The Order of the Stick - a little D&D 3.5 humor

I just discovered this great 3.5 D&D comic strip. It has existed for years.  The Order of the Stick.

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0001.html

What should a DM do when players game the rules?

I enjoy AD&D 3.5 more than any other edition of the game.  One thing I like in 3.5 better than 2.0 or 1.0 is that it is much more difficult for players to subvert the nuances of the rules in order to gain advantages in ways that disrupt game balance.  For example, in 2.0 it is much more likely that players can find ways to combine two spells in ways not imagined and gain a powerful tool to easily defeat most monsters or obstacles.  As a DM, I want to challenge the players, but when the players can just use the same technique to defeat everything, it is less fun for the DM and the players.
In 3.5 it is much more difficult for the players to disrupt the balance, but they can still do some things that are allowed by the rules, but don't make sense in game play.  Here are a few examples:
1) The rules allow players to "hold their action" and go later in the round.  Well, now the players hold their action to see what the other players do, then take their action "just before the monsters go".  I think the rules allow this, but it would never be the way that the character would think.  Would you, in a deadly situation, choose to hold your action until "just before the bad guy shoots you?"
2) Our characters routinely decide when to move and how close to move to a monster based on whether or not the monster has already taken its Attack of Opportunity in that round.  But in a real fight, a person couldn't do that.

Although I don't like it as a DM, I realize that some people care more about "winning" than realism and they believe that anything the rules allow should be used to further their advantage.  I don't play my characters that way, but I am a role-player and want to do the action that the character would do.  So I just allow players to do what they want.  Ultimately, I feel it is just lessening their own enjoyment, which is their own choice.

How do you carry a "wisp of smoke"?

One of the spell components for the Gaseous Form spell is a "wisp of smoke".  Have you considered how your character is going to carry a wisp of smoke?  Or how your wizard will manage to use the wisp of smoke in the spell?  Fortunately for those of you trying to follow the rules of the game, this tidbit rule is irrelevant.  According to the description of spell components, you can ignore most components, and the complexity of obtaining, carrying, and using them.  But you cannot ignore the components that have a gold piece value attached to them, or an experience point cost.  These you should account for.  I do wish the authors of the material had kept to spell components  that would be reasonably portable, unlike the wisp of smoke.

Rangers Get a Bonus on Spot and Listen Checks against Favored Enemies

The characters are moving through the dense jungle listening to birds, reptiles, mammals, and sounds they cannot identify.  The Dungeon Master (DM) asks each character to roll spot and listen checks, for the party is secretly being followed by Drow enemies.  The players and their characters, are unaware of the pursuing Drow. Only the DM knows the Drow advance.  But the DM knows there is a chance
the party will hear some of the Drow if a party member listens well enough and if the DM's roll for the Drow to Move Silently does not beat each character's listen roll.

The characters roll.

The DM rolls. 

The DM compares the numbers and realizes that none of the character's heard the Drow.  Not yet.  But one of the characters only missed the check by one point.

[break] - Unbeknownst to both the players, and the DM, is that rangers get a +2 on spot and listen checks against their favored enemies.  The DM is unaware of this rule, and may not even recall that Drow are a favored enemy of the ranger in this party.  If the DM had declared that the party was being stalked by Drow to the players, the player of the ranger may have pointed out that his ranger
should get an additional +2 listen bonus; but we can't expect the DM to reveal everything that is coming upon the characters because this would take some of the fun out of the game.  [break]

The characters continue, unaware of how close the Drow are.  The Drow attack the party gaining the element of surprise.  Several party members are wounded greatly by the Drow's surprise attack. The Drow win initiative killing a party member and wounding more.  The party responds by fighting back, and eventually, after two rounds of intense melee requiring two hours of gaming time, the Drow are driven away.

The players, on behalf of their party, begins to wonder if there is any way to save their dead comrade. Could they have done something, or could they do something now to reverse his death. 

Only now does the player of the ranger recall the +2 bonus he should have received on his listen check
to the Drow, and how well he rolled, and that it might have been enough.

What should the DM do?  What would you, as DM, do?  Would you roll back the battle and undo hours of play time and replay it all?  Would you declare that the statue of limitations for corrections was one round and that it is too late?

Clarification of the FlyBy Attack Feat - 3.5 Edition (third ed.)

I think Wizards could have done a little better clarifying the FlyBy Attack feat.  I read the text several times before I discovered their intent.  If a creature has the FlyBy Attack feat, the creature can either:

• move then attack while moving again, or
• attack while moving, then move.

A creature without the FlyBy attack feat can:

• move then attack, but not move beyond the opponent, or
• move then Move without attacking, or
• attack then move, provoking an attack of opportunity.

FlyBy Attack does not mention that no attack of opportunity is allowed and therefore I believe that it is.  Thus, if a demon with Fly '90 and the FlyBy Attack feat saw an elf 120 feet away, the demon could:

• spend its first move action moving toward the elf,
• then spend its second move action moving past the elf,
• and while moving past the elf the demon could make a Standard Attack.

As the demon moved beyond the elf, the elf would be able to take an attack of opportunity on the demon.  If the demon survived, it could keep flying and end its turn 60' beyond the elf, and 180' from where the demon started its move.

If the same demon attacked an Ogre with 10' reach, the Ogre could take an attack of opportunity before the demon struck as the demon moved from 10' away from the Ogre to 5' away from the Ogre.  If the Ogre's attack of opportunity did not kill the demon, then the demon could make its standard attack and fly beyond the ogre.
Of course, if the demon also had 10' reach it might not move so close to the ogre.  And if the demon had 10' reach, it could completely avoid the attack of opportunity from an elf with 5' reach.

Rules for waking a sleeping character

According to the rules under the Listen Skill in the PHB for 3.5; a sleeping character can roll a listen check with a minus 10 penalty in order to awaken, or wake up, in response to noise.
You may desire to use a different rule if the character is asleep but may wake up due to vibration (such as an earthquake).  I recommend a fortitude save.  If the character fails a DC n fortitude save, then the character wakes up.  You will need to decide the DC. 
In the sleep spell definition, it says that a sleeping character that gets wounded will wake up.