Altering the Initiative Order

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by ErhnamDJ

I can't Wait to take my turn until after Jim-Bob the cleric does something?

Sure you can.

Originally Posted by KingJohn

I need to declare what I am waiting for, and what I will do when that triggers, every round.

Yes, but you are allowed to name broad triggers and broad reactions as long as they aren't vague (not the same as broad) and provided that your maneuver is declared. A perfectly legal Wait would be "I wait until after my pal Jim-Bob acts, and then take an Attack maneuver against whomever Jim-Bob attacked, or my nearest foe otherwise." Complex? Sure, but it's legal. The trigger and action are specified, and most important, the maneuver is declared.

That said, you certainly can elect to use less than your full resources. You're allowed to strike at lower ST, move at less than full Move, etc. There's no reason at all why you couldn't choose to operate at lower Basic Speed. Parents do this all the time when shepherding their kids!

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Harald387

Actually, in GURPS turn-based play explicitly does not begin until combat starts. Kromm mentioned this at one point himself (I believe it was a thread involving Enhanced Time Sense). Until combat begins, everything is narrative. I can't imagine exploring a dungeon using turn-based play the whole time, it'd be a nightmare.

Correct. Turns and maneuvers do not exist outside of declared combat. They are abstractions used only for combat and have no meaning at all the rest of the time. This ought to be clear from the rules as written . . . especially in Fourth Edition, where I worked hard to do away with the use of "turn" and "hex" to mark time and distance, so that it would be clearer that these concepts only have a meaning in combat. Outside of combat, you resolve events narratively, in the normal flow of time and in space that isn't snapped to a grid.

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Rendu

P.B366, Under "Wait":
"Finally, you can use Wait to coordinate actions with slower friends."

That's the entire paragraph. No qualifiers about specifying what you are waiting for, or what you will do. Nice, simple, common-sensical, even.

Yes, and we meant that to be as binding as all the other rules. In short, if you want to do what the OP wants to do, that's a 100% legal use of Wait.

[Bruno]

Originally Posted by Kromm

Yes, and we meant that to be as binding as all the other rules. In short, if you want to do what the OP wants to do, that's a 100% legal use of Wait.

It's unfortunately clear as mud what that allows you to do. IE: Does it allow you to take any maneuver at all at that time? Not just the listed ones for Wait?

Basically, I'm confused as to why there's all this text for Wait in the first place, if it's capped off by a rider sentence that means "Act at a lower Speed."

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Bruno

It's unfortunately clear as mud what that allows you to do. IE: Does it allow you to take any maneuver at all at that time? Not just the listed ones for Wait?

Basically, I'm confused as to why there's all this text for Wait in the first place, if it's capped off by a rider sentence that means "Act at a lower Speed."

All the text exists to make clear that you have to specify one of a small set of maneuvers noted in the text; that this can interrupt others' actions; and that if it does interrupt others' actions, there are loads of constraints on that interruption to keep it from becoming abusive. If your only goal is to hold your Attack, Feint, All-Out Attack, or Ready until after a friend acts, that's peachy. It's just that most uses of Wait aren't that, but attempts to walk between raindrops on an enemy's turn. Then all the text matters, because it requires you to be very specific about when and how you interrupt your foe. All the text comes first because, really, it exists to prevent abuse. The last clause is significantly harder to abuse and not the most common use of Wait.

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by Kromm

... There's no reason at all why you couldn't choose to operate at lower Basic Speed. Parents do this all the time when shepherding their kids!

OMG! I was right! This is nearly historic.

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Figleaf23

OMG! I was right! This is nearly historic.

You need to change your avatar to show more than one beer, then!

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by Kromm

You need to change your avatar to show more than one beer, then!

This is more like it.

[sir_pudding]

Originally Posted by Kromm

All the text exists to make clear that you have to specify one of a small set of maneuvers noted in the text; that this can interrupt others' actions; and that if it does interrupt others' actions, there are loads of constraints on that interruption to keep it from becoming abusive. If your only goal is to hold your Attack, Feint, All-Out Attack, or Ready until after a friend acts, that's peachy. It's just that most uses of Wait aren't that, but attempts to walk between raindrops on an enemy's turn. Then all the text matters, because it requires you to be very specific about when and how you interrupt your foe. All the text comes first because, really, it exists to prevent abuse. The last clause is significantly harder to abuse and not the most common use of Wait.

Just to be clear then, you still are restricted to the same Maneuvers and you don't actually change your position in the sequence?

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

Just to be clear then, you still are restricted to the same Maneuvers and you don't actually change your position in the sequence?

Correct. You could read that final clause as: "Finally, you can use Wait to delay any of the maneuvers listed above to occur at the same time as or after friends who act after you in the combat sequence."