can erupt into full blown argument at the table when a previous caster (or the same caster on a previous turn) cast an action spell, and DID get to cast counterspell to counter counterspell.
If the DM holds to the Bonus Action spell rule, while the player holds to the Reaction spell rule, which both contradict each other, is the DM really going to breed animosity at his table to have the last word? I know DM's have final say for rulings, and in the heat of the moment I also hold to this. But after the game is over, if the player brings the subject up, I can't see why a DM would hold to his guns on this paradox. Why piss off your player(s)?
As for me, I house rule this issue: Each spell you cast on your turn has to take one from column A and column B. Mix and match as you wish. Reactions are separate.
COLUMN A | COLUMN B
Cantrip | Action
Spell Slot | Bonus Action
There really aren't that many combos that make this rule overpowered, and it's simpler to explain to everyone at the table.
You can cast a spell as an action, bonus action, or reaction... it all depends on the casting time.
The bonus action rule doesn't say you can't cast a spell as an action, it actually says you must cast a spell as an action.
The only time reaction spells can be cast is when their trigger is met.
Not quite. What it says is that IF you cast a spell, it must be an Action, and it must be a cantrip.
And it is certainly possible for a PC to cast a spell as a Bonus Action, like Dragon’s Breath for example, which prompts a villain to cast Counterspell, which would be a valid trigger for the PC to cast Counterspell, but shucks, they cast Dragon’s Breath as a Bonus Action, and since Counterspell fulfills neither of the two requirements:
being a Cantrip; nor
having a casting time of 1 Action;
therefore that PC cannot Counterspell the Counterspell.
You can if your turn is over. If you choose the counterspell you are no longer in your turn so you can. It might involve giving up your action or your movement.
Again, we are not talking about in a round, we are talking about within the same specific turn. So your point is completely irrelevant.
You said the order of events can't happen. I was showing you that that particular instance order of events can happen. True, not during the same turn but it can still happen.
No, it can’t. If you cast Dragon’s Breath as a bonus action on your turn, and your opponent counterspells you (still on your turn), you can’t counterspell that counterspell, because it’s still the same turn. Sure, you can counterspell some different counterspell that occurs off your turn, but that’s exactly what Sposta is saying no one is talking about.
You can cast a spell as an action, bonus action, or reaction... it all depends on the casting time.
The bonus action rule doesn't say you can't cast a spell as an action, it actually says you must cast a spell as an action.
The only time reaction spells can be cast is when their trigger is met.
Not quite. What it says is that IF you cast a spell, it must be an Action, and it must be a cantrip.
And it is certainly possible for a PC to cast a spell as a Bonus Action, like Dragon’s Breath for example, which prompts a villain to cast Counterspell, which would be a valid trigger for the PC to cast Counterspell, but shucks, they cast Dragon’s Breath as a Bonus Action, and since Counterspell fulfills neither of the two requirements:
being a Cantrip; nor
having a casting time of 1 Action;
therefore that PC cannot Counterspell the Counterspell.
You can if your turn is over. If you choose the counterspell you are no longer in your turn so you can. It might involve giving up your action or your movement.
Again, we are not talking about in a round, we are talking about within the same specific turn. So your point is completely irrelevant.
You said the order of events can't happen. I was showing you that that particular instance order of events can happen. True, not during the same turn but it can still happen.
Since I was only ever saying that the order of events can’t happen in the same turn, your comment is still completely irrelevant. (No offense intended.)
Bonus action spells get specific about spell economy, when bonus action spells are cast. I won't repeat it, we all know the text by now.
HOWEVER!
Reaction spells ALSO have a specific rule, and I won't quote the whole text so I can emphasize the SPECIFIC part: "...the spell description tells you exactly when you can do so."
Now, do any reaction spells provide a description of EXACTLY WHEN that contradicts the Bonus Action spell specific rule? Here's a list of reaction spells:
The only spell that can really be used in combat during your turn is Counterspell. It has the following rule for when it can be cast: " - which you take when you see a creature within 60 feet of you casting a spell"
So there are 2 specific rulings for Reaction spells:
Requires a trigger
The spell says when you can use it
As far as I see it, there are two sets of specific rules, meant to supersede the general spell casting rules. Both of these specific rules contradict each other. There is no precedent (that I know of) that says what specific rule applies first.
