Article:
LARP Plot Tips: Spirit of the Rules

There are many different LARP games out there with varying levels of professionalism. It's obvious that in a live action game, there will always be rules in conflict or gray areas to deal with. Unlike many table-top games, players tend to grow closer to their characters due to time and money invested, so a ruling between life and death can often lead to high tensions.

That's why many games have the "Spirit of the Rules (SotR)" clause. "Spirit of the Rules" says that if something isn't covered explicitly in the rules, the game marshal makes the call by interpreting the way a rule is intended to work - much like how a judge interprets the law.

In my time playing a game, SotR has been the catch all that people have used to make rule calls, often completely ignoring the actual spirit of the rules. As a plot member, you may be expected to make a ruling where the rules are grey. Here are some tips for making decisions that truly follow the spirit of the rules.

Know the Goal
Most of the time I run into this issue, it has to do with newer rules that are being playtested (like beta testing). These rules have a tendancy to be written in an extremely poor manner and leave big gaps in actual implementation. However, when viewing playtests, you can often see the actual goal of the rule - to make something simpler, to give more value to a skill, safety, etc. When making a SotR decision, always keep the goal of the rule in mind! Don't add complexity when simplicity is the goal. Don't limit a skills functionality when the goal was to improve it. You get the picture.

Focus on the Three F's
When making a decision on a rule, check to make sure your ruling fits the three F's - Fairness, Fun, and Functionality. That order is important, as making a fair ruling is extremely important, especially when PvP is concerned. Additionally, the goal of every rule is to make the game more fun for the players. Why would you add a rule if it wasn't fun? Finally, make sure your ruling fits the functionality of the game. Are you adding a new effect players have to keep track of? Does this lessen the value of other skills that have like effects? While not as important as being fair or fun, functionaly can keep the game streamlined without adding too much red tape.