Combat begins when time, position, and immediate danger need to be tracked precisely.
During combat, participants act in a structured order. They move, attack, defend, use equipment, activate abilities, and react to changing circumstances.
Combat is divided into rounds, passes, and turns. These determine when characters act and how their Action Points are spent.
Rounds, Passes, and Turns
A round represents roughly 10 seconds of action. At the start of each round, every combatant restores their available Action Points. The round continues until every combatant has spent, lost, or otherwise forfeited their remaining AP.
A pass is one sweep through the Initiative order during a round. The first pass begins with the combatant who has the highest Initiative and continues downward through the order.
Once every eligible combatant has taken a turn, check whether anyone still has AP remaining. If so, begin another pass using the same Initiative order. Only combatants with AP remaining take a turn during that pass.
A turn is one combatant’s opportunity to act during a pass. During their turn, a combatant may spend up to 4 AP on available actions. They do not need to spend all of their AP at once and may keep AP for later passes or Interrupt Actions.
If a combatant reaches their turn and chooses not to act, they lose 1 AP. If they still have AP remaining, they may take another turn during a later pass as normal.
Combat continues from round to round until the encounter is resolved.