Lessons in Planning a Larp Game

I guess this last year I've made another ungenius realization. In short, planning plot and storyline for events is work. If I were reading this I'd think "duh" just like you are, but when you actually start doing it you see its more tricky than one might think. When my creative partner and I started doing this I'd never Game Mastered a table top campaign before. It always seemed overwhelmingly difficult to know everything before the players did, and anticipate and manipulate their actions. When things started rolling with our playtest group I learned quickly there were a lot of the same skills, but with many more limitations.

First, your adventuring party was a lot more than four or five people, and when everyone needs something from you it slows things down. Having two of us helped, but when one doesn't know what the other is doing that can cause more problems. I think one of the unexpected advantages of Mystic Crossroads has been that most interactions don't require GM intervention. The rules covered most player vs. player circumstances so calls for a ref are fewer than other games I've seen.

Second, since you need someone play every Non-Player Character you have to limit your NPCs to the bare minimum. You can pull player away from their own Characters to a degree, but that's not usually what they came to play, and you want everyone to have a good time and get what they came for. That generally means no invading armies of ogres or complex plots to work through, or does it? What we've tried to do is select from the PCs that are already in roles we'd use an NPC for and feed them information that is important for what we hope to transpire in the game. In the best circumstances you get the best of both worlds; all players can be PCs while those supporting NPC spots are filled.

Third, players will never NEVER do what you plan them to do. This is the case in table top, of course, but in larp you're herding a dozen or more cats instead of five. You can only give so many hints about plot hooks. Sometimes the fish just won't bite. We've planned out action packed linear hack and slash adventures with NPC monsters, puzzels and treasure to have players totally ignore it and go in a completely different direction. They hung around town and bartered and bantered with each other and none of our plans were ever seen. I left those games feeling like I'd totally failed, but all the players said they had a great time doing whatever the hell they were doing.

What I learned is not to overcommit to a storyline or single crawl. I can't own the story I think is going to happen, because it will never happen the way I expect. I can't leave NPCs in the woods waiting for PCs who won't show. Instead I have to start the ball rolling and just see what people do. NPCs have to be characters just like everyone, only I get to write their motives and objectives instead of a player. That's when they become "real", making their own decisions and interactions unscripted. There's a point where players write the story for me and I just have to pay attention to what happens and build from there. I have to be ready to change direction and keep a good plot going.

from Shards of Orn larp

This is all really hard to plan out alone. It's a big reason we pulled back from weekly games to monthly, and I was so burnt out by then I still didn't get it together. As this year has started up, I've started doing what I noticed another game group has done for years. On a week between their games their leaders, or plot development team meets just to discuss what happened in last game and where to take it in the next game. Everyone builds on each other's ideas and by game time they're all on the same page more or less. I'm sure other groups probably do this. It makes complete sense when you need many people directing plot, but I'd never seen it. We just had our first meet this month and I'm already more confident about the year than I was any time last year. I'm really excited and I hope things work well.

Burnt out Larpers; Our lost Heros.

I was at this convention some time ago now, promoting our game and looking for potential new players. One thing I've learned is to keep a chapter going you always have to be looking for new players. I started a conversation with a gentleman who said he'd run his own chapter in another larp game for some time with great success. He went on about his group and the games they were able to run as I practically salivated. But he went on to say that it all came to an end when the game "owner", as some games are franchises the rights to rules held by some central authority, turned on him and undercut his efforts in some power trip that destroyed his spirit and his chapter. I'd heard that story before, and had similar experience, and its always a soul crushing ending to something you put so much energy into. But I was still riding high on his stories of glory and imagined if I could reignite this guy's love of larp he would be an amazing leader, if I could just sell him on my game! "We're different! There's no franchise, no authority over you! And our game is AWESOME!" But there was no selling him. He'd been burned too badly, he'd picked up his pride and moved on to other things, leaving his love of larp behind.

It kills me that so many charismatic capable leaders in larp have been burned one way or another and never come back. I know larps are full of player politics that can divide and destroy groups. I know how it happens all too well. But we need those people in our community! Effective leaders are few and far between and I feel we need as many as we can hold on to. My question becomes how can we bring these high quality players back into larp? What is it that can renew their interest without recreating the things that drove them away?

I had an opportunity to ask a couple of retired players just this question. Here's what I got.

