Well, I'm gonna go LARP this weekend.

[Keldoclock]

Ostensibly immersion is increased when you're really there.


I dunno, it seems like a good way to do things as long as stuff like spellcasting is marked well enough that people can understand it- 1inch beanbags doing 1 point of damage, blue bags being ice spells, etc.


Russian LARP HP rules are more like-

Fight till you break a bone or give up.

[Nitewatchman]

Bring back pictures. I'm really interested in LARP myself, and if I get this nerf game off the ground, I'll probably end up organizing something I'll call Gamesim. LARP itself is connected irrevocably to stupid stuff like...this... while the actual concept has massive potential. Heck, it attracts the wrong crowd because popular media thought thinks it's for the wrong crowd.

*STUFF*

I probably should've taken some pictures. My garb was a pair of blue shorts and a white V-neck.

Also, I didn't really get to do much. I mostly went because my friend David invited me, and he always drives the 45 minutes to and hour down here to hang out with me, so I figured it was about time I started repaying the favor and not being a crappy friend. This being the case, we hung out at his apartment and went to lunch for the first two or three hours of the day(it runs from 12 noon to 5PM), and got there just after they had finished their last big battle for the day. Turns out Sunday was feast/tournament day.

The feast was kinda like a potluck, and they had some good food there(though I didn't really eat anything, since we had already eaten lunch), and there were several tournaments. I think there was long sword, daggers, shield and sword, general melee, and one or two others. I entered the longsword tourney and lost to David in the first round(or shall I say Imgoth, as you are supposed to go by your persona name when you're there), so after that I just watched, talked a little bit, and sparred with David/Imgoth/whatever.

My hammer broke during our spar, but it was a formidable weapon for a bit there. I made the mistake of using a sun-baked T-joint instead of one of the new ones we had, so I believe that's where I went wrong. It just kind of...shattered.

Anywho, I really liked it. Everyone was really cool and seemed pretty layed back. There weren't any stupid whiny nerds, as far as I could tell, and everyone was really nice. I just can't wait until I ACTUALLY get to take part in a battle....my hammer shall come to be feared.


Oh, also, Sunday was a sort of art/craft showing, where people brought cool things they made and got awards and whatnot. There was some pretty cool pieces of pottery, and the most awesome painting of a dwarf I think I've ever seen. He was standing in a forest during fall so there were leaves all over the ground, and he was basically standing over a freshly killed boar. Very Brikwars.

But yeah, LARP...here's a link to the specific system they go by:
http://www.amtgardinc.com/

I dunno, it seems like a good way to do things as long as stuff like spellcasting is marked well enough that people can understand it- 1inch beanbags doing 1 point of damage, blue bags being ice spells, etc.

Yeah, there aren't different things for different spells, but it's pretty clear when you get hit with things.

For bard, you can use charm, and you have to address the person, they must know you are addressing them, and then you have to do what they say for some amount of time or another. Wizards can use spells like lightning bolt and heat weapon and such, so they have to say the spell name like 20 times to charge it, then shout it when they use it. There's also druid, which no one plays, and healer, which has a bunch of really long incantations for spells.

Basically, not many people play spell casters. As far as I know, there is one wizard, one bard, and one or two healers. The wizard mostly refs, so when he plays, he takes his twenty some-odd spell balls, charges all of them at once, takes that fist full of lightning bolts/whatever, shotgun spellcasts a dood in the face, then just uses his weapon for the rest of the match. The healers do stuff, but I think all the bard does is use charm to piss people off/run away from Moose, the scariest fighter there.

[enders_shadow]

Also related for your viewing pleasure, 4chan /TG/'s rendition of a tale for the ages, and the story of a single man versus the world- or at least the idiotic gamemaster of his LARP. It may or may not be true, but it's bloody good in any case.

Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI
Part VII

The Sequel

Just spent about three hours reading this.... Best. Story. Ever.

[Ross_Varn]

Isn't it though? Cheers.

[RoC77]

Bring back pictures. I'm really interested in LARP myself, and if I get this nerf game off the ground, I'll probably end up organizing something I'll call Gamesim. LARP itself is connected irrevocably to stupid stuff like...this... while the actual concept has massive potential. Heck, it attracts the wrong crowd because popular media thought thinks it's for the wrong crowd.

Also related for your viewing pleasure, 4chan /TG/'s rendition of a tale for the ages, and the story of a single man versus the world- or at least the idiotic gamemaster of his LARP. It may or may not be true, but it's bloody good in any case.

Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI
Part VII

The Sequel

Wow I just finished this too.... For some reason I see this Ulick guy either killing himself or run the three kids off the road and shoot them. Great story btw, spent me from working half the day....

[Silverdream]

I'm going to try to get a few people to accompany me to a LARP. Just in case, are there any social stigmas associated with going to a LARP alone, especially for an introverted person like myself? Or is everyone a closet autistic?

[RunsWithLegos]

just go and find some friendly vets to help you out then entice others with tales of awesome.


and in relation to the topic question; I LARP two larps, one with toy guns, one with nerf swords and stuff
the first one is a Zombie survival game played at night in a 5x10x3or4 block radius in our town that i am pretty sure i have posted about before

the second is just people spread out ready weapons and charge in and beat the snot outa each-other!

