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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Henry" data-source="post: 7140438" data-attributes="member: 158">Always have a good fantasy name generator handy - <a href="http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/" target="_blank">http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/</a>However, I will generate a list of names of each type (human, elf, orc, etc.) and copy/paste them to a document. Luddite that I am I usually print this, so that I can reference them quicker (paper is still just quicker to me for some things). When I need a spontaneous name, I grab it, make a one or two word reference on the page to act as a mnemonic trigger so that later after the game, I can write up more notes on the NPC in detail.To the players, It looked like I had the "Rando's" name already written, and I was making notes about their meeting rather than inventing him on the fly like I was ACTUALLY doing. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />I also find Initiative Cards a Godsend. The first ones I ever used were by Owen KC Stephens and Super Genius games for 3e and Pathfinder; ever since then, a host of cards have been made for PF, 5t edition, etc. which make initiative rounds in combat super-easy to track and deal with. I have essential stats for each person (passive perception, key skills, hit point max, etc.) and I rotate the cards as the next person's turn comes up. Readies or delays I turn the card sideways in the stack, i move them to the back of the stack after turn is done, and I usually announce which character is "On Deck" after the current actor, so that that person can be thinking about their action and be ready when I focus on them. Side note - If they take more than 4 or 5 seconds to respond I have a 30 second mini-sand timer that I turn over. If they have not decided in that time span, they lose their action and go defensive (or Dodge in 5e) for their turn. That way, they are less likely to be injured by inaction, and They can't say they were skipped completely. It's something another GM introduced to me, and I like it a lot.I've heard complaints about this on online forums, yet never at the table. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> My justification is that we have 3 to 4 hours to play, and Time is precious - if everyone took three minutes to decide and resolve their turn, one round of combat would take 15 to 25 minutes (one group i'm in has seven players), and that's unacceptable to me for a fast paced fun game.</blockquote>

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