{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/tactics-defense--t078","type":"mechanic","id":"tactics-defense--t078","lang":"en","title":"Initiative and action economy","summary":"Initiative sets order while an action budget limits combinations of movement, attacks and preparation within a turn.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/tactics-defense--t078/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/tactics-defense--t078.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/tactics-defense--t078.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Tactics and defense","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-32d0598945d8807a","source-668618d5d6a230d5"],"sources":[{"id":"source-32d0598945d8807a","title":"OpenRA","url":"https://www.openra.net/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-668618d5d6a230d5","title":"Into the Breach","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/590380/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Initiative sets order while an action budget limits combinations of movement, attacks and preparation within a turn."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t078-variants\"></a>\n\n- Action points support combinations of different lengths. <a id=\"t078-v1\"></a>\n- Delaying changes a unit's place in the order. <a id=\"t078-v2\"></a>\n- Reactions spend a reserve outside the owner's turn. <a id=\"t078-v3\"></a>\n- A costly attack leaves fewer defensive options. <a id=\"t078-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A fighter reserves one action to intercept an enemy instead of moving farther.\n\nPrototype check: Test for free infinite delays and loops that restore more actions than they consume."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Tactics and defense turn positioning, action order and preparation into limited resources. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"tactics-defense","id":"t078","title":"Tactics and defense","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/tactics-defense/#t078","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Initiative and action economy","description":"Initiative sets order while an action budget limits combinations of movement, attacks and preparation within a turn.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/strategy-into-breach-00.webp","width":1280,"height":720,"game":"Into the Breach","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/590380/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/590380/ss_6113590509c195f98fa64cd738df534762e0c358.1920x1080.jpg?t=1755610784","credit":"Subset Games / Subset Games","rights":"© Subset Games / Subset Games. All rights reserved.","caption":"The squad acts before the turn is ended","alt":"The squad acts before the turn is ended","markers":[{"x":9,"y":12,"label":"End Turn finishes the player side’s actions"}]},"tips":["Make action costs explicit and let the player inspect event order before committing."],"examples":[{"title":"Into the Breach","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/590380/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/tactics-defense"}}