Safety Tools
- Step1
Table Agreements
Pick the game system, find who will be playing, make a schedule, and other basics. It's important to communicate the tone and themes of your story before people agree to play.
- Step2
Safety Tools
Choose a selection of safety tools to use for your campaign. Explain how each tool works (even if you think everyone already knows) and do any pre-game set up they might need. A list of tools is below.
- Step3
Play
Enjoy your game! It's a good idea to remind everyone of the safety tools and pregame agreements before the start of every session. If a new person joins your table, go through everything with them ahead of time so they understand how everything works.
Using Safety Tools
Remember, the most important part of safety tools is using them to make yourself heard. In other words, if there are safety tools being used at the table it is your responsibility to use them to communicate with your fellow players. Utilize them to ensure your own wellbeing.
Table Agreements
What to do before you start your game.
C.A.T.S. Method
The C.A.T.S. Method is a communication tool that helps you provide a quick, easy-to-understand summary of your game content. It’s a great way for the Navigator to inform the players of what to expect in a premade adventure or for a group to recap what they decided on if they did collaborative worldbuilding. The acronym CATS helps you remember the information you need to share:
- Concept: What is the game about? This is a high-level pitch that can include setting information and touchstones.
- Aim: What are the PCs trying to accomplish?
- Tone: What mood are you aiming for in the game? Serious, creepy, silly, or inspiring? Touchstones and media examples can be very helpful with getting everyone on the same page for tone.
- Safety (sometimes “Subject Matter” is used for the ‘s’): List or discuss potentially sensitive subjects that might be explored during your game.
The C.A.T.S. Method was created by Patrick O’Leary. proleary.com/games/the-cats-method/
Lines & Veils
Lines and veils are established boundaries for the story and are defined by each player individually. Generally they are shared with the GM, either as a group or in private, before the start of a game or campaign. Lines are hard boundaries that exclude specified content from the game, no questions asked. This could include anything, but common lines are children being harmed, rape or sexual violence, or racial discrimination. Veils are softer limits where the player is ok with it being included in the game but it isn’t explicitly described. Things that are specified as veils will be hand-waved without going into detail or happen off-screen, like the fade-to-black sex scenes in a PG movie. You can learn more about them at: rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/30906/what-do-the-terms-lines-and-veils-mean
Safety Tools
Tools to use during your game.
Open Door Policy
An open door policy lets everyone feel relaxed and safe during your game. Players may leave the table or the game in a mature manner for any reason without being judged. This can apply to things as simple as restroom breaks, taking phone calls, or going to another room for an emotional cool-down. This also includes maintaining a play environment where people feel okay about leaving a game that they don’t want to stay in, without pressure or negativity from others. The one caveat is that this policy does not give people free reign to be combative or leverage their presence as a way to force other players to disregard their own boundaries. Everyone at the table deserves the respect to take care of their own needs and well being. The Open Door was coined by Eirik Fatland.
Exit the Scene
If at any time a player is no longer comfortable participating in a scene that is happening, but they do not object to the scene’s content remaining in the game, they say, “I exit the scene.” Their character leaves the scene and the scene or story continues without interruption. Other characters do not get to object or impair the character’s exit. There is no roleplaying penalty or consequence for leaving. The character leaves because of a very good reason that may or may not be specified. This is different than the Open Door Policy because it is the character is leaving the scene, although the Open Door Policy can be used in conjunction with it. Exit the scene was created by Kimi Hughes.
X-Card
The x-card is the simplest safety tool and also the easiest to implement. A card with a large X is placed on the table where everyone can reach it. If anyone feels uncomfortable, they simply touch the x-card. The GM and other players will change the scene immediately by skipping it or changing what is happening. The person who activated the x-card is not expected to explain their reasons. John Stavropoulos developed the x-card. You can read more about the x-card at tinyurl.com/x-card-rpg.
Consent Flower
The Consent Flower, also called the Support Flower, lets players communicate how they are feeling about a scene in a subtle, non-verbal way. There are three colors on the table: green, yellow and red. Sometimes they are just colored cards, but they can be the shape of petals or have flower pictures on them, but the three colors are what is most important. The person activating the color will make direct eye contact with the person they are trying to communicate with and tap one of the cards.
- Green – this card is a request to push the current scene even harder. This is a way of giving and asking for consent without words.
- Yellow – this card indicates that the person is comfortable with the scene and it should continue at the current intensity
- Red – this card requests that the current scene be pulled back immediately and the intensity be lowered.
It is highly recommended that the Consent Flower be used in conjunction with another safety tool, such as the x-card and Lines & Veils. Tayler Stokes created the Consent Flower and more information about it can be found at: the-act-apart.itch.io/the-support-flower
Script Change
Script Change is a more complex tool than some of the others, but it is highly effective at giving everyone at the table more direct control of a scene when they feel uncomfortable. Three cards are placed in the middle of the table labeled “rewind”, “pause’, and “fast forward” that anyone at the table can tap to activate. “Rewind” – this card takes the game back to before the uncomfortable content so things can be retconned “Pause” – this card puts the scene on pause but doesn’t make any changes. Take a breath! “Fast Forward” – this card skips play forward past the uncomfortable content so that it isn’t described Script Change was designed by Beau Jágr Sheldon and more information about it can be found at briebeau.com/thoughty/script-change/