Hey everyone.
l am new here to the forum, and i had a couple of questions regarding running a bootcamp style session.
Yesterday me and my group came together for the first time, and things didn’t go exactly according to plan ( it was total chaos ).
At first I was a little disheartened but I quickly came to the realisation that one of the main problems we face was that most players where unfamiliar with the rules, and this ground the story to a halt because everyone was asking questions in the middle of,dialogue and by constantly being interrupted And so I lost track and things started to unravel.
So after thinking about it a bit, I realised that my players where on there way to the grand lodge in absalom and saw this as the perfect opportunity to give them a bootcamp session where the rules are explained in game, and afterwards they are send on a small mission where most of what they learned will be put to the test.
My main question is, how best to structure this without overloading the players with information?.
My idea was to split things up in a couple of main “groups”, mainly basic actions& combat, skill actions, Magic and status effects and tags.
I haven’t figured out how to do this without going to big tough since so many rules interact with one another.
I also wanted to ask if anyone can point me towards a good player aid, I just want my players to have a good time without them feeling like they have to study for a exam ;)
Raven-nevermore wrote: Hey everyone.
l am new here to the forum, and i had a couple of questions regarding running a bootcamp style session.
Yesterday me and my group came together for the first time, and things didn’t go exactly according to plan ( it was total chaos ).
At first I was a little disheartened but I quickly came to the realisation that one of the main problems we face was that most players where unfamiliar with the rules, and this ground the story to a halt because everyone was asking questions in the middle of,dialogue and by constantly being interrupted And so I lost track and things started to unravel.
So after thinking about it a bit, I realised that my players where on there way to the grand lodge in absalom and saw this as the perfect opportunity to give them a bootcamp session where the rules are explained in game, and afterwards they are send on a small mission where most of what they learned will be put to the test.
My main question is, how best to structure this without overloading the players with information?.
My idea was to split things up in a couple of main “groups”, mainly basic actions& combat, skill actions, Magic and status effects and tags.
I haven’t figured out how to do this without going to big tough since so many rules interact with one another.
I also wanted to ask if anyone can point me towards a good player aid, I just want my players to have a good time without them feeling like they have to study for a exam ;)
I was thinking about creating an introductory adventure for his exact purpose. I use Roll20 and like to write down some options for my players when they have a challenge in front of them, but make it clear that they can and should use creative solutions outside the ones I give them.
The scenario that I had in mind was that there were "help wanted" flyers around town that the PCs answer. When they arrive at the location indicated on the flyer, they find dozens of other applicants. The person who is doing the hiring asks for some friendly displays of prowess.
This would then pit individual players against individual NPCs and (possibly) culminate in a non-lethal combat encounter.
Challenges would look something like this:
BossMan would like to see which among you can reach the top of an obstacle the fastest.
Scale the obstacle with brute strength (Climb DC15)
Flip, jump, and swing up the obstacle (Acrobatics DC17)
Use the Tanglefoot cantrip to hinder your opponents (Spell)
Other
or...
RandoNPC approaches you and demands you withdraw from the competition.
Snarl angrily that RandoNPC withdraw (Intimidation DC15)
Cooly explain why you cannot withdraw and suggest they instead withdraw (Diplomacy DC19)
Sing a song mocking RandoNPC (Performance DC17)
Other
Each player should have three or four challenges to overcome and give the players time to consider how they might assist one another (even though the challenges are individual, spells like guidance can help, while others might hinder. Perhaps a cook could spike an opponents food and knock them out of the competition). Give players suggestions, but be very lenient with creative solutions that fall outside what you anticipate.
The Beginner Box does a lot of what you're asking, but it's somewhat imperfect.
Using that framework, I'd say having a series of encounters that each introduce a small number of mechanics would work fine, if not just directly using the BB and modifying the initial story hook slightly. I might want to do something like have enemies always win initiative (but reduce their offensive stats) so that they can introduce mechanics that need to be showcased.
You might keep it to simple Stride+Strike combat at first, then introduce enemies with mechanics to demonstrate their use - AoOs (introduce Steps as well here), cantrips with saves, flanking, shield raising, maneuvers/Demoralize, and so on.
I think skill checks would best be handled as markrivett is saying, although it might be good to model them off of specific skill actions like Make an Impression or Coerce if you can.
markrivett wrote: Raven-nevermore wrote: Hey everyone.
l am new here to the forum, and i had a couple of questions regarding running a bootcamp style session.
Yesterday me and my group came together for the first time, and things didn’t go exactly according to plan ( it was total chaos ).
At first I was a little disheartened but I quickly came to the realisation that one of the main problems we face was that most players where unfamiliar with the rules, and this ground the story to a halt because everyone was asking questions in the middle of,dialogue and by constantly being interrupted And so I lost track and things started to unravel.
So after thinking about it a bit, I realised that my players where on there way to the grand lodge in absalom and saw this as the perfect opportunity to give them a bootcamp session where the rules are explained in game, and afterwards they are send on a small mission where most of what they learned will be put to the test.
My main question is, how best to structure this without overloading the players with information?.
My idea was to split things up in a couple of main “groups”, mainly basic actions& combat, skill actions, Magic and status effects and tags.
I haven’t figured out how to do this without going to big tough since so many rules interact with one another.
I also wanted to ask if anyone can point me towards a good player aid, I just want my players to have a good time without them feeling like they have to study for a exam ;)
I was thinking about creating an introductory adventure for his exact purpose. I use Roll20 and like to write down some options for my players when they have a challenge in front of them, but make it clear that they can and should use creative solutions outside the ones I give them.
The scenario that I had in mind was that there were "help wanted" flyers around town that the PCs answer. When they arrive at the location indicated on the flyer, they find dozens of other applicants. The person who is doing the hiring asks for some... You have some clever ideas in this one, might use a couple of them ;) .
Story wise my players just went on a mission where they discovered a ancient stone tablet, once they bring it to the pathfinder society they get a partial field promotion but have to go trough “basic” orientation to make sure they are prepared to face what’s ahead.
But having some sort of “competition” seems like a fun way to go about it.
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