Syncronicity & Anticipatory Strike Questions [Archive] - Wizards Community

Syncronicity & Anticipatory Strike Questions [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
heavenisme
03-23-08, 05:03 AM So these powers from the Complete Psionics book are a little confusing to me here are a few questions:

Anticipatory Strike
This power is an immediate action to take your turn first in the initiate order. However if you lose init you cannot use the power as you are flatfooted.

If two characters were facing off rolled init and the psionic character lost init would he be able to use Anticipatory Strike to act first, as he's not yet flatfooted. . . .

Also if only two combatants are fighting is this power useless?

Syncronicity
You can use a standard action to ready a standard action? The standard action you ready must be used on your next turn? Cant you do this without the actual reading of a power?

So if I use the power to ready burrouring bonds on my next turn, then I use energy missle on my next turn to attack the burrouring bonds hit as well?
So this power allows you to hit with two in one? Also if this power is used on the turn it is released it is a free action to release the power correct? So the character can take a full round action. If 2 power points are spent I can use any standard action non specified correct? So this power essentially gives you a second turn in the next round. Am I getting this power correctly?
CrimsonDeath
03-23-08, 02:23 PM Anticipatory Strike
This power is an immediate action to take your turn first in the initiate order. However if you lose init you cannot use the power as you are flatfooted.
On the first round of combat, that's true; you can't use the power because you're flat-footed. Subsequent rounds are different, though. Note that it doesn't change your actual initiative count, just when you act on the round when you manifest the power.

If two characters were facing off rolled init and the psionic character lost init would he be able to use Anticipatory Strike to act first, as he's not yet flatfooted. . . .
No, you're flat-footed from the time you roll initiative until you take your first action. The psionic character would have to wait until the next round to use the power.

Also if only two combatants are fighting is this power useless?
Not entirely. If the character lost initiative, he could act last in the first round, and then manifest it at the beginning of the next round to act first in that round, effectively getting two turns in a row. However, if he didn't want to let his opponent act twice in a row, he'd have to keep manifesting it in subsequent rounds to continue acting outside the initiative order. Not necessarily a great strategy, but still a potential use.

Syncronicity
You can use a standard action to ready a standard action? The standard action you ready must be used on your next turn? Cant you do this without the actual reading of a power?
The standard action you ready must be used before your next turn, not on it. Manifesting Synchronicity essentially creates a new Standard action that can only be used as if you had readied an action.

The difference between this is and a normal readied action is that you don't need to specify a trigger for Synchronicity. If you ready an action normally, it would have to be something like "manifest Dispel Psionics when an enemy enters the room". With Synchronicity, you can ready the action to "manifest Dispel Psionics", but it can be triggered by anything you like-- someone entering the room, someone leaving the room, someone already in the room doing something, or anything else. You don't have to decide the trigger when you manifest Synchronicity. I'm not sure what this does to your initiative count.
heavenisme
03-23-08, 07:06 PM Syncronicity
Ok so say I ready an action to avoid any melee by using Dimention door on my turn, but I was just hit by a fighter. Does it dimention door me away instead of me taking damage?

Or say it's round one and my opponent hits me and now its my turn, I use Syncronicity to ready an energy stun for when my opponent tries to attack me, does my energy stun hit as before the opponent attacked me in that same round? If so what about the damage he would have done to me. . . If he fails his save he's stunned and is unable to attack me correct?

Can anyone think of useful ways to use Syncronicity?

Anticipatory Strike
Also in Magic Of Incarnum book theres a feat called shape soulmeld that any class can take to get a permanant soulmeld the only requirement is a 13 con I think.

A character could get Impulse Boots which make it so a character is never flatfooted, that would allow them to always have init. . . I think it would work no?
CrimsonDeath
03-24-08, 03:27 AM Syncronicity
Ok so say I ready an action to avoid any melee by using Dimention door on my turn, but I was just hit by a fighter. Does it dimention door me away instead of me taking damage?
You can do this without using Synchornicity. Since your ready action happens before the action that triggers it, you Dimension Door away first, and then your enemy swings at empty space.

Or say it's round one and my opponent hits me and now its my turn, I use Syncronicity to ready an energy stun for when my opponent tries to attack me, does my energy stun hit as before the opponent attacked me in that same round? If so what about the damage he would have done to me. . . If he fails his save he's stunned and is unable to attack me correct?
I'm not sure what you're trying to do here. You can't use Synchronicity to ready an action against something that's already happened. Is that what you were asking?

What you can do is manifest Synchronicity to ready an Energy Stun. (Note that you don't have to declare what will trigger the readied action until you decide to use it.) If, in the next round, the enemy attacks you again, you can choose to make that the trigger for your readied Energy Stun. If the damage knocks him unconscious him or if he's stunned, that attack fails. However, it doesn't do anything about the attack in round 1.

