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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Man in the Funny Hat" data-source="post: 6024221" data-attributes="member: 32740">Which then creates the procedure of:<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">declaration of intent</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">initiative roll determines PC order of action</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">rearrangement of declared events to fit actual initiative roll.</li> </ol>What would have been wrong with:<ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">initiative roll determines PC order of action</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">players choose actions based on <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/usertag.php?do=list&action=hash&hash=1" target="_blank">#1</a> </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">DM aids in determining outcome of <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/usertag.php?do=list&action=hash&hash=2" target="_blank">#2</a></li> </ol>I don't doubt a moment what he wanted and thought he was accomplishing.  More importantly I don't blame him as such for his choices at that time any more than I blame Gygax for his choices at the time of publishing 1E, such as the execrable initiative system it put forward.  But again, declaration was retained when it was unnecessary.  Given his goals it should have been dumped because it was still getting in the way of smoother gameplay - whether that was at a table with a gridded map or sitting on a sofa.Instead of a constant stream of, "Well, you WANTED to do this but you can't so you do nothing," players would choose and immediately resolve actions which initiative results had already indicated they could accomplish.  Gameplay always moves forward that way; not two steps ahead, one step back.  Again, that backwards order was solidified in 1E because its arcane initiative procedures required first knowing the specific spells being cast since casting times were needed to MAKE the initiative determination of what got resolved first.  But those declarations were easily rendered pointless when that still-random initiative determination meant the spell was disrupted and never actually took place, or the target of the missile attack had moved behind cover, or the intended melee opponent was now dead from other attacks...Interesting and dynamic action that was better suited to disregarding a grid was instead kept as repeated instances of character inactivity due to declared actions being rendered moot by actual order of resolution.</blockquote>

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