Rules lawyer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A rules lawyer is a participant in a rules-based environment who attempts to use the letter of the law without reference to the spirit, usually in order to gain an advantage within that environment. [1] Often this term is used pejoratively, as the "rules lawyer" is seen as an impediment to moving the game forward.[2] The use of this term is common in wargaming and role playing games.[3] The term may have originated in military service, with sea lawyer (in the Navy)[4] and "barracks lawyer" in the United States Army.[5] Nevertheless, the habit of players to argue in a legal fashion over rule implementation was noted early on in the history of Dungeons and Dragons.[6][7] Rules lawyers are one of the "player styles" covered in Dungeon Master for Dummies.[8]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Fine, Gary Alan (1983 [2002]). Shared Fantasy. University of Chicago Press. pp. 109–113. ISBN 0226249441.
- ^ Kaufman, Daniel; Kestrel, Gwendolyn F. M.; Selinker, Mike; Williams, Skip (2002). Book of Challenges: Dungeon Rooms, Puzzles, and Traps. Wizards of the Coast. p. 123. ISBN 9780786926572.
- ^ Beattie, Scott (2007). "Voicing the Shadow: Rule-playing and Roleplaying in Wraith: The Oblivion". Law, Culture and the Humanities 3 (3): 477–492. doi:.
- ^ Garner, Bryan A. (1995). A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage. Oxford University Press. p. 512. ISBN 9780195142365.
- ^ Herbert, Don (2007). 63 Days and a Wake-Up: Your Survival Guide to United States Army Basic Combat Training. Basic Training Book. p. 82. ISBN 9780595425112.
- ^ Swanson, Mark (January 1979). "Trapped: Four Years in the Gilded Hole". Different Worlds (1): 15–17.
- ^ Edwards, Ron. "A Hard Look at Dungeons and Dragons". The Forge. http://www.indie-rpgs.com/articles/20/. Retrieved on 2008-09-19.
- ^ Slavicsek, Bill; Baker, Richard; Grubb, Jeff (2006). Dungeon Master for Dummies. For Dummies. pp. 135, 136. ISBN 9780471783305.
[edit] External links
- Alex Loke. "Immoral Gaming". Places to Go, People to Be. http://ptgptb.org/0020/immoral.html. Retrieved on 2005-12-30. — Loke advocates Games Masters using rules lawyers to their advantage, by turning the other players against them.
- "What Should I Look Out For When I'm Playing?". What is Role Playing?. http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Role-Playing/RPG.html. Retrieved on 2005-12-30. — a description of two “rules-lawyer traps": always insisting upon following the rules and believing that there should always be a rule to cover every situation
- "The Rules Lawyer". Meta-Gaming Strategies. http://www.nocturne.org/jason/mgs/rules_lawyer.php. Retrieved on 2005-12-30. — which lists the rules lawyer's two weapons as “an onslaught of evidence, textual readings, precedent, and reasoning” and the “dreaded filibuster”.