[feuer_faust]

I've participated in foam fighting and a little SCA rattan fighting, as well. The group I used to play with allowed personas and had rules for magic, but in practice it was plain-clothes-OK and we never actually bothered with magic (thankfully, IMO). Not that I totoally despise the RP side of it, but I had a bit more fun clobbering people and calling it good.

I made a PVC-core and insulation sword the other week. I neglected to use spray adhesive so it literally flew apart during one of the mightier test swings. Some spray adhesive will be nice, but honestly, so far the $10 NERF swords (the Vantage I think) holds up well during test hits.

I plan to get a foam fighting group going in the Springs by the end of June, specifically allowing dart guns and not really enforcing any particular combat genre (we're more interested in the combat), although I always recommend bracers and gloves of some kind when starting out (less blisters, and those funny bone/forearm hits smart!)

Blah blah blah. Fun times.

[Arkbrik]

Well, since this topic got necro'd I might as well tell you about the LARP I was to a couple weeks ago (which I was an organizer for).

The story is that there is this empire with two religions: the big, officially sanctioned Ivrin religion, which values hard work and an organized society; and the old, forbidden Yrsa religion, which is a more chaotic set of beliefs that values individual freedom.

The LARP was set at a small village, and it was rumored that a 'magical market' would soon take place nearby, where Yrsa believers would come to sell stuff... and secretly spread their religion. The village had a small detachment from the empire's army, and the local nobles happened to be visiting, along with an Ivrin priest and his inquisitor. I was playing a farmer with two kids who were in the army.

It started pretty calmly, until a weird girl wandered into the village and slashed up some people with her bare hands, but mostly herself. The army doctor tried to help her, it went so-so. Then a couple of strange androgynous people wandered in (fairies, but no one knew that) to advertise their market. They saw the sick girl and tried to heal her... by invoking Yrsa! The priest had the army execute the fairies and dump their corpses in the forest.

Then they came back, because fairies are immortal.

After some confusion, the priest decided that they were a trick of the light or something, because the only way to rebirth is through Ivrin. Anyone who acknowledged their existence would be branded a heretic. I solved this by getting falling down drunk and then chatting with the fairies - they were just hallucinations, you know?

So then I got invited by them to a Yrsa conversion ceremony. A soldier from the army and the head noble came along too, and we turned to Yrsa in a very nice ceremony with incense and body paint and magical fruits and what not.

Then night fell, and will-o-the-wisps started luring people from the village out into the woods to be tortured. The priest reassured everyone that will-o-the-wisps didn't exist. Very helpful.

The next day, shit hit the fan. The fairies demanded to be recognized as real, so they allied with a murderous merchant and the now-turned-traitor inquisitor, and the soldier and the head noble ran off to join them. I stayed at the village because the I was sure the priest would send the army after the Yrsa people and my kids would have to fight the crazy people and oh god oh god oh god.

And I was right, the army marched out into the woods and started massacring people. At some point someone gave me a dagger and told me to take the crazy girl from before into the village. I didn't do that, but I kept the dagger. I caught up with the priest as he happily ordered the execution of the head noble (his sister, no less). I pulled out my dagger and stabbed him in the throat. He died. And then the army hacked me to pieces.

The end.

[knolli]

In a RP-heavy LARP usually it's easier to fit in when you are with seasoned players or do the part of an NPC. In the later case the orga (organizers) will help you with advise, instructions and costumes/items.
Going all alone on the first time as a player character might be a bit overwhelming. But roleplayers in general are a nice and social bunch, so as long as you don't insult them outright (and even that may not count as long as it was "in character") most of them may be willing to offer help.

[knolli]

[...] I solved this by getting falling down drunk and then chatting with the fairies - they were just hallucinations, you know?

So then I got invited by them to a Yrsa conversion ceremony. A soldier from the army and the head noble came along too, and we turned to Yrsa in a very nice ceremony with incense and body paint and magical fruits and what not.
[...]

And I was right, the army marched out into the woods and started massacring people. At some point someone gave me a dagger and told me to take the crazy girl from before into the village. I didn't do that, but I kept the dagger. I caught up with the priest as he happily ordered the execution of the head noble (his sister, no less). I pulled out my dagger and stabbed him in the throat. He died. And then the army hacked me to pieces.

The end.

What do we learn from that? Never make important decissions while drunk!

Or always do, depending on your priorities.

[feuer_faust]

What's life without a little drunken stabbing?

[samuelzz10]

Once me and my friends acted like total dicks at a larp, and we got smoke bomb things and said "WE ARE FROM THY FUTURE" and we shot everyone with airsoft guns.

[Silverdream]

Once me and my friends acted like total dicks at a larp, and we got smoke bomb things and said "WE ARE FROM THY FUTURE" and we shot everyone with airsoft guns.

Did you fare better than the archers?

[Keldoclock]

Hah, now I want to do a thing where I get like eight people dressed up in Star Trek gear and have them troll LARPers.


EDIT: Alternately, find a guy who owns a DeLorean and do the same.