"Can we get this moving?"... Speeding up the game..

[MuGGzy]

Let me start off by admitting that I am much more a "hobbyist" than a gamer when it comes to 40k. I enjoy the converting and painting of the units and coming up with ideas for unique army themes etc.

I used to play with a local group and when I got tired of games taking 3-4 hours and only getting one game in on a Saturday afternoon before I had to go take care of "real life", I switched to Warmachine. Subsequently I stopped all gaming do to the aforementioned "real life".

3-4 years on, I have started collecting and painting again but not played yet. I decided to head down to a new local shop that appears to have a thriving 40K group. The schedule said that it started at 6PM, I got there at 6:30, no games had started yet. I know it takes time to unpack your stuff and set out terrain etc, but when, by 7:30, people were still babbling about random fluff, rules, and units and sorting out the minis in various piles on the tables and a couple had actually started placing them on the board in prep to start a game. I finally had to leave around 8:30 and at that point there were 6-7 games going but most were still only in turn 1 or 2.

This left me questioning if I even wanted to start playing again at all, as staying out playing a game till potentially 10PM+ on a work night doesn't sound all that hot to me.

So I am left considering my options and wanted to see if others have had this experience and if so how you dealt with it, keep in mind I am about 40yrs old and a father with a full time job if that helps put my idea of " a night playing 40k" into context.

Do I just need to find other like minded people that are a little more serious about "Get there, get set, and start rolling dice" and make loose arrangements/plans with these specific people?

Should I be direct and tell a potential opponent "I have limited time so lets get the show on the road"?

I worry about seeming like a d!@k, which I am not, once the dice are rolling I like to chat and have fun, laugh, etc, WHILE playing, I don't want a game to be a "death march" and be all serious about it but I get bored/annoyed when a turn ends up taking 45 mins because the other guy is turning around talking to the guy behind him, or yelling something "whitty" to the guy at the next table and then forgetting where he was or if this or that unit has shot yet, when he should be rolling dice.

Is it just a matter of personality traits of an opponent and choosing who you play with or am I just getting too "old and grouchy" to play this game?

What ever happened to that "40K in 40 mins" concept that got popular for a "minute" a few years back?

Thoughts? Insights? Suggestions?

[Lord Azaghul]

I sympathize. Kind of had similair issues in my area with 40k as well. I gotta be in the office by 7am. Starting a game a 7pm is pushing it, and folks kept wanting to play 2K+ sizes games…with my IG, its just not possible (infantry heavy), packing up takes about 30 min, and unpacking just as well!

I tried a new army: sm = hate playing them – but the games were fast – but not fun…

The only solution was smaller games, and during a little escallation league we got that, bunch of tiny games – and it was fun then we got back to the big games…

I’ve kind of given up on 40k during the workweek –
When I play I want to play my IG, and I want to run my platoons, but that just takes forever on a Tuesday night

– I really like dystopian wars or boardgames mid week.
Quicker faster games, get home in time to see the wife, get a bite and head to bed.

[JxKxR]

We play 750 to 1000 pts games here so that it doesn't take forever. I do miss playing the bigger games, but at least I'm playing.

[wittdooley]

I hear you there. We do a bit of KillTeam. I really only play larger 40k games (1850+) on tournament days. Otherwise, my weekday gaming is split between Warmahordes, Malifaux, and Confrontation.

[Lerra]

I've been playing a lot of Combat Patrol lately (400 points with some special rules). The games take about an hour, and while painting I can put a lot of effort into every mini on the table rather than slogging through batch-painting 30 infantry.

[Melissia]

Smaller games is really the best you can ask for, but it's not really balanced for that (then again, it's arguably not really balanced fora ny points, so YMMV).

[JxKxR]

Smaller games is really the best you can ask for, but it's not really balanced for that (then again, it's arguably not really balanced fora ny points, so YMMV).

True. Balance seems like some sort of mythical beast.

[theHman]

Here's what I would do in your situation.

1. Play small games, around 1500pts.

2. Be very clear with your opponent that you are on a very strict time limit. Nothing dickish about that. You've got things to do, so let's get the game going already.

3. Go ahead and take charge, set your games up ahead of time with your opponents so that way you don't have to mill around trying to find an opponent who isn't ready.

It really just comes down to "training" your group to work with you and your limited time frame.

Some will be alright with it, others won't. So just play against those that are cool and ignore the others.

[DarkLink]

Be direct. Walk up to whoever you want to play, and say "hey, you wanna play a Xpt game. Ok, let's get set up, 'cause I have to leave at 8:30 or whenever".



I find most people just sit around and talk because everyone else is just sitting around and talking. Eventuallly games will get started, but I've never seen anyone complain if someone takes the initiative and grabs an opponent and sets up a table right away.

[Denzark]

My friend and usual opponent is somewhat of a 'chessplayer' as I remind him, loudly and vocally when he drags.

Some games we just let go on forever.

however when both of us went into training for the GT throne of skulls tournament, we mirrored that - 1500 points, 2 hours 15 max including set up.

this pressure makes for a fun element all of its own.

Luckily my last local club was quite fast paced - I have managed 2 1500 pt games in one night, 1900-2300. You just have to be clear with your opponent about your own time limits.

[Verilance]

My friend and usual opponent is somewhat of a 'chessplayer' as I remind him, loudly and vocally when he drags.


you should use a "chess" clock then like they do in "chess" tournaments, if time runs out he losses no matter what is happening "ingame" :p

I hate chess but my son went to many tournaments growing up and as a diligent father I supported him

[MrGiggles]

My gaming group and I are similar to folks here in that we all work. We also tend to have a bit of travel when we meet up, so being able to play efficiently enough to get a few games in is definitely best.

To that end, we've started doing a few things differently.

First and foremost, we try to have our lists and missions done ahead of time. It's a pretty small thing that alleviates a huge time sink.

Second, we've moved to playing at least some Killzone rather than standard 40K. Killzone (http://www.thecodexproject.com/killzone/) games are small and fun and are usually done if 45 minutes or so.

When we play, we try to just keep things moving and help each other out. It seems to work.

For my own game, I can tell you that I play fairly quick. The reason for that is pretty simple, my first (and still my main army) consists largely of footslogging Orks. I do tournaments for fun, but not slowing games down is a big part of being a courteous player for me. At any rate, as a new player with a lot of models, I learned to play my horde quickly. I started with Redbeard's Article on Dakka Dakka (http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Playing_a_Horde_Quickly) and practiced a lot. The article served as a pretty good primer and I got some feedback from my friend Nic (who plays his Chaos Cultists/Horde Guard) and worked on organizing my army for tournaments.

Anyway, the practice and such has paid off well. I've brought my horde to a few tourneys and I'm not slowing things down at all. In fact, I was one of the quickest folks at the last tourney and I was moving four and five times the number of models my opponents were moving. It was nice to see.

[Fellend]

Most of the games in my circle are about 2000p and are over in less than 2 hours. From start to finish. Only time it drags over is the IG player who is .... just slow, so very very very slow