The Rules of Ron
Rules to go by in his RPGs games
(My explanations are in red)
- Everything explodes. Everything. And often when you do not want them too. This includes, but is not limited to: proton torpedoe warhead, shuttle engines, trucks filled with munitions, cities, puddles of water, etc.
(I like action, I like consequences. Sometimes I like the to have a domino effect of explosions to make sure people know the consequences of their violent actions. I especially use this effect when I am forced into a combat situation by the players, I don’t want to be in.) - All thrown objects will explode in such a place as to cause the most damage. Refer to rule number 1.
(Rule #1 says it all) - Being in or near a taxi is dangerous. Exception: Not for Wayne Delisle and Michael Goines. Exception for the exception: When Michael Giones is driving.
(I have had a long string of incidents in Taxis, starting in Reich Star & Star Frontiers, and it has basically followed me in every game. They tend to be open game for me to do random encounters, which often end in violence and action.) - Dodge is the most important skill you can have.
(This applies to most of my games, because if all else fail, shoot at the players) - You can never have enough body armor. Ask Chris Fisher, or Ed Stokes.
(Refer to Rule #4)- Other characters being carried count as appliqué armor.
- Always remember, "It’s not our fault." You will get to use this saying. A lot.
(This relates to Rule #1. Sometimes those chain reactions of explosions causes heavu collateral damage, thus it’s never the player’s fault.) - When Ron says, "This is sooo cool," be prepared to be screwed.
(I tend to get random ideas or "wiffle ball" ideas during play. When things start to fall together and I start liking them, I have no poker face. You know when I am liking things, and when things might get "challenging" for the players) - You can always tell where the group has been. Just follow the trail of destruction.
(Rule #1, again) - There are always newer and more interesting weapons out there. And many times, they are not used the way they were intended to be used. Example: Melee weapon: Starship?
(At times, I present unique situations, and my players have stepped up and surprised me) - Jedi attract trouble.
(I always like to play on the Jedi Moral Code and force the player playing one to make those difficult decisions. The power should have a price.) - While you may never get killed, there will be plenty of times you will wish you were dead.
(At times, I like to torture my players with difficult situations, like slimey sewers or miserable worlds, which I try to describe in detail and have in play effecting the characters at all times, when they arte in those situations. When you are on a Dagobah type world, you know it.) - No gun is ever big enough.
(My attraction into the fanciful genres started in monsters, and I like big monsters. At times, I bring one in that might last more than two turns, and that’s when the players complain their guns aren’t big enough. They are such whiners…). - When Wayne says, "Look out behind you," be careful about what’s in front of you.
(This is a reference to a specific incident in Star Frontiers with Mike Goines & Wayne Delisle, which I remember little about, but apparently they thought it was rememberable.) - When Ron draws a map, combat is near.
(Because we play in classrooms or conference rooms on UNCC campus most of the time, we use black or white boards. These give me the perfect canvas for combat maps. I have gotten pretty good at it.) - There is no such thing as overkill. Ask Allemaine, Girillian, Guts, or Cybofurr (AKA Cybokitty, AKA Furball, AKA Ahnjai Rahmma).
(My bad guys are hard to kill. I abide by the Hollywood-rule of 3 killing-blows before he’s really dead. Sometimes that doesn’t even work, and he’ll come back in a sequel.) - Never ask Ron about the rules.
(I don’t retain a lot that I read, very well, so I only remember the more important rules, and leave the rest to the players) - Tentacles. Ron loves tentacles.
(The coolest monster appendage…) - If you ask Ron a question that begins with "Can I……", it gives Ron free reign to screw you over when he replies with "Yeah, but…"
(There is always going to be a price beyond the obvious….) - You know you’ve come up with a really way out idea when you can make Ron pause in mid-sentence and look all bug-eyed.
(This happens rarely, but happens. The players do something completely out-of-the-blue unexpected, and I get "bug-eyed" .) - Ron brings tons of stuff to the game, so much so, that he needs a cart to carry it all … and even then, he has trouble navigating it to and from his car. And much of it he will never use in game.
(When I play a game, I tend to buy all the stuff necessary to play it. I hate running into a instance where I wish I had the sourcebook. A lot of what I do as a GM is improv’ed into the story, so I need all my resources with me. You never know when you are going to need them or what you are going to need.) - Don’t get too used to your comfortable seat in Ron’s game. You will be asked to leave the room often, sometimes for individual roleplaying, and often for the times that Ron splits the group up. And there is a good chance you won’t like your situation when you get back to your seat.
(Many times, when a player experiences something on his own or in a dream or something, I prefer to tell them in private and have them tell the group, as part of their roleplay. So it’s necessary to take them in another area where the other players can’t hear.)
