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Message: <blockquote data-quote="AbdulAlhazred" data-source="post: 7031514" data-attributes="member: 82106">4e fights HAVE a cadence, 3.x fights are pretty much decided by how the dice fall, or by how much the PCs have tricked themselves out for the particular situation (and perhaps some combination of those things). Still, the actual MECHANICS of 4e combat are heavily based on 3.5 mechanics. They use basically the same grid concept, OAs, shifts, definitions of flanking and provoking, etc. 4e just got rid of the 'full round action' disaster. Instead it has its own version of multi-attacks that actually adds MORE action to the character instead of sucking them all away (and doesn't mandate that every combatant go down that road, though most do try to one extent or another due to the way damage bonuses work). I'd say 4e's combat branches off from a basis of "3.5 combat perfected" and then adds in its own form of pacing, combat roles, and character balance to achieve a different overall feel. In a sense it wouldn't REALLY be that hard to graft 4e combat mechanics onto a 3.5 game. You'd have to change a lot of feats and whatnot, but in a fairly straightforward way (and you could probably borrow a lot of 4e ones as replacements). It wouldn't produce 4e combat, because of the cadence you mention, but it probably would be more fluid at least.</blockquote>