The Setting:
Almost 8 months ago, I sought out and put together a new group for a Rise of the Runelords campaign. For the most part, the six of us were new to gaming with each other. Three had significant pathfinder experience. Two had role-playing experience, some D&D 3.X but not specifically pathfinder. And one was brand-spanking new. We have a regular schedule, playing twice a month. I started with a short intro adventure, to acclimate the group to each other, before going into the meat of the campaign. We leverage a Facebook group and communicate heavily in it. We maintain an adventure log, maps, characters, and wiki in Obsidian Portal. While not without some hiccups (to be expected of a new group), I feel that things are progressing nicely. Everyone has fun, most of the time. This is a relatively drama-free group, and everyone is 30+ with families/lives/jobs/etc.
The Problem:
One of the players with roleplay-but-no-pathfinder experience has not adapted well to the Pathfinder rules. I say this kindly. He claims to have read them but plays as though he has not. He struggles when creating or leveling characters. He is genuinely nice, and I have no conflict regarding anything but his utter failure to understand the basics of the Pathfinder system. This is causing ever-increasing friction during the game and with the other players. If left uncorrected, I fear that it will lead to bad things with the campaign and possibly the group.
Here's what we've done so far
- When we started, I had a quick review of the basic rules.
- Then I paired up players for help and questions. one experienced with the new player, and the other experienced with both roleplay-but-no-pathfinder players. Instead of helping, I think this is becoming a crutch for the player in question, as it has resulted in protracted (and distracting) side conversations for several months.
- If a rules issue arises during the game, I call it out afterward and post a clarification/link/example to our Facebook group. This has helped the other players.
- I meet or text with him one-on-one for rules clarifications and character building and error correction. This is unscheduled but appears to be happening roughly twice a month.
- I have, unsolicited, sent him numerous emails and messages with nicely-worded suggestions. I am aware that some of the other players are doing this as well.
- He participated in an ad-hoc side adventure designed to help expose the newer players to a representative array of encounters and situations. This was intended to expose a fair portion of the working parts of the Pathfinder system.
- I was able to steer him away from complicated character builds. He was a rogue, now a barbarian.
- One of the players built for him an excel spreadsheet that will aid in calculating combat modifiers, attack rolls, etc...
- Created a level-up checklist for him to use in the hopes of minimizing mistakes.
- Directed him towards several class guides to help with leveling ideas, feat selection, etc..
Ok, so why the post?
After last session, I approached him and had a lengthy conversation about the effect he is having on the rest of the group. He has promised to read them again and learn them more. This is the second such conversation. Some of you will look to the boot, I am sure, and I am very close myself. But before we do, we want to make sure we have given every opportunity to help him learn, therefore I'm looking for some suggestions on approaches we can take to aid in his understanding of the rules.
Edit: Added some more things we've done to help.
What kind of issues is he having with the rules differences? Maybe just make a cheat sheet of how Pathfinder differs from 3.X?
They are pretty similar, he shouldn't have as much trouble you are describing unless he never learned 3.X either...
If he is cooperative, then maybe just gently tell him that he can't argue rules ingame at all (any more than you normally allow)-tell him to make a note of what he doesn't think is right, and email it to you after the game.
Some people say they should be allowed to argue rules that affect whether they live or die, which is fine... if he has a page reference/fast argument that takes fifteen seconds or less, let him voice it.
Your the GM, remind him of that.
Booting a player should always be the last resort.
What kind of issues is he having with the rules differences? Maybe just make a cheat sheet of how Pathfinder differs from 3.X?
They are pretty similar, he shouldn't have as much trouble you are describing unless he never learned 3.X either...
If he is cooperative, then maybe just gently tell him that he can't argue rules ingame at all (any more than you normally allow)-tell him to make a note of what he doesn't think is right, and email it to you after the game.
Some people say they should be allowed to argue rules that affect whether they live or die, which is fine... if he has a page reference/fast argument that takes fifteen seconds or less, let him voice it.