If you use your reaction to cast counterspell (because the spell defines when you can cast it as a reaction), then you break the bonus action spell rule.
If you don't let the player use the counterspell reaction because of the bonus action spell rule, then you break the specific counterspell rule.
So no one in this thread is correct. Doesn't matter what you choose, you break one rule or the other.
That’s the exact same prima facie invalid reasoning that suggests you don’t need a spell slot (or even an available reaction) to cast a spell as a reaction.
Try to use semantics to circumnavigate the reaction rule won't work... when they say 'when' they mean 'whether'... or 'hotdog' or any others words you want to use to befuddle the rule.
If the Counterspell says I can cast it on my turn, then I can cast it on my turn... but if I have already cast a Bonus Action spell them I am breaking a rule.
If I have already cast a Bonus Action spell and therefore cannot cast a Reaction spell... then I am breaking a rule.
This is the contradiction. How can it be resolved? (It probably can't?)
Try to use semantics to circumnavigate the reaction rule won't work... when they say 'when' they mean 'whether'... or 'hotdog' or any others words you want to use to befuddle the rule.
If the Counterspell says I can cast it on my turn, then I can cast it on my turn... but if I have already cast a Bonus Action spell them I am breaking a rule.
If I have already cast a Bonus Action spell and therefore cannot cast a Reaction spell... then I am breaking a rule.
This is the contradiction. How can it be resolved? (It probably can't?)
Again, it’s resolved in the Basic Rules section I linked explaining that the specific rule overrides the general one. Easy.
Try to use semantics to circumnavigate the reaction rule won't work... when they say 'when' they mean 'whether'... or 'hotdog' or any others words you want to use to befuddle the rule.
If the Counterspell says I can cast it on my turn, then I can cast it on my turn... but if I have already cast a Bonus Action spell them I am breaking a rule.
If I have already cast a Bonus Action spell and therefore cannot cast a Reaction spell... then I am breaking a rule.
This is the contradiction. How can it be resolved? (It probably can't?)
It can easily be resolved. What you are continually ignoring is that the Reaction Rules say “If this: then this” and the bonus action rules say “if that: then that” and if “that” means that “this” cannot happen then it cannot happen.
Like, the rules of physics say that a car cannot go while the breaks are on. The rules of driving say that when the light turns green, you can go. But if the light turns green and you still have your breaks on it doesn’t cause some contradiction that invalidates physics. Truth, 0 shits given what color the light is, if you got the breaks on you ain’t goin’ nowhere.
The reaction rules are the green light, the bonus action rules are the breaks.
Again, we are not talking about in a round, we are talking about within the same specific turn. So your point is completely irrelevant.
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Epic Boons on DDB
To summarize what I think are the relevant points regarding Bonus Action Spells and Reactions/Reaction spells:
If you cast (or plan to cast) a Bonus Action spell on your turn, can you...
1) Use a (non-spell) reaction on your turn? - Yes! (if you meet a trigger requirement)
2) Ready a Cantrip with the casting time of one action? - Yes! (Leveled spells are out though)
3) Use a reaction to deliver or cast a cantrip with the casting time of one action? Rarely, but possible. You would a) need to ready such a spell with your action and have the trigger occur on your same turn, or b) have the Warcaster feat and make an Attack of Opportunity (possibly triggered by an opponent using their reaction to move), or c) some other ability that specifically allows you to do so. Again, only cantrips with a casting time of one action though, no leveled spells.
4) Use a reaction to cast a spell with the casting time of one reaction? No! (Bonus action spellcasting rule says no other spells during the same turn other than cantrips with a casting time of one action)
5) Use a reaction to do 1, 3, or 4 above on another turn in the same round? - Yes! (as long as you meet the trigger and have a reaction available, as per normal)
I have yet to find a situation the super simple flowchart (from page 3) doesn't cover. So whatever situation you cook up, check it against the flowchart. If it passes, you can do it.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
"If the reaction interrupts another creature's turn, that creature can continue its turn right after the reaction." So if it's your reaction, on your turn, it does not interrupt your turn, it is still your turn, and whatever happens, it is still the same turn that continues despite interruptions.
