Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="pressedcat" data-source="post: 2919573" data-attributes="member: 40736">Whoops, someone went and opened a can of worms there...I hadn't really had a thorough think about the comparative stats of taking or not taking II initiative before, so its been interesting to see.I still think II is useful, maybe more so for gaming groups who don't roll all their monsters' initiatives seperately (including my own group). It might only make a difference 1 time in five or whatever, but that time could really count. Last game i was stomping along with one other player down a forest path when we got ambushed. I managed to pass my listen check and so got to act in the surprise round. I got to go first (due to II) and was able to cast invisibility. The DM then went on to roll high on the 6 javelins that got thrown by the concealed goblins, doing enough damage that if i had received a fair share of the damage, i would have been taken to 0 hp, leaving only a flat footed and seriously injured bard to defend both of us.A slighlty unusual situation true, but as someone already pointed out, you usually don't die from average dicerolls, you die from being unlucky. Anything that can give you an edge is useful.Also, if you intend to counterspell an opposing spellcaster, getting a good initiative really counts.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="pressedcat, post: 2919573, member: 40736"] Whoops, someone went and opened a can of worms there... I hadn't really had a thorough think about the comparative stats of taking or not taking II initiative before, so its been interesting to see. I still think II is useful, maybe more so for gaming groups who don't roll all their monsters' initiatives seperately (including my own group). It might only make a difference 1 time in five or whatever, but that time could really count. Last game i was stomping along with one other player down a forest path when we got ambushed. I managed to pass my listen check and so got to act in the surprise round. I got to go first (due to II) and was able to cast invisibility. The DM then went on to roll high on the 6 javelins that got thrown by the concealed goblins, doing enough damage that if i had received a fair share of the damage, i would have been taken to 0 hp, leaving only a flat footed and seriously injured bard to defend both of us. A slighlty unusual situation true, but as someone already pointed out, you usually don't die from average dicerolls, you die from being unlucky. Anything that can give you an edge is useful. Also, if you intend to counterspell an opposing spellcaster, getting a good initiative really counts. [/QUOTE]

Verification