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Keeping things very organized (the gamemastery initiative tracker or something along those lines) helps a lot, at least for my games.
One thing I'd definitely do is make sure your players understand that they need to really try to keep things moving along. If they have a rules question, they should be looking it up on other people's turn; if they can't find it before their turn, they'll just have to take your ruling for the time being.
I also try to anticipate PC strategy and jot down some quick notes of how I expect the battle to play out, with monster strategy notes as well, so I don't have to stop combat to consider creature tactics.
I've also considered awarding minor amounts of bonus XP to players who don't hold combat up. I have problems sometimes with players getting carried away with conversations that don't relate to the game, but when they have to wait an extra session because they have 4950 xp while the others who didn't interrupt got that last 50 to level, it really makes them stop and think about how interesting that conversation was and whether or not they want to do that in the future.
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I regularly have around 7 people in my campaigns and tend to make the following houseruled changes-
I use consistent initiative throughout fights for both PCs and monsters. Sometimes I keep the party at the same initiatives throughout most of a dungeon / set of encounters, only having them re-roll them when they run into an important / particularly dangerous battle.
If the monsters are nearly dead and look like they won't be inflicting much more damage on the PCs before they go down and don't really have a shot at escape / plan to escape, I declare them dead to save on combat time.
If there is a combat that the players will almost definitely one-round, such as the party running into two surprised goblins in a chamber, I just declare the monsters as dead without running through combat (providing the party announces that they're fighting / killing them).
I let players pre-roll actions if they're fairly sure of what they'll be doing. If they end up doing something else, then the pre-rolled action is just used for the next time they do whatever they were originally planning to. You probably wouldn't want to do this if you think your players might cheat, but I've run into almost no one who actually cheats at Pathfinder / D&D.
If there are large groups of mooks (at least five, usually at least 7-10, definitely if it gets much higher than 10), I perform the following changes. They all operate on the same initiative (this one can even work for smaller groups of the same things). They use what I call 'rolling HP', meaning that damage left over when one is killed rolls onto the next one, with whatever monster is being targeted having the HP of the weakest member. This makes certain AOE spells much more deadly and lets some characters kill things outside their reach via rolling damage, but I find that it works well if you describe things in a cinematic manner and want combats against large numbers of weaker monsters to go faster. The random mooks also use shared save rolls for AOE effects that require saves if I think it fits.
I write out enemy HP totals for things I expect the PCs to encounter and fight in advance and keep spots for group / individual initiatives next to them, generally with the initiatives pre-rolled. These are in a spiral notebook, with encounters that are near each other being on the same pages. I track enemy HP and initiative in here, and I write an initiative list, in order, with PCs included, in the margin once the PCs start encountering the enemies on the page and have rolled initiative.
I hope some of these help!
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It's not too bad.. but are there any tricks to speed it up?
As mentioned by w0nkothesane, clear communication with your players is key to getting them working with you. However, there are a lot of tricks out there so I'm sure I will be repeating some that you have already heard:
Instead of making separate rolls, have your players roll the dice for attack & damage (and concealment, spell resistance, etc.) at the same time using color coded dice for multiple attacks & damage.
Use initiative cards and announce the current player's turn and the next player's turn at the same time so the next player will know to be ready.
Assign a player to be the Buff/De-buff announcer, that is, someone who keeps track of all the group bonuses like Bless, Inspire Courage, Bane, and helps other players to remember to add in those bonuses.
Don't rewind the action to correct a mistake because you or a player forgot to add a bonus for flanking or bless or whatever ...unless the group is verging on a TPK.
Use an initiative board which can be seen by all the players so they know when they act and consider putting one of your player's in charge of it so you have less to handle.
Don't roll initiative for each NPC or monster separately, put them in small groups of the same type, and have them act on the same initiative count.
Familiars, animal companions, and summoned creatures act on the same initiative order as their master.
If a player is taking a long time to decide what to do, tell him/her that you are going to mark their PC as delaying. Remember to tell the player that they can jump back into combat at anytime when they decide on their action. This is a good middle ground between completely skipping a player (which feels like punishment) and waiting indefinitely for a decision.
