new DM monster initiative tracking question

[Nullzone]

I agree. Just be careful that for some monsters group initiative can be a big advantage. Monsters that get additional bonuses when they gang-up on a target are very dangerous with group initiative, as PCs may not be able to the disengage before doom is spelled over them.

Well, that's kind of what I meant by giving your players a challenge; well-written monster statblocks rely on that kind of synergy for the monster to be any kind of threat. So I don't have too much an issue with that. The only time it becomes super deadly is if PCs forget to mind their surroundings; a defender isn't going to get hit as often to begin with, and he's got the hp for it anyway, so it only really causes problems for the strikers who paint a target on their chest by moving too far away from the party.

I usually try to be careful when that does happen, especially if it's at the beginning of the combat. Nobody likes watching the striker who got top initiative eat dirt before the leader even has a chance to act, and in the same vein that striker shouldn't be forced to delay his turn until his teammates can cover him. Just be smart about it; give the striker a reminder of why he can't stand out in open ground alone, but then find someone else to pick on once he's learned his lesson (bloodied in one turn is usually enough to spook them, maybe a little lower if you really need to get your point across for a BBEG or something). I usually just delay the rest of the pack until another target becomes viable if it looks like continuing to advance a pack of monsters will turn someone into a puddle of goo.

 

[erleni]

I usually try to be careful when that does happen, especially if it's at the beginning of the combat. Nobody likes watching the striker who got top initiative eat dirt before the leader even has a chance to act, and in the same vein that striker shouldn't be forced to delay his turn until his teammates can cover him. Just be smart about it; give the striker a reminder of why he can't stand out in open ground alone, but then find someone else to pick on once he's learned his lesson (bloodied in one turn is usually enough to spook them, maybe a little lower if you really need to get your point across for a BBEG or something). I usually just delay the rest of the pack until another target becomes viable if it looks like continuing to advance a pack of monsters will turn someone into a puddle of goo.

Then it should be ok. The most critical moment is usually the beginning of the first round (and even more the surprise round if there's any). Probably I'm too sensible about this mateer because our master (my wife) is well known for rolling high on initiative and we suffered of several "massacre first rounds", where we got butchered before having any chance to retaliate or escape.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

I think one thing to remember is that the DM can always break up the monsters into several initiative groups. Going by monster type is a good practice, have all the rotters go on one initiative, the gravehounds on another, etc. That may mean you have 3 or 4 groups to track vs 2 but it still gains you a lot of the benefits and can actually be just as simple.

 

[Nullzone]

I think one thing to remember is that the DM can always break up the monsters into several initiative groups. Going by monster type is a good practice, have all the rotters go on one initiative, the gravehounds on another, etc. That may mean you have 3 or 4 groups to track vs 2 but it still gains you a lot of the benefits and can actually be just as simple.

Just so my earlier comments are put in clearer context, this is exactly what I do. If you have 4 drow, 2 umber hulk, and a plant monster, then the 4 drow all operate off of one initiative roll, the umber hulk off another, and the plant monster off a third. It can still be dangerous toward the beginning if (for example) the drow all have bonuses for adjacent allies or CA (since they can all get it with almost zero interference), which is where you have to be careful about plastering a PC too quickly, but this definitely makes it easy to manage. It's fairly plausible in a roleplaying sense as well, since enemies are likely to have worked out a specific plan of execution and can work together to make it happen.