d20 The Game Mechanics Initiative Cards.pdf

Initiative Cards v2.0 (Fantasy)

by JD Wiker

Editing: Marc Schmalz

Design Review: Marc Schmalz, Stan!, & Rich Redman

Layout and Typesetting: Marc Schmalz

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Initiative Cards v2.0 (Fantasy)

The Game Mechanics, Inc.

Introduction

Keeping track of initiative in games using the

d20 System can get complicated. Every GM has a

method that he or she favors, but which sometimes

lacks in versatility or utility. These Initiative Cards

provide GMs both with an easy way to keep track

of initiative, and a handy reference for all the sorts

of information a GM sometimes needs during a

game session.

There are three dif erent types of Initiative Cards:

• Character cards —which contain information

about the player characters and the occasional

non-player character. You can use these cards

for familiars as well.

• Monster cards —which contain information

about monsters (though it’s best to use charac-

ter cards for monsters that have class levels).

You can use these cards for most animal com-

panions as well.

• End of Round card —which lets the GM know

when to resolve end of round ef ects.

If a character or creature delays, or readies an

action, turn that Initiative Card sideways, with

the “Delay/Ready” box showing. If a character or

creature falls unconscious, simply turn the card

sideways facing the other direction, with the word

“Unconscious” visible.

Character Cards

Use character cards for player characters, non-

player characters, familiars, and monsters that have

classes and levels.

NAME: Record the character’s name here.

ALIGN/RACE: Record the character’s alignment

and race here. The former may be useful for spells

that work of of a character’s alignment, such as

protection from good; the la� er is useful for spells,

ef ects, and situations that take the character’s race

into consideration. If you’re using the character

card to represent a familiar, record the animal’s

species (cat, hawk, rat, weasel, etc.) here.

INIT: Leave this space blank at i rst. When combat

begins, use it to record the character’s initiative roll.

AC: Record the character’s base armor class here,

including AC for touch a� acks (TCH)—a� acks that

disregard armor—and for a� acks when the charac-

ter is l atfooted (FLT). There

is also a box in which you can

mark any temporary changes

to the character’s AC (TMP)

that occur during the course

of the game.

CLS/LVL: Record the char-

acter’s classes and levels here.

If the character has several

classes, you might want to use

abbreviations: Brb for Barbar-

ian, Clr for Cleric, or Wiz for

Wizard, for example.

Delay or Ready: Turning

the card so this space is show-

ing indicates the character is

delaying or has readied an

action.

STR, DEX, CON, INT,

WIS, and CHA: Record the

character’s ability scores and

ability modii ers here.

FORT, REF, and WILL: Re-

cord the character’s Fortitude,

Rel ex, and Will saving throws here.

SPD: Record the character’s base movement here.

VIS: Record any special vision modes the char-

acter might have, such as low-light vision, darkvi-

sion, or blindsight. If the vision mode has a range,

make sure you note that, such as “Dark 60.”

Initiative Cards in Play

Before beginning play, i ll out one Initiative Card

for each opponent the PCs are likely to face dur-

ing the coming session. If you have

a current copy of the PCs’ character

sheets, i ll one out for each PC, if not

ask each player to i ll one out at the

start of the game.

When combat begins, ask the players

to roll initiative while you roll initiative

for any opponents and non-player char-

acters. Set aside any cards for charac-

ters or creatures that are surprised. One

by one, go around the table and ask

each player for his or her character’s

initiative result. Write their initiative

numbers down in the space marked

“INIT” on the cards. Then do the same

for all the initiative rolls you make. Use

a pencil—you’ll be erasing and rewrit-

ing these numbers fairly o� en.

Then simply begin at the top of the

stack, moving each card to the bo� om

when that character or creature has

concluded its turn. When you reach the

End of Round card, check for any end

of round ef ects (for example, uncon-

scious characters a� empting to stabilize), then begin

the next round. If you have characters or creatures

who have not yet rolled initiative, before proceeding

with the next round ask them to roll for initiative, jot

down their initiative numbers, and place their cards

in the proper place in the initiative order.

The Character Card

Initiative Cards v2.0 (Fantasy)

The Game Mechanics, Inc.

Skills: Record the total skill modii ers (skill

rank + ability modii er + miscellaneous modii ers)

here. This area lists only those skills for which

the Dungeon Master

should regularly make

skill checks on the player’s

behalf. (See the DMG,

page 17.) In addition to

their use for recording

skills that are not already

included, the blank skill

spaces can be used to

record other score-based

information, such as Spell

Resistance.