Your the GM, remind him of that.
Booting a player should always be the last resort.
My apologies if I was unclear in my original post.
There's no problem with rules lawyering or arguing or any confrontation. He is largely cooperative during the game. It simply boils down to not knowing anything during the game. These two examples are indicative of his gameplay *every session*.
Examples:
1. During our last session, for his barbarian, he stated that he wanted to rage at the start of a combat. He then needed a full explanation by another player as to what the Rage ability did, and how it affected his character.
2. At one point, he was being grappled, and wanted to use his rage power: Animal Fury, which resulted in another protracted discussion about what it did.
So, on the surface, it appears he knows enough to recognize that the abilities are generally helpful in certain circumstances. But the details are completely lost on him.
I have a similar player, what we have done for her is actually make a series of cards showing the changes that take place when certain powers are used:
CMD changes from X to Y
To hit changes from X to Y
Hit Points increase from X to X+Y
and so on.
Cue cards are your friend. Possibly even a second character sheet, but that likely isn't needed.
Your player sounds like a total newbie, treat him as such (be patient)-with my player, we basically all help her out by volunteering info (we all know her character well)-"You cast Flamestrike? Okay, since our other cleric had buffed you with..."
It can work if everyone chips in a little bit, he will get the hang of it eventually.
Encourage him to make his own notes as well, he has to learn his own character.
Once he is better at it, switch to using cards with buffs on them, anyone who casts a buff spell hands the other player a card with the bonus type/number and the person receiving the buff calculates the changes.
Visual aids, very very helpful.
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Honestly, and I'm no expert on this, but it sounds like there may be an underlying learning disability involved here.
Your player is cooperative, experienced, and aware of the generalities of his character's abilities, but it seems like he struggles on retaining the details. Find out his techniques for retaining information while he was in school and use similar techniques. As stated previously, flash cards are a good starting point for most people.
Does the player have a copy of the CRB, and is it open to the barbarian pages during combat? I think the cue cards could work because they would have only the relevant info, but learning to use the rule book is also important.
Maybe during a combat you could ask the player to look something up for you, such as "Hey would you look up the Acrobatics skill and tell me what the DC is to move through a threatened square?" I'm thinking that looking up something specific could be more helpful than "learn the rules".
When I play a barbarian, I usually have a line each on my character sheet for a regular melee attack, a power attack, a rage attack, and a raging power attack. It makes it really easy.
But I also use a sheet of loose leaf for my character sheet, so it's customized for my character.
I think writing up a loose leaf character sheet really helps with my rules mastery. Also, it's organized the way I want it. Maybe work with your player to make a character sheet that makes sense to him?
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Does anyone in the group have any teaching experience? My first instinct is to sit down with him and try to understand exactly what issues he's having with the rules. Is it the terminology he can't remember? Is he having trouble with the math? Is he confusing one power for another? Is he trying to use the 3.5 version of the rules (we call it "versionitis")? Etc.
If he says he's read the rules and still doesn't understand them, telling him to read them again is not going to help. You need to understand where the comprehension block is and work around it. (And I wouldn't jump the conclusion that he has some kind of learning disability: he could very easily have a different learning style than "read this and understand/apply it" (e.g., visual learners and example learners just don't do well with "here, have a book").
If no one in the group has any teaching experience, ask him what kinds of things worked for him in school. Some general techniques (some of which have already been suggested):
1) If it's the math: this is the easiest. Write out all the different iterations and combinations of buffs and powers so he can just find the right line and use that. Another option is a character management tool that you've vetted and help him with leveling up. I use Hero Lab, but there are a bunch of spreadsheets and apps out there.
2) If it's the terminology: also pretty easy. This is where the cheat sheet comes in. If necessary, help him come up with meaningful names or nicknames for the powers that he can remember. For example, it might be easier for him to remember the changes as "I Hulk out" instead of "I activate rage".
