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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Baragos" data-source="post: 2611510" data-attributes="member: 33166">I'm fiddling around with the initiative rules from Combat and Tactics (2nd ed AD&D). It breaks each round into 5 phases: very fast, fast, average, slow, very slow. Your size or weapon determines when you can first act, a medium person could moved in phase fast but if he was wielding a greatsword he'd have to wait till phase slow or very slow before being able to hit.I know the system can seem a little complicated, but one thing that it does is reinforce the feeling of simultaneousness. E.g. orc moves up to fighter, fighter has option of moving away or attack, orc can attack or move again after fighter has taken his action.For iterative attacks, they'd fall in later phases...so a character with 3 attacks due to BAB, who uses a weapon with fast speed, would be able to attack once in each of  phases fast, average, and slow. If you "run out" of phases, extra virtual phases are added to the end of the round. The advantage in balance of this is that a fighter with a dagger (Fast IIRC) does not get to attack more often than the fighter with the greatsword (Slow I think), but the dagger wielder will attack before the greatsword wielder. This makes it a valid option to be fighting with small weapons such as daggers.It is possible to delay actions to later phases...perhaps even into earlier phases in the next round...so if you were using a slow weapon you could ready it to strike at a person moving up to you in next round's fast phase.Initiative is rolled at the start of combat and determines the order within each phase. If you roll a natural 20, all your actions gain a -1 step bonus, e.g. if using a weapon that is normally average, it becomes fast. If you roll a natural 1 all actions are one phase slower.Actions that are not attacks fall on a phase determined by size:Tiny or smaller: very fastSmall-medium: fastLarge-huge: slowGargantuan or larger: very slowSo drawing a weapon (a move equivalent action unless you have quick draw) would fall in the fast phase if you were small or medium. You may still combine that with a move, which would also take place in the fast phase.Moving more than speed would be split up over several phases...so you could start moving in the fast phase (moving your speed) then continue in the average or any slower phase (again moving your speed). If you run or charge you may move up to double spped in each of adjecent 2 phases (fast and average, for instance).There are probably a few things I've forgotten to mention...</blockquote>

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