Languages: Record the

languages the character

knows here. This could

come in handy when

the characters encoun-

ter speech or writing in

a language other than

Common. (You can check

which of the characters

might understand without

having to ask the play-

ers which languages each

character knows.)

Special/Notes: Use this space to record any tem-

porary ef ects on the character, such as spells or the

special a� acks of monsters, and to keep track of the

duration of such ef ects.

Unconscious: Turning the card so this space is

showing indicates that the character is

unconscious.

Monster Cards

Use monster cards for monsters that don’t

have classes and levels. You can use one

card to represent multiple monsters of

the same type (one card to stand for three

ogres, for example), or you can use indi-

vidual cards for individual monsters.

NAME: Record the monster’s name here.

You can use one card to represent a number

of identical monsters, or use separate cards

for each according to your own preferences.

ALIGN: Record the monster’s align-

ment here. Knowing the monster’s align-

ment could be important for spells that

key of of a character’s alignment, such as

protection from evil.

INIT: Leave this space blank at i rst.

When combat begins, use it to record the

character’s initiative roll.

Delay or Ready: Turning the card so this space is

showing indicates the character is delaying or has

readied an action.

AC: Record the monster’s base armor

class here, including AC for touch a� acks

(TCH)—a� acks that disregard armor—

and for a� acks when the character is l at-

footed (FLT). There is also a box in which

you can mark any temporary changes to

the monster’s AC (TMP) that occur dur-

ing the course of the game.

INIT: Record the monster’s initiative

modii er here.

FORT, REF, and WILL: Record the

monster’s Fortitude, Rel ex, and Will sav-

ing throws here.

SPD: Record the monster’s base move-

ment here. If the monster has other move-

ment modes, record those as well, with a

brief notation such as “Fly 50/Swim 40.”

VIS: Record any special vision modes

the character might have, such as low-

light vision, darkvision, or blindsight. If

the vision mode has a range, make sure

you note that, such as “Dark 60.”

GRAP: Record the monster’s grapple

bonus here.

Skills: Record skills and total skill modii ers

(skill rank + ability modii er + miscellaneous modi-

i ers) here. Unlike Character Cards, no specii c

skills are listed in this area. In addition to their

use for recording skills, these spaces can be used to

record other score-based information, such as Spell

Resistance.

A� acks: Record the

monster’s a� acks here.

Spaces are included for

A� ack (#) (the method

of a� ack, such as “Bite,”

“2 Claws,” or “Sword”);

Bonus (the a� ack modi-

i er); Type (the type of

damage: “P” for pierc-

ing, “B” for bludgeon-

ing, and “S” for slash-

ing); and Damage (the

damage caused by the

a� ack).

HP: Use this space to

keep track of the mon-

ster’s hit points.

Special/Notes: Use this

space to record any

temporary ef ects on

the monster, such as

The End of Round Card

The Monster Card

Initiative Cards v2.0 (Fantasy)

The Game Mechanics, Inc.

spells or the special a� acks of other monsters, and

to keep track of the duration of such ef ects.

Unconscious: Turning the card so this space is

showing indicates the character is unconscious.

End of Round Card

The End of Round card lets the GM keep track of

when each round i nishes, for purposes of ef ects

that take place at the end of the round (such as

unconscious characters a� empting to stabilize).

Example of Play

A combat begins in Rich’s game—the characters

encounter a group of i ve orcs led by an ogre, who

also has a brown bear for a pet. Rich tells the play-

ers to roll initiative for their characters, while he

rolls for the monsters. Since Rich has prepared his

Initiative Cards for the monsters in advance, all

he has to do is pull out the cards, check the initia-

tive modii ers, and roll 1d20 each for the orcs, the

ogre, and the bear. For convenience, Rich is using

a single initiative roll for all i ve orcs. This also lets

him track them using just one card. The orcs get a

total of 14, the ogre gets a 19, and the bear gets only

a 2. Rich puts these in order, from highest to low-

est: the ogre, the orcs, and the bear.

