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<blockquote data-quote="3catcircus" data-source="post: 2942939" data-attributes="member: 16077">That is my *whole* point - initiative *should* be random because combat is *supposed* to be chaotic and random.Your argument doesn't work for every case anyway.&nbsp; If Cleric goes and holds PC1 and PC2 is next in initiative and decides to ready or delay, then Cleric's friend can simply attack PC2 instead of the held PC1...You are arguing using a &quot;what-if&quot; that is too remote to hold true for the majority of the possibilities of &quot;something bad&quot; happening to a PC.&nbsp; Most of the time, a TPK will never occur.This is the main problem I have with cyclical initiative:&nbsp; it allows (mostly) players to turn 6 seconds of violent, rapid, chaotic activity into a 1-minute sand-table session.&nbsp; Keeping things random prevents players from developing elaborate maneuver tactics on-the-fly - tactics that should have been discussed prior to engaging in combat, if said combat was anticipated.&nbsp; As an example, If you and a friend are walking down the street and get randomly mugged by two hoodlums, are you going to be able to &quot;delay&quot; or &quot;ready&quot; your actions?&nbsp; No - you are going to react.&nbsp; If, however, you were planning on walking down a street *known* for people getting mugged, you'd probably formulate plans to address that possibility *before* you walked down the street.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="3catcircus, post: 2942939, member: 16077"] That is my *whole* point - initiative *should* be random because combat is *supposed* to be chaotic and random. Your argument doesn't work for every case anyway. If Cleric goes and holds PC1 and PC2 is next in initiative and decides to ready or delay, then Cleric's friend can simply attack PC2 instead of the held PC1... You are arguing using a "what-if" that is too remote to hold true for the majority of the possibilities of "something bad" happening to a PC. Most of the time, a TPK will never occur. This is the main problem I have with cyclical initiative: it allows (mostly) players to turn 6 seconds of violent, rapid, chaotic activity into a 1-minute sand-table session. Keeping things random prevents players from developing elaborate maneuver tactics on-the-fly - tactics that should have been discussed [b]prior[/b] to engaging in combat, if said combat was anticipated. As an example, If you and a friend are walking down the street and get randomly mugged by two hoodlums, are you going to be able to "delay" or "ready" your actions? No - you are going to react. If, however, you were planning on walking down a street *known* for people getting mugged, you'd probably formulate plans to address that possibility *before* you walked down the street. [/QUOTE]

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