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Code of Conduct for Fanwar LARP

Source: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kmZP3iPH1UBvTxSZZEDZYxgNttk8lnL73RJQVcyW9-U/edit

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FANWAR Code of Conduct 2020

By Christopher Melville





The Three Rules of Life - FanWar Etiquette





Before we can play the game, we need to make sure we all know how to play fairly and safely. Below are three rules that will help you, not only as a FanWar player but in the rest of your life as well!





1. Take Care of the People - Never do anything that will hurt someone.  Kindness Always Wins. We are here to play and have fun. If someone is ever hurt or frustrated by the game, stop what you are doing, put your fist over your head (to show you are out of game) and ask them “Are you ok? What do you need?” Look them in the eyes and be friendly! If you have injured or angered them, apologize and wait until they are ready to join the game again before you do. If you need help, get a Game Master or a referee to help you. This rule also means take care of yourself! It's important to take breaks, drink plenty of water and know your own limits.





2. Take Care of the Things - Never do anything that damages the materials. The weapons are fragile. The FanWar equipment is expensive to make and if damaged can be dangerous. Do not be rough with the weapons or yank, smack, or step on the equipment. We spend hours of our time just making one sword. Take care of the things so that everyone can enjoy them.





3. Make it Work - Listen carefully and follow the directions. Use the procedures. Fair Play makes for Good Gaming. FanWar is a game that takes a lot of honesty and trust. In order for a LARP to work, everyone has to play fairly and honestly, even if it means their character is going to die! If you play the game by the rules and accept when you are tagged, you will do great at FanWar. You need to trust the Game Master and the game world to work. If you get wounded, it is not the end of the world, you can get healed by another player very quickly. But if you deny you were hit or argue about it, it wastes everyone’s time and ruins the game for everyone. You may have to admit that you were wrong, but that is part of life. When we all play fair and trust each other to do the same, the game is that much better!





Sometimes it’s hard to know how to follow the Three Rules of Life.  Here are some of the expectations at LARP that you must follow in order to Take Care of the People, Take Care of the Things, and Make it Work.





Expectations for FANWAR Players at LARP, online, or in any situation involving our LARP community:





1. Treat others as you wish to be treated:  We will act towards others in this community in the way we expect and wish for them to act towards us as well.

2. Listen to others:  Players will listen to their Game Masters and other players.  Game Masters will listen to other Game Masters and players.  

3. Speaking to others using a respectful tone of voice:  Game Masters and players will talk to each other with respect, ask questions, and share information even when angry or upset.

4. Showing basic respect and friendliness:  We will be friendly to one another even if we are not all friends.  This includes welcoming and showing interest in one another, and getting to know one another through sharing and cooperative work and play.

5. Having positive work attitudes:  We will concentrate and persist even on difficult tasks and with the missions, tasks, procedures, and cleanup even when we don’t want to.

6. Resolving Conflicts:  We will work to resolve conflicts with fairness and active listening, and without recourse to violent actions or implications (we solve things peacefully).

7. Relating to others without bullying:  We will treat others with respect at all times, even when things are not going the way we want, or we strongly disagree.

What are the consequences for people in the LARP community who do not follow these rules and procedures?

1. First, we talk to the person who has made the error, and ask them to correct the error.  If they can do this, and repair any damage they have done, we let go of the problem and move on with the game.

2. Next, if a player cannot or will not, follow these rules or procedures and does not correct the error or persists in breaking the rules or procedures, we talk to the Game Masters, and let them know so they can take steps to help the person fix this error, and move on with the game.

3. If this doesn’t work, and the problem still happens, even though the Game Master has given direction and pointed out this error, and how to correct it, the player will be given specific guidelines they must follow if they wish to continue being a part of the FANWAR LARP community.  The player will need to agree to these guidelines and make an effort to abide by them.

4. If this doesn’t work, and the guidelines are not enough to keep a player from continuing to break the rules or procedures of our community, they will have to stop playing with us, leave the online spaces, and not engage with any LARP related activities, until such a time as they can demonstrate that they have developed the ability to manage this problem such that it is no longer a problem for the leagues.

5. [Note] If the Director of the League at any time feels that the behavior of a players is dangerous or offensive such that it poses a threat to the safety or security of the players or the league as an organization, players or Game Masters may be removed from the game immediately, and without warning, until such a time that the Director feels it is safe for them to return.





The longer a player has been doing FANWAR LARP, the more we will hold them accountable to this Code of Conduct.  New players are expected to make many errors as they learn.  Players with many years of active play should be expected to make few if any errors, and when they do, be corrected immediately.  Helpers and Game Masters are held to an even higher standard of the Code of Conduct, and will lose their status as Helpers or Game Masters should they flaunt, disregard, or be disingenuous with the Code of Conduct.





What Type of Consequences Do the Game Masters Use?

There are many ways that a Game Master helps to correct errors and negative game play.  Not all of them will be seen by the other players (in fact, most of the time, players will never see the actions a Game Master takes to fix things).





