X & O For More Fun

The main purpose of RPGs is to have fun but ensuring that everyone enjoys themselves is tricky. First you have to agree on a game, then a play style. A dozen or more things after that can make or ruin a game. John Stavropoulos created an elegant solution to a common fun killer by creating the X-Card.


Whether a GM is running a store-bought adventure or their own campaign, no GM is a mind reader. It's also impossible for other players to guess what will turn an exciting time into a major turn-off for their group. Instead of forcing a GM (or the other players) to guess what may or may not work as fun, a simple card with a big X on it is placed in the center of the game table. If something goes too far for someone's comfort threshold, they simply tap the card and the game moves on from that thing. If you're not clear what caused the X-Card to be tapped, a short break is called while the GM confers with the player. Because the player doesn't have to defend or justify the card being invoked, it avoids hurt feelings and increases fun and safety.

While people assume using the X-Card stifles creativity, the opposite is true. A GM running a Delta Green or World of Darkness adventure is liberated to plan whatever scenario or evocative description they like, knowing that their players easily maintain their enjoyment. No mind reading is needed.

While the X-Card is often associated with story games or indie RPGs, I've had them invoked the most in D&D games. While running Tales of the Yawning Portal last year a player of mine tapped the X-Card when the players hit a bug-infested area. Later he explained that while fixing some wiring earlier that day (he's an electrician) he had to go into a crawlspace that was infested with bugs, and it had skeeved him out. This was a guy I've GM'd for years. He had never indicated an issue with bugs before so I couldn't have guessed that on that particular day he'd be bothered. A month later, it wasn't an issue.

The X-Card also makes convention games better. It's impossible for a GM or players to guess what strangers will like.

During a game a few years ago, two players were arguing in character. One guy said, “That plan is suicide. You might want to die, but I don't.” Sounds like a typical argument, right? What none of us knew was that the other guy had had a family member commit suicide recently. By tapping the card and saying “no suicide comments” (so we'd understand the issue) the game and in-character argument continued with a pause of only a few seconds. He didn't have to feel embarrassed or awkward or explain more, though after the game I overheard him mentioning it to a casual friend in the same game.

On the flip side, Kira Scott created its counterpart, the O-Card. It works the same way as the X-Card except it signals “more of this, please.”

As a GM, have you ever wondered if players were enjoying a specific sequence or aspect of a game? By using the O-Card, you don't have to guess. If it's invoked, you know the banquet scene that is all role-playing doesn't have to be rushed or next time, add more word puzzles for the players to solve.

Safety tools provide an easy way to ensure everyone enjoys the game, and the GM doesn't to guess about what is and isn't working.

This article was contributed by Beth Rimmels (brimmels) as part of ENWorld's User-Generated Content (UGC) program. We are always on the lookout for freelance columnists! If you have a pitch, please contact us!
 

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Beth Rimmels

Beth Rimmels

As an example say that one person is playing on their phone and not paying full attention to the game. Should the DM be able to say something to that person if the rest of the Players at the table do not care if the other person is on their phone or not. Or should the DM just be adult enough to accept that people like to play on their phone during the game.

Absolutely they should. There is no reason that the DM should expect everyone to be 100% focused on them the whole time. If the phone user is not disrupting play or bothering the other players, leave them be.
 

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Absolutely they should. There is no reason that the DM should expect everyone to be 100% focused on them the whole time. If the phone user is not disrupting play or bothering the other players, leave them be.

Interesting. So if the DM is bothered due to the phone playing, the DM has to suck it up and continue.
It is only when a player is bothered by the phone playing that action should be taken.
 

Right. Except, of course, that pretty often, "standard social skills" don't suffice. Harassment at cons *should* be covered by standard social skills, but we most definitely have an issue there. We need moderators in EN World in large part because people are more than willing to throw out standard social skills when they feel they aren't winning an argument!

So much for "standard social skills".

Neither of those things (harassment at cons or online behavior) are topics that are being discussed in this thread. They also have very little in common with the topic actually being discussed. [You are utilizing a False Analogy fallacy]
 


Lanefan beat me to the punch here, but as people seem to keep getting off track with analogies and metaphors, it's really much closer to the group having a horror movie night and someone else trying to change the genre.

No, it isn't. "Horror movie night," give a lot of information about the details of the expected content. "D&D session," does not. Does yoru GM give you a set of the tropes, encounters, and expected themes to be addressed before a session starts? Probably not. They are probably explicitly not telling you what's in the adventure, so that as a player, you cannot choose to bow out based on content like you can for Horror Movie Night.