Can anyone think of useful ways to use Syncronicity?
The most abusive use I can think of is a Twinned Synchronicity Linked Synchronicity in the area of an Affinity Field, which, by some readings, will let you and everyone in the Affinity Field ready two standard actions that round and two more the next round.

I suppose it's also good for Psions who like to focus on battlefield control, since you can interrupt an opponent's action without deciding what sort of action to interrupt. With the augment, you don't even have to decide how to interrupt someone (that is, which action is being readied) until you decide to take the action.

Anticipatory Strike
Also in Magic Of Incarnum book theres a feat called shape soulmeld that any class can take to get a permanant soulmeld the only requirement is a 13 con I think.

A character could get Impulse Boots which make it so a character is never flatfooted, that would allow them to always have init. . . I think it would work no?
Impulse Boots grant uncanny dodge (and evasion if their bound to your feet), which is different from not being flat-footed.

For the sake of argument, let's consider a Cerebremancer who can cast Foresight, which does prevent you from being flat-footed. If he has Foresight active, he can manifest Anticipatory Strike in order to act first in combat. However, he still has to roll initiative, and on any round when he doesn't manifest Anticipatory Strike, he acts on his normal initiative count.
heavenisme
03-24-08, 06:29 AM Syncronicity
Ok say you dont have meta-psionic feats, what are some useful ways to use this in a fight.

I believe you must use it on the turn your manifesting the power so you cant hold the power until next round.
CrimsonDeath
03-24-08, 12:17 PM You're mistaken. You have to use the readied action before your next turn, but it can be used in the next round, before taking your next turn.

I haven't actually tried to use the power, though, so you'll have to wait for someone else to suggest potential uses.
Titanium Dragon
03-24-08, 11:22 PM Another cute use of Synchronicity is in conjunction with the Sense Danger power; Sense Danger allows you to use a 1pp power as an immediate action in either the surprise or first round of combat. Use Synchronicity as that power, you now have basically a standard action as an immediate action. Yes, it sticks you whereever in the initiative order, but if you lost initiative you're basically gaining an action (because you're taking an action before they go, and then it will cycle around to you again anyway) and if you won initiative you take your action, then use your immediate action afterwards to do the same thing, maintaining initiative order and basically gaining +1 action in the first round of combat.

Of course, with twinned synchronicities you can spend 5 pp (Sense danger) + 1 pp (first synchronicity) + 7pp per additional action to take a large number of actions as immediate actions, effectively. Its pretty gross.
heavenisme
03-25-08, 12:27 AM Danger sense is a standard action.

So if you lose init I don't see how you could act first.
CrimsonDeath
03-25-08, 12:32 PM Danger sense is a standard action.

So if you lose init I don't see how you could act first.

Danger Sense is also a completely different power from the one TitaniumDragon was talking about.

However, it seems I can't find the one TitaniumDragon was talking about, so it'd be nice to know what book it's in.
Titanium Dragon
03-26-08, 02:26 AM Danger Sense is also a completely different power from the one TitaniumDragon was talking about.

However, it seems I can't find the one TitaniumDragon was talking about, so it'd be nice to know what book it's in.

Indeed. Confusing, I know.

Danger Sense is from the Expanded Psionics Handbook. It is not that great.

Sense Danger, however, is from Magic of Eberron. It is quite a bit better.

And don't ask me why they named them so similarly. At least it isn't Darkbolt, two entirely different spells with the same name. I suspect WotC themselves didn't keep good track of spell names.

Also, please note you cannot take infinite actions with Twinned Synchronicities without either making it such that you do not expend your psionic focus or have an infinite number of psionic focuses.

With the feat that lets you regain psionic focus as a move action, at level 6 with the overchannel feat by taking 2d8 damage you could in theory take 3 actions in a single round for 14 points. At level 7 you wouldn't even need overchannel, and could do the same. At level 11, with temporal acceleration you could take up to 5 actions via this method for 25 power points. And at level 7 you could take 2 actions per round sustainably via twinned synchronicity (once) and spending your move action to regain your focus. Of course, if you have other sources of focuses you could do proportionally more actions...

I'm sure there's some way of breaking twinned synchronicities in half, but you don't even have to do anything too extreme or take any feats to use Synchronicity + Sense Danger to always win initiative and/or take two actions in the first round. It is basically an extra action in the first round of combat (or the suprise round!), and as such is pretty gross - and then using that to make a twinned synchronicity is all the more gross.
heavenisme
03-27-08, 12:03 PM Ok I still need uses for the basic power without metamagic.

Whats the benifit of using this power?

Versus if I just ready a normal action?

Thanks
InkBlot
03-27-08, 02:16 PM Synchronicity allows you to use a standard action when it isn't your turn.

