multitasking and being a dnd player

[Farsiangel]

To anyone that has had the experience of attending college classes and being devoted to playing DnD, what advice can you offer?

As a new dnd player, what I like to call" joining the dark side", my problem, though my fiancee (Chillingsworth) would disagree, is that I have class Monday mornings, math no less, at 8am and our gaming sessions are Sunday evenings at a friend's where they can last past midnight by the time we get home.

True devotion that has me really working for a decent grade and a game, can they coexist?

[gbprime]

To anyone that has had the experience of attending college classes and being devoted to playing DnD, what advice can you offer?

As a new dnd player, what I like to call" joining the dark side", my problem, though my fiancee (Chillingsworth) would disagree, is that I have class Monday mornings, math no less, at 8am and our gaming sessions are Sunday evenings at a friend's where they can last past midnight by the time we get home.

True devotion that has me really working for a decent grade and a game, can they coexist?

They can, but it takes practice and discipline. My final semester of college, I was carrying 21 credit hours, working part time, dating full time, and gaming 5 days a week... straight A's. But my first two semesters I wasn't doing nearly that much and almost flunked out due to all the distractions.

Study. Study all the time. There's plenty of time to plumb the depths of rules systems and roleplaying while you're at the game table or at meals with your friends. But you have to get your study over and done with first.

That monday class is what they invented Five Hour Energy for. :smallcool: Attending is the important part, you don't need to be at your sharpest in class, you just need to take notes. You need your brain later doing the work and deciphering those notes.

And nowadays, you can use video to record the lecture. Not an option back in the day...

[Chilingsworth]

They can, but it takes practice and discipline. My final semester of college, I was carrying 21 credit hours, working part time, dating full time, and gaming 5 days a week... straight A's. But my first two semesters I wasn't doing nearly that much and almost flunked out due to all the distractions.

Study. Study all the time. There's plenty of time to plumb the depths of rules systems and roleplaying while you're at the game table or at meals with your friends. But you have to get your study over and done with first.

That monday class is what they invented Five Hour Energy for. :smallcool: Attending is the important part, you don't need to be at your sharpest in class, you just need to take notes. You need your brain later doing the work and deciphering those notes.

And nowadays, you can use video to record the lecture. Not an option back in the day...

I'm farsiangel's fiance. She wants me to tell you that your feat impresses her, and throughly outclasses her difficulties.

It was my idea for her to seek help on this forum. She was skeptical when I predicted she'd find others who managed to balance both school and gaming.

[Mastikator]

Try to have the gaming time changed, if only by a few hours. You can play and study, just not simultaneously.

Also, have you considered not sleeping? Or maybe just sleeping every other day (or whenever it's convenient). It'll reduce your learning ability (which is what you need most, granted) but you'll also acquire a mild delirious mania.

[gbprime]

Well I certainly wasn't outclassing anyone my first year of college, that's for sure. :smallwink:

The trouble is that as a general rule, grade school does not teach us time management or effective study habits. If you want to push your free time and still perform well in your college classes, you need to develop time and study skills on your own. Find a routine that works for you, find a way to clear distractions out of your mind, then get your work done and check it twice.

[Amnestic]

I'm in my second year at Uni and honestly, not really having that much trouble balancing things out. Occasionally need to take a break when deadlines are looming, but other than that, s'not that big of a deal.

I would consider one of two options:

1) Change your gaming time. This might be awkward if you're already trying to fit others schedules in.

2) Change your sleeping pattern for Sundays/Mondays. I've noticed that naps are incredibly helpful when doing such a thing. Take a nap Sunday afternoon, wake up for gaming, take a nap afterwards, wake up for your early-monday class, profit :smalltongue:

[Tyndmyr]

Yeah. There's a few things to be done. Change gaming schedule, change class schedule(well, next semester, anyhow), or adapt to the current schedule.

Personally, when in college, I avoided early morning classes whenever possible. Occasionally they were unavoidable, but I attempted to have ideally no early morning classes, and if I had to have one, the easiest one available. I always found it much, much easier to focus after the coffee had time to sink in.

Most groups should also be flexible enough to at least somewhat adapt for a schedule, finishing a bit earlier and what not. Currently, one of my fellow players in a game can attend only every other week, and we have a system in place to make it work.

Balancing obligations and entertainment is a big part of what college is about, imo.

[ClockShock]

Alarm Clock
Coffee (substitute for your preferred inferior caffine delivery system if necessary)
Focus

As said by others above. It can be done, there's plenty of time if you manage it properly, and if you take decent notes you don't need to understand the lecture right away.

Going for a walk in the morning used to help me wake up. This meant i could start my day a couple of hours earlier than usual.

[Chilingsworth]

Again, on Farsiangel's behalf, thank you guys!

She's studying atm, or she'd thank you herself.

[gbprime]

She's studying atm, or she'd thank you herself.

Someone's doing something right. :cool: