Game Safety Tools
X Card
The X card is a common safety tool that is used at most gaming conventions. The concept is straightforward, if something comes up in game that a player finds is causing them distress they simply touch the X card to cause a change that moves away from the topic causing distress. For example a group of characters comes up against two large giant spiders, this event causes a player distress due to their phobia of spiders. They touch the X card and say "I can't do spiders". The Dungeon Master (DM) adapts the scenario saying "As the creature steps out of the shadows you see it is not two spiders, it is in fact one creature, a large black cat-like beast with pseudopods coming out of its back". In this scenario the DM swapped out the spiders for a creature called a displacer beast. The player does not have to experience the spider battle but the players still get to have an exciting encounter.
Lines and Veils
Lines and Veils is a safety tool that allows a group of players to decide what they want in the game and what they do not before the game even starts. At the first session the group will discuss topics and things that they do not want in the game, these are the lines that are not crossed. Veils are things that can happen in the background but not in game. A player may decide that spiders are a line, meaning there are no spiders in the game. If the player decides that spiders are a veil then spiders attacks may be talked about happening to other adventurers but they will not be a part of the game.
Stars and Wishes
At the end of a game session we will take a few minutes to discuss stars and wishes. The stars give players a chance to tell everybody what they enjoyed most in the session. This can be a moment that they thought another player did something awesome or a moment in the game that really stood out for them. Wishes are the things that players would like to see in the upcoming game sessions. This informs the other players and the DM about what players are enjoying and the things they would like to see in the game. This tool allows players to have input and shape the type of game they want to play.
