Rule Inventor

In the context of Mornington Nomic, people who make up new rules (or wish to make significant changes to the old rules) about who can do what, or when, under what conditions. Rarely, this is done by people who actually wish to take advantage of the new rules: however, more usually the changes are proposed with the genuine idea of adding new levels of complexity to the game in what they believe to be a fair and balanced manner. Where Purists like general principles, Rule Inventors like special-case scenarios. Lots of them.

To bring an unnecessary collection of stereotypes into the matter, Rule Inventors tend to believe that Purists tend to make the game too simple, and thus too easy to follow, and thus boring, with their desire to only allow generalities and not specificalities: and that Gadgeteers don't really understand the full ramifications of what they are doing. But they will patronise (both in the good and the bad sense) some Gadgeteer ideas by 'trying to kick them into a working shape', often against the best efforts of the Purist, and at the same time they will – like the Gadgeteer – award themselves brownie points if one of their special cases becomes accepted by the Purists as Standard. And double brownie points if it was a Gadgeteer idea that they 'kicked into shape'.

If two Rule Inventors come to a disagreement, they will generally each end up amending the other's ideas in minute but significant ways, and engage in a debate which remains politely heated forever and never shows any sign of ending. Neither will admit that they are trying to gain the support of the Purists but both are in fact doing so, and generally going about it in the wrong way.

[JLE]

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