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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 1379999" data-attributes="member: 3146">I was having difficulty with the forums this morning but they've righted themselves now.WRT initiative, I think that the DM made the appropriate call initially.Initiative should be rolled at the outset of hostilities--not before--and it's not at all unreasonable for characters to be flatfooted or for characters who roll well on initiative to go before the person who initiated combat.As I see it, initiative is often like determining what happens in a wild west shootout. The characters are observing each other and then one goes for his gun. (Or looks like he's going for it--in the situation described above, I'd let the assassin make a sleight of hand check to get a surprise round in which to draw his weapon). If the other beats him on initiative, he can draw and shoot first. In most D&D settings, it's quite likely that the guards are the kind of people who will see the assassin going for his weapon and immediately beat him senseless or kill him; it's unlikely they'll delay or take the full defense action until the assassin actually attacks.</blockquote>