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Message: <blockquote data-quote="TheSword" data-source="post: 8174804" data-attributes="member: 6879661">There are three reasons I believe rule zero is useful and important.Firstly it speeds up in/table arguments. Any game as complex as d&d and its clones (yes even a streamlined D&D is complex) is going to bog down at some point with disagreement over rules interactions. If there is an ‘ultimate arbiter of the rules’ then it allows the game to continue in a timely manner. For instance our group had a disagreement about whether initiative order was reset when a person was revived from combat. Remember it isn’t always that a rule doesn’t exist, just that players might not know it, or understand the full implications. Anyone who says it isn’t complex can go back and read these forums in the first 3 years of release or see the Sage advice Twitter.Secondly, it allows the DM to find their own style and tone. Being a DM has many challenges. Sometimes you want cool stuff to happen but don’t have a rule to reference it too. Sometimes the DM needs to just decide what they want to have happen and hand wave it. I have a  DM who tends to start every fight in media res. So roll initiative and the enemy are standing 15 feet away and surrounding us. I think it probably stems from excessive buffing/sniping in 3e/Pathfinder days, but it actually keeps the combats tense, and dynamic. Rather than the tactically sound option of standing in a 5’ wide gap and killing the enemy 4 on 1. It’s a different style to mine, but I respect it and enjoy it. Neither  setup is defined in the rules, and frankly I don’t care. The DM should be able to make these calls. If they want to give a creature max hp then they can, or invent a new ability, or a spell, or give extra spells to a particular NPC etc, or decide it only take 4 days to do a journey not 6 then that’s all for the good.Lastly, and for me the most important impact is it  discourages an adversarial approach. If the DM is not forced into slavishly obeying the rules (in the broader sense) then they become more than just a guy playing the bad guys in a board game. It is impossible for players to be in competition with the DM, because the DM can work outside the rules. Rocks fall you die in the most extreme case. Once that is off the table people can get on with the game and have fun.To be clear, none of this is forced on players. They can vote with their feet and choose not to play if they don’t like the style. Yes some of this can be discussed up front and pre-warned in a session zero or players guide but it’s hubristic to think you can catch everything.</blockquote>

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