Rule 2 is going to sound a lot like Rule 1, and that's fine - Rule 1 is super super important.
Escape rooms can get a little hectic, I should warn you if you've never been in one. Creating a single room with enough puzzles to involve 12 people at once is going to involve several different things going on at once. Add in counting down clocks and any other environment distractions (see: roaming zombie from last post) and you have a recipe for post-apocalyptic chaos. So here's something you may forget in the babble of 12 voices all yelling questions and answers at each other at once:
RULE #2: COMMUNICATE EVERYTHING
It seems obvious in hindsight, and when you're looking forward to participating, you don't think to yourself, "I'm going to find the answers and then just keep my mouth shut." But when many people are all talking urgently to one another, you might find yourself forgetting to contribute what you know, or not knowing who to communicate it to. Here are several ideas to make sure all info is spread to all parties.
General Tip: Just Keep Talking
If your mouth isn't flapping, I'm going to go ahead and say you're probably playing this game wrong. Sorry to all those strong-and-silent types, but silence isn't going to get anyone out of a locked room with 11 other people. Don't got anything to say about the puzzle at hand? Feel free to make commentary about the room at large, or ask if anyone's solved this bit or that bit, or announce you're going to search something else again. Silence is tantamount to sabotage in a situation like this.
Example: My friends and I are running around the room grabbing items, opening drawers, solving puzzles, and whatnot. We were solving a room where the majority of people were in my group, and one small group of strangers got stuck with us. Most of those strangers didn't want to step outside their comfort zone and interrupt a group that chattering among themselves, but thank goodness one of them did. She tapped me on the shoulder and said, "did you notice that the sign over there has some stuff on the back?" And that was exactly what I needed.
Specific Tip: The Secretary
At least one person must be the focus of all this information - that's just the most efficient way to play it. Two is fine. If you really want, tell your information to every single person in the room one at a time, but it doesn't seem like the most efficient way. In all of the escape room's I've played, they provide a clipboard and a scratch piece of paper, as well as a few pens. Whoever has a clipboard has nominated themselves as the repository for all the information in the room. If no one has picked up that clipboard, go ahead and nominate yourself (as long as your handwriting is legible to at least you). Note down everything you see or hear as neatly as possible, especially codes. Long hints don't need to be written down verbatim, but it might be helpful to note down where they are, so you don't forget to look at them again.