Lisa T.- "I initially left years ago because the drama-to-fun quotient had diminished enough that I had no interest in going back. This was, of course, a by-product of politics, stick-jockery, and my (at the time) low self-esteem. Provided a more vibrant community and the means to do it, I'd be willing to try again. Probably won't be [previous game], though, if I ever do. I went to check out a park in 2008 with [spouse], and we found the head dude in charge had a tendency to cheat at ditch battles. We didn't go back."

Sounds familiar enough. Leaders who cheat, sport fighting rather than roleplay, and player infighting. I know sport fighting has its appeal, but it isn't for everyone, and I've seen the testosterone fueled slugfest crowd out other options and other players. For Lisa it seems she's just looking for those other options of play in a group that hasn't found the player drama llama.

"Currently for me it's money and distance. I live in Waco, the spouse is in school, we have one vehicle, and till said school is finished, we do well to afford the bills month to month, to say nothing of garb, gear, and gas. I am very interested in returning to it when circumstances allow.
I'd rather not be a half-assed gamer relying on bummed rides and loaner gear. It's not fair to anyone to do that. Moreover, I'm fortunate enough to make my Survival Tokens via remote at the house, but the spouse works weekends, and he needs the car for that...so for now at least, it's something of an obligatory hiatus."

Like my friend at the con, Lisa has moved on and is now invested in other life goals. I know that's the way life goes, and it isn't a bad thing. It's just hard for me still in larp to not wish others still had the time and resources to play with me.

Another ex-player had this to say.

Courtney T- "I would LARP again, but for a few things: 1. When I left LARPing, the community I was involved in was starting to devolve into lots of fantasy-vampire crossover, which I INTENSELY DISLIKE and therefore avoid. It might have been the youth factor (lots of older teens involved), but biting necks and soft-core petting is not LARP to me. 2. Not a fan of SCA, and they're the only ones I know of around here. I like boff weapons only, not the hard stuff. (That being said, I am sure there *are* boff-only communities in Austin, I just don't know of them.) 3. My husband would never in a million years join me, and we spend little enough time together as it is, as we both work regular 8-5, 40hr/wk jobs. If it were a hobby he would also enjoy, we'd be there. 3a. If I went alone, without husband, I'd be afraid of attracting the wrong sort of attention. (This has happened to me before.)"

Courtney touches on a couple things here, those being the vampire larp culture, or Vlarp, which can be overtly sexualized more than stick-jock boffer groups, and young groups of players, that I'm guessing were drawn to this style of larp. I played briefly in a Vlarp game and, though it didn't get me any action, I can see how other groups might be more of a venue for finding dates... or something. More adult players like Courtney aren't interested in that “sort of attention”. Also she is unaware of games that may suit her style that are in the area. This may be the easiest obstacle to overcome. I know there are at least five different boff-only games in Austin! At least one may get her geared up again, and maybe even her husband!

I think what I'm getting from these examples is old players need to be welcomed back. They need to be listened to to find out what they want, and given new options that they haven't played before. Sometimes they just don't have the interest any more and are already busy with new things. I guess what I'm finding is the biggest player killer is real life. It sneaks up on you and demands your attention, your energy and time. People change and what they find important changes. It still kills me that we've lost these players, leaders, and organizers. They were some of the great ones.

Face Casting

Recently we at ZPG games decided to do some experimenting to be able to make some prosthetics for use in game. To get things right we needed to have a face casting to work with, and it just so happened that veteran prop maker Wendy Snyder was available to show us how it is done. Little did he know it, but our very own Chris Glover inadvertently volunteered to be the subject for this project. We hope that with these instructions in hand others can do casting for their own LARP games. Re- member to consider safety when doing anything like this. Happy Christmas and we hope this serves you LARPers well.

Supplies: 

• Alginate 
• Hydrocal or other plaster 
• Gauze or cheesecloth 
• Vaseline 
• Paper towels 
• Straws

Tools: 

• Mixing bowl 
• Spatula or other stirrer 
• Tarp

Prepping the Subject:

Begin by getting the subject ready. Rub Vaseline on any open hair. If you miss this either the subject’s hair will get pulled or the alginate cast that they sat for so long for will get torn and become useless, or both. Lay out a tarp over the area that you will be working on. For this demo we used a Massage Therapist’s table as it was comfortable and a good height to work with, although a reclining chair or even the floor would work as well. Make sure the subject can be comfortable and still for 30-45 minutes. Seal off the areas that are not to be cast. In this case that is the hair, the neck, and especially the ears. If casting ears be sure to add in something like cotton to keep alginate from entering the ear canal and solidifying there. Once ready, insert 2 sections of straw to the nose for the subject to be able to breathe. During the process keep contact with the subject to make sure everything is OK. For our demo yes/no questions and thumbs up/down worked well.

