CVC in THE WASTELANDS

[This post was original made as a Rules Ramble Blog Post, by Jonathan Loyd]

As you may have observed from the new map provided here, most of our campsite is in the wastelands. This is in line with the sort of experiences we want to encourage and make part of Bravado Culture in our setting.

The Wastelands engulfs the entire camp BUT the area around the General Store (Kiva), up to the tree line, the Dog Run (Wigwam) and the paths to it, and the corner of the campsite to the northeast of the Crossroads. While this may seem like a lot, keep in mind that most of this Wasteland area is heavily wooded forests that aren’t very easy to traverse or along the very long Lake Path. In practice, the usable areas of the camp end up in about a 50/50 split between Wasteland and non-Wasteland.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WASTELANDS?

More information about the Wastelands is available in the section CvC in the Wastelands on page 162 of the Rulebook. We will have this perimeter marked at the crossroads with signs and in other ways as well.

In short, when someone enters this area, it's assumed that they've opted into CvC. A person cannot be forced to enter this area either socially or physically. The Wastelands are a harsh place, and this area is assumed to be a CvC free-for-all zone where it is assumed that no quarter is given or received while you are within the boundaries of the zone. CvC society meetings like Murder Inc. or nefarious Criminal Influence meetings (p. 117) will normally take place within the Wasteland.

If you enter this zone with the intent of taking Infection from other characters, you should try to make sure that a Guide is present for ease of potential conflict. Having a Guide is not required for the actual CvC, but you will need to present your character sheet and all item cards used post-combat to a Guide so you might as well get one before you go hunting (p. 162).

• IMPORTANT NOTE: the laws of Bravado and the san saba territories still apply in the Wasteland areas of the town.

Just because you can commit murder in the Wasteland doesn’t mean that a Law Dog won’t hunt you down as a Breacher! When you play the murder game, you need to expect murder in return! But in the world of DR, death is not the end as the Infection can bring you back just in time to confront your killer…

WHAT IF I DON’T WANT TO GO INTO THE WASTELANDS?

Technically you do not have to! Within the ‘safe’ area of our town there are bunks, showers, bathrooms, food services, crafting zones (both Artisan and Culinary), Agricultural areas, and more. You will be able to use every economy skill without entering the Wasteland. There will still be attacks from NPC threats and non-combat NPC interactions as well. Non-Wasteland does not mean exempt from NPC-attack and interaction, horror, or survival themes. It does mean consent to CvC between leading characters must be explicit. Out in the wastelands this requirement is waived. We do still encourage you to find a guide if at all possible before initiating CvC, but technically it is not required.

Additionally, if you are very interested in CvC overall, you should consider signing up for the SES at check-in. Read more about the Survival Ethos System and its in-character faction The Red Ledger here.

WHAT IS THE REASON IT’S MORE SAFE IN-CHARACTER?

The relative safety of the General Store, Terminal Station, and the Dog Run, is due to the heavy Law Dog and Railroad Conglomerate employee presence in those areas, particularly during the day, which also results in a slightly lower chance of aggressive NPC attacks as well, though in character ‘safety’ is relative and never truly guaranteed!

The most important cvc rule — CONSENT

The last, and most important rule of CvC is the need for CONSENT. It is the single most important rule in our game, in my opinion. There are different levels of consent in DR, including inherent, implied, or explicit consent, and our pals at DR:NY wrote some fascinating articles on the subject HERE and HERE.

While the Wasteland Zone and the SES System provides some basic means to communicate consent under normal circumstances, you can ALWAYS withdraw your consent.

At any time, a player can opt-out and leave a scene or situation by using the OK Check-In System. You do this by simply making the symbol of a “thumbs down”, like in the picture provided here.

CvC doesn’t override the need to get consent for physical touch, nor does it override our Non-Combatant (orange headband) system, and it NEVER overrides real life safety.

Nothing, not even the Wasteland, overrides the ability for a player to “opt out” of an experience during game.

Period.

It doesn’t matter if you are in the middle of a fight, in the middle of the Wasteland, or enrolled in the SES System for that game. It doesn't matter whether the subject matter of the conversation, intensity, or emotions involved change, leave you feeling like you don't want to be a part of the scene. You can choose to control your comfort level and we want to provide you with the tools to do so. The OK Check-In System is not meant as an excuse to avoid consequences for your actions, but it is provided to help you have a safer experience in game.

If you have questions, just ask! Your Game Runners are here to help!