D&D 5E Avoiding Initiative

[Psikerlord#]

In one campaign I am running (on hold right now but I will be starting it up again at some point) I have experimented with using cards. Someone on this board floated the idea a few years ago and I gave it a try. Each PC has a card and I made generic cards for NPC individuals and groups. I kept the cards generic such as "boss monster" "mook", etc. and added numbers as appropriate so that multiple groups could be represented in larger battles. For bonuses I include an extra card for each full +5 of initiative bonus. The character/monster in question gets to act when their first card is drawn. When their 2nd or later cards come up, they are discarded for that round. The cards are shuffled and initiative cards are drawn each round. Thats right, initiative order can change from round to round! Oh the chaos!

In between battles as play unfolds I can prepare the next enemy cards behind the screen. When the action starts I just quickly shuffle them into the PC stack and start drawing. No pause while everyone rolls initiative and no recording the numbers and sorting out an initiative order.

The downside is that small initiative bonus differences are ignored in exchange for speed of play. The trade off is well worth it to me.

Yeah I am a big fan of deck init - including it's simplicity and reducing the impact of Dex

 

[CubicsRube]

People stuck in d&d become too fixated on initiative imo. Especially dex based, as there are many more factors that play into your ability to react quickly than physical speed.

I've been running Dungeon World for a while now, which has no initiative. At first I was really unclear how the system would function, but it works pretty much like it would even if it had a system, but without the book keeping.

You ask each of the chaeacters what they're doing, roll up results and determine the responses. In principle, a character in DW could act twice when others act once, but I found in practice people don't do that. Even if you just allowed all characters a single normal turn of actions, you can still avoid using initiative. In DW, the only time it clicks with characters that theyre in combat is that theyve lost hit points. I like it that way.

The point in my long ramble is that initiative isnt necessary for good combat at all.

Next time i run d&d it'll be side initiative. Determine who has surprise and, boom, it's on!

 

[CubicsRube]

Note also having played savage worlds a few times, if you still wanted to have an initiative system, I'd rip it out wholesale.

Deal a card to each player each round and go from highest to lowest. Quick and adds a lot of randomness to combat.

 

[SkidAce]

Like an earlier poster said, we just kinda recognize that initiative is checked at the beginning of battle.

I guess once we got used to it, it serves its purpose. While they roll, I quickly prepare a little bit more, cause the encounter likely has differences based on play prior. They remind themselves what gear they have and think about the situation they find themselves in.

It seems the "break" for rolling initiative serves a purpose that allows for quicker individual turns, i.e. they are ready when their turn comes.

We realize that this is group dependent, and that others find the "break" jarring, but for us its cool.

 

[jasper]

Nobody rolls initiative every round! Once at the start of combat is the norm.

"THEY CALL ME! MISTER NOBODY!" um this was common back in the 80s. I forget when I dropped it. Various ways I have done initiative. Group. Morrus d20 vs DMs d20 no modifiers highest side goes first. Keep your last initiative, I use this occasionally especially if I know the fights are going to be easy or medium. Around the table. Start at one part of the table go clockwise. Move the starting person the next combat.

 

[Yaarel]

Initiative seems a good place for the yes-no-maybe rule. Most of the time, the DM can adjudicate narratively, either yes the players have the initiative (such as they threw the first punch), no the players dont have the initiative (they were surprised by a stealth ambush). Seldom is there a narrative doubt about who would go first, a maybe.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

To my guys the call to "roll initiative losers!" is the time when the game begins, half the table wakes back up, and I see eyes light up though the smokey haze.


So never had an issue with it.

 

[iserith]

The cut to commercial concept is interesting, though. This is how many of my combats start out in practice, but it's rarely intentional. Somewhere in the back of my mind I feel like I've broken pacing if I don't immediately go from recording the last initiative to the first turn of the combat. The delay makes me feel unprepared and sloppy, but making it a standard part of the approach and framing it as you describe could potentially heighten the tension/drama, rather than detract from it. Not sure how I'll implement it precisely, but thanks for the idea!

Right, instead of seeing it as a problem, it can be seen as an opportunity that can actually improve game pacing. Assuming 5 combats in a 4-hour session, that's 15 to 20 minutes of breaks which is pretty good for an in-person game in my view. That's a time to check phones, get refills, order the pizzas, and prepare to be focused over the next segment. And for those DMs who aren't keen on players talking tactics during battles, it affords some out-of-character time to get their plans in order before combat kicks off.

 

[guachi]

I just made a random initiative generator in Excel. Took about 2-3 minutes. Simple press of F9 and it rolls initiative. Easy!

Of course, I'd need Excel at my table but anything that can do a RANDBETWEEN function will work. If I used a laptop while DMing I'd use it. But I don't own a laptop.

EDIT: What I use at my table is I say "roll initiative" and then the players roll and I write the initiative down. I have monster stats on a separate sheet so it's a convenient place to track combat. Also,k I like having the players roll before combat because they are far more likely to remember their roll than if they all rolled at the beginning of the session. Total time to write numbers down is about 15 seconds.

 

[Tony Vargas]

One of the things I personally struggle with is that pause where the narrative stops and everybody rolls initiative, and then the combat starts.

I don't see the narrative speed-bump, isn't there often a 'set the scene' moment in a narrative, right before a fight stops? You'll get a description (or shots) of all involved, or a few moments of tense dialogue before someone makes a move...

...I mean, sure a fight can start in media res, too...