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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Primitive Screwhead" data-source="post: 2940432" data-attributes="member: 20805">Not too sure how this turned into a 'rerolling initiative each round is a bad rule' deal..In previous incarnations this was the normal way to do it. There are advantages... combat is more chaotic, players are less likely to only poke thier heads in for there turn.There are disadvantages, longer real time to handle combat, potential of double-taps. NPC's are often clumbed on one initiative to avoid rolling for each character type.There are features; variable spell durationsWith cyclic initiative, the 3.x standard, you have: Advantages, orderly progression that can be planned for, intiative manipulation that adds a layer of strategy Disadvantages; players can more easily ignore the game until its almost thier turn {and join in with a 'what happened?'Features; with the use of flash cards, tracking who is when easy. You can have individual initiatives for the NPC's without slowing down the game. IMHO the cyclic method is much better for the game than re-rolling each round. YMMV.  This is an erroneous reading of the ready action. Those 5 people end up in the initiative order before the caster's turn..not on his turn. If they want to disrupt another spell they need to ready again. Once the initiative roll is done, the numbers used become moot. Its the order of the characters that is important.  This is easiest seen when using initiative cards to keep track of combat.    At the start of the encounter, you stack the cards in order of initiative. As each characters turn is completed, you flip their card to the bottem of the stack. A 'End of Round' card handily tracks those anything that needs to know how many rounds have passed, and cards for spells/summoned critters can keep track of durations and remind you of when damage occurs     When someone readies an action, you turn the card sideways. If the readied action triggers, you pull the card out of the stack and put it on top.. handle the action..then flip to the next card to continue the interupted round.  Delays are pulled from the stack and set to the side until the player wishes to act. They are then slipped in behind the top card, going after whomever is currently acting.  I use 3x5 cards, and preroll initiative for my NPCs. Similar creatures are bundled on one card..so the necromancer, his pet wight, and his 15 skeletons are on 3 different cards. I have the pertinent combat info on the card itself, making it much easier to handle NPC combat actions. It takes some extra prep-time on my part..but this helps make the combat more role-playing focused than 'look up stats, roll dice, repeat' focused.  Anyway.. I like Random, I like Chaos.. I also like my combats to run smoothly so I can get to the more entertaining part of the game sometimes called roleplaying. For me, cyclic initiative helps me achieve this. I would not cry foul if a DM wanted to use the variant rolling every round..but I would hope that DM is not doing it simply because he/she doesn't want to try the newfangled, orderly deal.</blockquote>

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