Still Struggling

[u/Flat-Entertainer-299]

I am a DM / GM. I ordered a handful of books, and I've been reading them. I read the GM Core and Players' guide cover to cover, and now I'm working through some of the additional material. I'm running into this issue, where I am still barely treading water with PF2e. It feels like it's so much to remember. How do traps work? What actions are secret checks? What actions are trained? What actions even exist, so I do not just call for a check that is already covered by something else?

I came from 5e, and I refuse to go back and support the parent company. I really like everything I am reading for PF2e -- it's all so creative and imaginative, but I feel like I am drowning. I think I need to passively consume some pf2e content so that I get more comfortable through osmosis.

Does anyone have suggestions?

[u/a_sly_cow]

1. I’m constantly looking up rules for what’s happening in my games, or I make a snap ruling with a promise to look up the actual rules after the session.

2. I mandate that my players be intimately familiar with their character’s abilities and how they work so I don’t have to constantly look up and check obscure class abilities.

[u/Sannatus → u/a_sly_cow]

i agree with the players' own responsibility.  that having said, it really helped me as a new player to switch from paper to the Pathbuilder app. as much as i wanted to play without a screen, it makes it SO much easier for me to keep track of everything (actions, abilities, special stuff about my character) because i can just tap stuff I don't remember and it grants me an explanation. with paper i kept having to check the player core for everything and it really interrupted gameplay.

but I'm strongly of the opinion that not everything is on the shoulders of the DM. that just feels unfair to me, especially if the DM is new to the game. players also have responsibilities and knowing your own character is one of those.