Gosh Adventurer's League Modules Run Far Longer than Advertised!

Picture Sean Bean's Boromir stating: 'One simply does not finish in Adventurer's League module in the time allotted!'


Sums up my feelings whenever I see the words "a two-hour module" or "a four-hour module".


Sure, some modules finish within the allotted time. Most often that's not the case. I've played two hour mods that ran three hours. Four hour mods that ran five or six hours. Heck, the two hour module I played last Monday ran for four hours!


Yes, you read that correctly. A two hour module ran for four hours.


To be fair, we had seven players. You know the more players, the more turns there are. Seven players also means a stronger table. Ok, sounds about right. Which means the module increases the number and/or strength of opponents. A seventh player increases the difficulty exponentially. So the Balrog - Gandalf bridge encounter? Too many PCs. Boromir's death? Sorry, Boromir but those four low level hobbits (halflings) means there has to be twice as many opponents. Couldn't resist the LOTR references but I swear the Adventurer's League authors take their cue from that. They also have a fondness for Fireball...


Except unlike LOTR PCs can't cover vast distances to escape. Often they're forced to fight those numbers.


Fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons is simpler than Third but it's not that much faster.


Also doesn't help that the modules don't scale well. The module played on Monday was intended for 2nd level characters. We were... well above that.


So here's my thoughts on how to truly speed up modules:


1) Run them at their intended character level. Strong parties will simply crush through them. Kind of like in real life. Just scale XP or don't. Either that or gradually scale the encounters to where the PC's are at. Players don't mind a tough end battle.


2) Don't increase the number of foes. The players will have superior numbers and the fight will end soon. Only in Organized Play is a six or seven member party a disadvantage. You could also scale up with each encounter.


I know some purists will scoff; but frankly the modules simply aren't well-timed for all levels and party sizes.


Till Next Time,


Happy Gaming.