Speeding Up Play (Without Being a Jerk)

Retreater · Jun 29, 2019

I have a group of mostly "new-ish" players, even though they're all adults between 35-55. I've been DMing for close to 30 years, and I expect this issue is me being a curmudgeon. There are things that the players do that really slow down gameplay, and I get really frustrated. (Maybe unfairly so.) Due to our real life schedules, we're able to game only about once a month, so I like to keep things moving to get in as much gaming as possible.

Players roll each die individually. Every attack. Every damage die. Every time there is a bonus 1d4 due to a Bless spell. They put dice back in their dice bags in between rolls and have to select their dice again every round. They use dice towers and watch as each individual die tumbles into the dice tray. I feel like this takes forever, even if it adds only a few extra minutes to each encounter.

Should I grin and bear it? Should I try to teach them faster rolling methods?

(Disclaimer: I have an unreasonable hatred of dice trays and dice towers. They take up valuable table real estate, especially when each player has his own. They block view to the die result for me - and often the players too.)

HJFudge · Jun 29, 2019

Well, when I opened this thread I expected to be talking about how to speed up player decision making, which in my experience has been the main source of 'slowdown' during the game. But it sounds like what you are experiencing is about dice rolling and such. How attached are your players to their trays and towers? Simply a 'Hey guys, this thing is slowing the game down, can we roll this way instead...sans towers and trays?' doesn't seem jerky to me. As with most things in life, its not what you say its how you say it. So just a polite discussion about how you feel you can get more playtime in if the table abided by certain rules of rolling might be helpful.

Fenris-77 · Jun 29, 2019

That does sound really tedious and it would drive me batty. Just roll all your dice at once already. I would probably just ask them to speed it up with a rational argument about being able to accomplish X encounters in the Y hours we meet once a month. Maybe just start timing them without telling them what you doing.

dragoner · Jun 29, 2019

Retreater said:
Should I grin and bear it? Should I try to teach them faster rolling methods?

You should do both; I'm resigned to the fact of the player's doing whatever slowly, it's just what they do. Rolling each die individually does sound annoying though.

LordEntrails · Jun 29, 2019

A technique I learned at a con, tell your players that when their turn comes around if they have already rolled their dice and can tell you something like "I attack the third goblin with my sword, attack total of 16 for 8 slashing damage" then they automatically get to add +1 to their attack roll.

This way they are ready to go, and they get a bonus for being ready.

Len · Jun 30, 2019

Retreater said:
They put dice back in their dice bags in between rolls and have to select their dice again every round.

Seriously? I've known people who roll dice individually, but picking them out of the dice bag every turn?

I don't know if anything you can say would make a difference because it sounds like those people aren't really there to play D&D, but rather to indulge a polyhedral fetish.

DEFCON 1 · Jun 30, 2019

Dice trays and dice towers-- grin and bear it. I imagine they are both positive play experiences for them as the sounds of the dice dropping through and into them are pleasing to hear. Dice hitting the table is why so many people play D&D moreso than other systems... because they love to roll all the different dice. So taking that away from them just seems unnecessary.

Putting dice back into dice bags though? That you can easily ditch. Dice belong on the table in easy view, so that players can grab them immediately-- both on their own turns and in order to pass them over to their fellow players when they need to roll more of a particular die than they have in their pile. Tell them all to dump out their dice (or select the dice they are using for the night if their bags are full of many, many sets), and then the dice bags should go away.

As far as rolling dice individually... again, if they are using trays and towers they probably just want to hear the clunks. But if the amount of gaming is really that important to you... best way to fix it is to start everyone at 1st level and then never level up. That way most of the time the dice come out they only need to roll one die total rather than say 8 dice when you cast fireball. Cut down on the number of times a player has to roll multiple dice and you'll save those precious seconds.

Of course, that means you have to be okay with just playing at 1st level. But if cutting down on dice time is the only way to speed up your play, then sacrifices have to be made.

TarionzCousin · Jun 30, 2019

LordEntrails said:
A technique I learned at a con, tell your players that when their turn comes around if they have already rolled their dice and can tell you something like "I attack the third goblin with my sword, attack total of 16 for 8 slashing damage" then they automatically get to add +1 to their attack roll.

This.

Find out what motivates your players and use it to make the game faster/better/more fun.

Xaelvaen · Jun 30, 2019

I have a timer active behind my DM screen set to 1 minute. While it's not a hard rule to force people to go faster, if they complete their turn in 1 minute or less, including dice rolling and giving me the information, they gain a bonus To Hit (if their attack wouldn't otherwise land), or To Damage if their attack would hit otherwise. I always play off the benefit as something in game to keep it exciting "Your hit is nearly deflected off the Goblin's Shield, but at the last second you twist for a telling blow." and the like.

If someone doesn't come in under that 1 minute, I obviously don't punish them - it is just to help people stay focused during the whole round of conflict, and not just during their turn. If they've planned ahead of time, set their dice in proper order ready to roll, and given it plenty of thought, 1 minute is easy to adhere to, and get rewarded both with more active combat, more engaged table manners, and a mechanical reward to boot.

LordEntrails · Jun 30, 2019

I like [MENTION=6681906]Xaelvaen[/MENTION]'s method too, as long as the players know they are getting rewarded. imo, by having them add the advantage, they know they are getting it. Sure, a few will add it when they shouldn't, but some will forget too. And though +1 is noticeable, it won't really impact game balance.