You don't really examine the sheet, as there's almost nothing on it. You tell the referee what your character does in simple terms and expect the world to respond the way a real one would. A clever idea should simply work. You trust the referee, and you'd rather talk than rely on dice rolls.
Your GM match: The Ultralight World-Simulant. Clear description and plausible rulings, with very few rules standing between the player and the game world.
FKR grew out of 19th-century free Kriegsspiel, where the umpire's judgment replaced most of the written rules. Players needn't know any rules. Good play means clear description and reasoning from how things work in the world.
What you bring
- You can be playing within a minute, since there's nothing to learn.
- You resolve situations with your own common sense, as you would in everyday life.
- Your equipment and allies represent your progress, and you use every one of them.
Where your style trips
Arguing the call. With no rule to reference, a decision can feel personal, and you push until the argument is about whether the referee was fair.
The fix: After you've disputed a decision once, let it go. If you still think it was unfair, bring it up after the session, out of character.
Things to try
- Tell everyone your entire plan, then ask 'will that work?' before anyone rolls any dice.
- Before you touch anything hazardous, ask the referee what you notice.
- Keep a record of the referee's rulings, so the table's developing common law stays clear.
Player types you lean toward
You'll probably recognize yourself in Casual Gamer, Tactician, from Robin D. Laws's player types. Most players fall into more than one category.
GMs who'll suit you
- Best match
- The Ultralight World-Simulant
- Also works
- The Diegetic Sandbox Referee
- Talk it through first
- The Auteur Director. Decide how much the plot will bend when a player's plans go somewhere the GM hadn't prepared.
Bring this to session one
Begin every action with 'I' and describe what your hands are doing in one plain sentence.
Point your table at these
- On screen
- The Martian, Home Alone, Cast Away, Apollo 13, MacGyver
- Actual play
- Referee-led tables where players just describe what they do and the referee rules from world logic. Primer: Ben Milton's 'Does D&D Need Rules?' (Questing Beast).
- Games
- Free Kriegsspiel (von Verdy du Vernois, 1876), Braunstein, Blackmoor
A culture of play describes a group sitting around a table playing together, so one 5th edition group could find itself in two separate cultures on two different Tuesdays. The idea comes from John Bell's "Six Cultures of Play". FKR and world simulation are both missing from Bell's list, and sit here alongside it.
Terms on this page: FKR