Geez Pete, if you keep posting things like that, people are going to start thinking of you as clear-headed and insightful! I don't know of any good that can come from that reputation.pmskaar wrote: When the forces get larger and combined arms are in effect it helps if at least 2 players know the rules really well to keep things moving. This is probably true of most games.
One thing I learned from hosting many games of Mein Panzer is that I need to study the rules really well before the game and maybe even make a couple of "Cheat Sheets" that have any new rules and procedures to help speed up play. It also helps grealy to have all the necessary player aids ready as well.
Yes, I think you are quite right. I too have found that doing some homework in advance helps the game to play much better.
I have had several of my games bog down as I scrambled to find, read, and understand the rules on some particular topic. I should have done that pre-game! Play-testing one or two rounds of the unfamiliar rules solitare a day or two before would have made the game SO much simpler.
So also I have seen games run smoother when I put the stats for the units for each player on a player's sheet pre-game.
These ideas are not the sole domain of the extra-smart. But somehow they seem to be lessons that I need to learn and re-learn. I spend so much time researching my scenarios, writing up unit orders and player briefings, and building my terrain, and I forget to do the things that actually help the game play better! If only I could find some clear-headed and insightful guys to game with.
