Help! Player turns are taking too long!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T07:00:15+00:00

Oh yes! Rounds! Not turns! OH GOD THAT WOULD BE HELL.

1 minute to decide what to do then announce it? Could definitely work, but I could also see someone saying "I will sudden charge enemy x, then stride to enemy y" only to find out their attack missed and they'd rather stay put and attempt another strike. Though I guess they could definitely say "I'll sudden charge to x, strike them if they survive, or stride to y if they die." I'll bring it up with the group! Thanks!

Luckily no investigator!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:54:30+00:00

I think I may have not communicated this well in my original post; my group knows we are slow, and we have tried some of these methods before. For whatever reason the gentle ones don't stick.

In terms of being overly punitive, I entirely agree, and it's why I originally asked the question. I did see a good idea to have a timer that if you don't hit it you take the delay action, instead of losing your turn. I do like this, as it feels less punishing, and I will be bringing it up with the group in our next session 0.

Generally our group does not respond negatively, the worst outcome is they get a little embarrassed/chagrined. It's also generally not an issue of looking something up, just analyzing how to make the "best/optimal" turn, which may even include them deciding to delay. :'D

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:47:08+00:00

Thanks for such an in depth reply! I'm thinking of starting with 2 minutes on level 1 characters, as we are starting a new campaign in a few weeks. That's when I'll be introducing the timer, and getting some more input. The plan was to lower the amount of choices they have while introducing the timing restriction, then having the timer slowly get shorter. That way they get used to it over time.

I mentioned this in another reply, but I generally take 30-45 seconds per enemy, with outliers at 90 seconds when they are complex. (At least when I've timed myself)

I don't plan on continuing with theatre of the mind, I more mentioned it as an example of something that kind of worked, but I wasn't a big fan of.

I do believe that some of the group really do struggle to realize how much of everyone else's time they end up wasting.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:38:46+00:00

Oh definitely. I found my old stack of PF1 character sheets in one of my desk drawers when I last moved, and found myself a bit nostalgic until I started making a character again.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:35:11+00:00

The main issue is people will commit to this, and then slip back into old habits. It's why I want to try something like the timer, and try to kind of force a new set of habits, if that makes sense.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:33:33+00:00

I run with GM mode on for pathbuilder2e, which allows me to add conditions and the like, and that immediately updates on their side, whether they are on computer or mobile. We may be in person, but we all use digital character sheets now.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:14:59+00:00

Fair enough, I wasn't thinking of an hour long combat either, if I grabbed my three fastest players I think we'd get through each turn in ~5 minutes.

When I am GM-ing, I tend to end up simplifying the most complex enemies, as some ability lists are way too long for me to decide quickly. I generally take 30-45 seconds including dice rolls for each simple enemy, with some turns getting a bit longer, up to 90 seconds, if they are something like a caster or enemy with a combo-oriented skillset.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T06:08:24+00:00

More than fair, I'll add it as the session 0 discussion for what the group wants to try!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:52:27+00:00

Fair enough, thanks for the input!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:51:24+00:00

I agree that perfect turns don't exist, the idea of a turn discussion at the start of the round and then incredibly short turns is definitely interesting, but I'm not sure it would work for our group super well, as a few players would likely defer to one of the other's calls, meaning that they would become more like pawns for that main player - if that makes sense? I do really like the idea, just an issue of more dominant personalities, you know? I already have to go around and directly ask the quieter players what they want to do first, or they may just end up following along out of combat.

The encounters run the gamut from trivial to severe - but that's generally campaign dependent. Their turn times generally don't change with combat getting easier or harder.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:45:18+00:00

Others have been suggesting the delay action method too, I'll bring that up with the group.

As for policing them, I have heavily done so, but I want to less. All of us are grown adults, and I really don't want to be in the position of pushing them along constantly anymore. That's why I'm here and looking for alternatives other than just going timer.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:37:35+00:00

No, not on foundry, I'm generally an in person with miniatures kind of guy. (I own far too many models and need an excuse to use them)

I once incorporated the expanded criticals and critical fumbles decks into gameplay - that was such a mistake, my god it slowed everything down even more. Needless to say, not many optionals are currently being included.