3) It it's the application: this is the trickiest. Here, someone will need to sit down with him, go over each of his powers, and give him scenarios in which he would use that power and how it would help him. So instead of "Enforcer lets you make an free demoralize check after you do non-lethal damage", you would need to describe it more like, "If you don't want to kill someone, you can hit them with the hilt of your sword, and then try to scare them. They might not surrender, but you'll rattle them and they won't be able to fight as well. OK, now here's how that trick works mechanically..."
Side question: how is a barbarian less complicated than a rogue? Recalculating stat bonuses on the fly makes the barbarian one of the more complicated builds. What was it about the rogue that made it "complicated" to him/you?
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Of all the problems you can have in a game, this sounds like an entirely minor one. Are you and the rest of your group really so focused on the game running like clockwork that you would kick someone out because the don't always have the details of the rules on top of their head?
You have been given a bit of advice that might help him, and feel free to take that, but my advice is to relax, have fun, enjoy each others company and don't sweat the little stuff like having to explain how rules work now and again.
It is a game. No one will die if someone has to have the rules explained.
I have a similar player, what we have done for her is actually make a series of cards showing the changes that take place when certain powers are used:
-snip-
Visual aids, very very helpful.
Flash cards are a good idea. I will suggest that. I personally feel we have been very patient and helpful, but I know it's hard to get that impression here. My biggest concern is the time (8 months) coupled with the lack of significant progress. The other two (including the brand-new-never-roleplayed before player) are showing improvement every session.
Honestly, and I'm no expert on this, but it sounds like there may be an underlying learning disability involved here.
Your player is cooperative, experienced, and aware of the generalities of his character's abilities, but it seems like he struggles on retaining the details. Find out his techniques for retaining information while he was in school and use similar techniques. As stated previously, flash cards are a good starting point for most people.
The thought has crossed my mind. Specifically, a reading/comprehension issue. He seems to misinterpret/misunderstand a lot of general instruction that the rest of the group handles fine. That's part of my thinking behind this post - gather up some ideas of different ways to present the rules hoping one method sticks. When I asked him how we could better aid his learning, he merely echoed back suggestions we presented previously.
Does the player have a copy of the CRB, and is it open to the barbarian pages during combat? I think the cue cards could work because they would have only the relevant info, but learning to use the rule book is also important.
Maybe during a combat you could ask the player to look something up for you, such as "Hey would you look up the Acrobatics skill and tell me what the DC is to move through a threatened square?" I'm thinking that looking up something specific could be more helpful than "learn the rules".
Yes he has a copy of the CRB, but no he doesn't typically have it out during the game. I'll definitely try asking him to look something up next session and see what happens. I have asked him to look up his abilities, but that was under time pressure and may have been a bad choice. And while we have said "learn the rules" many, many times - we also have been very specific about what he needs to learn, tailored to his character. When he was a rogue, we pointed directly at flanking rules. As a Barbarian, it has become all about understanding rage and the changes imposed by the rage boosts.
It won't address everything, but consider switching them to the Unchained Barbarian, which is a little easier to follow.
I'd also second adding up all the bonuses and attack options beforehand, and possibly selecting simple Rage Powers. Although it sounds like they were trying to use Animal Fury at the right time at least?
None of us have Unchained yet, but it's on my list of things to get.
When I play a barbarian, I usually have a line each on my character sheet for a regular melee attack, a power attack, a rage attack, and a raging power attack. It makes it really easy.
But I also use a sheet of loose leaf for my character sheet, so it's customized for my character.
I think writing up a loose leaf character sheet really helps with my rules mastery. Also, it's organized the way I want it. Maybe work with your player to make a character sheet that makes sense to him?
I do the same. That's actually what the excel spreadsheet does for him. I'm not sure a custom character sheet would be that much benefit. I think his lack of understanding is far more fundamental. He understands that strength affects fighting, but consistently gets his attack bonus and weapon damage wrong on his character sheet (I catch and correct as I review with him), and that's just exacerbated once we start stacking modifiers (bard song, haste, etc).