Limit table crosstalk, cell phones, unnecessary laptop usage, etc. These have a way of derailing a game during time sensitive moments. And by limiting laptops I mean, ask people to refrain from searching YouTube for that fight song from a Lord of the Rings clip, or that exact quote from Ghostbusters, or this really cool picture...
Ask spellcasters to limit the number of summoned creatures in each combat. In some cases this is not possible because of PC class.
The use of spell cards or spell spreadsheets which list the range, duration, casting time, saves, & reference page number is very helpful.
Use area of effect templates for spells with a large area such as entangle, fireball, cone of cold etc. Give the templates to the players so they can plan where their spells will go off while others are taking their turn.
Have players keep track of the damage they do to specific monsters.
Assign a player to look up rules questions as they occur so you can concentrate on keeping combat running.
On minor issues don't be afraid to say "I don't know how that works off the top of my head, but for right now we'll do it this way, and we'll look it up after combat to get the right answer."
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I'd say yes to letting players know monster initiative. They'll figure it out in general anyway just from the order things act in, so letting them know so they can help manage things shouldn't be a problem if you want to do that.
Edit: I'll also second the suggestion to have cohorts, summons, and the like go on their controller's initiative.
I'm going to take a chance and post another question in this thread, maybe I won't have to create another for it. ( this is josh as well, finally figured out how to do alias.
One of my players wants to hire mercenaries. How do I do stats for them? He looks like he wants to do crafting and then hire as many as possible etc. Of course I told him it will be limited on who is available and if they are worried they will die (if others have died etc). My question is, where do I have stat blocks for mercenaries? How much would the more expensive ones cost? In Pathfinder it says:
Hireling, trained 3 sp per day
Hireling, untrained 1 sp per day
What stats would these represent? Any tips?
If I don't have luck in this thread I'll just repost later.
Thanks for all the wisdom so far, I still have a lot to learn as a GM..
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My question is, where do I have stat blocks for mercenaries? How much would the more expensive ones cost?
What stats would these represent? Any tips?
The cost for a Trained Hireling (3 sp/day) covers a 1st level NPC Commoner, Warrior, Adept, or Expert and the rules for giving them stats start on pg 450 of the PF RPG core rulebook. Use the chart on pg 454 to outfit the NPC.
Of course it all depends on your players & type of game, but in general allowing a PC to hire mercenaries isn't always a good idea in my humble opinion. Except in the case when your players are looking to fill a class role that isn't filled by another player. For example, in a party of all fighters & wizards hiring a healer or trap-finding rogue would be smart. But if those roles were already filled by another player, hiring an mercenary to do the same job steals the spotlight from that player and it can change the group dynamics by giving one player essentially two PCs to play. Generally it's easier to create an NPC at the average level of the group to fill the role(s) needed with that NPC receiving an equal share of the loot at the end of the adventure. This solution resolves many of the problems presented by hiring mercenaries quickly & easily without upsetting game dynamics.
However, if you decide you'd like to try using mercenaries, here are some basics to think about:
Mercenaries are not dumb, unless you are specifically looking for that, and then players suffer the consequences for having a dumb figher who goes after the unarmed Kobold instead of the barbarian attacking the wizard, or a dumb cleric who doesn't heal when s/he should, or a rogue that forgets to look for traps, or a wizard that can't cast many spells, etc. It's more trouble than it's worth.
Because mercenaries aren't dumb, they will not be treated like day laborers or field hands. They are highly skilled risk-takers putting their lives on the line for a potentially large profit gains and this is the attitude with which they approach their profession. As such, they often demand an equal share of the loot obtained by the adventure -- they shared equally in the risk to get the loot, they will logically want an equal share in the loot itself. In short mercenaries are expensive.
Additionally, mercenaries aren't mindless meat shields. They expect to routinely combat creatures at roughly their same level and expect to be treated fairly. If they are often fighting monsters higher than their CR and often being thrust into harms way unfairly, for example as a test subject to see if a trap is disarmed, their attitudes will shift to unfriendly and they may decide to re-negotiate the terms of their employment and/or quit. In worst case scenarios they may turn on the party itself or leave the party stranded in a critical moment. The moral here is that mercenaries are not second class citizens and are not to be used as a short-cut for players to avoid danger & risk to their own PCs.
