D&D Initiative Tracker

A terminal-based initiative tracker for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition combat encounters, built with C and ncurses.

Features

• Combatant Management: Add, remove, duplicate, and manage players and enemies
• Initiative Tracking: Automatic sorting by initiative and dexterity
• HP Tracking: Visual HP indicators with color coding (Good/Hurt/Critical/Unconscious/Dead)
• Death Saving Throws: Full 5e death save implementation with automatic rolling at start of turn
• Interactive Condition Menu: Overlay menu for easy condition management with navigation
• Condition Management: Apply and track 15 different conditions with optional durations
• Turn Management: Navigate through combat rounds with next/previous turn controls
• Combat Logging: Automatic logging of combat actions with export functionality
• Message Queue: Non-blocking message system for multiple notifications
• Help Menu: Built-in help screen accessible with ? key
• Undo System: Undo last action (up to 10 states)
• Save/Load: Persist game state between sessions
• Color-Coded UI: Visual distinction between players and enemies

Requirements

• GCC compiler
• ncurses library

Installing ncurses

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu):

sudo apt-get install libncurses5-dev libncursesw5-dev

Linux (Fedora/RHEL):

sudo dnf install ncurses-devel

macOS:

brew install ncurses

Windows (WSL):

sudo apt-get install libncurses5-dev libncursesw5-dev

Compilation

Using Makefile (recommended):

make

Or manually:

gcc -Wall -Wextra -Wshadow -Wconversion -Wpedantic -Werror -std=c11 initiative.c -lncurses -o initiative

Or with standard warnings:

gcc initiative.c -lncurses -o initiative

Makefile Targets

• make or make all - Build the executable
• make clean - Remove compiled binaries
• make install - Install to /usr/local/bin (optional)
• make uninstall - Remove from /usr/local/bin

Usage

./initiative

Controls

• A - Add combatant
• D - Delete selected combatant
• H - Edit HP (heal/damage)
• C - Toggle conditions (opens interactive menu)
• N - Next turn
• P - Previous turn
• R - Reroll initiative
• U - Duplicate selected combatant (with auto-numbering and initiative rolling)
• X - Roll death save (manual, for selected combatant)
• T - Stabilize combatant (Spare the Dying/Medicine/Healer's Kit)
• E - Export combat log
• Z - Undo last action
• S - Save game state
• L - Load game state
• ↑/↓ or k/j - Navigate selection
• ? - Show help menu
• Q - Quit

Game Rules

• Players: Go unconscious at 0 HP (not dead)
• Enemies: Die at 0 HP
• Initiative: Sorted by initiative roll, then dexterity modifier
• Conditions: Can be applied with optional durations (in rounds)

Death Saving Throws (5e Rules)

When a player character drops to 0 HP, they begin making death saving throws:

• Automatic: Death saves are rolled automatically at the start of each turn when at 0 HP
• Roll Results:
  • Natural 20: Regain 1 HP immediately
  • Natural 1: Two failures
  • 10-19: Success (toward 3 successes = stable)
  • 2-9: Failure (toward 3 failures = death)
• 3 Successes: Become stable (still at 0 HP, unconscious, but no longer making saves)
• 3 Failures: Die
• Damage at 0 HP: Regular damage = 1 failure, Critical hit = 2 failures
• Instant Death: If damage reduces you to 0 HP and remaining damage ≥ max HP, instant death (no saves)
• Stabilization: Use T key to stabilize (simulates Spare the Dying, Medicine check, or Healer's Kit)
• Healing: Any healing resets death saves and removes unconscious condition

Interactive Condition Menu

Press C while a combatant is selected to open an interactive overlay menu:

• Navigate with UP/DOWN or k/j keys
• Toggle conditions with ENTER or SPACE
• Set duration with d key (for active conditions)
• Close with ESC or q
• Shows all 15 conditions with visual indicators for active ones

File Locations

• Save file: ~/.dnd_tracker_save.txt (or current directory if HOME is not set)
• Log export: ~/combat_log_export.txt (or current directory if HOME is not set)

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.