D&D 3E/3.5 3.5 Expediting Combat?

[rusty2667]

I'm sure this subject has been done to death, but here goes...

For the 3.5-ers, how do you expedite combat? Any mechanical changes that'll quicken things up?

Some ideas:
-roll d20 and damage together
-make crits max damage only. No need to roll and multiply. (not sure about this one)
-DM gives aprox 30 seconds for player to decide action. After this, the character just defends
-DM uses "poking stick" to keep players awake during the hours long battle.

Any links to former threads on the subject are appreciated!

 

[Dandu]

Notecards with spells, status effects and abilities on them. A whiteboard to keep track of important group information on. The Death Penalty for phone conversations at the table.

 

[Crothian]

I let people know who's turn is next so while one person is doing something the next person can be thinking ogf what they want to do. I also ask the players to have their spells and abilities all written out or typesd on paper with their character sheet so we don't have to look anything up.

While this can be a problem for many groups there are lots of factors to why combat can take longer then it should. Watch your own group and try to identify what is slowing things down and then attempt to fix it.

 

[rusty2667]

Notecards with spells, status effects and abilities on them. A whiteboard to keep track of important group information on.

I see a trip to Office Depot in my near future. We do fish through the books during combat.

The Death Penalty for phone conversations at the table.

Though things aren't quite this bad, our group has a few youngsters with shortened attention spans. I blame it on all of our wonderful electronic conveniences, then again I could've been just as bad at that age.

Watch your own group and try to identify what is slowing things down and then attempt to fix it.

Good point, I'll be sure to bring up some specific instances in this thread after our next session.

 

[Michael Silverbane]

The Death Penalty for phone conversations at the table.

Does this apply to the characters or the players?

 

[Dandu]

Does this apply to the characters or the players?

We've tried it both ways.

 

[rgard]

The players have to know their characters. Total attack boni, spells prepared, short spell descriptions, magic items, saves, etc...the player needs to be familiar enough with these to prepare what his/her character will do during the round without causing a pause.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[Vegepygmy]

For the 3.5-ers, how do you expedite combat?

IME, there is only one way to significantly expedite combat, and that's learn the ****ing rules.

 

[rusty2667]

there is only one way to significantly expedite combat, and that's learn the ****ing rules

wow. that just clarified everything for me. I'll be sure to tell my 12 yo niece that when she can't remember what die to roll.

 

[Runestar]

Max damage due to crits isn't very exciting when you realize that the bulk of your damage typically comes from static bonuses (unlike in 4e).

You may want to encourage your players to build characters who do not have to make too many attacks each round (ie: no TWF'ers). PHB2 and ToB come to mind because they have options which require just 1 attack/round. For instance, monk's decisive strike and fighter's devastating strike replace their full-attack routine with a single attack which deals double attack. So you waste less time rolling, but the attacks are no less meaningful.

On the npcs' side, maybe have spellcasters maximize their damage spells where possible? (via the maximize spell feat) This way, you don't need to roll fistfuls of dice and add them all up, because you know they will always deal max damage.

Spells which ignore defenses might be worth looking into (because less time is spent checking against saves/touch AC etc), but players may not be as happy because it gives them less of a chance of avoiding their effects. Say, waves of fatigue/exhaustion don't allow saves (and PCs generally don't have sr).

Also try to avoid too complex monsters with multiple options at their disposal (or at least familarise yourself with their tactics very thoroughly beforehand).

Have a common understanding with your group that for any unclear rules (eg: takes more than 1 minute to look up/clarify), the DM will make a judgement call there and then and his word is final. Not very fair, but the purpose is to prevent the game from getting bogged down in rules debates. The discussion comes after the game, and if the players have indeed been shafted, reparations can be made.