If you've been curious about running Speed Factor initiative in D&D 5e (DMG pg. 271) but were worried about it being cumbersome, I've managed to cut down on the procedure with technology. I’m not here to sell you on why Speed Factor is good, Angry does a good enough job of explaining the merits of speed factor. Code is here , you will need the two scripts from isGM . I've used this for 4 sessions so far. How does it work? In a new combat, the DM selects all of the tokens that will be in initiative and invokes “ !sfstart .” If you’re grouping NPCs, just select one token for each group. I’m using macro buttons. Once you invoke " !sfstart ", a “menu” of actions is whispered to each player and their tokens are added to the initiative order with a value of “?”. NPC menus will be whispered to the DM. A sample round below to show how the script works, and how it will affect your players decisions and overall gameplay: The DM announces to the players what the NPCs are going to do : “The pirates saw you scurry into the dark cabins. The Scallywags are going to charge in with their hatchets while the Sea Dogs stay out in the sun and listen for sounds of your movement.” The DM clicks “Melee, Light or Finesse Weapon (+2)” for the Scallywags and “Spellcasting or Other” for the Sea Dogs. The initiative automatically updates with their bonuses. This factors in their dexterity mod, non-dex initiative bonus, their size, and the action they selected. The DM then asks the players what their character’s intentions are. These intentions are not collaborative, they can only react to what they perceived in the last round. Hugo’s Player : “Hugo is worried about being outnumbered, he’s going to spend a level 2 spell slot to help his friends.” Hugo’s player clicks “Spellcasting or Other” and his initiative updates with his bonus. He then clicks into the the turn order box next to Hugo's name and subtracts 2 from the total there. One -1 penalty for each level of spell slot spent. ( Roll20, if you're listening, I'd looove the ability to pop up a variable input box from API buttons :) ) Jezebel’s Player : “Jezebel is going to quickly turn the tables on the Sea Dogs, charging back out with her longsword in one hand and a dagger in the other.” Jezebel’s player clicks “Melee, Standard One-hand Weapon” and the initiative automatically updates with her bonus, which is considerable due to her small gnomish size. Pablo’s Player : “Pablo is going to fire his flintlock pistol at the advancing pirates from cover.” Pablo’s player clicks “Ranged, Loading Weapon (-5). The DM checks that every turn order has a numerical initiative bonus and not a “?” and invokes “ !sfroll .” Individual D20 rolls are made for each character and initiative is re-ordered on the result - we go directly into narrating turns. Jezebel's turn: “Jezebel steps out from the darkened cabin and whirls through the pirates with her longsword and dagger, cutting a bloody swath starting with the Scallywag closest to her.” After a few crit fumbles leave her open to counter attacks, Jezebel uses her Action Surge for a few more attacks, swinging wild with her longsword to finish off one Scallywag and bringing her “lucky” dagger across a nearby Sea Dog’s face. Sea Dog's Turn The Sea Dogs are caught unprepared, they only intended to listen for the rival pirates in the hold. They abort their perception check and draw their weapons as part of their movement, shifting to either side of the whirling gnome. Scallywag's Turn The Scallywag runs into the darkened cabin, leaving the Sea Dogs to deal with the gnome and her whirling blades. The Scallywag finds Pablo rushing to load his flintlock pistol and decides to introduce him to his hatchet, tracing a light cut across Pablo’s arm as he attempts to whirl out of the way. Hugo's Turn: Hugo’s player intended to cast Heroism as a level 2 spell slot, but the cramped deck of a lurching pirate ship is a difficult place to weave magic. Hugo refuses to cancel the spell, runs out onto the deck and catches the Gnome’s wrist, completing the ritual. He tosses her in the air, and she twirls acrobatically. Her swords gleam in the sunlight and she appears as an awe-inspiring gnome death tornado, landing on her feet with a genuine look of enjoyment on her blood-spattered face (and a bardic inspiration die in her back pocket). A level 2 spell slot is burned off, but the embattled Pablo is beyond Hugo's reach. Pablo's Turn: Pablo, struggling to load his flintlock pistol, finally gets it readied and looks for the right opportunity to take his shot as the raging Scallywag’s wild swings chop menacingly into the planking around him. Pablo’s cutlass is a better weapon for this type of fighting, but the seasoned pirate is going to make due with what he’s got. Pablo whispers a prayer to the sea and pulls the trigger. The deafening shot rings out and the Scallywag staggers backward with a bloody stomach wound. Pablo takes this opportunity to draw his cutlass as part of his movement and draw back for a killing thrust. ** End of Round ** To start the next round: - Select the tokens in initiative and invoke “ !sfstart ” OR - Invoke “ !sfround ” to restart initiative with all of the tokens currently in the turn order. Speed Initiative will alter the game in a few ways: A character is limited to the Action they intended to do, or cancelling their action. There is no “well this happened so I’m gonna take another action.” The rounds are QUICK so don’t fret about “wasted” turns. Make sure that your players state their character’s intent. “I’m going to cast a level 2 spell” is too vague. “Hugo thinks that with a menacing glare and a little magical lubrication, he can convince one of the rival pirates to turn on his crew” is specific enough. They don't need to pick specific targets, just impart a sense of their character's intent. A few tactical decisions crop up when considering if your players are using light weapons, loading weapons, casting high-level spells, or being small. Ranged weapons get more tricky when you have a charging foe that closes range and you can't disengage until next round (Cunning action becomes even more valuable when using speed initiative). Because the game unfolds in a more chaotic way, there is a lot more think-on-your feet focus and much less likelyhood of gamey cross talk. There simply isn't any dead-air "umm" time for other players to intrude on. If you forget to add someone to the initiative and haven’t invoked “ !sfroll ” yet, you can add them to the initiative without blowing away the selected initiative bonuses by selecting the token to add and invoking “ !sfadd ”
