Fudging Dice

Before we get started, a couple of announcements. First, you should head over to my MoSpace and support Movember if you haven't already. Donate now, and decide what silly thing I do with my moustache for the last week of November. Details are here. Also, over the next month I'm going to be migrating the blog to a new domain, so there might be a bit of downtime. You'll have to update your bookmarks and your rss, and I'll be putting an automatic forward here just in case. I'll keep you posted here, and you can find updates on my Twitter. Now, on to fudging dice.

Safe Space, A How To

Last week I talked about why safe space is important at the gaming table because it helps encourage creativity and comfort, both of which are things that make a game more fun. It can also be used to add depth to a game and present more poignant moral challenges and choices. What I didn't talk about was how we can go about creating that kind of space at the gaming table. It can be challenging, especially with a new group or a group which isn't used to thinking about things in that way. It's important to recognize that there's going to be an adjustment period, but overall I think you'll agree that a game in a safe space is better than a game not in one. Most of the information here is pulled from the GLSEN "Guide to Being an Ally", a kit meant for educators looking to establish safe space for LGBT youth, and tuned for the gaming audience. If you're looking for more information than I provide here, I recommend downloading the .pdf, and if you're interested in establishing safe space at your local schools, I recommend it as a guide. What's more important than safe space at the gaming table is safe space for our youth.

Safe Space

In one of my earliest posts, I talked about how working with players to create a safe space in which people can express themselves is an important goal for a GM, and really for any group organizer. But it raises a lot of questions about what it means to have a safe space, and why it's important. Today I thought I'd talk about that, and give some examples of safe spaces which could be used as models.