A group of kobolds, is played by a player, and finds a group of guards in the woods at night. The player divides his kobolds into two groups: one hiding near the guards, and the other sneaking ahead.
The guards spot the first group, but not the other.
Does either side get a surprise round? (My thought is the kobolds gave up their surprise round by maneuvering, and if they weren't spotted they would still have gotten one)
I ruled (incorrectly) that the guards get a surprise round because they noticed the sneaking kobolds, but the kobolds didn't have any way of realizng they had been spotted.
I think the correct ruling is that nobody gets a surprise round, but combat starts at the initiative of the first guard to act (with those that went before him effectively holding their action). I also think the group 2 kobolds who weren't spotted should not get a surprise round, but have all the advantages of being hidden and enemies unaware of them.
Is this a correct interpretation of the rules? What should have changed?