Readying and action allows you to use a standard action when it isn't your turn, only if you correctly guess what's going to happen next.

That's the difference.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
heavenisme 03-23-08, 05:03 AM	So these powers from the Complete Psionics book are a little confusing to me here are a few questions: Anticipatory Strike This power is an immediate action to take your turn first in the initiate order. However if you lose init you cannot use the power as you are flatfooted. If two characters were facing off rolled init and the psionic character lost init would he be able to use Anticipatory Strike to act first, as he's not yet flatfooted. . . . Also if only two combatants are fighting is this power useless? Syncronicity You can use a standard action to ready a standard action? The standard action you ready must be used on your next turn? Cant you do this without the actual reading of a power? So if I use the power to ready burrouring bonds on my next turn, then I use energy missle on my next turn to attack the burrouring bonds hit as well? So this power allows you to hit with two in one? Also if this power is used on the turn it is released it is a free action to release the power correct? So the character can take a full round action. If 2 power points are spent I can use any standard action non specified correct? So this power essentially gives you a second turn in the next round. Am I getting this power correctly?
CrimsonDeath 03-23-08, 02:23 PM	Anticipatory Strike This power is an immediate action to take your turn first in the initiate order. However if you lose init you cannot use the power as you are flatfooted. On the first round of combat, that's true; you can't use the power because you're flat-footed. Subsequent rounds are different, though. Note that it doesn't change your actual initiative count, just when you act on the round when you manifest the power. If two characters were facing off rolled init and the psionic character lost init would he be able to use Anticipatory Strike to act first, as he's not yet flatfooted. . . . No, you're flat-footed from the time you roll initiative until you take your first action. The psionic character would have to wait until the next round to use the power. Also if only two combatants are fighting is this power useless? Not entirely. If the character lost initiative, he could act last in the first round, and then manifest it at the beginning of the next round to act first in that round, effectively getting two turns in a row. However, if he didn't want to let his opponent act twice in a row, he'd have to keep manifesting it in subsequent rounds to continue acting outside the initiative order. Not necessarily a great strategy, but still a potential use. Syncronicity You can use a standard action to ready a standard action? The standard action you ready must be used on your next turn? Cant you do this without the actual reading of a power? The standard action you ready must be used before your next turn, not on it. Manifesting Synchronicity essentially creates a new Standard action that can only be used as if you had readied an action. The difference between this is and a normal readied action is that you don't need to specify a trigger for Synchronicity. If you ready an action normally, it would have to be something like "manifest Dispel Psionics when an enemy enters the room". With Synchronicity, you can ready the action to "manifest Dispel Psionics", but it can be triggered by anything you like-- someone entering the room, someone leaving the room, someone already in the room doing something, or anything else. You don't have to decide the trigger when you manifest Synchronicity. I'm not sure what this does to your initiative count.
heavenisme 03-23-08, 07:06 PM	Syncronicity Ok so say I ready an action to avoid any melee by using Dimention door on my turn, but I was just hit by a fighter. Does it dimention door me away instead of me taking damage? Or say it's round one and my opponent hits me and now its my turn, I use Syncronicity to ready an energy stun for when my opponent tries to attack me, does my energy stun hit as before the opponent attacked me in that same round? If so what about the damage he would have done to me. . . If he fails his save he's stunned and is unable to attack me correct? Can anyone think of useful ways to use Syncronicity? Anticipatory Strike Also in Magic Of Incarnum book theres a feat called shape soulmeld that any class can take to get a permanant soulmeld the only requirement is a 13 con I think. A character could get Impulse Boots which make it so a character is never flatfooted, that would allow them to always have init. . . I think it would work no?
CrimsonDeath 03-24-08, 03:27 AM	Syncronicity Ok so say I ready an action to avoid any melee by using Dimention door on my turn, but I was just hit by a fighter. Does it dimention door me away instead of me taking damage? You can do this without using Synchornicity. Since your ready action happens before the action that triggers it, you Dimension Door away first, and then your enemy swings at empty space. Or say it's round one and my opponent hits me and now its my turn, I use Syncronicity to ready an energy stun for when my opponent tries to attack me, does my energy stun hit as before the opponent attacked me in that same round? If so what about the damage he would have done to me. . . If he fails his save he's stunned and is unable to attack me correct? I'm not sure what you're trying to do here. You can't use Synchronicity to ready an action against something that's already happened. Is that what you were asking? What you can do is manifest Synchronicity to ready an Energy Stun. (Note that you don't have to declare what will trigger the readied action until you decide to use it.) If, in the next round, the enemy attacks you again, you can choose