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General Tabletop Discussion
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Mearls On D&D's Design Premises/Goals
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<blockquote data-quote="Lanefan" data-source="post: 7759884" data-attributes="member: 29398"><p>Are they?</p><p></p><p>Sometimes not acting first can be advantageous - you can see what the foes are doing and react with intention, rather than having to guess.</p><p></p><p>The initiative rolls are simply to sort out what happens when, and to ensure that each participant (including the foes) gets a chance to do something each round should they so desire.</p><p></p><p>I agree with you up to where I inserted the '***'. But after that I'd say that the game mechanics should as far as possible stay out of the way of making those decisions, inserting themselves only when needed to resolve a doubtful outcome or to enforce a game rule. Why? Because if-when the mechanics insert themselves into the decision-making process any more than that they cannot help but move that process away from simply deciding based on what the character would naturally do and toward deciding based on what the mechanics expect it or want it to do.</p><p></p><p>Lanefan</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lanefan, post: 7759884, member: 29398"] Are they? Sometimes not acting first can be advantageous - you can see what the foes are doing and react with intention, rather than having to guess. The initiative rolls are simply to sort out what happens when, and to ensure that each participant (including the foes) gets a chance to do something each round should they so desire. I agree with you up to where I inserted the '***'. But after that I'd say that the game mechanics should as far as possible stay out of the way of making those decisions, inserting themselves only when needed to resolve a doubtful outcome or to enforce a game rule. Why? Because if-when the mechanics insert themselves into the decision-making process any more than that they cannot help but move that process away from simply deciding based on what the character would naturally do and toward deciding based on what the mechanics expect it or want it to do. Lanefan [/QUOTE]
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