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Why Rules Lawyering Is a Negative Term
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<blockquote data-quote="Kurotowa" data-source="post: 7628122" data-attributes="member: 27957"><p>As the guy who most often brings up rules citations at the table, here's the important difference I see between me and a rules lawyer. I try to remind people of rules they've forgotten or clarify rules they've gotten wrong. If the rules are fuzzy on a topic I'll say so while asking the DM for a ruling. Once a ruling is given, or if the DM says plainly they're altering the rules, that settles the matter. I serve as a reference and a reminder.</p><p></p><p>What I <em>don't</em> do is try to exploit an imprecisely stated game element to claim a PC ability can achieve things that are clearly outside the purpose and power scale of its design. Some people will try to sweet talk the DM into allowing things on the basis of "It doesn't say I <u>can't</u> use it to do this." The really serious offenders won't even acknowledge the rules ambiguity and just flat out claim it can do what they want it to do, until someone else bothers to double check their reading. I consider such actions an abuse of the rules and avoid them strenuously.</p><p></p><p>Rules lawyers have a bad rep because they're always fighting for the most personally beneficial reading of the rules, rather than the one that's fun or balanced or RAI. Creative use of player abilities is well and good, but there is a line where you're clearly just pushing to suspend the rules in your own favor.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Kurotowa, post: 7628122, member: 27957"] As the guy who most often brings up rules citations at the table, here's the important difference I see between me and a rules lawyer. I try to remind people of rules they've forgotten or clarify rules they've gotten wrong. If the rules are fuzzy on a topic I'll say so while asking the DM for a ruling. Once a ruling is given, or if the DM says plainly they're altering the rules, that settles the matter. I serve as a reference and a reminder. What I [I]don't[/I] do is try to exploit an imprecisely stated game element to claim a PC ability can achieve things that are clearly outside the purpose and power scale of its design. Some people will try to sweet talk the DM into allowing things on the basis of "It doesn't say I [U]can't[/U] use it to do this." The really serious offenders won't even acknowledge the rules ambiguity and just flat out claim it can do what they want it to do, until someone else bothers to double check their reading. I consider such actions an abuse of the rules and avoid them strenuously. Rules lawyers have a bad rep because they're always fighting for the most personally beneficial reading of the rules, rather than the one that's fun or balanced or RAI. Creative use of player abilities is well and good, but there is a line where you're clearly just pushing to suspend the rules in your own favor. [/QUOTE]
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