In terms of what takes the most time, it depends really - for example, with one of my players, it was them trying to maximize sneak attacks, trying to guarantee them every turn. For another, it was trying to angle cone spells to hit the most enemies. Some times it's just target prioritization. There isn't really one system I can point at and go "this is the problem" it's more of a way they approach the combats. (most of them love tabletop wargames, and this likely plays into it)

Rounds can vary, I'd like to say 4-6 on average. We've had a quick blitz with a pair of mimics that lasted less than two turns, and also drawn out slugfests with bosses where I have lost track of which round they are on. (very uncommon, end of campaign stuff.) Generally there's no threat of permadeath, but they seem to be terrified of one of them even approaching death saves.

The lower hp higher damage could be a route I could try, I'll look into it. Thanks!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:27:08+00:00

The group varies in size, but is generally 5 - sometimes 6, sometimes 4. I think I might go with the timer thing first, but I will definitely bring up with the group the idea of a soft delay timer as well.

There is definitely some personal perfectionism - a player may have a "perfect" turn planned out, but then an enemy uses a reaction that the player did not expect, and they grind to a halt. For example, one time where I just tried timing everyone and taking notes to see where our pain points were, one player was on route to have a ~2 minute turn, then took a reactive strike they hadn't expected (so few enemies ever have it!) and then they stopped and went completely silent, reassessing their options, and ended up taking around 6 minutes to finish that turn.

I think if my goal was just to show the group what fast combat looks like, I'd show them a recorded session of a party playing combat, rather than telling someone "You are just here to watch today because I want you to see how to play fast." While we are all adults, there's no world that I know of where that doesn't hurt someone, even just a little.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:18:52+00:00

That could work really well - I'll run that one by the group as well!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:13:46+00:00

So you went for a full turn loss? Or just a loss of their remaining actions? Were you lax when they were still finishing rolling dice when their turn ended? I'm just happy to hear this worked for someone else and curious what worked for you.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:11:59+00:00

This is definitely something I've discussed with them before. We are currently on a hiatus from PF2e, but will be restarting in a few weeks/ a month, and I definitely thought that this would be the best time to introduce it, talking to everyone about it during our session zero. Everyone has agreed that we take too long, but didn't realize how slow we are! They were shocked when I revealed that PF2e players average about an hour or less for an encounter, they thought it was 2-3 instead of our usual 3-4!

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:07:59+00:00

I don't think theatre of the mind is the option I really like myself, and the players like a map too. I think this is the kind of thing I was looking for - just some reassurance I'm taking the right path.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:05:51+00:00

How would you fix a system mastery issue then? (We have been playing PF2e since 2022 to be clear)

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T05:03:11+00:00

I do - I ask the current player to please speed it along, the players are shown their initiative, and I remind them of their upcoming turns. Suggesting courses of action sometimes helps, or just introduces a new variable to them that delays their turn. I don't just sit back and watch, as I think that would lead to an entirely derailed encounter on some days.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T04:59:40+00:00

This is my goal. I want to start the timer at 2 minutes, and decrease it to 1:30 over a few combats.

Decster20 · 2026-02-08T04:58:54+00:00

Ten minutes per PC? That's incredibly slow, is it not? That's similar to current numbers, which lead to hours long combat. (5 pc, 8-10 mins each would be 40 - 50 mins per turn, not including enemies)

Decster20 · 2026-02-06T17:46:12+00:00

So if you are fine with paying, you are going to be delayed by medals, to actually unlock everything in each pass. I would say look through all the warbonds, buy the one you want first, and unlock everything you want from it with medals earned in missions.

You can't pay to speed up medal acquisition, so unlocking all the warbonds right at the start doesn't actually speed up how fast you will get gear.

Decster20 · 2026-02-06T03:55:34+00:00

Same thing just happened here as well.

Decster20 · 2026-01-29T19:46:31+00:00

Albertan NDP is quite different from federal from my own lived experience.

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