Creators, Players And Followers

All systems come from somewhere. There are rules either created or derived, and everything follows from there. In people systems, there are three main categories, as there are in other participatory systems: Creators, players and followers.

Arguably, a creator in a system is the most creative, if not necessarily the most powerful. They are the ones who helped set up the system, though sometimes systems create themselves and are purely procedural. I would also consider a really high end player to be a creator, since the player seeks not to play within the rules anymore, but to change the system itself.

Then we have the regular players who understand the system to varying degrees, but will operate primarily within the confines of the system without attempting to change them. Some players may become sufficiently adept to actually become a quasi-creator. A true player works the rules to their advantage, or to the advantage of those whom they wish to benefit.

Finally, we have the sheep known as followers, who play exclusively within the rules without making any special effort to maximize their personal benefit from the rules. Indeed, a follower may even operate through hearing of the rules from others, and thus have an indirect understanding of what they are.