If the cheater is an unreformable teenage power-gamer then maybe driving them out of the game is the appropriate response. However, not all cheaters fit that category. Some of them are reasonably good role-players and decent people, they are merely weak enough to succumb to temptation. They deserve a better break than this.
I'm not entirely unbiased in this. Not only do I have at least one reformed cheater in my game, but (confession time!) I have myself been weak and have lied about my die-rolls.
What can be done to reform cheaters?
First, remember that we are dealing with a social problem. Most such problems are best addressed by communication. Try approaching the violator and talking about the issue. This is difficult and painful, nobody enjoys confrontation and you are certainly risking one if you accuse someone of cheating. You can try to cushion the blow by not making a direct accusation. For example, "Some of the players and I have been commenting on the really remarkable luck you seem to have. It is so unusual that a couple people are even suggesting that it might not be just luck. To ease their suspicions may I suggest that you change your style of die-rolling to prevent any possibility of dishonesty."
To make die rolling more honest, try providing a couple of trays for people to roll their dice upon. Just say that it prevents the dice from denting your coffee table and also stops them from rolling onto the floor. If everybody is tossing their dice onto a common tray out in clear view then the cheater will be under social pressure to do the same. You can also suggest that all percentile rolls should be made with real percentile dice, the kind where one of the dice is marked in multiples of 10, this prevents changing one's mind about which is the tens die.
Also examine your style of game. Does it actually encourage cheating by only rewarding good die-rolling? For example, suppose a gamer deduces exactly where the hidden object must be and specifically goes over there and looks for it. Do you still insist that he make a Search roll in order to find it? If you do then you are rewarding good die-rolling not good playing. Or suppose the player figures out what the correct approach to an NPC might be and then role-plays a good speech to persuade that NPC. Do you still insist that she must succeed in an Oratory roll to get through? If you do then you are rewarding good die-rolling not good role-playing. My approach is that the player is either given an automatic success or if a roll still seems indicated then success occurs on anything but a Fumble. At the very least give him or her a massive bonus on the roll.
One of the things that drives people to cheat is feeling that they have no control over their fate. If you can give them a feeling of control through their role-playing decisions then they won't feel the need to take control through cheating on their die-rolls.
Further, try to emphasize the role-playing possibilities presented by failure. If some-one is about to go down then encourage heroic last words and other gestures. Try anything to make the actual result of the roll less important than the possibilities opened up by whatever the roll may be. Sure, this is a tall order. It won't succeed without the cooperation of the gaming group. But if you can get people moving in this direction then the cheater will follow. And the whole game will benefit.
Perhaps a general discussion with your group about the need for more role-playing and less emphasis on succeeding in the specific mission will help generate the right atmosphere. It will avoid confrontation with any individuals and get the cheater thinking about how he defines success.
End of Glorantha Digest V3 #59
WWW material at http://hops.wharton.upenn.edu/~loren/rolegame.html
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