Mercenaries of higher level than the party should be avoided. They steal the focus of the game, they cause balancing issues for the DM and logically they can earn more money with employers on their own level that go after big reward endeavors so why would they waste their time with the small potatoes the PCs are offering?
In using mercenaries:
First, you have to decide if the PCs are in a city big enough to support the types of mercenaries they are looking for. Without getting complicated, the bigger the city, the better the chances for finding the right type of mercenary. If you assume they are in a reasonably big enough city a Diplomacy 10 +1/level of mercenary required will allow the party to find the right Mercenary for the job. Non-human mercenaries or mercenaries with exotic fighting abilities should add +2 to +5 to the DC of the roll.
Professional mercenaries are more expensive than trained hirelings and you can use the stat block listed on pg. 453 of the core rulebook for Heroic NPCs to create them. You could use the average starting gold for their class and then follow the table on page 454 to purchase gear. If they are unsatisfied with the gear the NPC comes with, the PCs may have to purchase gear for the mercenary out of their own pocket.
Lastly, if you have access to the D&D 3.5 book Arms & Equipment guide the rules for hiring mercenaries start on pg. 65 and it covers everything I have touched on here and more in much greater detail.
Hopefully, that will help to get you started.
Keeping things very organized (the gamemastery initiative tracker or something along those lines) helps a lot, at least for my games.
+1 for the Gamemastery Initiative Tracker
Keeping things very organized (the gamemastery initiative tracker or something along those lines) helps a lot, at least for my games.+1 for the Gamemastery Initiative Tracker
I use initiative cards myself, but I find sometimes you just can't help a player needing to find something. What I find helps is going down initative asking for a two or three word turn description:
move, attackmove, cast spell
cast spell, draw weapon
I give the players the AC or DC. When the players turn loops around to the begining again, unless something major has changed, the player is ready to describe what happened with their character. I also have three 30-second timers from chessex. It keeps combat fast, forces plaers to make a decision (like real life), and keeps things flowing.
Most spell casters only miss their turn once before being prepared the next time. It takes two loops per round of combat,but keeps things moving so players don't get bored. Just what works for us...
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RPG Superstar 2010 Top 32
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Is it generally acceptable to let players see monster initative? I'm thinking about letting a player handle init, and letting another do buffs/debuffs. This way I run the enemies combat without worrying about the more mundane logistics.
I don't tell them in the first round, and interrupt the order to say that a monster takes his turn. This freaks them out and leads to a lot of delays in the first round these days ;-)
After a monster has gone, I stick him in the initiative tracker and the initiative tracking player call his turn when it comes round again.
I'm going to take a chance and post another question in this thread, maybe I won't have to create another for it. ( this is josh as well, finally figured out how to do alias.
One of my players wants to hire mercenaries. How do I do stats for them? He looks like he wants to do crafting and then hire as many as possible etc. Of course I told him it will be limited on who is available and if they are worried they will die (if others have died etc). My question is, where do I have stat blocks for mercenaries? How much would the more expensive ones cost? In Pathfinder it says:
Hireling, trained 3 sp per day
Hireling, untrained 1 sp per dayWhat stats would these represent? Any tips?
If I don't have luck in this thread I'll just repost later.
Thanks for all the wisdom so far, I still have a lot to learn as a GM..
The mercs should be priced by their level, and I would not allow all of them at the same time. Maybe 1 or 2 if the party needs them. I would use the 3.5 DMG for premade NPC's(fighers) for the head merc and convert them to pathfinder. Warriors can also work.
My question is, where do I have stat blocks for mercenaries? How much would the more expensive ones cost?
What stats would these represent? Any tips?
The cost for a Trained Hireling (3 sp/day) covers a 1st level NPC Commoner, Warrior, Adept, or Expert and the rules for giving them stats start on pg 450 of the PF RPG core rulebook. Use the chart on pg 454 to outfit the NPC.
