High Level Campaign Combat - Secrets to your Success

[Zad]

Some add ons to Wizardru's points:

1. Always announce who's turn in intiative it is, and at least the next two players coming up.

AND MAKE THEM BE READY. Sure, sometimes circumstances change and force someone to re-evaluate their action, but as the DM you have to make it clear you expect people to be reasonably ready when their turn comes up. When it's obvious they only just started thinking about it, then move on to someone else and come back when they're ready (or something like that). If you want to speed up combat, you'll have to be something of a hard-ass at first until people understand your expectations.

2. Have all players have relevant rules information when their action comes up.

See above It really applies to almost every suggestion. Unless you mandate it and enforce it (at first) then it won't stick and you'll just keep dragging on.

 

[dogoftheunderworld]

I invoke GMV's 4th Law of Gaming. "I am not responsible for your bonuses or advantages inherent to your character. If, after the attack, spell, manuever, etc., you fail and then remember another bonus. Too late. Your character was distracted, scared, nervous, affected adversely by a spell, etc. and didn't utilize his capabilities to the fullest. It happens. This applies to the GM too. If I don't remember something about the opposition that I'm running, I can't say I forgot and change how things are going. Even the bad guys have crappy days."

I had to implement a similar ruling my last session. I kept hearing "I have a 19, no wait 21, wait... 23 with this... {2 intiaitive counts later}.. oh make it a 24, does that hit now?" And this was from half the group (of 8!). Finally, I said, "Give me one number, and that's your final one." They still had to add everything up, but I didn't have to keep rechecking my notes 5 times for each hit.

 

[Henry]

I would not tolerate that at all....Unless the character was being made up on the spot, I'd evict a player who didn't have a character sheet where all standard bonuses were not tabulated ahead of time.

Unfortunately, since they are good friends, this isn't a good option for the sake of a speedy combat. However, I've tried to bring the point home a few times, but it never really sinks in. On the other hand, the guys who have the next three attacks and damages rolled out ahead of time and on the table where I can see 'em makes things really faster.

 

[Plane Sailing]

I had to implement a similar ruling my last session. I kept hearing "I have a 19, no wait 21, wait... 23 with this... {2 intiaitive counts later}.. oh make it a 24, does that hit now?" And this was from half the group (of 8!). Finally, I said, "Give me one number, and that's your final one." They still had to add everything up, but I didn't have to keep rechecking my notes 5 times for each hit.

Was it a bit like this cartoon?

http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=34

 

[WizarDru]

Damn, that is one funny webcomic.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[DonAdam]

Rather than initiative cards (more things for me to shuffle in the big pile) we use a white board with a grid. You can find calendar white boards at most office stores with grids on them. You prop it up, and everyone can see when they're going at all times.

Try to get one with a box off to the side (typically for "Notes"). We call it the penalty box; anyone holding goes into the penalty box. Anyone who readies has their name underlined so that if the condiiton doesn't go off they can decide what they want to do with their next turn.

 

[Piratecat]

Rather than initiative cards (more things for me to shuffle in the big pile) we use a white board with a grid. You can find calendar white boards at most office stores with grids on them. You prop it up, and everyone can see when they're going at all times.

We tried this, but my players delay and ready actions all the time; for us it was far slower to change the order on the white board. Nice that people can see who goes when, though.

 

[WizarDru]

We tried this, but my players delay and ready actions all the time; for us it was far slower to change the order on the white board. Nice that people can see who goes when, though.

We experimented with 3x5' cards, but with large combats, I spent as much time reshuffling cards as doing anything else. I use DM Genie for combat management, and it saves me a lot of headaches. I just dynamically change the order and that's that. Prior to that, I just used Excel.

If I were to work without my laptop, I'd go back the 3x5 cards, but I'd make sure to keep the number of combatants low.

I tend to run all of the mooks as one group when running big combats. At 3rd level, running every orc at his own initiative is OK. At 17th level, running all twenty-five slaad at their own intitiative is counterproductive. At that level, I tend to break them up into groups. Either Red Slaad Group A and Red Slaad Commander or Red Slaads, Green Slaads, Death Slaad commander, and so on. Only feature characters with individualized stats tend to get played on separate intitiatives. This simplifies the init process, and causes me fewer headahces.

Using minis with distinct features helps as well. I've been known to classify some beasties by their paint-jobs on the minis used to represent them, and my main painter does this automatically when painting minis. So I might say Goblin-Spear and Goblin-Axe in my chart, or Goblin-Red Shield and Goblin Black-Shield, to make it easier to keep track of them.

 

[MerakSpielman]

On a related note, how do you people deal with it when multiple people - like 4 or 5 - all go on the same initiative? This has happened in the past, where all the players ready an action to attack with a missile weapon when a monster enters the room or something.

 

[Zad]

I think the PHB answers that or maybe it's the ready-thing. We just go by highest dexterity.