So, it is more like "movie night", without specified content, and one person asks for it to not be horror.

Or, even more like it is movie night, horror is chosen, and someone says, "Hey, can we fast forward right now? This individual scene is freakin' me out!"


The fact that it's still a movie night is immaterial to the fact that now one person is dictating what's being watched.

Again, no. One person is dictatign what it *not* watched. And this is important. Excluding some content is not the same as picking the exact content that will be presented. "Not horror" is not the same as "I will only watch Galaxy Quest" in terms of the burden on the rest of the party.
 

[You are utilizing a False Analogy fallacy]

I don't think so. "Standard social skills" were invoked. To determine if "standard social skills" can be considered reliable, their general efficacy (or lack thereof) is entirely relevant.

To wit: it is shown that sufficient gamers have issues with their social skills in situations that have no particular reason to be emotionally charged that we need binding policies for group gatherings. Having a mechanism for emotionally charged situations, which are notably more difficult, then seems quite reasonable.
 

No, it isn't. "Horror movie night," give a lot of information about the details of the expected content. "D&D session," does not. Does yoru GM give you a set of the tropes, encounters, and expected themes to be addressed before a session starts? Probably not. They are probably explicitly not telling you what's in the adventure, so that as a player, you cannot choose to bow out based on content like you can for Horror Movie Night.

So, it is more like "movie night", without specified content, and one person asks for it to not be horror.

Or, even more like it is movie night, horror is chosen, and someone says, "Hey, can we fast forward right now? This individual scene is freakin' me out!"




Again, no. One person is dictatign what it *not* watched. And this is important. Excluding some content is not the same as picking the exact content that will be presented. "Not horror" is not the same as "I will only watch Galaxy Quest" in terms of the burden on the rest of the party.
Okay the choices are Galaxy Quest 5, Halloween 44, My little Pony, All let out around 9:30. After that we meet at Buffallo Wild Wings for dinner.
Umbran, Not Halloween. I am vegan.
Votes are taken. 5 for Halloween, 1 for GQ 5.
Umbran, "I can't go!" Crowd ok. See at 9:40 at Wild Wings. Umbran, "But I vegan" Jasper I will buy you some fries you pick up the tip. "
Next week the group chooses GQ 5 and goes the vegas vegan bar and Umbran pays for Jasper's Coffee. And Jasper leaves the tip. See Problem solved.

Slapping the X card is a throwing caltrops and ball bearings in the way of communication. Jasper can speak up about his fear of snakes. Then Umbran the DM can decide if the snakes encounters are important to story, or reskin. If Important to the story Jasper should just leave the table.
I dm for open tables in a local game store and try to keep everything PG-13. I have played with people who have phobias. They were kind enough upfront to tell me. Or their buddy did. Slapping the x card as it is presented in the 30 page document would have me going down a checklist to see what trip wire I broke.
 

I think an X-Card would be a handy tool for me, personally, if I ever ran a pubic game in a shop (or bar - that's a thing nowadays here in Philly). Precisely because I've spent the past decade or two playing in and running home games for a relatively small group of friends who I know well who share a... ahem... particular sense of humor.

At this juncture I couldn't tell you what's PG-13 or appropriate for general consumption if you had a vorpal katana leveled at my head.

I'd like to think something like an X-Card would become less necessary/unnecessary over time, assuming a stable group of players that got to know each other better. Formal communication strategies have their place, but I'm old-school; I prefer the messy informal ones. But if it helps some folks, good.

I admit to not getting the concept of an O-Card, though, outside of a desire for symmetry, I guess. Presumably, if you *like* something, there's less anxiety and discomfort involved in expressing it. Though I admit I'm being somewhat selfish here. A happy player tapping a card would do nothing for me. I like laughter, smiles, and straight-up verbal praise.

And gifts, too!
 
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... a pubic game in a shop (or bar - that's a thing nowadays here in Philly) ...
OK, you now have my complete attention.

While there's game-themed bars and pubs in a few other cities, we don't have one here in Victoria. Nice to hear in-the-pub gaming is catching on in Philly - hope it spreads! :)
 

OK, you now have my complete attention.

While there's game-themed bars and pubs in a few other cities, we don't have one here in Victoria. Nice to hear in-the-pub gaming is catching on in Philly - hope it spreads! :)

My group's considered playing at a bar, but we ultimately decided against because it would mean a significantly more expensive session. There's a couple bars we'd be welcome in even if we weren't buying anything more than a bottomless cup of coffee, so we could do it cheaply . . . but we wouldn't.
 

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