At the start of combat, each player rolls initiative for his or her character and the GM rolls for their opponents, with higher-rolling characters or enemies acting earlier each round.

Cyclic Initiative

Roll Once

Each creature rolls to determine its initiative at the start of its first turn in battle (d20 + initiative bonus). Use those results to determine who goes first each round.

All monsters of the same exact type share the same initiative roll.

Delay

By choosing to delay, you take no action and then act normally on whatever initiative count you decide to act. When you delay, you voluntarily reduce your own initiative for the rest of the combat. Your initiative result becomes the count on which you took the delayed action.

If you come to your next action and have not yet performed an action, you don’t get to take a delayed action (though you can delay again).

If you take a delayed action in the next round, before your regular turn comes up, your initiative count rises to that new point in the order of battle, and you do not get your regular action that round.

Readying an Action

The ready action lets you prepare to take an action later, after your turn is over but before your next one has begun. Readying is a standard action.

You can ready a standard action, a move action, or a free action. To do so, specify the action you will take and the conditions under which you will take it. Then, any time before your next action, you may take the readied action in response to that condition. The action occurs just before the action that triggers it. If the triggered action is part of another character’s activities, you interrupt the other character. Assuming he is still capable of doing so, he continues his actions once you complete your readied action. Your initiative result changes. For the rest of the encounter, your initiative result is the count on which you took the readied action, and you act immediately ahead of the character whose action triggered your readied action.

Your initiative result becomes the count on which you took the readied action. If you come to your next action and have not yet performed your readied action, you don’t get to take the readied action (though you can ready the same action again). If you take your readied action in the next round, before your regular turn comes up, your initiative count rises to that new point in the order of battle, and you do not get your regular action that round.

Actions on Your Turn

Standard, Move, and Quick Actions

Each turn you can take one of each action, in any order. See Combat Actions.

Free Actions

You can take any number of free actions on your turn, as allowed by the GM. Creatures can also take free actions when it’s not their turn as part of a triggering condition. Talking is a free action.

Make Saves Last

If you are subjected to an ongoing effect that requires a save, roll that save at the end of your turn, after the ongoing effect.

Escalation Die

The escalation die represents a bonus to attacks as the fight goes on.

At the start of the second round, the GM sets the escalation die at 1. Each PC gains a bonus to attack rolls equal to the current value on the escalation die. Each round, the escalation die advances by +1, to a maximum of +6.

Monsters and NPCs do not add the escalation die bonus to their attacks

If the GM judges that the characters are avoiding conflict rather than bringing the fight to the bad guys, the escalation die doesn't advance. If combat virtually ceases, the escalation die resets to 0.