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<blockquote data-quote="Davelozzi" data-source="post: 1686981" data-attributes="member: 771">I have a big group (finally down to 7 players, but was 9 originally).&nbsp; Most of the advice above is good, but rather than using a dry erase board for initiative like Sidereal Knight or an egg timer like Stockdale, I use initiative cards.&nbsp; I've seen them suggested by tons of people now, though I learned about them through Piratecat, I think.At any rate, just make an index card for each PC as well as each enemy (or group of enemies that share an iniative count).&nbsp; The colored cards are good for this as you can use one color for PCs, another for enemies, and another for other combatants (allied NPCs, animal companions, familiars, henchman, etc.).&nbsp; At the beginning of combat, have everyone roll iniative as usual an put the cards in order.&nbsp; I usually call out &quot;anyone got above 20?&nbsp; no?, how about 19...18...&quot; and count down, so that I don't have everyone screaming out at once.&nbsp; Then just flip through the cards in order as you play.&nbsp; If someone isn't ready on their turn, hand them their card and tell them that their character is delaying.&nbsp; I only give five seconds or so, not 60.&nbsp; When they decide what to do, they can just hand it back to you and jump back in the order after whoever is currently acting.&nbsp; I often get past a few other players while the unready person is still thinking.&nbsp; This speeds up the time to play out the combat as well as giving the players a sense of urgency like a combat situation should.The tips in the PHB (or is it the DMG, I forget) for speeding up play are pretty good too.&nbsp; If you trust the players, let them roll damage along with attack rolls and just ignore the damage if they miss.&nbsp; For multiple attacks, use different colored of dice (ex: my white d20 and d8s are alaways my first attack at full bonus, followed by black, then green).Finally, if the other players know the rules, that helps.&nbsp; It's ideal if everyone has their own PHB, but at the least spellcasters should.&nbsp; And if they're casting a spell, they should be open to the relevant page when casting.Finally, common sense.&nbsp; Try to keep down on the out of game chatter, and ask people to try to arrive on time.&nbsp; I award a small attendance bonus to XP to encourage that.&nbsp; An occasional bathroom/smoke break for everyone can give you a few minutes to think about the adventure and makes it less likely that people will be slipping away one by one and missing their turns.I hope this helps.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Davelozzi, post: 1686981, member: 771"] I have a big group (finally down to 7 players, but was 9 originally). Most of the advice above is good, but rather than using a dry erase board for initiative like Sidereal Knight or an egg timer like Stockdale, I use initiative cards. I've seen them suggested by tons of people now, though I learned about them through Piratecat, I think. At any rate, just make an index card for each PC as well as each enemy (or group of enemies that share an iniative count). The colored cards are good for this as you can use one color for PCs, another for enemies, and another for other combatants (allied NPCs, animal companions, familiars, henchman, etc.). At the beginning of combat, have everyone roll iniative as usual an put the cards in order. I usually call out "anyone got above 20? no?, how about 19...18..." and count down, so that I don't have everyone screaming out at once. Then just flip through the cards in order as you play. If someone isn't ready on their turn, hand them their card and tell them that their character is delaying. I only give five seconds or so, not 60. When they decide what to do, they can just hand it back to you and jump back in the order after whoever is currently acting. I often get past a few other players while the unready person is still thinking. This speeds up the time to play out the combat as well as giving the players a sense of urgency like a combat situation should. The tips in the PHB (or is it the DMG, I forget) for speeding up play are pretty good too. If you trust the players, let them roll damage along with attack rolls and just ignore the damage if they miss. For multiple attacks, use different colored of dice (ex: my white d20 and d8s are alaways my first attack at full bonus, followed by black, then green). Finally, if the other players know the rules, that helps. It's ideal if everyone has their own PHB, but at the least spellcasters should. And if they're casting a spell, they should be open to the relevant page when casting. Finally, common sense. Try to keep down on the out of game chatter, and ask people to try to arrive on time. I award a small attendance bonus to XP to encourage that. An occasional bathroom/smoke break for everyone can give you a few minutes to think about the adventure and makes it less likely that people will be slipping away one by one and missing their turns. I hope this helps. [/QUOTE]

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