Of course it all depends on your players & type of game, but in general allowing a PC to hire mercenaries isn't always a good idea in my humble opinion. Except in the case when your players are looking to fill a class role that isn't filled by another player. For example, in a party of all fighters & wizards hiring a healer or trap-finding rogue would be smart. But if those roles were already filled by another player, hiring an mercenary to do the same job steals the spotlight from that player and it can change the group dynamics by giving one player essentially two PCs to play. Generally it's easier to create an NPC at the average level of the group to fill the role(s) needed with that NPC receiving an equal share of the loot at the end of the adventure. This solution resolves many of the problems presented by hiring mercenaries quickly & easily without upsetting game dynamics.
However, if you decide you'd like to try using mercenaries, here are some basics to think about:
Mercenaries are not dumb, unless you are specifically looking for that, and then players suffer the consequences for having a dumb figher who goes after the unarmed Kobold instead of the barbarian attacking the wizard, or a dumb cleric who doesn't heal when s/he should, or a rogue that forgets to look for traps, or a wizard that can't cast many spells, etc. It's more trouble than it's worth.
Because mercenaries aren't dumb, they will not be treated like day laborers or field hands. They are highly skilled risk-takers putting their lives on the line for a potentially large profit gains and this is the attitude with which they...
Yeah, what he said.
I do a countdown and the initiative tracker writes down your init as you specify its your go. When it gets to the monsters go I give him their init.
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I run a game where we have 10 players plus a bear companion for the druid. To touch on some points:
1. Definitely use some sort of mechanical device to keep track of initiative order otherwise its a nightmare. I personally use initiative cards, since I also track all the pertinent skills and stats for players so I can make secret rolls for perception checks, etc. There is no way you can keep that info in your head for that many players like you can for 4-5 players. Initiative cards held by the DM also allow you to surprise the players with monster initiative in the first round.
2. Limit the number of outsider NPCs. This means no leadership feat, and I limit summoned creatures by the party as a whole to 1. This means that if the druid has one summoned, the wizard is SOL. Absolutely no NPCs, hirelings, etc, unless I need them there for game purposes, and even then I attempt to make them non-combatants.
3. Make sure each of your players get their fair share of DM time or spotlight time during the session.
4. Players don't have a timer to act in during combat rounds, but I definitely put the verbal thumbscrews on them if they are slow to respond.
5. If I ask a player something about a spell or ability (range, duration, save, etc), and they don't know it, they delay their action until they have the information. This encourages players to be completely prepared info wise when casting spells.
If you game with a laptop at hand and are comfortable with constantly referring to it during combat, there are some automated combat/initiative trackers you can look for. I know PC Gen comes with a function called "GM Gen" that will track everyone's initiative for you, as well as your NPC's damage.
Beyond initiative tracking, making sure everyone knows stuff like what AC to hit and so on will speed things up. Sometimes it is more "realistic" to just tell people whether they hit or not, but if you're trying to speed things up, knowing all target/difficulty numbers helps a lot.
Other stuff:
Have spellcasters keep their spells on index cards. They can keep the spells they have prepared at hand, and then it makes it a lot easier/faster for them to pick out what they can cast, rather than have to look up the spell in the book, which often can take a lot of time.
Likewise for the GM--if you have ample preparation time, make sure you have ALL of your NPCs/monster's abilities on hand and know what they do so you don't have to look something up halfway through combat. For my games, when I have time, I make my own custom statblocks, using the online PRD to copy-paste spell descriptions and "universal monster abilities" so I don't have to spend time looking them up when I'm in the middle of a fight. While I'd love to run straight from the Bestiary sometimes, statblock entries like, "As Beast Shape II" is frikkin' useless to me when that means I have to then look up Beast Shape II in the main rulebook (and then with that particular example, then have to look up Beast Shape I, then have to look up Polymorph rules, etc., then go BACK to the Bestiary to cross reference with Change Shape... ). Likewise--it's great I know that someone has Greater Spell Foo as a spell-like ability, but it sucks if I don't actually know what Greater Spell Foo actually does. So just making sure I have all that stuff right in front of me in one place when I run helps me immensely.