You're looking at one of two things here:
1} Inability.
2} Disinterest.
Either this player wants to learn the rules but can't, or they don't want to. Hard to tell.
If it's inability, it'll be an awkward conversation, and the solutions will have to be somewhat driven by the player. They (by 30) have got to have an idea what works and what doesn't for them to learn things. Some people are verbal, some people are visual, etc. If the player admits to having a hard time retaining information, there's hope but they'll have to provide you the clues how to fix it.
if it's disinterest, you've got a discussion on your hands. Some people just show up for beer & pretzels, to hang out with their buddies. The dice and the numbers and the story are really just not important or interesting. You'll have to figure out as a group if that's sustainable.
G'luck.
Does anyone in the group have any teaching experience? My first instinct is to sit down with him and try to understand exactly what issues he's having with the rules. Is it the terminology he can't remember? Is he having trouble with the math? Is he confusing one power for another? Is he trying to use the 3.5 version of the rules (we call it "versionitis")? Etc.
If he says he's read the rules and still doesn't understand them, telling him to read them again is not going to help. You need to understand where the comprehension block is and work around it. (And I wouldn't jump the conclusion that he has some kind of learning disability: he could very easily have a different learning style than "read this and understand/apply it" (e.g., visual learners and example learners just don't do well with "here, have a book").
If no one in the group has any teaching experience, ask him what kinds of things worked for him in school. Some general techniques (some of which have already been suggested):
1) If it's the math: this is the easiest. Write out all the different iterations and combinations of buffs and powers so he can just find the right line and use that. Another option is a character management tool that you've vetted and help him with leveling up. I use Hero Lab, but there are a bunch of spreadsheets and apps out there.2) If it's the terminology: also pretty easy. This is where the cheat sheet comes in. If necessary, help him come up with meaningful names or nicknames for the powers that he can remember. For example, it might be easier for him to remember the changes as "I Hulk out" instead of "I activate rage".
3) It it's the application: this is the trickiest. Here, someone will need to sit down with him, go over each of his powers, and give him scenarios in which he would use that power and how it would help him. So instead of "Enforcer lets you make an free demoralize check after you do non-lethal damage", you would need to describe it more like, "If you don't want to kill someone, you can hit...
Side question: how is a barbarian less complicated than a rogue? Recalculating stat bonuses on the fly makes the barbarian one of the more complicated builds. What was it about the rogue that made it "complicated" to him/you?
No professional teaching experience. I have some experience as a collegiate teaching assistant.
I agree with your evaluation 100%, and we've tried many of the approaches suggested already. I absolutely think we could continue to invest more time in tutoring and mentoring. A sheet listing the attack combinations/bonuses. in-game coaching/explaining. side sessions to dedicate more time to helping him understand. These are all very excellent ideas that we are using or have tried/discarded. I'm looking for additional approaches to augment our current ones - I've found that soliciting this information from him has not yielded much.
Herolab is cool, but comes with a cost he is unwilling to invest.
As to your side question: I phrased that statement poorly. He started the game as a rogue who met an unfortunate demise. Now he plays a barbarian. We have so far steered him away from using archetypes, prestige classes, hybrid classes, complex multiclass builds, and spellcasters.
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Of all the problems you can have in a game, this sounds like an entirely minor one. Are you and the rest of your group really so focused on the game running like clockwork that you would kick someone out because the don't always have the details of the rules on top of their head?
You have been given a bit of advice that might help him, and feel free to take that, but my advice is to relax, have fun, enjoy each others company and don't sweat the little stuff like having to explain how rules work now and again.
It is a game. No one will die if someone has to have the rules explained.
No one is requiring that the game "run like clockwork" or "always have the details of the rules on top of their head".
However, You have a legitimate point. I would view this as minor if I were the only one affected.
However, when several players are adversely affected by it to the point that they discuss the problem with me (GM), it should be addressed. I agree that its a game. The objective of the game is to have fun being awesome. When the participants start not having fun, then it becomes an issue that should be resolved before it festers. Simple as that.
