I occasionally allude to this in rulebooks but a principle that I try to apply to my rules whenever possible is Absolute Timing:

This is an approach that tries to simplify rules interactions to discrete steps in order to avoid confusion or complex situations, even if it occasionally means emphasizing the game rules over the realism of the situation.

Absolute Timing means the following points. It should be noted that these are not absolute and may be deviated from when the situation really warrants it but they serve as a block for me to stop and ask if the deviation is really required for the game to work.

It is useful to help figure out how a complicated situation in a game is supposed to work.

It can also be helpful if you are creating house rules or scenarios for a NWG title.

* Actions are not queued up or declared in advance. The player selects and resolves one action before selecting and resolving the next.

Example: You do not have to declare the targets for 3 units at the start of the shooting phase.

* One action is fully resolved before the next action is declared.

Example: If you shoot at a unit and as a result they retreat, they may be out of range when the next action is declared.

Games with opportunity fire mechanics have an obvious exception to this with regards to movement.

* When an action is resolved, all figures are assumed to be in the exact positions they occupy on the table.

Example: When I figure an area effect weapon, it strikes the exact figures that the blast area covers at the moment I shoot it, even if a figure moved through the area earlier in the turn.