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<blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 5919141" data-attributes="member: 42582">There is a strong argument that, in a game in which combat is as abstract as D&amp;D, intiative should be done away with altogether! How well someone can handle their weapon, including taking advantage of its reach, its speed, etc, is all bundled up in their attack roll.Conversely, if you want to get detailed then it is highly plausible that skill should matter. Both Rolemaster and HARP have mechanics that permit points of combat skill to be allocated to initiative - and they are &quot;rocket tag&quot; combat systems with wound mechanics, so getting in the first blow is always helpful, as it creates an opportunity of defeating or at least significantly debuffing your foe.My understanding is that, in the real world, for a knife fighter to have a good chance of beating a sword fighter, the knife fighter would have to be much more highly skilled. Conversely, between two fighters of ordinary skill, my understanding is that it is always going to be better to turn up with a sword than with a knife. Any speed rules should reflect this, I think.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="pemerton, post: 5919141, member: 42582"] There is a strong argument that, in a game in which combat is as abstract as D&D, intiative should be done away with altogether! How well someone can handle their weapon, including taking advantage of its reach, its speed, etc, is all bundled up in their attack roll. Conversely, if you want to get detailed then it is highly plausible that skill should matter. Both Rolemaster and HARP have mechanics that permit points of combat skill to be allocated to initiative - and they are "rocket tag" combat systems with wound mechanics, so getting in the first blow is always helpful, as it creates an opportunity of defeating or at least significantly debuffing your foe. My understanding is that, in the real world, for a knife fighter to have a good chance of beating a sword fighter, the knife fighter would have to be much more highly skilled. Conversely, between two fighters of ordinary skill, my understanding is that it is always going to be better to turn up with a sword than with a knife. Any speed rules should reflect this, I think. [/QUOTE]

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