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Of all the problems you can have in a game, this sounds like an entirely minor one. Are you and the rest of your group really so focused on the game running like clockwork that you would kick someone out because the don't always have the details of the rules on top of their head?
You have been given a bit of advice that might help him, and feel free to take that, but my advice is to relax, have fun, enjoy each others company and don't sweat the little stuff like having to explain how rules work now and again.
It is a game. No one will die if someone has to have the rules explained.
No one is requiring that the game "run like clockwork" or "always have the details of the rules on top of their head".
However, You have a legitimate point. I would view this as minor if I were the only one affected.
However, when several players are adversely affected by it to the point that they discuss the problem with me (GM), it should be addressed. I agree that its a game. The objective of the game is to have fun being awesome. When the participants start not having fun, then it becomes an issue that should be resolved before it festers. Simple as that.
Yeah, I've had this problem before too, and while it may seem like nothing if you've not played through it, it can suck the fun out of the game after a period of time. I was also the GM, and as with you it was more about the other players having their fun affected. Every time it came to this particular player's turn, faces around the table would go blank as the others suppressed their annoyance at the inevitable delay. They would help the player, but after the thirtieth session, we were all of us beginning to get really weary of explaining the same rules over and over again.
It's not an easy thing. In my situation, we were all such good friends that booting the player was unthinkable. But it was an issue, and one that we never successfully overcame. We made it through half an AP with this player because we were all so close, but we basically all just stopped playing for a year. Starting another campaign with that player was just as unthinkable as booting her from the first one.
I hope you have more luck than we did. I also wish I had something more constructive to add, but like I said, we never overcame the issue, we just battled on. I feel your pain.
You're looking at one of two things here:
1} Inability.
2} Disinterest.Either this player wants to learn the rules but can't, or they don't want to. Hard to tell.
If it's inability, it'll be an awkward conversation, and the solutions will have to be somewhat driven by the player. They (by 30) have got to have an idea what works and what doesn't for them to learn things. Some people are verbal, some people are visual, etc. If the player admits to having a hard time retaining information, there's hope but they'll have to provide you the clues how to fix it.
if it's disinterest, you've got a discussion on your hands. Some people just show up for beer & pretzels, to hang out with their buddies. The dice and the numbers and the story are really just not important or interesting. You'll have to figure out as a group if that's sustainable.
G'luck.
I'm struggling to figure this out as well. I'm not convinced either way as inconsistent behavior keeps making me rethink. Still, I'm hoping to glean a few ideas from the collective brain trust here and give the benefit of the doubt for the time being.
If we can present a multitude of options and he does nothing with them, then I have my answer.
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One thing I'm wondering about is how is this guy's roleplay? Could it be an idea to get him more invested by turning up the RP a notch, and spend a session just RP-ing?
The reason I say this is because one of my regular players used to have trouble understanding the rules as well. I got her invested by giving her PC alot of RP spotlight, with the others' lives sometimes even depending on her RP decisions. In the long run this led to her trying really hard to make the best out of her character's abilities (monk/cleric gestalt, don't ask) both in and out of combat. This has even led to her being one of the more confident players at our table. My 2c.
If someone invested in Hero Lab and helped him build his character, he would have a much better understanding of what he can and cannot do.
As a professional educator, this sounds like someone with either a strong learning style preference, or difficulty with reading. Possibly something like dyslexia.
1) it's not their fault
2) they're likely trying HARDER than anyone at the table, it just doesn't get them as far.
My best advice is a second character sheet, and have the character switch sheets when raging. Maybe green?
To ease things, get them recording hit points in terms of damage taken, not current total. It'll transfer more cleanly from sheet to sheet that way.
As the GM, look for the problem areas, like animal fury. If they can't be resolved, modify the character to something of similar power, but easy to resolve.
We have this problem with a friend we see about 1-2 a year for gaming, and he doesn't play any other time. So, he's got feats like improved initiative and rapid shot, which are, or can be left on 24/7.
