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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe X Card: Your Safety Net<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
The X-Card was the first TTRPG safety tool I ever heard about and it is, to this day, one of the best. Think of the X-Card as a sort of D&D emergency brake, making sure that we can stop swiftly enough before we crash face-first into a problem. The actual shape of the X-Card can vary widely, from a literal, physical card for in-person experiences (in these cases, just take out an index card and put a BIG \u201cX\u201d right on it), an icon in some VTTs (Roll20 has a \u201cSafety tools\u201d card deck that includes the X-Card, so it\u2019s right there) or even a nifty little chatbot in Discord (though the big one of these is down for the moment). The idea is that, whenever something in-game is too much in one way or the other, you tap that X-Card and your table taps the \u201cpause\u201d button on the story. By tapping the X-Card, you\u2019re letting the rest of your table know that the current in-game situation is not cool by you; the group then has the chance to change its course before we hit that aforementioned wall. Do we skip this scene? How do we change course from here to keep from hitting that wall? Can we reframe the scene as it exists or do we need to change some fundamental details to keep everyone safe and comfortable with what\u2019s happening? Also, the X-Card is probably the easiest safety tool to use, you simply make a single card available to your players and make sure they know where it is and how to use it. For Game Masters like me, it\u2019s like buckling your seatbelt: you wouldn\u2019t drive without your seatbelt on, and I won\u2019t run a D&D session (or any other TTRPG session for that matter) without making sure that everyone knows where the X-Card is and what it\u2019s for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Session Zero: Setting Expectations<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s hard for me to imagine starting any TTRPG campaign off without a proper Session Zero. Way I see it, the group needs to sit down together and talk about what the campaign is going to be like, who their characters are going to be and who the players themselves are<\/em> before anyone rolls for initiative. While you\u2019re talking about all the cool stuff you and your players are going to bring to the game, take a few minutes out to discuss safety tools and how to use them. Every Session Zero \u2013 even with people I\u2019ve been gaming with for years \u2013 features a short bit about safety tools that starts like this: \u201cHey folks, I want to take 5-10 minutes to talk about safety tools at our table during this campaign.\u201d Boom, conversation started. I work it in right before we talk about who our characters are so players know what they\u2019re playing with before they start playing with it. For some tools like Lines & Veils (my absolute favorite tool, read about it below), Session Zero is just a natural fit: by having these conversations as early, early, early in the process of getting a new campaign off the ground, all your players will know that you\u2019re taking their safety at your table seriously and you\u2019ll start building that all-important trust from the jump and you really can\u2019t ask for a better start than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To me, Lines & Veils are an even better-designed version of the MPAA\u2019s rating system for films. What even is the difference between PG and PG-13, anyway? Each player at your table \u2013 even you \u2013 is going to have different experiences and thus, different boundaries and Lines & Veils is a great way to talk about those boundaries rationally and reasonably before they become an issue<\/em> rather than struggling to hit \u201cpause\u201d on a situation that needs to be repaired. During your Session Zero, ask your players for what Lines aren\u2019t to be crossed and which things belong behind Veils. Think of Lines as \u201clines in the sand;\u201d the things you put on the other side of the line just won\u2019t be in the game at all. Just never put them in in the first place and you\u2019ll never have to take them out. I always start the process of discussing Lines & Veils by giving my own very firm Line: violence against children. Maybe it\u2019s because I\u2019m a parent, but that\u2019s something that just sets me off and I\u2019m not interested in playing or running a game that includes it. By letting my tables know that (a) my Line is here, I\u2019m also letting my players know (b) it\u2019s totally cool to draw Lines here at my table. Is that the sound of trust being built at the table? Why yes, yes it is. Veils are similar to Lines; these are things that you don\u2019t feel comfortable with and don\u2019t want getting any \u201con camera\u201d time in the campaign. The things described in a Veil can happen behind the scenes, but the PCs won\u2019t directly encounter them and the players won\u2019t have to suffer through descriptions of these things being done. Think about how Hitchcock used to show a good ol\u2019 fashioned murder in a movie like Psycho: you know the killings happen, but you never really see the violence; that\u2019s a veil done right. Have this conversation early in your Session Zero to make sure you\u2019re all on the same page and then you can switch to the part where you talk about the things you want <\/em>to see in the campaign that much faster!