I believe you’ve misinterpreted this. It is referencing a creature that was the target of a reaction, not the creature using a reaction. your reaction Interrupts ANOTHER creatures turn, Or another creatures reaction interrupts your turn, you may continue your turn as scheduled. I don’t think this applies. No one is trying to argue that reactions “interrupt” turns, or interrupting creates whole turns I don’t even understand this hypothetical nightmare you’ve proposed in reaction to nothing.
"A reaction is an instant response to a trigger of some kind, which can occur on your turn or on someone else's." So they occur during someone's turn. Not outside of the turn structure or any silliness like this which does not exist in the rules.
obviously everything happens on SOMEONES turn, but once again we aren’t talking about other creatures turns.
Now, can you please explain how this sentence "You can't cast another spell during the same turn, except for a cantrip with a casting time of 1 action." does not apply to any spell casting ?
I wholeheartedly abide by these rules but Reactions are not part of your turn, you get 1 per round. Reactions do not occur on your turn regardless of when they are triggered and the trigger is what determines when you can use it. I understand this will be a difficult concept to grasp to those with preconceived notions. You’ll either get it or you won’t *shrug*. Trust me, it’s very easy to understand that everything that occurs from the start of your turn to the end of your turn is your turn. But I’ll use this word again, reactions transcend your turn. The same trigger could occur on your turn, another person’s turn, it’s the trigger.
I will be removing myself from this this thread as I have nothing else to offer and don’t want to muddy it up, good day to you all. I will ponder this and may change my mind. Until then, I don’t think my players will complain about having more freedom than others. Actually, assuming I am wrong, I can’t even remember a time in my personal experience where this would have been an issue anyway, at least for our group, so luckily for me I don’t think I’ll have to worry about this.
Also Lyxen, I hope you don’t take this personally pal, you have good points and offer a lot of great advice on these forums and I look forward to more :). Nice exercise to get my brain going for the day lol.
You can keep saying that “reactions transcend your turn” but that doesn’t make it true. Show me one scrap of RAW to backup that claim and I’ll retract my statement, but you can’t.
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Epic Boons on DDB
So I will respond to this, but I am unsubscribing to this thread after and I don’t want to argue with people I like on these forums. You are correct IamSposta.
I’m convinced ;)
I just always thought of reactions as their own separate thing. But anything that happens within the walls of your turn, is your turn. It just seemed too simple lol.
You understand it correctly. If a reaction happens on your turn, it is still your turn. As far as I know, the only reaction that changes whose turn it is would be the samurai's capstone Strength Before Death feature and that is a HUGE exception to the normal rule.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
I still see the 2 rules conflicting with each other...
If you want to follow the Bonus Action rule then you cannot follow the Reaction rule.
And if you want to follow the Reaction rule you cannot follow the Bonus Action rule.
Just because the majority has chosen to honor the Bonus Action rule over the Reaction rule doesn't solve the contradiction. I would have gone with the Reaction rule because they can be cast fewer times. Their trigger has to be met. Making for very limited situations in which they can be used. If I am falling, and only if I am falling can I use the Reaction of Feather Fall but now I can't even do that if a Bonus Action spell was cast on my turn... guess I just fall to my death.
This reasoning is counter intuitive to how the rules are meant to be used.
Another example is if I cast a Bonus Action spell on my turn and an enemy uses Counterspell to stop it... guess I can't Counterspell their Counterspell
I don't understand how the Bonus Action rule can be followed... but not the Reaction rule.
Why does one rule supercede another?
I am neither for or against any of these rules... if you were following the Reaction rule over the Bonus Action rule, I still have the same questions, why one rule over another? These are both exception rules over the normal rule, they are on the same page of the PHB.
You said the order of events can't happen. I was showing you that that particular instance order of events can happen. True, not during the same turn but it can still happen.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Reactions are not an exception to the general rules, they are the general rules. The limit on what you’re able to cast in combination with a bonus action spell is the exception to that general rule.
