Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 bryanh Sep 23, 2009 1:41:02	[Message sent to my local gaming group that I thought might be helpful here.] Howdy, all. So rather than just complaining about the time crunch with LFR mods, I thought I'd offer some advice on making the most of those four hour time slots. Granted, I haven't been an RPGA DM for very long, but I've been DMing for decades at this point and also have extensive experience running business meetings, which is more applicable than you might think. But the point of this is not to brag, but to provide a tool for DMs who need a hand managing their game time. Some people may have the knack for getting mods done in time and this might all seem like a lot of unnecessary BS. For those of us without that knack, 10 minutes of planning can make all the difference. When planning a meeting, there are two competing functions: reality and priorities. For example, the reality is that everyone won't be there on time. So you want to make sure you schedule appropriate time for your highest priorities. Luckily, in running a D&D mod, your priorities are pretty clear, though this is where most DMs seem to have the biggest problem. Does anyone care about whittling down that first combat to the last hit point? Maybe if we had all day, but we don't. No, in terms of combat encounters, the beef is in the last one. That is the one people generally save their dailies for and where the most interesting foes are. So, it is imperative to schedule enough time for this encounter. Also imperative, from a role-playing and general fun standpoint, is the wrap up session at the end. So in the case of a D&D mod, it looks like the best strategy is to work backward to try and build a realistic and fun play schedule. For this example, I'll use AGLA 1-5 Silver Lining, without too many spoilers, since its one many people are familiar with and it's still in play. I knew I'd need about an hour for the last encounter and I wanted 15 minutes for the wrap up session at the end. In a previous mod I'd played, all the role-playing elements that my character was really excited about had to be glossed over because there was no time. I didn't want to do that to my players. Here was my schedule the first time I ran the mod, and my first time as an RPGA DM:       Time     Min.     Encounter 6:00     30     Encounter 1: A Goblin’s Plea (Arrival & Introductions) 6:30     45     Encounter 2: Ascending the Mountain (Skill Challenge) 7:15     15     Encounter 3: The Mine Complex (Roleplaying & Exploration) 7:30     15     Break 7:45     30     Encounter 4: Meeting Hall (Combat) 8:15     30     Encounter 5: Mine Shaft (Combat) 8:45     60     Encounter 6: Mushroom Farm (Combat) 9:45     15     Rewards Of course the best laid plans of DM's rarely proceed as hoped. I'd allotted 30 minutes for the opening to give everyone time to show up, do character introductions, and start the ball rolling. This time we had one player who needed to roll a new character and one guy show up 40 minutes late... Grrr. However, by the half-way point, we were on schedule. Then I spent too much time with Encounter 4 & 5 and ended up doing exactly what I hate: shorting the story at the end because we had to rush to finish the final encounter. Yuck.  Luckily I got to run the mod again. I was able to carve some time off the skill challenge, which is a fun one, but pretty straight-forward. I put this time into encounter 5. Granted I had fewer players the second time, but this schedule seemed to work better:        Time     Min.     Encounter 2:00     30     Encounter 1: A Goblin’s Plea 2:30     30     Encounter 2: Ascending the Mountain 3:00     15     Encounter 3: The Mine Complex      [MARCHING ORDER!] 3:15     15     Break 3:30     30     Encounter 4: Meeting Hall 4:00     45     Encounter 5: Mine Shaft 4:45     60     Encounter 6: Mushroom Farm 5:45     15     Rewards I also added the note to get a marching order as soon as they entered the mine, so it wouldn't be so obvious which rooms in the complex were the encounters. This gave the adventure more of a classic feel than the way 4E can feel so boxy. Creating a schedule for your module does not solve every timing issue, but it does give you a framework so you don't let the early fights run long. As a player, I would much rather have the first couple of fights ended early than the last one. And as a DM, it's much more fun if the big bad thing at the end has a chance to munch on all the players and display all its cool powers. Hope this helps someone.
#2 Alphastream Sep 23, 2009 18:46:31	I really like your point about planning the parts that matter. I like playing it less according to clock and more to feel, but in the end I suspect we are doing something really similar. I might give more time ad-hoc for RP or a sensational combat, but I have in mind where I'm stealing that time from.
#3 Madfox11 Sep 24, 2009 3:12:00	I have done my share of planning, but it is difficult to keep an eye on the clock in the heat of the adventure ;)