The players tell Rich what they rolled for initia-

tive: Wendy, playing Kessa, gets a 9; Joanna, playing

Alwyn, gets a 23; Alex, playing Tyrian, gets a 24; and

JD, playing Cromagh, gets a 13. As the players tell

Rich their initiatives, he puts them in place, so the

i nal initiative order looks like this: Tyrian (24), Al-

wyn (23), the ogre (19), the orcs (14), Cromagh (13),

Kessa (9), and i nally the bear (2). Rich then puts the

End of Round card at the bo� om of the stack, under

the bear.

Tyrian, the

monk, doesn’t

want to charge

into the midst

of the enemy, so

he delays. Rich

Brown Bear

turns Tyrian’s card 90 degrees to the right, leaving

the “Delay or Ready” indicator showing. He then

moves Tyrian’s card nearly to the back, just in front

of the End of Round card. A character can’t delay

past the end of the round, so this reminds Rich to

make sure that Tyrian takes his action before the

end of the round.

Next up is Alwyn, the rogue, who a� acks with her

bow, but misses. Rich moves her card to the back of

the stack, a� er the End of Round card. Then comes

the ogre, who charges Cromagh, the barbarian. The

ogre’s a� ack only has to beat Cromagh’s l at-footed

Armor Class, since Cromagh hasn’t acted yet.

The orcs a� ack next, and Rich decides that the

three in front wade into ba� le, while the two in the

back ready actions to i re arrows at anyone who

starts casting spells. Since Rich is only using one

card for all of the orcs, he resolves the a� acks for

the three who entered melee, then pencils in a “2”

on their card, and turns it to the right—indicating

that two of the orcs have readied actions. Then

he puts it at the bo� om of the stack, a� er Alwyn.

Although they’re technically no longer acting on

the same initiative, Rich decides that, in the next

round, the three orcs in melee will simply delay

until the other two orcs act, thus pu� ing them back

on the same initiative.

Next, Cromagh a� acks the ogre, and deals 12

points of damage. Rich records this on the ogre’s

card, under “Hit Points.” Then Kessa acts, casting

a spell, and the two orcs use their readied actions

to i re arrows at her. Rich moves the orcs’ card back

up front, on top of Kessa’s card. A� er they’re done

with their a� acks, he moves them back to the back

of the stack, facing the right way up again.. This is

their new place in the initiative order. Then Kessa

resolves her action, and goes to the back of the stack.

Now Alex decides that Tyrian will act, and so

Rich moves Tyrian’s card back up to the front. He

runs to where the two orc archers are standing

and uses his unarmed a� ack to inl ict a stunning

14 points of damage! This is 5 more hit points than

this particular orc has, so Rich just puts an X

through that orc’s hit point column on the card.

Then the bear a� acks, and absolutely savages Al-

wyn, dealing 30 points of damage. Alwyn only has

25 hits points, so she’s at –5 hit points. Rich turns

Alwyn’s card 90 degrees to the le� , showing the

part of the card that reads “Unconscious.” Since the

bear was the last to act, the next card up is the End

of Round card and any end of round ef ects take

place. The only one in ef ect right now, though, is

that Alwyn has to check to see if she stabilizes.

Once that’s done, Rich moves the End of Round

card to the back, and it’s time for a new round.

+16

Listen Spot Swim

+14

Claw (2) +11 M 1d8+8

Bite

+6 M 2d8+4

Improved Grab

Scent

Initiative Cards v2.0 (Fantasy)

The Game Mechanics, Inc.

Appendix: Open Game License

Designation of Product Identity. The following items are Product Identity: All images, logos (excluding the d20 System Logo), diagrams, and speciic representations of

cards; the characters of Alwyn, Cromagh, Kessa, and Tyrian. The Game Mechanics and The Game Mechanics logo are trademarks of The Game Mechanics, Inc.

Designation of Open Game Content. The following items are Open Game Content: All text except the section labeled "Example of Play."

OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a

1. Deinitions: (a) "Contributors" means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; (b) "Derivative Material" means copyrighted

material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer languages), potation, modiication, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improve-

ment, compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) "Distribute" means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell,

broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; (d) "Open Game Content" means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and

routines to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly identiied as Open

Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but speciically excludes

Product Identity. (e) "Product Identity" means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; artifacts; creatures characters; stories,

storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, pho-

tographic and other visual or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and special

abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark

or registered trademark clearly identiied as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which speciically excludes the Open Game Content; (f) "Trademark"

means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its products or the associated products contributed to the Open

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15 COPYRIGHT NOTICE

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