mages versus orcs

Hive

Her special ability is broken; the initiative bonus is negligible. It should either not manifest at all or provide a minimal bonus (she only moves before X if their initiative is the same).

with skillful spellcasting

It only reduces the spread on the initiative scale after casting, not before.

with empathy

Well, if there are fast creatures, and mages can have them thanks to artifacts...

with a sharp mind

Well, that will help in any case.