Send me his character sheet and I'll put it in Hero Lab for you and send you the PDFs.
It sounds like what this player needs is multiple character sheets or at least partial character sheets. I don’t know what you are using for character sheets other than you are not using hero labs. That is a shame because it would probably solve a lot of his problems, but I can understand the cost being a bit steep for a casual player.
So what you need to do is to basically do what Hero Labs does. If your character sheet has a page with his combat stats listed print out two of them. One of them should have all the adjustments for when he is going all out combat mode. Include rage, power attack and any other abilities that he will be using. The second on should only include his base combat abilities. Do not include any optional abilities or feats in this one. Hopefully your sheet will only be a single page not multiple. Label each one clearly what is it in large bold font, and maybe even color code it. Then print out the rest of the character sheet and all he has to do is to switch combat sheets.
First off I want to say thanks for all the input, everyone!
One thing I'm wondering about is how is this guy's roleplay? Could it be an idea to get him more invested by turning up the RP a notch, and spend a session just RP-ing?
Since this was a brand new group when we first started gaming together, I tried to put some focus on each player to give them a moment in the spotlight. It was pretty clear from that session that he didn't care much for being the center of focus. He gravitates to following along with others' decisions. He's not one for getting heavily invested in character or voices or anything of that nature.
Send me his character sheet and I'll put it in Hero Lab for you and send you the PDFs.
As a professional educator, this sounds like someone with either a strong learning style preference, or difficulty with reading. Possibly something like dyslexia.
1) it's not their fault
2) they're likely trying HARDER than anyone at the table, it just doesn't get them as far.
So a funny thing happened on the way to the market.... I chatted with the player last night, and despite previous discussion to the contrary, he told me he had picked up the trial version of HeroLab and was strongly considering buying at least the core pack. So there it is - much thanks to you Brother Fen for your offer but it looks like we won't need it!
Anonymous Visitor - I don't want to jump to conclusions, but with most things its usually more than one factor. I think you're probably right in that its a strong preference for a specific learning style, or maybe a slight reading issue. My wife has very mild dyslexia that pops up when she's distracted while reading, so I'm somewhat familiar with that. As a group we've tried side-by-side coaching, hands on examples and sessions, targeted reading suggestions... a bunch of different things. Not to say we are skilled educators but we're trying to help. Out of my conversation with him last night it came to light that over the past two weeks he has been re-reading the rules and watching videos of gameplay and such - which to me is fantastic. That's the biggest evidence yet that he's actually trying to learn. I asked him if he needed help with anything and he replied "Nope, I've got it."
I'm speculating, but it's possible that he simply didn't realize how much of a negative impact he was having, and after our discussion last session about it, he's taken steps to actually learn things. We have a session scheduled for this Friday, and I'm hopeful that we will see a new-and-improved player.
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Another thought is to have him look at the strategy guide. It is a very nice book for new players.
Maybe a token system or counter system... give him a sheet or box with compartments...
Label them:
To hit
Damage
AC
Touch AC
Flat Footed AC
Fort
Ref
Will
Hitpoints
Then, as they increase or decrease, add or subtract tokens/dice.
So if someone buffs him, they hand him a green +1 morale token, to hit.
He puts it with the others...
Or something like that?
For lack of comprehension - is he dyslexic? My wife is dyslexic and has a very difficult time reading more than a few pages and retaining the information.
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We have multiple players like this, and I share your pain. Experiences like:
are depressingly common. It's not just ignorance of the rules, but a disinterest/inability to remember what's going on from one round to the next.
We've tried listing various modifiers on the character sheet (doesn't work -- too many variables), buff cards (doesn't work -- too many cards), and finally came up with a rather simple, elegant solution for fighter types:
Create a 3"x5" card that says "Attack".
Create lines with checkboxes for common circumstances: Raging. Prone, Grappled. Fatigued.
