I'm sure everyone has heard of the Time Stop + IA combo. People usually cast Time Stop, then IA.

I am wondering, why not cast IA first? Yes, you heard me! First! Then you can cast your Time Stop straight after, only losing a few seconds of IA while gaining more than a round of Time Stop! I think the trade-off is worth it.

I'm with you, I cast my IA first so when I'm done with my time stop it's just bam, bam, bam spell after spell.

Some things to take note of.

Time Stop lasts for 3 rounds.
Improved Alacrity lasts for 2 rounds.

This makes IA just nice to use after casting Time Stop.

Enemies have 2/5(0.4) of a round to stop you before you cast Time Stop. They ain't going to make it.

Enemies have 3/5(0.6) of a round to stop you if you cast IA first. The odds of them disrupting you is much higher.

RoV + AoP = Casting time for IA + Time Stop = Hardly any time at all.

I did factor in RoV and AoP in my numbers above. ;) TS -> IA is still faster, and much better in my opinion, since you save 2/5 of a round of IA casting time. That is about 2 more ABHWs after all the other spells. ;)

Well... well... well... it's not as glamourous to stand there for a round in a Time Stop doing nothing! Beat that!

Nononono, beat them. ;) Preferably with a stick, a very big stick. ;) [img]tongue.gif[/img]

Jesting aside, I use that time to move in a good casting position. Sometimes you can be in an awkward location after casting your Time Stop.

Hmm... that would probably work, yes. I hadn't actually thought of it, but it should save a bit of time. In regards to IA lasting for 2 round... I'm not sure it really matters. You can cast a full selection of spells at things right after resting in one TS/IA combination, so... probably no need to worry. *shrug*