Rules & Safety

Respect & Communication

• Be respectful. Listen actively. Value different perspectives, even in disagreement. Be nice at the table, even when your character is mean.
• Let your friends talk. Everyone gets time to speak. Don't dominate the conversation. Share the story.
• Only play your character. Don't tell other players what to do, even if you have the best idea. There is no winning or losing - learning is the point, and failure is often part of it.
• Be fair to your GM. Prepping and running a session is real work. Pay attention when they're telling the story. Taking turns bringing snacks is a nice touch.
• Be a fair GM. Your word is final. That means ruling consistently - never punishing players, singling anyone out, playing favourites, or applying rules inconsistently.

Engagement

• Open-mindedness. Consider alternative solutions and strategies. Lean into the learning.
• Suspend disbelief. Accept the scenario's constraints even when they don't match reality exactly. The value is in engaging with it on its own terms.
• Focus on learning. Play to learn, not to win or prove yourself right. Growth and insight over competition.
• Don't be evil, unless… A player set on sabotaging everything breaks the game. Bending the rules or doing a bad thing can serve the story - but get group agreement first, or be an explicit adversarial role. The story belongs to the whole group.

Responsibility

• Address topics responsibly. Some exercises touch sensitive subjects. Allow stepping away from the table. Never say anything - in character or out - that makes someone uncomfortable in the real world. Don't introduce extreme content (torture, sexual violence) without prior group agreement. Use the safety tools below.
• Be mindful of secrets. If the party splits and the GM describes a scene you weren't in, you hear it as a player but your character doesn't know. Don't act on information your character doesn't have.
• No real-world interruptions. Avoid off-topic discussion. Use approved technology only for relevant information during the session.

Session Management

• Manage time. When the group is stuck between two options, step out of character and flip a coin. Respect the result and move on.
• Help everyone have fun. The stakes in a scenario often feel high in the real world too. If you're upset - by another player, by a ruling, or just having a bad day - say so. Listen when others do. If tensions get high, take a break.
• Offer debrief. After the exercise, discuss the experience, address any emotional concerns, and leave space for reflection and learning.

Boundaries

Before the game begins, discuss boundaries. Ask the group to flag any sensitive subjects. Every participant should feel empowered to name topics, themes, or situations they would rather avoid.

Lines

Lines are hard limits: topics that never appear in the game. If a player names graphic torture as a Line, nobody brings it up in story or at the table. Lines are non-negotiable.

Veils

Veils are softer limits: topics that can exist in the world but happen off-screen or in brief reference. A player uncomfortable with graphic violence might hear only the aftermath - the grim sounds, not the imagery.

Establish Lines and Veils before play and revisit them as needed. Some players only realise something is uncomfortable when they meet it. If you notice a player is uneasy, check in before continuing.

The X-Card

The X-Card is an immediate safety tool. Any player can raise, tap, or call the X-Card to signal that current content is making them uncomfortable. The group moves past it immediately - no questions asked, no explanations required.

The "stop sign" can be anything the group agrees on: a physical card, a verbal cue, or a gesture. It only needs to be understood and always respected. When someone uses it, pause the game, check in out of character, listen if a new boundary is being set, and respect it.