First developed by Ron Edwards, Lines and Veils are a safety tool designed to be first employed in a Session 0, and revisited as much as is needed throughout a campaign. When discussing the tones and goals for the game, the GM should make a list of player’s Lines and Veils.

Lines are topics that players do not want in the game. They should not appear in any form.

Tracey lines spiders. That means that, not only will the players never encounter spiders, spiders effectively do not exist in this world. There are no cobwebs or eight-legged monsters. The GM touches base with Tracey about how she feels about other bugs, so she explains that insects and other similar creatures are perfectly fine, her line is specific to spiders. This means, the party may encounter swarms of bees, follow a line of mysteriously colored ants, or fight off a giant beetle.

Veils are topics that players do not want to feature in the game, but can still exist in the world.

Tracey veils spiders. That means that spiders can exist in the world, but they will not be a feature of the game — they will not crawl on characters, and players will never battle a spider-monster. The GM checks in with Tracey and she explains that cobwebs are fine, as long as there are no spiders in them. This means ancient cobwebs could fill an old castle, but there will not be any bugs scurrying within them.

Though the GM is keeping the list and designing the encounters, they should also announce their own Lines and Veils. This will help set the culture of a safe table, take any stigma off players having topics they wish to avoid, and let other players know what they should not include in their roleplay. It’s important to remember that the GM is also a player and deserves the same care.

It’s important to remember that Lines & Veils are a “living document,” meaning the list can be updated at any point.

Tracey initially veiled spiders but just realized in the middle of this session that she would feel more comfortable if they were lined. The GM’s giant spider is making her very uncomfortable. She flags her change to lining spiders and the GM simply switches their giant spider out for a giant beetle and continues play.

Some players may wish to keep their Lines & Veils between them and the GM. To allow for this, a GM can suggest that anyone at the table write down additional topics on scrap paper to share later, send a text, or discuss in a one-on-one conversation.