Know Your Role - Rules Lawyer

Every group has "that guy." That guy who memorizes all the rulebooks, or that guy who hardly tries to remember the basics. That guy who paints, and that guy who plays an army of bare metal and plastic. That guy who plays to relax, and that guy who plays for blood. This new series will take a look at several of "those guys" and explore the advantages and disadvantages of each, and some tips on peacefully coexisting with (or as) them.

For my first entry I'll take it easy on myself and tackle a personality I'm known for. The "rules lawyer" is the guy who tries to know every rule of the game he's playing, the "official rulings" on rules that no one else knows, and usually expects others to play by those rules even if he's not part of their game. They can be a way to keep the group working smoothly, or they can stir up arguments and frustration from an entire room of people.

Pros
They level the playing field. Games are designed to assign a winner and loser(s). Whether or not you're playing for fun, you're still playing to win (I hope). But in order to win, you need to meet a goal set by the game. Do you need to capture something? Destroy all of your opponent's pieces? Accomplish a goal before your opponent? A game always has a way for you to win, and rules to follow that will get you there.

Sometimes the rules aren't followed. Whether people just shrug and say "eh, let's do it this way," or they accidentally mess up a rule, not playing the game by design risks throwing off a balance set by the game's designer. That's where the lawyer comes in - he tries to keep things balanced so that someone can win and lose according to the game, and not because of a bad rules interpretation that gives one person a major or minor advantage over the other.

They are a living rulebook. How many times have you tried playing an honest game and had to stop to look up a rule? In something like Sorry or Jenga it's not an issue with their rules pamphlet, but what about deeper games? In a game like Warmachine, the rulebook can only give you general rules for the game, nevermind how hundreds of models with unique abilities can interact with those rules. It can be a nightmare to read over every word, cross referencing 2 or 3 other rules, all to decide whether a model can move that extra inch.

It's so much easier to shout across the room and ask the lawyer whether something is legal or not and get right back to the game. If the lawyer is outside the game, it's a great way to settle a dispute as long as both of you trust their knowledge. Sometimes you want to see proof, but if they're worth their salt then they've read the rulebook enough to know where to turn and show you after a minute of looking.

You know what kind of game you're getting. If you trust the lawyer, you know they'll play a tight game. Mechanically, they'll handle themselves as though they were at a major tournament (whether their skills are the same is an entirely different matter). If they do something you aren't familiar with, you can ask and get a very simple explanation and move on. Odds are high that they've spent as much time studying their pieces' specific rules as they have the game's rules, thus freeing you from having to watch your opponent like a hawk to make sure they're playing by the rules.


ConsNot everyone wants to follow every rule to the letter. The lawyer probably can't understand this mentality. If it's in the book, why would you do something else? Many people want to enjoy the narrative or social aspect of a game, not the mechanical. To these people, the parallax effect created from holding the tape measure 6" above the table and granting them an extra 1/4" of movement doesn't matter. Why make a fuss over such a minor thing that causes tension between friends or friendly opponents?

These are also the people who will argue something no one else cares about. Lawyers don't just stick to what's in the rulebook - they'll read official resources, follow rules forums, and have Google ready to find any questions they may have. They'll argue like they're at a tournament, even though they're in a buddy's kitchen with a half-empty beer next to them.

Great power, great responsibility. If a rules lawyer is relied upon for proper rulings, they can neglect or abuse that privilege quite easily. If they have unofficially been dubbed the group's "rules guy" because of their dedication to knowing the game, it's important that they try to stay updated on the rules. That doesn't mean that they are required to know everything, but they need to be willing to say "I don't know" rather than toss out a guess.

Another huge issue is that knowing all the rules increases the ability to break them. If people put their trust in a rules lawyer, he can easily break that trust in very small ways to give himself an advantage. I'm not saying people are so trusting that they'll let him blatantly cheat, but by ignoring or purposely misinterpreting a rule, the entire momentum of a game can take a rapid swing in the other direction.

They can ruin casual games. Not all games are meant to be competitive. This may seem similar to the first one, but I'm talking about entire game systems that don't even have a winner. Look at Apples to Apples; although the game has a way to end, no one actually cares who wins if people aren't laughing the entire time. It's a party game, and no one cares if Jake drew an extra card.

Or let's talk about a game with no winner at all - Dungeons & Dragons. The community for this (and similar tabletop RPGs) are sick of rules lawyers. When a game is designed for friends to get together and tell a story, the rules of the game take a back seat. They're suggestions. At risk of being even more corny that normal (brace yourselves!), the only way to "win" at D&D is to have fun. As long as everyone is basically playing by the rules and having a great time, is it worth causing a big cloud of awkward silence to fill the room because someone fudged a rule?


Living with "That Guy"
Use him. The lawyer wants people to play by the rules, and by asking him questions you show that you want to play by them too. It feels great knowing you beat someone fair and square than to later realize you won because of poor rules interpretations. The lawyer helps avoid a lot of this, and also makes everyone better players by helping them play the game within the confines of the rules.

Talk to him. Sometimes they go overboard. If the lawyer is crossing a line and causing friction in your group, talk to him. Odds are that he assumes people around him want to play the same game as him, and that they're thankful when he corrects them. Find a compromise and everyone will be happier in the end.

Learn the rules. I'm going to piggyback off the last point and say that the lawyer may not be the only problem. No one likes being corrected, but deep down no one wants to play a competitive game incorrectly either. If he's correcting players on major rules, then perhaps time should be taken out to learn the rules so that the lawyer doesn't need to be as vocal.

Being "That Guy"
Pick your battles. This can't be emphasized enough. If you're running around trying to plug every hole, you're going to make everyone, including yourself, miserable. If you see a minor rules infraction during a friendly (say, someone touching a model as if to activate it, then changing their mind) let it slide. In a tournament it may matter, but if your opponent (or a game you aren't part of) isn't practicing for truly competitive play, then don't sweat the small stuff.

Along with that, choose when to approach a player. If they're overmeasuring, it may be best to approach them later, or mention it quietly during their opponent's turn. If someone is embarrassed their focus will be on anger and frustration, not a willingness to change.

Admit when you're wrong. This can be a tough one for someone who usually has all the answers. But if you make a bad call and realize it later, let people know. I've been known to mess up a rule and look it up later, then make a Facebook post about it on our group's Facebook group. Whether people realize it or not, being a resource for the rules tends to give your voice more authority. As I said earlier, the onus to know the rules is on you more than anyone else; if you get it wrong, there's a good chance that others will take it for fact.

Teach. What good is all that knowledge if you're not making the best use of it? If someone is a little shaky on the rules, talk to them. If they want to learn the rules, find out what they need help on and take time to help them understand. If they're new, don't get them hung up on the fine details of the game. At most, say something like "I see you doing ______. We won't worry about it now, but in the future you'll want to avoid that." This is also a great time to prevent them from forming any bad habits (in Warmachine it'd be bending the tape measure when turning the model; not marking spell effects; overmeasuring, etc).

And this doesn't just apply to your gaming group. Game websites almost always have a rules forum that relies on rules lawyers to answer questions. I like to peruse the Privateer Press rules forums every few days, and I learn a lot from both official sources (dubbed "Infernals") and regular guys who are there to help.


I hope this does something to help lawyers and the rest of the group peacefully coexist. They can be a great help or detriment to a group, but it's up to those involved to make it a positive experience.

[It's worth noting that the rules lawyer works best in games designed to support them. If you have a game that's imbalanced due to poor design, then they need to find a balance between knowing the basic rules to keep the game moving, and knowing when to publicly fudge the rules for the fun of everyone.]

See you tomorrow!