Despite its streamlined rules in the current edition, combat in Dungeons & Dragons cool minis aren't needed, but a map and tokens to represent players and monsters makes a big difference in keeping combat speedy.
Without a map, questions of enemy location and distance often bog down progress. Knowing whether a rogue can deliver sneak attack on an enemy adjacent to a party member is easy to determine when using a map and tokens. Opportunity attacks are certainly less ambiguous when character placement is visible to all participants. Issues of spell reach, or how many enemies can be hit with a single fireball, are easily clarified when using visual aids. A DM can prepare simple paper cutouts sized to the most common spell areas-of-effect, such as a 20-foot-radius sphere, in advance, to make resolving spells faster. Determining line of sight and cover is as easy as drawing a line when using a map. The DM should always have battle maps prepared in advance, thereby avoiding some common D&D encounter issues that slow down combat, allowing them to determine terrain and a balanced enemy group ahead of time.
Players also need to do their part to keep combat fast-paced, ensuring their character’s statistics are calculated and fully understood before battle, and they should never be adding up their spells’ Difficulty Class or their bonus to hit with a weapon on the fly. Spellcasters require more preparation, and players should not select spells they don't fully understand. Even with the best of intentions, the number of variables a combat offers can lead to slow turns. Although it may not be a popular house rule, the DM should limit time for each player’s turn and disallow any “re-dos” for suboptimal action choices or missed reactions, offering clear prompts followed by a pause for player interjection.
DMs Should Familiarize Themselves With D&D PC Abilities To Prepare For Player Reactions
Some D&D spells can be game-breaking, but interrupting the flow of combat is a bigger concern than game balance, and rule misunderstandings can be fixed at the next battle. By saying, “this enemy is casting a spell,” instead of jumping right to the players rolling saving throws, the DM avoids situations where the spell’s result is halfway done when a player announces they are casting Counterspell. The DM can apply the same “prompt and pause” technique with anything that might trigger a player reaction, including movement (for opportunity attacks). Skilled DMs will familiarize themselves with each Player Character’s ability list, including maneuvers from the battlemaster fighter subclass such as Riposte and Brace that react to movement or enemy attacks. Giving players adequate opportunity to respond, while enforcing a forward momentum to battle with no retcons, provides the best balance between fairness and efficiency in D&D battles.
There are other techniques the DM can employ for faster combats, such as rolling initiatives in advance, using the average damage values listed in the monster manual, and more. Some house rules make 5e D&D easier on new players. Inexperienced players often struggle with mechanics, so pressing them to take their turns faster can seem harsh. Offering to handle the mechanics for a player who is still learning is fine, however, and they can brush up on the system in between sessions. Each round of Dungeons & Dragons combat is six seconds long, and no single participant’s turn should take ten minutes to resolve.
