Here is my credo. There are many like it, but this one is mine:
1. I own the game – At first glance it might seem like this is a “Viking Helmet”statement, but it’s not. It means that ultimately I am responsible for the game’s details, and if it’s going wrong, that’s on me and I’ll fix it. If it’s bad, that’s my fault.
2. The game has a theme that you’ll know about, and should be okay with – Each game I run will have a theme that we’ll discuss before we start. Within the game, I expect you to be okay with it and not actively go against it. Is the game 4-Color Supers? No Murderhobos, please. Is the game personal horror? No Ash types, please.
3. We come together to have a good time – A contradiction to 1? Maybe a little. The game’s parts are made up of things we decide on together as much as possible. That leads to two more quick points.
a. If it’s not detailed, it’s open season – If there’s a part of the game world that hasn’t been defined, it’s up for grabs for you to work on as a player, subject to (2).
b. If it is defined, it’s open to debate – If you’d like to alter or change a part of the game for the better (again, remember (2)), I’ll listen, and will do my best to accommodate it.
4. I’m not here to waste anyone’s time – We all have things we could, and probably should be doing instead of gaming. As a result, I’m going to do my best to keep everyone involved. If the game is going to have personal projects, we’ll talk about that before the game starts, and you’ll be encouraged to do them outside of the main game space. We’ll decide a maximum time to spend on any one issue that doesn’t impact the group as a whole.
5. The game will be fair and consistent – To the best of my ability, I will apply everything in the game fairly and consistently. If you have seen something function a particular way, it will continue to do so, unless there’s a real explanation. The parts of the game should make sense as much as possible.
6. The game will be challenging – While the world will be fair, and you’ll have the opportunity to make real input and change to it, the game will be challenging. This means that sometimes you will be in difficult situations, and depending on how you’ve made your characters, it may be more challenging. Seriously think about training Endurance.
7. The game won’t have BS challenges – As much as humanly possible, the game will be challenging because of the situations you find yourself in, not simply because of how the rules define things. The challenges will be world or story based, and not meta rules based. If you design your character with a substantial weakness, it will come up, and this isn’t a BS challenge. No, seriously, think about training Endurance.
8. ‘Those are the rules’ is not an excuse for the game being bad – at different times there will come conflicts with what makes the game interesting, challenging and fun, and the rules may try and get in the way. The rules aren’t an excuse for something being bad. We’ll fix them. Some things being difficult, or being difficult due to decisions you’ve made about your character does not make them bad in and of themselves.
9. The game will be about you – There will certainly be important NPCs, but the game will ultimately be about you and what your characters do. You’re not there to bear witness to what NPCs do. This is not Forgotten Realms or Dragonlance.
10. Nothing gets solved by inaction – the problems you have will have something you can do about them, and doing something is the only way you’ll get a good result.You can always step back and wait and see, but that won’t be a good end for anyone.
11. This is not a game of Simon Says – Your characters are assumed to be competent, heroic professionals. As such, you won’t need to tell me what you’re doing constantly in a dangerous situation. And you really won’t be punished the one time you forget to mention something. Your character might miss a trap or not spot an ambush, but they’ll get to try to spot it regardless. That leads to two sub-points:
a. You won’t ignorantly take a substantial risk – If a character’s action would lead to something risky, dangerous, or result in a substantial penalty, I will always inform you of the risk to the extent that the character would be aware of it. No character should ever be allowed to walk into danger solely through the ignorance of the player.
b. You won’t ignorantly attempt the impossible – If a character’s action cannot possibly succeed and the character should be aware of that, I will not allow you to waste resources attempting it.
12. I will try to always let you know about your options – If there’s information available about your circumstances, I’ll strive to let you know about it. If you have any doubts, ask me. If things aren't clear, see (1), and blame me.
13. We will try to roll the dice only for things that matter – Points 11 and 12 all lead up to this: if we’re rolling dice for something, it matters. One more point on that:
a. If there are no consequences, it doesn’t matter – if there are no consequences for failing at something, and it’s possible, you can assume you succeed at it, and we won’t waste time rolling.
