What are the key basic rules for a beginner?

[Whump]

Hello,

I'm a GM, new to the OGL/Pathfinder rules system. I've done plenty of GM'ing before but some years ago and never with a d20 ruleset. So I am fairly comfortable with the creative/storytelling aspect, but having run through the beginner box with my players recently I really struggled with the complexity of the ruleset.

Basically I found myself handwaving an awful lot for the sake of keeping things moving.

Could any long-time players give me a run through of what the most important 'everyday' rules are? I think I roughly have a hang of combat - attack bonuses, initiative, etc.
The difficult areas were that we tended to make perception checks all-powerful ie one perception check finds, sees and hears everything there is to be found in a given area, and that we struggled with breaking movement and turn order on the game mat between combat and exploration sections of the game.

What are the bread and butter rules of your games? And how can I quickly get a hang of them before gradually introducing the more complicated stuff? Is there a guide for the common rules and situations that come up in a dungeon, for example?

Thank you for your time!

[SmiloDan]

Basically, you have to take turns and not go all at once.

You roll 1d20 and add a modifier for (pretty much) everything.
(It also helps if you know where stuff is on your character sheet.)

Also key is know what you can do in a turn.
1. A standard action and a move action.
2. Two move actions.
3. A full round action.

Knowing what the different actions are is also key.

Knowing the 6 ability scores, and what each of them is used for, makes the game a lot easier too.

If you are a spellcaster, keep 3x5 cards handy and write down the basics for the spells you cast. If you summon a monster, also have the monster stats written down before you play.

There are a lot of "keywords" or jargon or slang involved. The more of this you learn, the easier it will be.

Try things. Even if you fail, you learn. The more you learn, the easier it is for everyone.

[Whump]

Thanks - I will bear that in mind!
All of us in our group are learning pathfinder at once in fact, so failure and learning are definitely happening. It's more that I'm not quite sure if there's a 'right' way to do things that we have somehow missed.

If you or others have further thoughts I'd be happy to hear them! :)

[mcherm]

Rules:

1. Tell a cool, exciting story together.

2. Have fun.

All the rest is optional at my gaming table.

[CrackedOzy]

There is a primer handout in the GMG that would probably be useful to you.

[Dolanar]

One way to avoid making Perception checks the be all end all of "I win" make out a small list of what your DC's mean in your game. In the area your in, when a character makes a perception check for listening think to yourself "What background noises would the characters have around them?" If they are in a cave system, perhaps there is the sound of water around them, in a spooky house at night, maybe lots of crickets. Take these small factors into account & adjust the DC's accordingly if there is some loud sounds around, boost the DC a bit.

I know that for a player its very easy to get a super high Perception very quickly, I have seen +15's by level 5 by a player who is geared for Perception. if this is a problem, you can always ask for marching orders & if the high Perception player is not at the forefront (many times they won't be) give the people in front of them perception checks first.

[ValkyrieStorm]

From a newby player perspective, one of the key rules that aided me in my gaming sessions is understanding movement. How far can I move (for example, movement speed)? How movement works (for example, diagonal distance verses straight line distance) What effect my move has (for example, attack of opportunity or not)?

I'm working on a keyword/jargon list for myself (as SmiloDan mentioned) because not knowing what some of the specific terminology means for example, "to command" in reference to a magic item is very specific), comes in handy.

Also like SmiloDan mentioned, what you can do during a turn is also key. What counts as a move action? standard action? free action? full round action? As well as, knowing what the difference is between a turn and round, and difference between things like a surprise round and regular round especially in what actions you can take.

Those are just the first things that came to mind.

[Huppolitan]

Perception is actually helpful for DMs, because most of the stuff being perceived (little clues, secret doors, invisible foes) are actually things the DM wants the PCs to find to keep the story going or to keep combat moving. As a PC, I've found Perception most useful in allowing me to act in surprise rounds and in locating invisible stuff before the Glitterdust spell gets popped out.

Remember (a) that there are lots of modifiers to Perception checks (i.e., closed doors impose a -5 to listen), (b) that seeing a foe doesn't mean you know everything about it (that takes Knowledge checks), (c) that if you don't say you are looking for a trap or a secret door you aren't (with some exceptions) and (d) that perceiving a foe doesn't end the encounter at all . . . if the foe is nasty enough. Heh.

As far as play goes, most groups have a conversational style (talking without taking formal turns, making sure everyone is listened to) through basic description, movement and social encounters. When the duke shouts, "Seize them!" or the enamel box starts starts ticking and smoking, the DM says, "Roll initiative," and everyone goes in initiative order, high to low, from that point on until the end of the encounter. DMs usually have all their NPCs go at the same time to avoid confusion. In rounds, play is much easier with a battlemat to figure out where everyone and everything is.

The most basic combat issues to understand:
--How Charge works (to get the melee dudes to the front line)
--Cover and concealment for ranged attacks (it takes quite a few feats to make ranged combat easy: Point Blank Shot and Precise Shot are strongly encouraged)
--What happens when someone falls to zero HP or below (I still have to look this up occasionally)
--Know the first two spells your baddie will cast, and encourage PC spellcasters to know the basics (casting time, DC, effect, range) for one or two as well, or have them written on the character sheet or an index card. The level 1 cleric should know how Bless works, the wizard how far he can shoot his Magic Missile. Feel free to have your baddie avoid spells you personally don't have a strong handle on.

Most-misunderstood Level 1 spell: probably Charm Person. The easiest adjudication in combat is to have the subject essentially drop out of the combat as he or she tries to convince the two sides towards which she feels friendly to cease their senseless conflict (my thoughts -- other players/DMs certainly have other ways to handle this). Any overt threat ends the spell.

Above all, enjoy yourself! The story is key, and you've got that down, so you're already there.

[Whump]

Thanks everyone all of that is fantastic and will certainly help things run more smoothly.

If Paizo people are reading - perhaps you might consider putting a few paragraphs along these lines in a future print of the core rulebook? Just a sort of 'where to start' guide. If they are there I missed them! From the perspective of an absolute beginner this sort of really basic stuff is very helpful.

[Huppolitan]

I have heard that the Pathfinder Beginner Box is quite good at getting the basics across in a fun and accessible way. Good gaming to you and your group!

[ossian666]

Rule Zero: Your GM is the final word. Don't be a munchkin.

Rule One: Read the books.