TOPIC: Feedback Needed on New Coaching Room Ideas

Honestly that kind of thing is becoming more and more of a problem at the big conventions lately ( or at least more public ) link related.


whatever.scalzi.com/2012/08/09/an-incomplete-guide-to-not-creeping/

The comments about the lights reminded me--if there is to be a True Grind this year (and I really, really hope there will be), can there be both a dedicated area for the event and a well-lit muster/coaching area? It was REALLY difficult to see, let alone coordinate our mixed group, outside of te True Grind area in 2012.

ian ferguson wrote: With the u-shaped tables, the coaches will be reading cards upside down or the players will have to be prompted to 'spin' the mats for them. As long as there is ample lighting, any dropped tokens should be a breeze to find, as I am sure a few were lost to the Dwarves last year.

Good catch on the upside down thing. I think its a small price to pay for this setup.

I know I announced every time a token hit the floor, to the point a few players actually commented that I was "very good at that". I just chuckled and moved on. Really my brain just equates that sound as someone losing money. Its hard for that sound not to trigger a panic response.[/quote]

Can the Mats be mounted inside something like a wooden tray with a small lip (1/2 inch) around them, so if the mat is spun the farthest the token will go is the edge of the mat?

greyseer wrote: Can the Mats be mounted inside something like a wooden tray with a small lip (1/2 inch) around them, so if the mat is spun the farthest the token will go is the edge of the mat?

Although that is yet another layer of complication for what I assume is already a pretty heavy process, I do like the idea.

Some entryway mats or even pet food mats have a raised edge to keep pet food/water and/or mud/snow from shoes contained. These mats are plastic and should be pretty cheap to obtain. (Although, the ones for boots that I currently own are rather large.)

Garrison wrote:

greyseer wrote: Can the Mats be mounted inside something like a wooden tray with a small lip (1/2 inch) around them, so if the mat is spun the farthest the token will go is the edge of the mat?

Although that is yet another layer of complication for what I assume is already a pretty heavy process, I do like the idea.

Some entryway mats or even pet food mats have a raised edge to keep pet food/water and/or mud/snow from shoes contained. These mats are plastic and should be pretty cheap to obtain. (Although, the ones for boots that I currently own are rather large.)

Food Trays would have those raised edges, and would be easy to find.

I really like the U shaped table. I think a rolling stool will be great. Please make sure it has adjustable heights. I'll have to practice my reading upside down again.

I like the Inn idea and separate tables for each time. Will solve a lot of the problems with people who brought out all their tokens in the first room last year.

One thing- i hope that some coaches aren't turned off by a possible requirement to do the coaching duties "in character". I can see that as being fun but as time gets short, it might be hard to maintain.

Really good changes in general and thanks for continuing to listen to feedback Jeff and Co.

Coaching in character seems like a good idea in moderation. Like, when addressing the group as a whole. One-on-one I'd rather my coach was more in the present, so to speak. When under time pressure it might just get irritating to ask a question and watch the coaches eyes roll up trying to figure out how to respond in character. But maybe that's just me. I'm usually easy going but the strangest things can get under my skin.

Something that I was thinking about is the description of True Dungeon in the catalog. I cannot remember but is there anyplace to list prep time? I think I remember that there is a field for whether experience is needed or not.

If there is then I would suggest that a mention of 30 minutes to one hour of prep time is needed for True Dungeon or some indication that if you are new you NEED prep time and time to become familiar with the game.

Those of us that have been doing this for many years are familiar with the process. I watched new people getting completely overwhelmed by the token sorting, class choices and more. Those new players are not getting the information that they need. Either on their own or from the TD Storyscape.

It was VERY disheartening to hear two newbies on my team talking with each other on a run that they jumped into (standbys) and hear one say to the other, "I blame you for this..."

Our knowledge has been gained over years of TD runs, reading the forums, and research. New people do not have that background and somehow that needs to be dealt with in a streamlined and informative way. I know that there is a TD 101 course but are enough people taking the course? Many people will just jump right in hoping for the best and a large percentage of those people are not coming back.

Amen CDSmith! New folks aren't getting the info they need. A table explaining the coaches' mat out in the inn would go a long way towards fixing that. TD101 is great for conveying the flavor and flow of TD, but not the specifics. Keep in mind that the coaches' room is the first impression for many new players; we need to get that right.

As for reading upside down; why can't the token circle captions be printed both above and below the circle, one facing each way? What, exactly, is the concern here? What will be upside down?

Tim Shipman wrote: Amen CDSmith! New folks aren't getting the info they need. A table explaining the coaches' mat out in the inn would go a long way towards fixing that. TD101 is great for conveying the flavor and flow of TD, but not the specifics. Keep in mind that the coaches' room is the first impression for many new players; we need to get that right.

As for reading upside down; why can't the token circle captions be printed both above and below the circle, one facing each way? What, exactly, is the concern here? What will be upside down?

I think the thought is that the tokens themselves would be upside down to the Coach if the Coach is on the opposite side of the table as the player. I'm not sure how much of a problem that would be.

Re: people not getting info - it isn't because it's being withheld. There are the forums, the website, TD101, etc. Folks choose not to do their homework and then blame the event... So I don't have tons of sympathy for them.

But that said, that doesn't mean there aren't things that could be done to help out anyway. Maybe sell tickets to a 20-minute quick start in one of the coaching rooms during the bubble to explain things. I hate to make it free because there is a cost - volunteers must be recruited to run it. But maybe enough people would pony up to do a class in exchange for something nominal (no badge or t-shirt) to keep the cost to Jeff low.

This year there will probably be more newbies because there will be more tickets available, and it seems like the layout of the inns would make it possible to provide something.

I think we need to not try and cram alot of infomation into the inn and coaching rooms if we can help it. If a player drops in and does nothing to educate himself on how to play, the basic rules should be presented via inn and coach for him to play. We don't want it to be overwhelming for them.

If someone wants to learn more about it (other than signing up for TD101) I think that having that infomation via signs or people coaching out in the storyscape would be the best option. A storyteller or bard talking about his adventures would be cool, maybe even with some props to explain a few things.

In the end I think the greatest resource you are going to have to help new players is other players, and during the coaching I have seen things explained to new people in the staging rooms.