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m (Arcane moved page Loophole Abuse on wheels to Loophole Abuse over redirect: revert) |
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{{trope}}
[[File:find x 300 2285.jpg|frame|You never said ''which'' x...]]
{{quote|Rules are not meant to be broken—they’re meant to be exploited and wriggled out of.
|''[[Saga of Tanya the Evil]]''}}
Someone does something outrageous by finding a loophole in the rules, which were too narrowly written to consider such impossibilities. Loophole Abuse is a form of [[Refuge in Audacity]]—which still allows the agent to claim they were [[Just Following Orders|following the rules]].
Sometimes the loophole doesn't even really exist, but the competitor makes everyone ''think'' it does. Occasionally the loopholes were planted to enable Loophole Abuse.
Compare [[Screw the Rules, I Make Them]]. Also contrast [[Bothering by the Book]], where someone becomes a pest by following the rules to the letter, ''without'' looking for loopholes. If someone else finds a loophole, it's [[My Rule Fu Is Stronger Than Yours]]. Not unknown as a subversion of [[Just Following Orders]] and [[Exact Words]]. If a rule is instituted solely to close the loophole, you have an [[Obvious Rule Patch]].
In games, this may often be the result of some kind of oversight by the creators. A programming oversight can cause someone to do something they did not actually intend, such as [[Lord British Postulate|killing a mob intended to be invincible]].
Common variants are the [[Animal Athlete Loophole]] which exists because no rule bars animals from playing sports, and [[Flexible Tourney Rules]], wherein a characters abilities may violate the rules of the game. [[
In [[Real Life]] this is rare for two simple reasons: First, [[Obvious Rule Patch|loopholes are quickly closed]] [[It Only Works Once|once discovered]]. Second, many systems have [[Rule Zero]]: some designated referee, judge, or [[Game Master|authority figure]] has the absolute final word...
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A favorite weapon of the [[Jackass Genie]].
Of course, this rarely happens in fictional instances, because of the [[Rule of Drama]].
See also [[Not Cheating Unless You Get Caught]]. Related to the [[Lord British Postulate]], which may require some '''Loophole Abuse''' to actually pull off the kill.
{{examples on subpages}}
{{reflist}}
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[[Category:Dirty Social Tricks]]
[[Category:Older Than Dirt]]
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[[Category:Truth in Television]]
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