#The Table Contract and the Prohibited Lines

Contents

The first scene of dark-side play is not a wicked ritual but the conversation in which the players decide what they will treat.

#Introductory Fragment — The Scabbard Drawn Out Before the Start

Before beginning the session, the GM placed a single black scabbard on the table.

"From today this campaign allows fiend PCs. But there is something we must decide first."

The player who was about to make a Shurado laughed. "You mean, how far we may go?"

"No," said the GM. "How far we will treat. And where we will stop."

The player who took the Pure Land Monk PC nodded. "May I leave my character on the heroes' side?"

"That too must be decided. This campaign must be a game not of breaking one another, but of watching different answers through to the end."

The black scabbard was never drawn in the end. Yet the most important weapon of that day was already upon the table.

#The Four Things to Agree Upon

Item	Question
Form of play	Is everyone a villain, a mixed party, or a confrontation of heroes and villains?
Scope of subject matter	What violence, horror, betrayal, and religious taboo will be brought onto the screen?
Method of stopping	When an uncomfortable scene arises, who can stop it, by what signal, and how?
Method of conclusion	Which ending may a villain PC meet — repentance, downfall, execution, sealing, or flight?

If these four are not decided, do not begin a villain campaign.

#The Dark-Side Play Agreement

A short sentence suffices.

This campaign treats the dark side of the Three Ways and Six Hearts and the fiend classes.
A PC's villainous action is a choice within the character, and does not break the consent and respect among players.
Yoma PCs are not used.
Fiend equipment data uses only what is carried in fc07 chapter 05, and is not expanded into new classes, Sorcery, or schools.
An uncomfortable scene may be stopped at any time, faded to black, or swapped for other subject matter.
A consequence within the world remains for a villain's choice.

There is no need to make the sentence long. What matters is that everyone heard the same sentence.

#World-Internal Taboo and the Table Prohibited Line

In the world of Konsei Reiyotan, horrific things may exist. But the fact that they exist does not mean they must be depicted in detail in the session.

Category	Operation
world-internal taboo	Present it as the fear, rumor, record, and outcome of NPCs.
table prohibited line	Do not bring it onto the scene. If needed, swap it for other subject matter.
fade-to-black handling	Leave only the choice and the outcome, and omit the depiction of the process.
follow-up check	After the session, briefly check the scenes that were uncomfortable and adjust the next scope.

A villain campaign is not a game of testing the prohibited lines. It is a game of knowing the prohibited lines and making the strongest scene within them.

#Hostility Between Players and Hostility Between Characters

In a mixed party or in adversarial play, characters may fight one another. But if players fight one another, the campaign fails.

Good standards:

Even if there is information a character has hidden, a player is not deceived without consent.
Betrayal between PCs is possible, but decide in advance that the campaign's form allows it.
One PC's villainous choice does not strip another PC of their authority to play.
More important than the win or loss of a scene is whether everyone can return for the next session.

#Accountability for Outcomes

Dark-side play may grant the freedom to choose evildoing. But if the outcome vanishes, the dark side grows light.

The outcome need not be punishment. A better outcome is a trace.

Choice	The trace that remains
Abandoned a village	A road remains on the map, but no one greets you on that road.
Used a prisoner	You gained information, but the next prisoner does not trust your word.
Founded a cult	The followers grow, but the name wavers between prayer and curse.
Killed a hero	The enemy is gone, but a disciple of that hero arises.

#GM Checklist

Choose only one dark-side question to treat today.
Handle scenes that touch the prohibited lines with a focus on outcome.
Let the fiend PC choose, but do not erase the outcome.
Use a hero NPC not for a moral lecture but as a mirror.
After the session, confirm which subject matter to keep treating and which to set aside in the next session.

Before you draw the black blade, you must first decide where to set the scabbard.