All good ideas. I really like the rolling hit points. That makes it a lot easier to track!
An Initiative Captain/Buff Trackmeister is a good idea. They can also remind other players in large groups when their action is coming up.
A significant delay can be the DM thinking about tactics for their own monsters. Try to either write some out in advance and/or assign another person to be Monster Wrangler. They can study the tactics and worry about the details.
Definitely roll all dice at once and preroll where possible.
Handle item division and information about same in an email list or message board group or the like wherever possible. (I.e. if you finish for the night with a battle, handle all this stuff before the next session.)
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As a DM who's regularly had a table of 5-10 players over 16+ years I know for certain it takes me the longest to act running all the monsters. As such having pre-made tactics can help, but you all know the saying about plans and contact with the enemy!
Initiative should be the simplest thing to track and make it the PC's job to do that. Of all things stress to the players that they are responsible for knowing what their character can do. Even though the DM should know most if not all the rule sets the Player should be able to explain everything you need to know about a spell, class ability, Magic item, or combat maneuver when it comes up on their turn.
Calling a combat over when they monsters are facing certain defeat is also a new thing I've been trying to do. It does save a good amount of time to write their treasure on an index card so you can just hand it over to the players. Generally it's a fluff description of the magic items and art objects and the count of the coins. I also keep a second one handy with the game info of the loot when they Appraise or Identify out of combat. Or you can just list the DC's needed for those checks and when they make it have them flip the card over!
--Jingle Bell Vrock!
I am running a game with 7 players. I like my combat to be fast so that people don't wait around too long. It's not too bad.. but are there any tricks to speed it up?
I've run with 9 before, so I feel the pain.
Some tricks I used to help keep it moving:
Initiative - If you got a mob of the same creature, just have 1 initiative for them all. Try to keep all of them on the same roll unless there's some kind of BBEG in the mix.
Tactics - Have your baddies preplanned with an idea of how they are attacking/defending when the PCs are around; like if there's one noticeable tank, send more that way to start, instead of 1-1 to start. Most baddies aren't INT 2. Don't play em that way.
Rolls - Don't be afraid to crush a roll/other number (AC, saving throw) if an encounter is going south and it'll end up going much longer than you think it should. I ended up running a 3 hour long fight once with 5 hobgoblins in half plate because I didn't do this.
Pre-rolls - Allow the players to do some pre-rolling of attacks/actions. Then all they need to do is see if it hit and tell you damage instead of rolling, confirming, rolling damage, adding it, et al.
Pre-write - When I was running, I had the big stats for my baddies written out beforehand, so I had AC, HP, attacks and any special ability notes handy. This helped me to not have to dig into the manuals to find the simple stuff until it was absolutely necessary or there was a lull in play.
Hope these help somehow.
If you game with a laptop at hand and are comfortable with constantly referring to it during combat, there are some automated combat/initiative trackers you can look for. I know PC Gen comes with a function called "GM Gen" that will track everyone's initiative for you, as well as your NPC's damage.
Beyond initiative tracking, making sure everyone knows stuff like what AC to hit and so on will speed things up. Sometimes it is more "realistic" to just tell people whether they hit or not, but if you're trying to speed things up, knowing all target/difficulty numbers helps a lot.
Other stuff:
Have spellcasters keep their spells on index cards. They can keep the spells they have prepared at hand, and then it makes it a lot easier/faster for them to pick out what they can cast, rather than have to look up the spell in the book, which often can take a lot of time.
Likewise for the GM--if you have ample preparation time, make sure you have ALL of your NPCs/monster's abilities on hand and know what they do so you don't have to look something up halfway through combat. For my games, when I have time, I make my own custom statblocks, using the online PRD to copy-paste spell descriptions and "universal monster abilities" so I don't have to spend time looking them up when I'm in the middle of a fight. While I'd love to run straight from the Bestiary sometimes, statblock entries like, "As Beast Shape II" is frikkin' useless to me when that means I have to then look up Beast Shape II in the main rulebook (and then with that particular example, then have to look up Beast Shape I, then have to look up Polymorph rules, etc., then go BACK to the Bestiary to cross reference with Change Shape... ). Likewise--it's great I know that someone has Greater Spell Foo as a spell-like ability, but it sucks if I don't actually know what Greater Spell Foo actually does. So just making sure I have all that stuff right in front of me in one place when I run helps me immensely.