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes, though, we don\u2019t have time to do a full-blown Lines & Veils confab. Maybe it\u2019s a one-shot. Maybe you\u2019ve got a \u201cguest star\u201d player who\u2019s just in town for the one session. Maybe you\u2019re running a game at a convention. All of those situations are perfect for Content Warnings. In effect, Content Warnings are brief lists of possible triggers or offensive material that could be found in that particular session. For example, if I were going to run my old buddy Donn Stroud\u2019s adventure for Old School Essentials, \u201cIsle of the Plangent Mage,\u201d I\u2019d for sure include a Content Warning that the adventure prominently features sharks, squids and other fairly creepy\/scary denizens of the deep. For me, this process is descriptive, not proscriptive; as I read content that I want to use, I make a point of identifying the important central themes (like \u201cthere\u2019s a bunch of mutant sharks and other stuff\u201d in Plangent Mage) and then I deliver a Content Warning that describes them in the broadest way possible to allow my players the chance to say \u201cnope\u201d (or, far more likely, \u201cyep\u201d) without ruining the content or stumbling across a surprise trigger. But Content Warnings aren\u2019t just for short games, they can be right at place in long-standing campaigns, too. When I want to introduce something that I\u2019m not sure how my players will respond, I\u2019ll flat out tell them \u201cHey folks, there\u2019s this thing I want to do, but I want to make sure it\u2019s cool with you first.\u201d Then I\u2019ll hit them with Content Warning bullet points, kind of like the ratings systems on streaming services like Netflix have started to call out the specific things that folks might find objectionable in a given piece of media. If folks aren\u2019t into it, they\u2019re not into it and we can go another direction, but they made an informed choice<\/em> rather than just stumbling into trouble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, be clear. Be clear about what tools you\u2019re using and how they work. Be clear about Lines & Veils and what each means. Be clear about what kind of major themes might warrant a Content Warning. Most of all, be clear with your table about what you all expect from the game, from your tabletop group and from each other as players. There\u2019s this sadly harmful old school tradition of the players and Dungeon Master trying to get something over on the other side. DMs hoard secrets behind screens, deliberately withholding information that could save the PCs\u2019 lives. Players start answering direct questions cagily, dancing around their intent by asking broad, leading questions. Neither of these strategies are honest nor trustworthy. Instead, be open with your players and set that expectation with them. Further, don\u2019t expect that things are always going to stay the same. Your player\u2019s lives move on and sometimes, that means the Lines we draw and the Veils we put in place change for them. Work into your game plan for your campaign discrete times to check in with your players about the content. \u201cHey folks, when this arc is over, I want to get some feedback from you\u201d is all you have to say to start that conversation. Sure, they may have other things to talk about during that session (and that\u2019s important, too), but it\u2019s up to you to schedule some time to go back over our safety tools to make sure everyone is comfortable using them and that they\u2019re calibrated correctly for where your gaming group currently is psychologically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Every point I made in this article boils down to two things: (a) these are tools you can use to make your table a safer place for you and your players and (b) that the use of these tools to make your table safer encourages your players to trust you and each other more. I honestly can\u2019t think of a good counterargument against both of those two points together. We Game Masters ask our players to put their faith and trust in us every session: for a great story, for a chance for their character to shine, for interesting challenges and obstacles. Using Safety Tools at your TTRPG gaming table is the perfect way to earn that trust by demonstrating that you\u2019re taking your players\u2019 safety seriously. You\u2019re demonstrating that you\u2019re trustworthy and that your table is an inclusive, safe place for players to have an adventure, take chances and have the best game they can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For more information about Safety Tools in tabletop roleplaying games, check out the <\/em>TTRPG Safety Toolkit<\/em><\/a>, which is updated regularly with new techniques and tools as they are developed!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.campdragononline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/lines_and_veils_ttprg_safety_tools.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nLines & Veils: Customizing Content<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Content Warnings: Preparing Your Players<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Best Practices for Implementing Safety Tools<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Conclusion<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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