Why simultaneous action?
- It’s more realistic. In real combat, everything happens at once. Gamers often mock turn-based combat for the lack of realism it portrays. In Pythòs, a combatant can be killed in the same moments as its slain opponent.
- It’s more intense. In the uncertainty and chaos of battle, making decisions simultaneously limits the amount of knowledge players have about the outcomes of their actions.
- It saves time. With everyone at the table making their decisions at the same time, there is no waiting for the GM and each player (one-at-a-time) to analyze the situation, look up spells or abilities, and finally make up their mind.
- It keeps everyone engaged. During each player’s turn in a turn-based game, what is everyone else doing? Some players wait patiently for their next turn, while others get distracted or become a distraction for others. With simultaneous action, there is almost no downtime for any one player.
How it works
Step 1: Describe
The GM describes the scene to the players.Step 2: Decide
The players and GM take a little time to think and decide what actions they will take.Step 3: Declare
Each player declares their actions. (With Action and/or Maneuver Cards, they could be revealed simultaneously.)Step 4: Resolve
Actions are resolved in phase order, starting with Defense Actions.- Defense Phase
- Attack Phase
- Utility Phase
- Move Phase
- Other Phase
Next Round!
How do you resolve conflicting actions?
First of all, actions are only considered conflicting if they literally cannot both occur. For example, one person is taking a utility action to hold a door closed while someone else is taking a utility action to open the door at the same time. In most cases, a simple opposed roll between the conflicting creatures is sufficient, such as Acrobatics or Athletics to determine who is faster or stronger.
Movement is a special case. If two creatures are attempting move actions that conflict with each other, then whichever creature has the most movement distance remaining at the point of conflict gets priority.
Example: Orion is trying to block Chloe’s escape out an open window. Orion has 20ft of movement remaining at the window and Chloe has 15ft remaining. Orion has priority and successfully gets in the way of Chloe’s escape.