A combat encounter is a type of encounter in which the player characters fight against one or more other creatures, whether monsters or NPCs.
A Dungeon Master begins a combat encounter by determining whether either the player character party and their enemies are surprised, based on each group's actions and level of readiness.
Each player then rolls initiative individually for his or her own character, and the DM rolls initiative for each type of monster, with monsters of the same type sharing the same initiative roll.
Combat then proceeds one round at a time, with each combatant receiving one turn per round in decreasing initiative order.
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It is recommended to have 2 players helping the DM to make his work easier. One player can take note of the initiatives and keep track of it. This player will help letting everyone else know whose's turn is next. The other player can help with Ongoing damage at the begining of the player's turn and to remind her to make the saving throw at the end of it. This way you help the DM to deal with combat more efficiently.