book of rules
Synonyms
Examples
Make the enemy live up to their own book of rules. You can kill them with this, for they can no more obey their own rules than the Christian church can live up to Christianity.
Besides, isn't there something in the book of rules about a man may not marry his cousin? Or am I thinking of grandmothers?
What I think is interesting is that the more you do, you have to invent a book of rules of what you can do and what you can't do. And the very real danger is that if your book of rules becomes a book of cliches.