1. Natural Consequences:  This is a consequence that the Game Master doesn’t need to enforce, because it enforces itself.  In the real world, an example is harassing a pet or animal.  You will likely get the claws quickly.  In the LARP world, if your character insists on killing everything, everything will kill you back!  This is just the natural consequence of your actions.  If you insist on being evil or cruel, people notice, and they take whatever action they can to stop you, avoid you, or not engage with you.  Note that one of the natural consequences of not following the Rules of Life, and this Code of Conduct is the loss of friendships and fun.

2. Logical Consequences:  This is a consequence that the Game Master does need to enforce, because the Natural Consequence is too dangerous or not clear.  In the real world, an example is choosing to climb too high in a tree.  The natural consequence of letting you keep climbing is too dangerous, thus the logical consequence is you are banned from climbing trees.  In the LARP world, if your character insists on stealing items from the party and tries to keep them for themselves, they will logically not be allowed to go on missions with the party any more, given that the party would never logically trust you.  If your character is insane or murderous due to flaws, the party and leaders of the city will logically remove you from missions and quests, as you are a danger to the success of those missions.

3. We Don’t Use Punishments:  Game Masters at FANWAR do not punish players.  Punishment is when someone feels you did a bad thing, and so they do a bad thing to you that doesn’t relate to the bad thing you did.  In the real world, an example of a punishment is when you yell at someone, and someone takes away all your toys.  There is no connection between these two things, just an intention to hurt you.  In LARP, this would look like you being rude or mean to someone, and the Game Master saying all your characters items vanish!

Using “Baskets” for Solving Problems in Conversations at LARP





If you are having trouble with a particular player or Game Master, we ask you to consider which type of problem it is, and to sort it into one of three “Baskets” for it to be solved.  Each Basket represents what level or severity of problem this is for you.  If you are having a difficult conversation with someone at LARP or in the online LARP community, you can tell them which type of problem this is so they can react accordingly.

1. Basket A Problems:  This type of problem is non-negotiable, such as those of safety, over which it is worth enduring any difficulty to solve.  Violent actions or implications, unsafe conversations that are inappropriate for our leagues, or destruction of LARP equipment are examples of Basket A problems, but there may be many others that for you specifically, would fall in Basket A.  Perhaps conversations about spiders terrify you.  This would be a Basket A problem for you, while not for others.  If someone tells you something is a Basket A problem for them, you do not try to convince them otherwise.  You accept this boundary, and repair any damage you have done.

2. Basket B Problems:  This type of problem is important but negotiable that you are willing to take some time to work on.  This is something you need someone else to learn or respect about you, but you are willing and able to take the time to teach this thing, and help the other person learn what the problem is and how to not cause this problem with you.  Actions like never helping to clean up after LARP, or constantly interrupting the Game Master, are examples of Basket B problems.  If someone tells you something is a Basket B problem for them, you can continue to try and negotiate a solution now, and work hard to find the best one for both of you.

3. Basket C Problems:  This type of problem is things to ignore for now while the person learns more about the game, or the situation, or about you.  These type of problems are the ones that often have Natural Consequences, or take time to learn, and the person isn’t ready yet, or it will take too long to explain it.   Example of these types of problems are players not using a correct equipment set every time, or not paying attention do mission briefings.  These things are annoying, but not so big as to need us to stop game time to solve them.  If someone says something is a Basket C problem for them, it means they don’t think it needs talking about or solving right now.  They are content to let it solve itself, or wait until a time that solving it would be better.

[NOTE]  Saying something is a “Basket A” problem doesn’t mean that you do not have to be accountable for your actions or things you have done.  If you say rude or mean things to people, and then say that people confronting you about your behavior is a Basket A problem for you, you are being disingenuous with the Code of Conduct, and Game Masters should be informed so they can take the appropriate step in Consequences.





Inform your Game Masters, Directors, and/or Parents:  In FANWAR LARP we do not support or encourage the idea that “tattling” on people is bad.  At FANWAR LARP we expect players to tell the Game Master when someone is breaking the rules, behaving badly, or otherwise breaking the Code of Conduct.  This is considered good behavior when a player informs their Game Master or Director about these problems, as it keeps the LARP community safe, fun, and healthy.  If players attempt to shame you, or otherwise make you feel bad for holding them accountable to this Code of Conduct and rules of the game, remind them that by playing FANWAR LARP they agreed to this Code and the striving to follow these rules and procedures is good for all of us.

Three Before Me in Problem Solving:   Just like we ask players to ask three other people a question before they come to the Game Master for the answer, we also ask players to ask three other players or Helpers what to do, before bringing a problem to the Game Master.  Notice that the first step in consequences for errors is talking directly to the person that made the error and letting them know that they need to fix it.  This does not involve a Game Master at all, but involves only the players, using the Code of Conduct to solve the problem themselves first.  It is only when this process fails, that the Game Master needs to be brought into the solution finding process.





“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”