12 Nov '09 00:41>
Originally posted by AThousandYoungLoopholes are an acceptable term I think. But my experience in games (which is extensive) has found that gamemasters (or DMs in D&D and other role-playing games) are by definition "God"; they make the rules, and all the decisions. They have to--they keep the story moving. Now if they are arbitrary and change their rules on a whim, word will get 'round, no one will play with them and Bob's your uncle---problem solved. I happen to prefer boardgames (as oposed to rpgs) because there is no subjective ruling--if it ain't in the rulebook, ya can't do it. Everything from Scrabble to Advanced Third Reich have no loopholes to exploit.
I got your joke. I just think that the link between scientists and rules lawyers is so profound that I wanted to expand on it. I like to compare the rules of reality to the rules of games. I find tabletop gaming annoying because there are too many "miracles" - the GM overriding the rules.
OK, so we don't like the word "loophole". I was using it ...[text shortened]... "loophole" may not have been the most formally correct way to express my point.