"you can’t use it again for X rounds."

[Ubertron_X]

theservantsllcleanitup wrote:

Darksol the Painbringer wrote:

Mathematically speaking, 6.25% of parties facing enemies with breath weapons will face three breath weapons in a row

No, 6.25% of GMs that use breath weapon enemies will have the option of using a breath weapon three times in a row. There's a huge difference between those two things, and treating them as the same is disingenuous at best.

Allowing potential consecutive breaths ratchets up tension while not in any way forcing you to do anything. The players don't know what you rolled. If you want to wait another round, just... Do it. It's only as OP as you want it to be, this isn't a video game.

When going down the path of meta reasons, player agenda and the ability to make informed decisions (or not) can be a boon as well as a bane.

If players know that there is a one round cooldown they can and usually will switch in between defensive and offensive action (same as for most enemies that already have used their reaction this round). On the contrary if players know that there is no minimum cooldown they will usually stay on the defensive throughout.

At least that is what our group of wargamers would certainly do.

So if you and your group are more into thrilling heroics a one round cooldown will most certainly be beneficial to your playstyle. No minimum cooldown will carry the benefit of suspense but may also have the group acting more defensively, which may or may not benefit your desired playstyle.