I very sincerely have no idea how this can be unclear to you or anyone. You’ve consistently failed to provide any justification for your statement that reactions are a specific exception to something else. What is the reaction description an exception to? Please, enlighten us.
General vs. specific rules.
Bonus action spells get specific about spell economy, when bonus action spells are cast. I won't repeat it, we all know the text by now.
HOWEVER!
Reaction spells ALSO have a specific rule, and I won't quote the whole text so I can emphasize the SPECIFIC part: "...the spell description tells you exactly when you can do so."
Now, do any reaction spells provide a description of EXACTLY WHEN that contradicts the Bonus Action spell specific rule? Here's a list of reaction spells:
The only spell that can really be used in combat during your turn is Counterspell. It has the following rule for when it can be cast: " - which you take when you see a creature within 60 feet of you casting a spell"
So there are 2 specific rulings for Reaction spells:
As far as I see it, there are two sets of specific rules, meant to supersede the general spell casting rules. Both of these specific rules contradict each other. There is no precedent (that I know of) that says what specific rule applies first.
So no one in this thread is correct. Doesn't matter what you choose, you break one rule or the other.
Now, let me move on to actual game play. Combat can be tedious and ruin immersion for many. Most people (I'm generalizing) prefer combat to be fast paced and full of tension and uncertainty. DM's strive to keep the action going and keep players engaged. There's nothing that's going to bring combat to a screeching grinding halt more suddenly than a DM that stops combat to tell a player he can't use his reaction because the spell he cast was a bonus action. This can erupt into full blown argument at the table when a previous caster (or the same caster on a previous turn) cast an action spell, and DID get to cast counterspell to counter counterspell.
If the DM holds to the Bonus Action spell rule, while the player holds to the Reaction spell rule, which both contradict each other, is the DM really going to breed animosity at his table to have the last word? I know DM's have final say for rulings, and in the heat of the moment I also hold to this. But after the game is over, if the player brings the subject up, I can't see why a DM would hold to his guns on this paradox. Why piss off your player(s)?
As for me, I house rule this issue: Each spell you cast on your turn has to take one from column A and column B. Mix and match as you wish. Reactions are separate.
COLUMN A | COLUMN B
Cantrip | Action
Spell Slot | Bonus Action
There really aren't that many combos that make this rule overpowered, and it's simpler to explain to everyone at the table.
No, it can’t. If you cast Dragon’s Breath as a bonus action on your turn, and your opponent counterspells you (still on your turn), you can’t counterspell that counterspell, because it’s still the same turn. Sure, you can counterspell some different counterspell that occurs off your turn, but that’s exactly what Sposta is saying no one is talking about.
The spell description tells you when you can cast a reaction spell. It does not tell you whether you can cast it.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
Since I was only ever saying that the order of events can’t happen in the same turn, your comment is still completely irrelevant. (No offense intended.)
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Epic Boons on DDB
That’s the exact same prima facie invalid reasoning that suggests you don’t need a spell slot (or even an available reaction) to cast a spell as a reaction.
Try to use semantics to circumnavigate the reaction rule won't work... when they say 'when' they mean 'whether'... or 'hotdog' or any others words you want to use to befuddle the rule.
If the Counterspell says I can cast it on my turn, then I can cast it on my turn... but if I have already cast a Bonus Action spell them I am breaking a rule.
If I have already cast a Bonus Action spell and therefore cannot cast a Reaction spell... then I am breaking a rule.
This is the contradiction. How can it be resolved? (It probably can't?)
Again, it’s resolved in the Basic Rules section I linked explaining that the specific rule overrides the general one. Easy.
Respectfully, this statement is objectively incorrect.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
It can easily be resolved. What you are continually ignoring is that the Reaction Rules say “If this: then this” and the bonus action rules say “if that: then that” and if “that” means that “this” cannot happen then it cannot happen.
Like, the rules of physics say that a car cannot go while the breaks are on. The rules of driving say that when the light turns green, you can go. But if the light turns green and you still have your breaks on it doesn’t cause some contradiction that invalidates physics. Truth, 0 shits given what color the light is, if you got the breaks on you ain’t goin’ nowhere.
The reaction rules are the green light, the bonus action rules are the breaks.
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Epic Boons on DDB