1) LJP has some nice, inexpensive spell cards for sale right here on the Paizo site (all except wizard/ sorceror) and they help keep the game flowing.
2) I allow other players to look up Q&A stuff in the book while we are resolving someone else's turn. Then they just point to the rule and we can get it resolved without much of a delay.
3) Players should be paying attention to the game, especially in combat. I expect players to have their ation ready when their initiative comes up, or have a simple question to answer. Anyone who takes too long (mental count of 10) to announce their action is flustered for the turn. (Obviosy, we drop this requirement for new players or if something COMPLETELY unexpected happend just before their initiative, like the fluffy bunny familiar polymorphs into the Tarrasque...well, actually, there is only one action for that...RUN!)
4) I allow the players to roll the dice for any friendly NPCs in combat. We just go around the table in order, so if Aaron rolled for the Witch last turn, then Rob does it this turn, and so on. Unless it's a dedicated NPC for one player. Either way, letting the players roll for friendly NPCs makes them feel like the NPCs are part of the part and not just meat shields.
5) In my campaigns, NPCs always expect pay, healing, AND some part of the loot...
My problem I've had running a game with 7+ people is that they loose interest quickly. I like the suggestions above and have tried some in the past. At one point (when we played with the Spell Compendium and other source books) things were really bogged down. If a player wasn't ready on their turn they were skipped.
I greatly relied on the other players when rule related questions, spell questions and "what page is this on?" questions pop up which helps speed up combat.
However some of my players are easy distracted and that slows down things like you wouldn't believe.
If there are cohorts, they go when the PC goes, if they go at all. Monsters all go on the same initiative.
If I have a monster or a bunch of the same type hit multiple players (like cleave/great cleave) I roll the damage once. This seems to speed up combat.
Sorry if I regurgitated stuff from above...
Back when I was DM'ing 8+ per game, I was sorely tempted to impose a "if you have to look it up, you aren't doing it" rule. As clichéd as it may sound, dithering about rules or looking up some spell, standard action or class feature can really put the breaks on combat.
These days, I consider "knowing" that stuff to be homework. Granted, rule disputes happen, but imo it's better to make a quick decision, err on the side of the PCs and then clarify it between sessions, than to drag out all the books and quibble about a rule point (of course, I also game/dm with a defense attorney, so your mileage may vary.)
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An initiative board is a must. I made my own using a magnetic white board. I subdivided part of the board to show initiatives from 0 to 30. I use another part of the board to show opponents' Armor Class and to write buffing numbers. I bought some cheap, plain magnets and each character has a magnet with their character's starting initial. When we roll for initiative, I just stick the magnets on and add in the monsters and we're off. To simplify, monsters of the same type have the same initiative roll. Then I just put the board where everyone can see it.
When a player starts his turn, I have him say what he plans to do. Then he starts rolling attacks and damage. Unless there is a reason to wait (for example, the outcome would effect the next player's actions), the next player starts his turn. Players are encouraged to roll attacks and damage with color coded dice. I sometimes pre-roll a list of damages for monster attacks if the battle is particular complicated. We generally grind to a halt for critical hits and misses because we use the paizo cards and everyone finds it very entertaining.
If a player isn't ready for his turn, after a few seconds, I say that he obviously needs to delay, and we keep going.
All that said, I have one player that really slows things up no matter what. He's not terribly quick with the numbers and the more pressure you put on him, the slower he goes. I try to strike a balance with him. I've even gone so far as to create a table, so that he can just look at the AC and see exactly what he needs to get to hit on his attacks (THACO flashback).
It really helps to have a clear image of the battle. We use miniatures and a large battlemap and occasionally pieces from worldworksgames to create levels, but players can get confused about where the bad guys are. I used to use miniatures for the bad guys, but now I use 1-inch color counters that you can buy as math manipulatives from teaching supply companies. You can use different colors to represent different groups of monsters. "Okay, the black counters are drow soldiers, the red is a drow cleric, and the two green are drow sorcerors." Everybody can see at a glance what the situation is. This has been the best addition to my game in a long time. I bought a bag of 200 for about $15. I call it my Bag O' Minions.
