RPG Lexica:STU

S

Skarka's Law

This is an observation, originally attributed to now banned RPGnet poster Gareth Skarka, that, on internet messageboards, there is no subject so vile or indefensible that someone won't post positively/in defense of it.

skillmonster

A character with high skill, usually considerably over and above the skills of other characters. Implies that these skills are the main thrust of the character. Often concentrated in a particular area; for example, he may be very good at thief skills, enabling him to steal almost anything with impunity, or at social skills, making him a master con man.

SLF

A german expression (SpielLeiterFicken = lit. Game Master Fucking) that is used when it becomes obvious that the character of the GM's Significant Other is getting special treatment from the GM due to their OOC relationship. Also used when a player tries to charm a GM of the opposite sex into doing as they wish. In English-speaking countries, this is generally alluded to by the phrase "GM's Girlfriend" or "GM's Wife" (or boyfriend/husband, naturally).

Snowflake

A player who attempts to ensure their character has abilities that are unique or rare in the setting, usually writing a character background focused on attempting to justify this. Taken from the classic children's observation that "every snowflake is unique", or possibly from the movie Fight Club, in which Tyler Durden tells recruits that ".. you are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.."

Social Contract

The (often unstated) rules that govern the interactions taking place during an RPG. Not a statement of basic social etiquette, which is assumed to be in force regardless: rather the social contract of an RPG defines the expectations and responsibilites of the players with regard to the entertainment of the RPG session. For example, many games have the rule that the GM may break the rules if doing so is to the good of the game; the social contract would include the definition of what "the good of the game" means in the particular group. As mentioned above, these are often unstated and not discussed, which can later lead to friction in the group.

Social Skills Problem

A problem arising in many RPGs where social skills are modelled as part of the rules system. The typical problem is that resolving the results of these skills via a simple dice roll, as usually mandated by the rules, will leave the players and GM with no idea of what was actually said or done by the character - highly unsatisfactory. On the other hand, if the player is required to speak in-character and to play out the social situation, then the situation will be determined by the player's social skills, not the character's.

Specialisation problem

A game balance (q.v.) problem arising in games where characters are able to specialise in particular fields. Typically, the problem arises when a group contains only a single specialist in a particular area: any hazard in that area that is challenging to the specialist is utterly impossible for the other characters, leaving their players with nothing to do but sit and grow bored; and any hazard that would be challenging but possible for the other characters is trivially solved by the specialist, again leaving the non-specialist players with nothing to do. (A concrete example would be, in the d20 system, a fighter with a 22 attack bonus and a wizard with a 2 bonus. Any enemy that the wizard has a chance of hitting, the fighter can never miss; and any enemy that the fighter will not always hit, the wizard will never hit. D