to make that the trigger for your readied Energy Stun. If the damage knocks him unconscious him or if he's stunned, that attack fails. However, it doesn't do anything about the attack in round 1. Can anyone think of useful ways to use Syncronicity? The most abusive use I can think of is a Twinned Synchronicity Linked Synchronicity in the area of an Affinity Field, which, by some readings, will let you and everyone in the Affinity Field ready two standard actions that round and two more the next round. I suppose it's also good for Psions who like to focus on battlefield control, since you can interrupt an opponent's action without deciding what sort of action to interrupt. With the augment, you don't even have to decide how to interrupt someone (that is, which action is being readied) until you decide to take the action. Anticipatory Strike Also in Magic Of Incarnum book theres a feat called shape soulmeld that any class can take to get a permanant soulmeld the only requirement is a 13 con I think. A character could get Impulse Boots which make it so a character is never flatfooted, that would allow them to always have init. . . I think it would work no? Impulse Boots grant uncanny dodge (and evasion if their bound to your feet), which is different from not being flat-footed. For the sake of argument, let's consider a Cerebremancer who can cast Foresight, which does prevent you from being flat-footed. If he has Foresight active, he can manifest Anticipatory Strike in order to act first in combat. However, he still has to roll initiative, and on any round when he doesn't manifest Anticipatory Strike, he acts on his normal initiative count.
heavenisme 03-24-08, 06:29 AM	Syncronicity Ok say you dont have meta-psionic feats, what are some useful ways to use this in a fight. I believe you must use it on the turn your manifesting the power so you cant hold the power until next round.
CrimsonDeath 03-24-08, 12:17 PM	You're mistaken. You have to use the readied action before your next turn, but it can be used in the next round, before taking your next turn. I haven't actually tried to use the power, though, so you'll have to wait for someone else to suggest potential uses.
Titanium Dragon 03-24-08, 11:22 PM	Another cute use of Synchronicity is in conjunction with the Sense Danger power; Sense Danger allows you to use a 1pp power as an immediate action in either the surprise or first round of combat. Use Synchronicity as that power, you now have basically a standard action as an immediate action. Yes, it sticks you whereever in the initiative order, but if you lost initiative you're basically gaining an action (because you're taking an action before they go, and then it will cycle around to you again anyway) and if you won initiative you take your action, then use your immediate action afterwards to do the same thing, maintaining initiative order and basically gaining +1 action in the first round of combat. Of course, with twinned synchronicities you can spend 5 pp (Sense danger) + 1 pp (first synchronicity) + 7pp per additional action to take a large number of actions as immediate actions, effectively. Its pretty gross.
heavenisme 03-25-08, 12:27 AM	Danger sense is a standard action. So if you lose init I don't see how you could act first.
CrimsonDeath 03-25-08, 12:32 PM	Danger sense is a standard action. So if you lose init I don't see how you could act first. Danger Sense is also a completely different power from the one TitaniumDragon was talking about. However, it seems I can't find the one TitaniumDragon was talking about, so it'd be nice to know what book it's in.
Titanium Dragon 03-26-08, 02:26 AM	Danger Sense is also a completely different power from the one TitaniumDragon was talking about. However, it seems I can't find the one TitaniumDragon was talking about, so it'd be nice to know what book it's in. Indeed. Confusing, I know. Danger Sense is from the Expanded Psionics Handbook. It is not that great. Sense Danger, however, is from Magic of Eberron. It is quite a bit better. And don't ask me why they named them so similarly. At least it isn't Darkbolt, two entirely different spells with the same name. I suspect WotC themselves didn't keep good track of spell names. Also, please note you cannot take infinite actions with Twinned Synchronicities without either making it such that you do not expend your psionic focus or have an infinite number of psionic focuses. With the feat that lets you regain psionic focus as a move action, at level 6 with the overchannel feat by taking 2d8 damage you could in theory take 3 actions in a single round for 14 points. At level 7 you wouldn't even need overchannel, and could do the same. At level 11, with temporal acceleration you could take up to 5 actions via this method for 25 power points. And at level 7 you could take 2 actions per round sustainably via twinned synchronicity (once) and spending your move action to regain your focus. Of course, if you have other sources of focuses you could do proportionally more actions... I'm sure there's some way of breaking twinned synchronicities in half, but you don't even have to do anything too extreme or take any feats to use Synchronicity + Sense Danger to always win initiative and/or take two actions in the first round. It is basically an extra action in the first round of combat (or the suprise round!), and as such is pretty gross - and then using that to make a twinned synchronicity is all the more gross.
heavenisme 03-27-08, 12:03 PM	Ok I still need uses for the basic power without metamagic. Whats the benifit of using this power? Versus if I just ready a normal action? Thanks
InkBlot 03-27-08, 02:16 PM	Synchronicity allows you to use a standard action when it isn't your turn. Readying and action allows you to use a standard action when it isn't your turn, only if you correctly guess what's going to happen next. That's the difference.