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<blockquote data-quote="Barak" data-source="post: 674229" data-attributes="member: 3028">Well, I had sort of a similar problem, and mine was compounded by the fact that I didn't know anyone in thr group I was playing with.&nbsp; I had just moved to a new area (heck, a new country, but anyway), and had found a group willing to allow me to game with them through the web.&nbsp; By experience, I knew full well that coming in and starting to tell them &quot;no, you fools!&nbsp; This is how it's done!&quot; would be a Bad Thing.&nbsp; Especially given the fact that I had just bought my 3E PHB the night before my first gaming session.But, since with my old group (in which we were all good friends outside of gaming) I -had- to be somewhat of a rule lawyer (our DM was expecting me to be one, since one of the other player was sort of a munchkin, and it was my &quot;responsability&quot; to keep him in line), by force of habit I had already read the PHB front to back, and being a quick learner, knew the rules better then they did.&nbsp; And due to my &quot;responsabilities&quot; in my old group, it was hard to break the habit, and keep my mouth shut.&nbsp; So what I did was..&nbsp; Mostly keep my mouth shut, but once in a while (usually when the ruling in question was -very- wrong and really unbalancing), I would, in a respectful manner, say something like &quot;hmm..&nbsp; are you sure about that?&nbsp; If I'm not mistaken..&quot;.&nbsp; And at first, in order not to antagonize the DM (they tend to be the most touchy about such things), I would try and limit such comments about stuff done by other players.&nbsp; Now, this was over many, many game sessions.&nbsp; And what do you know?&nbsp; Eventually, they started -asking- me about different relatively obscure rules, at which point I would, obviously, answer them.&nbsp; Now, luckily I must say I had the good fortune of finding a -good- gaming group.&nbsp; By that, I mean they are more concerned about the game itself then about being right, and do not feel threathened by not knowing something.&nbsp; And there's no munchkins, which helps as well.Morale of the story?&nbsp; Being a rule lawyer is not necesserly bad.&nbsp; It all depends on how one goes about it, and the reasons one does it.&nbsp; If it comes from a desire to prove their superiority (about game rules?&nbsp; Please!), or just because they are a jerk, then it's bad.&nbsp; If it comes from a desire to try and keep the game balance, in order to make the game more enjoyable for all, or simply from a desire to keep things going fast (it's faster to know the rule then to look it up), then it's usually good.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Barak, post: 674229, member: 3028"] Well, I had sort of a similar problem, and mine was compounded by the fact that I didn't know anyone in thr group I was playing with. I had just moved to a new area (heck, a new country, but anyway), and had found a group willing to allow me to game with them through the web. By experience, I knew full well that coming in and starting to tell them "no, you fools! This is how it's done!" would be a Bad Thing. Especially given the fact that I had just bought my 3E PHB the night before my first gaming session. But, since with my old group (in which we were all good friends outside of gaming) I -had- to be somewhat of a rule lawyer (our DM was expecting me to be one, since one of the other player was sort of a munchkin, and it was my "responsability" to keep him in line), by force of habit I had already read the PHB front to back, and being a quick learner, knew the rules better then they did. And due to my "responsabilities" in my old group, it was hard to break the habit, and keep my mouth shut. So what I did was.. Mostly keep my mouth shut, but once in a while (usually when the ruling in question was -very- wrong and really unbalancing), I would, in a respectful manner, say something like "hmm.. are you sure about that? If I'm not mistaken..". And at first, in order not to antagonize the DM (they tend to be the most touchy about such things), I would try and limit such comments about stuff done by other players. Now, this was over many, many game sessions. And what do you know? Eventually, they started -asking- me about different relatively obscure rules, at which point I would, obviously, answer them. Now, luckily I must say I had the good fortune of finding a -good- gaming group. By that, I mean they are more concerned about the game itself then about being right, and do not feel threathened by not knowing something. And there's no munchkins, which helps as well. Morale of the story? Being a rule lawyer is not necesserly bad. It all depends on how one goes about it, and the reasons one does it. If it comes from a desire to prove their superiority (about game rules? Please!), or just because they are a jerk, then it's bad. If it comes from a desire to try and keep the game balance, in order to make the game more enjoyable for all, or simply from a desire to keep things going fast (it's faster to know the rule then to look it up), then it's usually good. [/QUOTE]

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