So all the guy has to do is check the little checkboxes, add 'em up, and he knows his attack and damage bonuses.
Do a second 3"x5" card for "CMB".
Do a third 3"x5" card for "Ranged Attack".
I appreciate those who ask about learning disabilities -- as a former math professor, I've seen a lot of variation. But my experience with my group indicates it's more an attitude of, "I just want to play! Why should I have to do math to play a game and relax?"
More "phobia" or "dislike" than disability in many cases...
Herolab is great for players like this. Check boxes take care of all the adjustments for him.
Just make sure he remembers to turn off negative conditions. My party's battle cleric went through a major fight before realizing he'd had Exhausted checked the whole time...
Oh, good (deity) yes!
*IF* the player can afford a tablet device (iPad, whatever) and Hero Labs, you can do in-game buffs and debuffs VERY easily.
Just a caution -- one of our worst offenders doesn't "want to have to figure out yet another app just to play a game".
There's some major math phobia/hatred out there, and sometimes you just find people who want to play without having to deal with numbers. It's up to you to decide how much effort you want to put into it...
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....have.... have you been playing with my wife :-)
Though just last week she said "I think I'm getting it" *sigh* looks like Mac hit points from now on :-)
Also my wife is one of the most brilliant people I know, she just hated game math, for whatever reason, also until Iron Gods she was more participant then player :-)
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....have.... have you been playing with my wife :-)
SOOOOOOOOOOooooo not touching that one with a 10' pole!
....have.... have you been playing with my wife :-)SOOOOOOOOOOooooo not touching that one with a 10' pole!
Are we not using "phrasing" anymore? - Sterling Archer
Honestly did not catch that one :-)
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....have.... have you been playing with my wife :-)SOOOOOOOOOOooooo not touching that one with a 10' pole!
Hahahaha!
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First off I want to say thanks for all the input, everyone!
Since this was a brand new group when we first started gaming together, I tried to put some focus on each player to give them a moment in the spotlight. It was pretty clear from that session that he didn't care much for being the center of focus. He gravitates to following along with others' decisions. He's not one for getting heavily invested in character or voices or anything of that nature.
Another possibility is that this person isn't interested in the rules. I have played with many people who enjoy playing in a fantasy world and could care less about 5'Steps, spell DC's, or THACO's ;) .
The best would be to talk with him and get an understanding about what he enjoys most about the game, and what he enjoys least. An easy casual conversation that may help lead to the root of the issue.
This may also provide some insight as to how best to get him more invested in his character. On the flip side you may find that to him "it's just a game" no different then playing Risk or Settlers of Catan.
I had a player like this. An accountant. The problem wasn't basic math, it was his desire to just gogogogogo.
Type A personality. He saw it as something to be 'won' not enjoyed...
Never learned one damn rule about the game.
Nice guy, but I wound up kicking him out.
Ask your player why HE thinks he isn't learning the rules. Get more info.
Just a general suggestion, which may or may not pertain to the OP's situation:
I had a friend in college who was strongly dyslexic, and one thing that she found that helped her a great deal was to adjust the contrasting colors in the texts she needed to read. Since it wasn't as readily viable to convert from black-on-white font to white-on-black font, she found a "trick" that helped her a great deal -- take a piece of purple-tinted transparency and overlay it onto the page to be read. I'm not qualified to explain how it works, or even *if* it works, but I recall that she said it helped her. Might be valuable. :)
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I hate maths :)
I realized how much I screwed myself over once I started combining an animal companion with divine favour, bard song, flagbearer all at once(hey, it seemed like a good idea at that time! I'd get to sit around doing nothing but buff during combat and something would do my dirty work).
In the end I had to make 3 different sets of lists for attacks. If your player needs the lists, help him with the calcs.
One for just std attack, no buffs on, one for bard song, one for divine favour and bard song. I have power attack but don't use it anymore as the maths was eating up my brain :p
Nah, even with buffs on, at high levels animal companions have issues to hit, making power attack not really worth it, as its just light weapons.