Seems like we're understanding each other fine. We just disagree on how ambushes and surprise rounds should be done in BG3. Imo, a full surprise round for every singe party member is too strong, especially since the AI and stealth system are a bit broken/exploitable, making it theoretically easy (maybe even trivial) to launch an ambush for most combats. Also, I don't think real-time coordination should have that much of an effect in a TB combat game, or that a full pause should enable players to queue up actions in a TB game.
Tbf though, I don't feel that strongly about it. Your suggestion of a surprise round for all party members would be fine, though I would hope Larian implements enemy perception circles and maybe a bit more enemy patrols to make that more difficult.
I didn't realize that what you're suggesting could be done in multiplayer. So if all players ~simultaneously launch an attack, they'll all go through before combat starts and/or before any enemy gets a chance to react?
What about if the surprise attack works only for any character in stealth? First hidden character attacks, then non stealthed characters get brought into initiative like normal, any others in stealth get to make their surprise attack first then added to the initiative order.
Thinking that using the reaction system might be better (maybe easier to code.) Once the first character has attacked, the optional popup would ask us if we wanted to fire off the surprise attack on whichever other characters it is set for. Once this is done, then initiative starts normally for everyone. Wouldn't affect anyone who doesn't use this tactic on more than one character.
I do wish they would make stealth more immersive, but I have resigned myself to probably playing on a higher difficulty mode just so the ambush doesn't trivialize the combat. I just can't enjoy playing a game by announcing myself to the enemy, makes me feel like an idiot with no sense of tactics. Will take the messy system we have now over having the tactical ambush ability removed, even though it is far from ideal. I don't usually play TB games and not being able to set up characters for simultaneous actions is extremely frustrating, this is why I want proper pause and queued/ready action capability, the latter of which is already in DnD rules.
As for multiplayer, I am only speculating that the proper ambush can occur because all characters can be moved at the same time during exploration as well as perform different actions. It makes sense that any coordinated attack actions can also be done like this. Hopefully someone who has actually played like this will confirm.
EDIT: In fact, depending on how exactly it was implemented the character who attacked first might even get another shot in, if their initial shot is treated as happening before the first combat round. I think BG3 does this now. Or the attack they made to start the fight could be taken as part of their turn in the first round, so if if they used an action for the attack then they start the combat with (one of) their actions already used but can use any remaining actions or bonus actions. I think it should probably work the latter way, with the round then continuing from wherever the initially attacking character ends up in the initiative queue. As long as enemies remain surprised until every character in the combat has had a turn and we come back to that first attacking character, that should work I think.
+1 that, at the very least, it should work the latter way. The combat initiator's initiative should probably be automatically set to be the highest, and they can continue using whatever actions they had left after the initiating attack. But their turn should happen in the first round of combat, not before the combat.
This would make sense. The first attacking character should definitely not get another whole extra turn on top of their surprise attack.
