My AD&D campaign uses initiative rolls every round. I occasionally pay attention to them. Yes, there are predeclared actions, and those actions often make the dice irrelevant.
The trouble is that the initiative rules are really complex. Consider:
* Charging characters attack based on Longer Weapon Length
* Bow-fire and Spells resolve depending on the initiative roll vs. casting times
* Characters with multiple attacks strike first and last, ignoring initiative against opponents with only one routine
* Weapon Speed only applies when there is a tie on initiative (I ignore the rules for weapon speed vs spell-casting).
* Movement probably delays initiative somewhat.
The fact is that working out Order of Actions in AD&D is a huge part of the DM's job. It isn't simple. And this is for a system where resolving combat actions *is* simple. (Well, except for unarmed combat. And some spells). As character actions become more complicated, having a complex initiative system on top of that just makes things slow down too much!
I'm not opposed to group initiative rerolled each round, but given modern D&D, the cyclical initiative structure gives much fewer problems, even as it requires Opportunity Attacks due to spellcasting to enter the game.
Cheers!
The trouble is that the initiative rules are really complex. Consider:
* Charging characters attack based on Longer Weapon Length
* Bow-fire and Spells resolve depending on the initiative roll vs. casting times
* Characters with multiple attacks strike first and last, ignoring initiative against opponents with only one routine
* Weapon Speed only applies when there is a tie on initiative (I ignore the rules for weapon speed vs spell-casting).
* Movement probably delays initiative somewhat.
The fact is that working out Order of Actions in AD&D is a huge part of the DM's job. It isn't simple. And this is for a system where resolving combat actions *is* simple. (Well, except for unarmed combat. And some spells). As character actions become more complicated, having a complex initiative system on top of that just makes things slow down too much!
I'm not opposed to group initiative rerolled each round, but given modern D&D, the cyclical initiative structure gives much fewer problems, even as it requires Opportunity Attacks due to spellcasting to enter the game.
Cheers!