The Combat
Round
If an encounter escalates into a
combat situation, the time scale of
the game automatically goes to
rounds (also called melee rounds,
or combat rounds). Rounds are used to measure the actions
of characters in combat or other intensive actions in which
time is important.
A round is approximately one minute. Ten combat rounds
equal a turn (or, put another way, a turn equals 10 minutes
of game time). This is particularly important to remember for
spells that last for turns, rather than rounds.
But these are just approximations—precise time measure-
ments are impossible to make in combat. An action that
might be ridiculously easy under normal circumstances could
become an undertaking of truly heroic scale when attempted
in the middle of a furious, chaotic battle.
Imagine the simple act of imbibing a healing potion. First a
character decides to drink the potion before retiring for the
night. All he has to do is get it out of his backpack, uncork it,
and drink the contents. No problem.
Now imagine the same thing in the middle of a fight. The
potion is safely stowed in the character’s backpack. First he takes
stock of the situation to see if anyone else can get the potion out
for him. However, not surprisingly, everyone is rather busy. So,
sword in one hand, he shrugs one strap of the pack off his shoul-
der. Then, just as two orcs leap toward him, the other strap
threatens to slip down, entangling his sword arm. Already the
loose strap keeps him from fully using his shield.
Holding the shield as best as possible in front of him, he
scrambles backward to avoid the monsters’ wild swings. He
gets pushed back a few more feet when a companion shoul-
ders past to block and give him a little time. So he kneels, lays
down his sword, and slips the backpack all the way off. Hear-
ing a wild cry, he instinctively swings up his shield just in time
to ward off a glancing blow.
Rummaging through the pack, he finally finds the potion,
pulls it out, and, huddling behind his shield, works the cork
free. Just then there is a flash of flame all around him—a
fireball! He grits his teeth against the heat, shock, and pain
and tries not to crush or spill the potion vial. Biting back the
pain of the flames, he is relieved to see the potion is intact.
He quickly gulps it down, reclaims his sword, kicks his back-
pack out of the way, and runs back up to the front line. In game
terms, the character withdrew, was missed by one attacker, made
successful saving throw vs. spell (from the fireball spell), drank
potion, and was ready for combat the next round.
What You Can Do in One Round
Whatever the precise length of a combat round, a charac-
ter can accomplish only one basic action in that round, be it
making an attack, casting a spell, drinking a potion, or tending
to a fallen comrade. The basic action, however, may involve
several lesser actions.
When making an attack, a character is likely to close with his
opponent, circle for an opening, feint here, jab there, block a
thrust, leap back, and perhaps finally make a telling blow. A
spellcaster might fumble for his components, dodge an attacker,
mentally review the steps of the spell, intone the spell, and then
move to safety when it is all done. It already has been shown
what drinking a potion might entail. All of these things could
happen in a bit less than a minute or more, but the standard is
one minute and one action to the round.
Some examples of the actions a character can accomplish
include the following:
- Make an attack (attack rolls up to the maximum number allowed the character class at a given level)
- cast one spell (if the casting time is one round or less)
- Use a magical item.
- Drink a potion
- Light a torch
- Move to the limit of his movement rate
- Attempt to open a stuck or secret door
- Bind a character's wounds
- Search a body
- Hammer in a spike
- Recover a dropped weapon
There are also actions that take a negligible amount of
time, things the character does without affecting his ability to
perform a more important task. Examples of these include
the following:
- Shout warnings , brief instructions, or demands for surrender -- but not conversations where a reply is expected
- Change weapons by dropping one & drawing another
- Drop excess equipment such as backpacks lanterns or torches