D&D 4E Running 4E combats quickly

MerricB · Aug 8, 2010

Just based on a few sessions I've run recently with less experienced players...

BE PREPARED - KNOW YOUR CHARACTER!
As a player, the design of your character sheet is terribly important. The sheet produced by Wizards' Character Builder is acceptable, but you can probably design a better one. Whatever sheet you use, become familiar with the layout, so that when your DM asks you a question you can give him the answer quickly without spending five minutes looking it up.

When it gets to your turn, you should already have the relevant sheets (or power cards) in hand. This is not the time to start shuffling papers, looking for the sheet that has your powers on it: you have plenty of time whilst it is the other players' turns to get ready. Use that time!

Likewise, make sure the dice you need are within easy reach. Learn what each dice looks like. The d10 and d8 do look markedly different, and you shouldn't be confused which is which.

Also, for much of the game, whenever the DM asks you, "Do you hit?", the answer will be come from the roll of the d20. Make sure that die is always close to hand.

Cheers!

JoeGKushner · Aug 8, 2010

How about having basic math skills? More useful than having to break out the calc app everytime u roll for hitting and damage

MerricB · Aug 8, 2010

JoeGKushner said:
How about having basic math skills? More useful than having to break out the calc app everytime u roll for hitting and damage

Oh, entirely!

Herschel · Aug 9, 2010

MerricB said:
More tips...
DON'T WORRY ABOUT LONG COMBATS IF EVERYONE HAD FUN: Some combats in 4e are going to take a while to resolve. Not every combat could or should be run in 20 minutes. You need the big combats to balance small combats. For some people, the combat is the really important thing, and thinking about combat is an important part of that as well. If everyone is having fun, don't rush combats. They might be the best part of the session!

This is also important. I played in Spec 2-2 Pt. 2 yesterday at Gen Con and let me say, one combat was very long but done in a way that made it a blast.

Lanefan · Aug 9, 2010

Umbran said:
Combine these two - predraw your battlemaps!

I tend to use pieces of really big graph paper for the purpose, but you can also get ahead on the standard dry-erase battlemap as well.

All very well and good if you
a) know exactly where the next battle will take place (not always predictable particularly if your party are given to sudden direction changes)
b) aren't going to use your mapping surface for something else earlier in the game
c) don't mind players/characters knowing what's behind some walls or in some corners they can't actually see yet, once you show 'em the map (this is *always* a problem with the poster maps in the 4e modules)

ScottS said:
Ruthlessly nerf the "action denial" abilities that seem to be liberally sprinkled throughout the monster pool (mostly daze: at-will daze, auras that daze, etc.). I've been changing anything I see like this to a lesser condition
(e.g. "grants CA") or just removing it entirely.

Doesn't this defeat the purpose?

I mean, if less people have actions in a given round the round's gonna take less time, right?

Lanefan

AngryMojo · Aug 9, 2010

MerricB said:
BE PREPARED - KNOW YOUR CHARACTER!

This, this, and this again. The less the PC's need to reference books, the better. I would propose a DM flipside to this:

BE PREPARED - KNOW YOUR MONSTERS
If you're only reading a monster stat block as you're running the encounter the monster is in, it's going to take longer. Compound that by five different stat blocks and it's a recipe for disaster.

Festivus · Aug 9, 2010

MerricB said:
More tips...

KNOW YOUR DICE: When it gets to your turn, don't start scrambling through your dice to find the ones you need. You can probably find them ahead of time, or at least have the selection of dice you're likely to need in front of you. Very, very few people will need more than a d20 and two other dice sizes.

USE A STANDARD WAY OF ANNOUNCING DAMAGE: This will come in handy when you start coming up against creatures with resistances and vulnerabilities. Saying, "I deal 24 lightning damage" means the DM won't have to ask you later. This is another thing to make sure you have on your power summary.

Regarding dice, I usually use different colors for the different die types, and always make sure they are high contrast so they are easy to read. It might sound noobie like but it helps me to spot what die I need in a hurry.

Regarding your turn, one thing I do is say out loud what I am doing: "Take 5 ongoing poison, gain 5 temps from the zone, as a minor I have y mark x, as a move I am going to have y move here, as a standard I am going to have y use x power (roll dice), and announce the hit with what defense it's hitting, and the keywords on the damage side if the DM says I hit, DONE!"

Saying DONE is a nice way to let the DM know you are finished with your turn and alerts everyone that you aren't the person they are all waiting on. I also have decided on the person prior to mine, what my actions are going to be, and a plan B if my initial plan isn't going to work... if I can't do any of those, my plan is to delay until I can think of something better. I can't tell you the number of times when I am DMing I get someone who has used a move and a minor and then starts a conversation with someone else while I look on expectantly, or worse, when they take all their actions and then don't do anything for 10 seconds, so I announce the next person in order when that person says "Action point!".

JoeGKushner · Aug 9, 2010

this may sound cheesey, but in terms of know your character, know your friends characters and be ready to act on what they do so that when a situation pops up, you're not left holding the ball because you didn't expect it.

Set up situations before hand with the other players where if you do X, others will od Y and that if they do A, you'll do B. Think of it as the old Fastball Special.

Having some team work set up ahead of time can really make the difference.

Hussar · Aug 9, 2010

festivus said:
Saying DONE is a nice way to let the DM know you are finished with your turn and alerts everyone that you aren't the person they are all waiting on. I also have decided on the person prior to mine, what my actions are going to be, and a plan B if my initial plan isn't going to work... if I can't do any of those, my plan is to delay until I can think of something better. I can't tell you the number of times when I am DMing I get someone who has used a move and a minor and then starts a conversation with someone else while I look on expectantly, or worse, when they take all their actions and then don't do anything for 10 seconds, so I announce the next person in order when that person says "Action point!"

A thousand times this. The start of your turn is not when you start paying attention to what's going on. The start of the guy ahead of you in initiative is when you start paying attention to what's going on so that when your turn comes up, there's no dawdling.

And yes, "DONE" is most definitely everyone's friend. And, no take backs on it either, unless you can do it without interrupting someone else's turn. If you say done, and you forgot to make a saving throw, that's probably not going to bother the next guy if you nudge your DM. If you say "Done" and then want to burn an action point to do a complete action, don't. Just don't.