Speeding up combat

[kolikeos]

Probably not the first time this has come up.
Anybody has tips for speeding up combat?
Last session was wasted on two pretty minor combats so I'm trying to think of ways to get things moving faster.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Thanee]

PCs: Know your characters, don't have to look up anything during your action. Decide what you want to do, while the other actions are resolved, don't start thinking when your turn comes up.

Bye
Thanee

 

[questing gm]

Hmmm.....the common cure for the cold are (if you haven't done any of them yet)

1. Roll damage and attacks rolls together
2. Use a clock/timer and give each player a time limit to decide their action
3. Have a seperate sheet that has the rules of every character's class features/abilites in combat

There could be more but these are the ones i hear very often.
Check the DMG 3.0 or DMG II, IIRC they had some more tips as well...

 

[BeauNiddle]

Have one of the players handle initative order - it's there job to tell everybody else who's turn it is and who's next. (This frees up a lot of DM time I find and telling the players who's next gives them time to start planning 'early')

Roll damage and to-hit dice at the same time. Suprising amount of difference although it doesn't seem like much. Especially for people who use a little dice rolling chant / prayer before throwing.

If the players don't tell you an action in a moderate amount of time then they miss their action (depends on how draconic you're feeling)

Know your modifiers before hand. Maybe remembering bonuses from spells can be a situational thing but if people are ever going 'and add strength, and my weapon modifiers, and ...' then it's a sign they should have their modifiers precalculated and handed to them.

Lastly learn to live with it. Your players will never be elite special forces who fight dragons for a living so give them time to work their way through combat. It's just a game

 

[Someone]

Probably not the first time this has come up.
Anybody has tips for speeding up combat?
Last session was wasted on two pretty minor combats so I'm trying to think of ways to get things moving faster.
Thanks in advance.

First step is knowing the problem or problems. Do the players spend too much time deciding their next move, or do not pay attention until is their turn and then you have to explain hem what happened this round? Calculating things take too long? Miniature dancing (I move here. No, here. Wait, I draw an AoO, so here. No...)? Are the players confused about where and who's everyone, and how's the environment, and you have to clarify it frequently? Rules arguments? Adjudicating effects of spells, or reading their entries, take too much time? Player's don't know their character's abilities, or don't add all the bonuses until they have to roll? Do you spend too much time managing NPCs' stats or game variables (substracting hit points, calculating spell durations, checking who's stunned/nauseated/managing initiative order/etc...)? Or is it something else?

 

[JustinA]

Probably not the first time this has come up.
Anybody has tips for speeding up combat?
Last session was wasted on two pretty minor combats so I'm trying to think of ways to get things moving faster.
Thanks in advance.

I actually just wrote a short essay on this: "Random DM Tips: Running Combat"

http://www.thealexandrian.net/creations/misc/running-combat.html

Justin Alexander
http://www.thealexandrian.net

 

[Thomas Percy]

Using DMGII-style statblock speed up my combat.

 

[satori01]

I stack turns as soon as the player has determined their actions. Thus if Player A says a full attack on X, I immediately move to Player B and ask them what they are doing, so on and so forth.

My campaign has recently increased in size to 10 people, and measures like this are needed.

 

[kolikeos]

First step is knowing the problem or problems. Do the players spend too much time deciding their next move, or do not pay attention until is their turn and then you have to explain hem what happened this round? Calculating things take too long? Miniature dancing (I move here. No, here. Wait, I draw an AoO, so here. No...)? Are the players confused about where and who's everyone, and how's the environment, and you have to clarify it frequently? Rules arguments? Adjudicating effects of spells, or reading their entries, take too much time? Player's don't know their character's abilities, or don't add all the bonuses until they have to roll? Do you spend too much time managing NPCs' stats or game variables (substracting hit points, calculating spell durations, checking who's stunned/nauseated/managing initiative order/etc...)? Or is it something else?

All the things you have listed here have come up in my game.

 

[Someone]

Several things in the list can be reverted making the players participate when it's not their turn: one of them can manage the initiative and spell durations, other the damage dealt to monsters, and every other thing that you can delegate on the players.

Confusion in battle can be avoided with some preparation, clear diagrams or maps, and sometimes using miniatures. But make sure you only use the miniatures when the situation demands it: if the number of enemies is small, it's better and faster not to use them.

Experience and preparation can speed up considerably the process of knowing abilities and spells: make sure you read once the spells your NPCs and monsters are going to use; also, start low level and delay experience gaining so everyone learns to use their character's abilities before adding some more, and avoid spellcasters that prepare their spells: try to convince them to use favored souls, warlocks and sorcerers. And make sure they do their homeworks and add all the static bonuses to the main attacks and saves, so they just have to add the situational bonuses, like flanking or charging.

Relax a bit and think that if you don't force yourself to comply with all the rules your combats will be faster and more entertaining for your players. Same for them: tell them you're the one in charge, that you're trying to make things more fun for everyone, and you can leave rules arguments for later.