These rules were created by Reimer Behrends^° and are reproduced by kind permission. They reflect my basic stance pretty well, that is, my understanding of what is important in a role-playing game; they also illustrate how you can expect me to behave in a game unless I specifically agreed to something else in the group contract.

1. All the players and the GM should respect one another's creations, including characters, locales, and story elements.
   
   
2. Each player creates a character who fits in well with the genre and the characters created by the other players. That character can be described in any way that is suitable to communicate the essence of his or her persona to the other players and the GM. It is strictly optional to rate the abilities or any other aspect of a character on a numerical scale. Players can alter their characters as they see fit to incorporate developments that occur in play.
   
   
3. The GM can either decide the outcome of an action or event on his or her own or let one or several players decide. Decisions can be made based on gut feeling, roleplay, characterization, requirements of the game, a flip of the coin, personal preference, or any other criterion that comes to mind, however arbitrary, as long as it is in line with rule (1). The GM is strongly encouraged to let the players do as much of the actual decision-making work as is practical and reasonable.
   
   
4. A player can always override a decision regarding the outcome of an action or event that involves his or her character and substitute an alternate outcome instead. The player does not have to provide justification for the choice of the alternate outcome and can use any means listed under rule (3) to determine it, as long as rule (1) is observed.