D&D 5E Initiative : Switching between characters? (Please read the OP)

[atanakar]

Why not just use Side Initiative? Same benefits, less clunky.

No. There are not the same.

Even with switching cards the monsters act between characters during the round. I remember playing side initiative with B/X and AD&D. Don't like the fact that one side can have all their attacks two rounds in a row if they are Side B then Side A. Many random TPKs happened because of that.

 

[atanakar]

You can use static initiative too, although people sometimes find that boring.

We tried using static initiative but they didn't like it.

They like the cards. I introduced initiative cards to three different groups. At first they were all reticent but by the end of the session they all adopted it.

I'll be adding «switching cards» during the next game to see if they like that.

 

[Fenris-77]

The cards are cool man, do it. So many knobs and dials to fiddle with.

 

[Shiroiken]

We tried using static initiative but they didn't like it.

They like the cards. I introduced initiative cards to three different groups. At first they were all reticent but by the end of the session they all adopted it.

I'll be adding «switching cards» during the next game to see if they like that.

If it works for you and your groups, go for it! The only issue I'd see with the card swapping would be with spellcasters. Spellcasters want to get off AoE spells as quickly as possible, before the enemy disperses and before the melee PC engage. By having the rogue (or whoever has the best initiative) swap with the mage so they go first every time might cause some balance issues.

Personally, I'd simply add the Delay option back in. If the rogue wants to wait to move into position after the fighter, they Delay until after the fighter, which moves their initiative to just after the fighter. If two characters want to take the same delay spot, highest current initiative wins. This allows the party (and potentially enemies) to set up optimal initiative orders at the cost of going quickly. The only issue is start/end turn effects, and the best rule is to have beneficial effects to the character (including penalties to enemies) end at the point of Delay, while negative effects end at their normal point on the turn the character re-enters the initiative order (basically it's always worse for the character choosing to Delay, so they can't abuse it).