A question of actions. [Archive] - Wizards Community

A question of actions. [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Androcus Divinicus
07-04-05, 05:07 PM Generally, I like to think of myself as the one who answers basic rules questions rather than asking them ... but frankly, I'm wondering about actions.

Personally, I've always adjudicated actions in this way:

Free action = ... duh, free. You can do it only on your turn, but one of these doesn't "take up" any of your turn.
Move action = 1/2 of your turn, you only get two of these on your turn.
Standard action = 1/2 of your turn, you only get two of these on your turn.
Full round action = all of your turn.

So ... if Free actions are a 0, move actions and standard actions are .5, and a full round action is a 1, I've basically understood that you can do whatever you want on your turn, so long as the total doesn't exceed 1.

1. What's the difference between a move action and a standard action?
2. Other than not knowing the answer to question 1, is my understanding of the workings of actions flawed in any other way?
3. I still play 3.0. Does my confusion stem from trying to apply 3.5e rules to my 3.0 understanding of the game?

Regards,
Justin.
the artful dodger
07-04-05, 05:32 PM 1. What's the difference between a move action and a standard action?
2. Other than not knowing the answer to question 1, is my understanding of the workings of actions flawed in any other way?
3. I still play 3.0. Does my confusion stem from trying to apply 3.5e rules to my 3.0 understanding of the game?
1) A standard action is better. You can take a move action instead of a standard, but not vice versa.
2) Yup. You don't get two standard actions in one round. You only get one (unless you're a Choker). It's also better not to think of actions as 'half a round'. They're part of a round, that's it. Whether they take 1, 3 or all 6 seconds in one round is immaterial, but it's unlikely both move and standard actions take 3 seconds each.
3. Not really. There are a few details that changed, but mostly that's just the terminology. The mechanics are pretty much the same.
Androcus Divinicus
07-04-05, 05:35 PM Excellent. I knew the answer was probably something very simple that I'd missed by skipping over the wrong paragraph in either the PHB or the DMG. Thanks for the info.

Regards,
Justin.
Dave Stebbins
07-04-05, 08:37 PM I've heard someone else say to assume that a standard action is 0.6 of a round and a move action is 0.4 of a round. Then you can see that two move equivalent actions can be taken in a round, but two standard actions can't.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Androcus Divinicus 07-04-05, 05:07 PM	Generally, I like to think of myself as the one who answers basic rules questions rather than asking them ... but frankly, I'm wondering about actions. Personally, I've always adjudicated actions in this way: Free action = ... duh, free. You can do it only on your turn, but one of these doesn't "take up" any of your turn. Move action = 1/2 of your turn, you only get two of these on your turn. Standard action = 1/2 of your turn, you only get two of these on your turn. Full round action = all of your turn. So ... if Free actions are a 0, move actions and standard actions are .5, and a full round action is a 1, I've basically understood that you can do whatever you want on your turn, so long as the total doesn't exceed 1. 1. What's the difference between a move action and a standard action? 2. Other than not knowing the answer to question 1, is my understanding of the workings of actions flawed in any other way? 3. I still play 3.0. Does my confusion stem from trying to apply 3.5e rules to my 3.0 understanding of the game? Regards, Justin.
the artful dodger 07-04-05, 05:32 PM	1. What's the difference between a move action and a standard action? 2. Other than not knowing the answer to question 1, is my understanding of the workings of actions flawed in any other way? 3. I still play 3.0. Does my confusion stem from trying to apply 3.5e rules to my 3.0 understanding of the game? 1) A standard action is better. You can take a move action instead of a standard, but not vice versa. 2) Yup. You don't get two standard actions in one round. You only get one (unless you're a Choker). It's also better not to think of actions as 'half a round'. They're part of a round, that's it. Whether they take 1, 3 or all 6 seconds in one round is immaterial, but it's unlikely both move and standard actions take 3 seconds each. 3. Not really. There are a few details that changed, but mostly that's just the terminology. The mechanics are pretty much the same.
Androcus Divinicus 07-04-05, 05:35 PM	Excellent. I knew the answer was probably something very simple that I'd missed by skipping over the wrong paragraph in either the PHB or the DMG. Thanks for the info. Regards, Justin.
Dave Stebbins 07-04-05, 08:37 PM	I've heard someone else say to assume that a standard action is 0.6 of a round and a move action is 0.4 of a round. Then you can see that two move equivalent actions can be taken in a round, but two standard actions can't.