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<blockquote data-quote="evilbob" data-source="post: 4664443" data-attributes="member: 9789">I'm in a game with 5 regularly-showing PCs, all D&amp;D vets.&nbsp; I'm running a game with 6 regularly-showing PCs, with mostly vets and some semi-new players.&nbsp; In both games, some combats have been hard and some have been cakewalks, so we're certainly getting a range of difficulty.&nbsp; In both games, we use tricks to speed things up, such as initiative cards, marking conditions physically on the minis, everyone's numbers (attack/damage/etc.) are calculated and ready, we encourage everyone to roll attacks and damage at the same time, etc.Combat takes, on average, probably around 2 hours per battle (it's really closer to 2 than 2-3 like I said in that other post).&nbsp; The fastest we've ever steamrolled something still took close to 45 minutes.&nbsp; The slowest solo we ever slogged out took over 3 hours, maybe close to 4 - and we didn't actually kill it.&nbsp; Most battles hit about 2 hours; sometimes this includes a little bit of RP or other things leading up to the battle, so the physical battle time itself is on average probably slightly less.&nbsp; I think we're usually lucky to get two battles in per 4 hr session.Some things just take a while, like drawing a map.&nbsp; My players joke that when I start to get a pen out, that means we're fighting - but seriously, it can take 5 minutes to detail a map, and the majority of the time you can't really draw them up beforehand, so hell no I'm not going to start drawing until it is necessary.&nbsp; Overall, I really cannot say what causes battles to take a while.&nbsp;&nbsp; I don't think &quot;knowing the rules&quot; has much to do with it in our group; I think it just takes a while.&nbsp; I know when I'm a player I blow powers left and right to help speed things up, and that seems to help, but obviously not everyone does it.&nbsp; When you have lots of non-minions and they're all about the same level as the PCs...&nbsp; it just takes a long time.&nbsp; When your PCs need 2-3 rounds to kill one guy and there are 6-7 guys, then battles can last over 15 rounds.&nbsp; And solos...&nbsp; well, solos just suck.Personally I think battles take too long, but not by a horrible amount.&nbsp; An average of 1 hour would be much better.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="evilbob, post: 4664443, member: 9789"] I'm in a game with 5 regularly-showing PCs, all D&D vets. I'm running a game with 6 regularly-showing PCs, with mostly vets and some semi-new players. In both games, some combats have been hard and some have been cakewalks, so we're certainly getting a range of difficulty. In both games, we use tricks to speed things up, such as initiative cards, marking conditions physically on the minis, everyone's numbers (attack/damage/etc.) are calculated and ready, we encourage everyone to roll attacks and damage at the same time, etc. Combat takes, on average, probably around 2 hours per battle (it's really closer to 2 than 2-3 like I said in that other post). The fastest we've ever steamrolled something still took close to 45 minutes. The slowest solo we ever slogged out took over 3 hours, maybe close to 4 - and we didn't actually kill it. Most battles hit about 2 hours; sometimes this includes a little bit of RP or other things leading up to the battle, so the physical battle time itself is on average probably slightly less. I think we're usually lucky to get two battles in per 4 hr session. Some things just take a while, like drawing a map. My players joke that when I start to get a pen out, that means we're fighting - but seriously, it can take 5 minutes to detail a map, and the majority of the time you can't really draw them up beforehand, so hell no I'm not going to start drawing until it is necessary. Overall, I really cannot say what causes battles to take a while. I don't think "knowing the rules" has much to do with it in our group; I think it just takes a while. I know when I'm a player I blow powers left and right to help speed things up, and that seems to help, but obviously not everyone does it. When you have lots of non-minions and they're all about the same level as the PCs... it just takes a long time. When your PCs need 2-3 rounds to kill one guy and there are 6-7 guys, then battles can last over 15 rounds. And solos... well, solos just suck. Personally I think battles take too long, but not by a horrible amount. An average of 1 hour would be [I]much [/I]better. [/QUOTE]

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