Anyway, good luck. I've been playing with a party of 7 for about 20 years. It can be done.
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+1 Mama Loufing
I ran a game with 7 of us for 10 or so months and this is my advice
Useful tip #1
GET A DRY ERASE BOARD!!!
- trust me, this has improved my game 10 fold sense i got one. It improved my games so much, i bought two. Two of my friends did the same, one of them bought a huge (24x32) dry erase board and hung it on his wall in the game room.
- I don't use mini's for large groups (ever). Slows combat down way too much. Instead, draw a quick diagram of combat on one board, then write down initiatives and notes on the other.
Useful tip #2
GATHER ALL "RULES-LAWYERS" OF THE GROUP TO HELP
- every group has 1, i had a group with 6 players + me and 3 of the players knew the rules through and through as did I. Gather them up and get them to help.
- Have one (probably with a laptop/pc) to keep track of buffs/durations/etc. If you have access to internet then bookmark/tab open http://www.d20pfsrd.com/Home for fast access to rules. PDF's help, but can slow down a game if you don't already have it open to the right page.
Useful tip #3
BE PREPARED PLAYERS
- ask your players to keep accurate track of their abilities. At least have a page and book reference for each spell/magic item/feat/etc. Such as Fireball (p 283). This way, if a ruling is absolutely necessary, or if the player simply needs to remind himself/herself of what it does EXACTLY...they can in 5 seconds.
My last thread was so hopeful thanks to the community response I figure I would come here and ask another question. Before I asked how to get into Path. I am not running the Runelords campaign with pathfinder. Using the new stats for whatever it mentions out of the monster manual.
I am running a game with 7 players. I like my combat to be fast so that people don't wait around too long. It's not too bad.. but are there any tricks to speed it up? 2 players going at once is one thing I considered, even then one might way to see what the other does.. but if they are doing two different things then they would go ahead (this is dependent on initiative but normally they are paired up so it would happen a couple of times a round.
Thanks!
Gamemastery Initiative Card System is the greatest tool ever invented for DMs. Just use that and don't let your more blathery PCs steal the show - manage the game with a steadfast hand...
I have been reading all of these and I am running another session tonight. I already know it'll help and I'm sure it'll speed it up.
Thanks.
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I have been reading all of these and I am running another session tonight. I already know it'll help and I'm sure it'll speed it up.
Thanks.
One more thing I forgot to add, I frequently roll initiative for the monsters ahead of time. Whether I roll it behind a DM screen or ahead of time and have a init chart ready, the real issue is that I don't abuse my power as DM to ruin the fun. When I have a lot of NPCs & monsters to manage, it just saves time and gets everyone into the action quicker so that they don't get redirected while I'm rolling 10 different sets of NPC init.
However, not all groups would be comfortable with this and as a DM you have to establish trust & fairness. I have an "open screen" policy. If anyone wants me to make any roll, for any reason, on the table in front of everyone I will be happy to oblige.
- Have one (probably with a laptop/pc) to keep track of buffs/durations/etc. If you have access to internet then bookmark/tab open http://www.d20pfsrd.com/Home
I do have a netbook with internet connection behind the DM screen when I run my stuff. This looks very useful, thanks!
Edit: Might have to forgot to mention this is the OP, I figured out Alias finally.
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- Have one (probably with a laptop/pc) to keep track of buffs/durations/etc. If you have access to internet then bookmark/tab open http://www.d20pfsrd.com/Home
I do have a netbook with internet connection behind the DM screen when I run my stuff. This looks very useful, thanks!
Edit: Might have to forgot to mention this is the OP, I figured out Alias finally.
No problem, glad to help. That's been one of the most useful websites sense " http://www.d20srd.org/ " a 3.5 website.
Anyways, good luck with the game and remember to have fun. It seems like a no brain'er, but you wouldn't believe the reactions i get sometimes during a game.