- That players and NPC with more attacks per melee than other opponents or alleys have during combat. The situation always leaves the character with a excess number of attacks to complete while everyone else is a setting target twiddling their thumbs.
- Also the uneven time to attack/actions ratio between players and NPCs.
My solution is feeling overly complex and I'm trying to simplify as much as possible.
COMBAT
Combat Round: is the time two or more combatants strike, counter, and return strike; approximately one (1) minute.
Melee / Melee Round: There are four (4) melees in a Combat Round; approximately fifteen (15) seconds. Each of the four (4) melees are tracked by the GM separately in regard to number of actions that can be taken.
Action/Attack: the number of actions a character has within a fifteen (15) seconds melee time segment. All beings start with two (2) actions or attacks per melee round. The maximum number of actions that can be taken within a melee round is five (5). A melee is divided into five (5) “Actions” or action sequences. An action may take more than one action sequence to complete. Each action sequence takes approximately three (3) seconds.
Combat Round
Approximately one (1) minute or sixty (60) seconds
Melees / Melee Round
1st Melee (15 sec)
Actions
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th
2nd Melee (15 sec)
Actions
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th
3rd Melee (15 sec)
Actions
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th
4th Melee (15 sec)
Actions
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th
Example: A Commoner without Hand-to-Hand Combat Training, which only has two (2) Actions per melee would have those actions spread across the melee 15 second time frame. Or about 7.5 seconds per actions or attack. While a highly trained Fighter who has four (4) actions per that melee it would only take 3.75 seconds for each action.
Lastly, in regard to melee rounds some additional actions or attacks that are gained from skill, magic or combat training are distributed within one of the four (4) melees rounds they fall within. When given an additional attack or action that action will be taken in the 1st Melee Round. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th Melee Rounds would have no additional actions. If the character had two (2) additional actions those actions would be taken in the 1st and 2nd Melee Rounds; so on and so forth. Once the player has five (5) additional Actions they would have three (3) Action per melee (four (4) actions distributed across each melee in the Combat Round), be able to take the fourth (4) Action on the 1st Melee.
Optionally, the player can choose when to use that additional action in any melee round the player wishes. The only restriction is that there may never be more than one (1) “Floating Action” taken in a single melee.
Example: If the player had five (5) additional actions and he/she wants to use three (3) actions the 1st Melee round he/she could use a last “floating” (making it the 4th) action in any melee round of their choosing; but all other actions have to be distributed to the "3rd Action" first.
They player could not use three (3) additional actions in the 1st Melee Round to have five (5) actions and leaving only two additional actions for the rest of the Combat Round.
It fixes my problems but it really seems confusing and overly complex. I don't want to nerf attacks per melee and have everyone be the same. But I also don't want to have this uneven ratio in combat.
