thread: 2005-09-02 : Meg on Ritual
On 2005-09-06, Marco wrote:
Well, as to Now What, I think there are a few places to start. Some are easier. Some are very complex:
EASY (easier)
1. Assign somone the ability to moderate/prevent bullying. You know it when you see it. Stop it.
2. Set expectations up front to prevent unwanted PvP attitudes. Be as clear as possible about that.
3. Use activities or rituals that are shared by the participants and help make the space "safe." This may include no discussion of the game outside of the game with other people. It can also enforce a sense of community.
MEDIUM (maybe this can work)
1. Get feedback on what the player is looking for in the game and play to that when trying to "break the character." I have brought conflicts into games that were very uncomforable for me (which is why I reject the idea that some "games" are safe and some aren't)—when they were hilighted in play by a GM who understood what was going on, it was both uncomfortable and exhilirating.
If someone had ambushed me with those same conflicts, it wouldn't have been appreciated.
2. Have a shutdown mechanism that is understood and, most importantly, honored by everyone involved. And I mean honored in two senses—1. is followed and 2. is that the person who uses it is not reproved for doing so. In combatives, no one thinks you're 'less of a man' for tapping out. The same thing needs to be true in the game-space.
HARD (maybe impossible without accredited trained players)
1. Hold people accountable for what they bring into the game. In therapy, when someone is confrontational, the focus can shift to that person and find out what's going on with them. This is valuable for everyone involved and creates an atmosphere where, if I am the person who feels attacked, the moderator will make sure that only some kinds of dialogs (therapeutic ones) will take place.
The ability of someone (the therapist or moderator) to do that makes sure that no one becomes a shooting-gallery target. It is possible to do this with a minimum of approbation and judgemnt. It is *very* difficult in practice to do that. In anything resembling a standard RPG with standard players, I think it is nearly impossible.
-Marco
This makes JBR go "You Do Not Talk About Fight Club"
I'm curious to hear if anybody has tried #3 -- although I'm not sure they could tell me if they did. Without reference to the actual content of the game, has anybody done this? Secondarily, I wouldn't expect to see this in any corporate game, where word-of-mouth is the #1 advertising vector.
This makes James go "I don't think he means Fight Club"
Rather, an agreement, tacit or otherwise, that things at the table stay at the table. We don't talk about the content with other people. This is the bog-standard tool of therapy, aka the seal of the confessional or oath of secrecy. It's a commitment that your dirty laundry will not get aired in public.
This makes MB go "Maybe"
Certainly, having a confidentiality agreement might help in some games. I was interested to see folks default to that on the Forge threads about Bacchanal and the Dogs game that triggered people. It probably does free soem peopel up to push their own limits if they know others won't be telling "OMG, guess what X played out did last night!"