Adding the first layer:

The first layer is a substance called Alginate. Alginate becomes a soft gel like layer and is good at picking up the small details for the cast. When mixing up the Alginate keep a few things in mind:

• Make sure the subject is ready as you only have about 8 minutes from the time you start mixing until it is set.
• Start with the amount of water needed and add powder to it until you have a pudding like mixture.
• Stir slowly in a figure 8 direction to get it mixed but keep clear of as many air bub- bles as possible.

When you mix up the Alginate follow the direc- tion on the type you end up getting. Different manufacturers will have slightly different mixing amounts but all of them will be Alginate and Wa- ter. Once it is mixed gently pour over the subject keeping clear of the straws. Be sure to pour as smooth as possible to keep air bubbles out and once poured slightly wiggle the stirrer on the al- ginate to agitate any remaining bubbles out. Let it sit until cured. Adding a layer of gauze will help the alginate to stay together while the next layer is added.

Adding the next layer:

The second layer is a plaster like substance called Hydrocal. It will provide a nice solid back- ing to the soft alginate and allow the last part of the process-making the positive of the cast. Like the Alginate when mixing add powder to water and mix slowly to avoid air bubbles. Also when pouring, go slow. It is possible to do this part in a couple of layers if needed. Remember though, this will warm up as part of the drying process and if it is on too thick your subject can get quite hot. Once it is cooled off and solid gently re- move the whole thing from the subject.

Creating the positive:

While the Alginate has captured the detail, it will not last long. Once the negative is set mix up some more Hydrocal, a little on the thin side, and pour into the Alginate to get into the detail. Then mix up some slightly thicker Hydrocal and pour it in to fill the whole space and let it set. Us- ing this layered process will help keep the detail of the face. Also, when pouring the Hydrocal go slow and try to keep pouring in the same spot to minimize the air bubbles that can become trapped and show on the final piece. While it is setting it will get hot. Let it sit unmoving until the fresh poured in Hydrocal becomes cool to the touch. At that point it can be pulled out of the negative mold and the casting is complete. Now clay can be used to mold on the face and create prosthetics that will fit the subject exactly.

Once you have a face cast, many masks and latex prosthetics can then be created.

Cedar Park Fablefest

This year we decided to give a local festival a try and booked table space at Cedar Park's Fable Fest. It was just past Halloween so there'd be lots of costumes, it was really close to our local game location, and entry was super cheap. What was there to lose?

Let me say I don't want to be negative about this little event. It was a local craft fair, just what the organizers wanted it to be, but not what I imagined in my head. There was little in the way of a "fable" theme, and attendance was mostly crafty moms and little children. We learned that Cedar Park has a fair like this every month and the theme is different each month. Seemed like just an afterthought to me. They did have the SCA out in a corner showing their stuff. The local girls drill team did a zombie thriller dance that was amusing. A few adults were in costume, but just stood out as weird around all the mundanity. However we did get some attention from other vendors because we weren't one of the same twenty dealers that are there every month. 

That being said, I think we could really make a big impression on this little show next year if we made more effort. Everything I said going into this show was dead on. We have a whole year to build new props and costumes for the game and other shows anyway. If we had some reserved space for allowing kids to fight outside of the public walkway, and more costumed players to promote, and maybe a better plan we could have a great showing and the show would really enjoy our participation. I hope we are able to do this again next year bigger and better. 

Geekfest 2012 follow up

Last weekend we ventured up to Killeen, Texas, for the third annual GeekFest. Geekfest is a small regional convention hosted by Central Texas College in their Mayborn Planetarium. They have had great attendance each year in part because you can enter for free! There is a fee for additional events at the con, but this is a great marketing tactic that has paid off. Also Geekfest is probably the strangest convention I've been to with varied demonstrations from the school's competitive robot builders and a geeky cake decorating contest shuffled in with the cosplay competition, video and tabletop gaming rooms, and karaoke in the main hall.

We've been there every year, the first as patrons, and then last year as vendors. This year we have an increasingly interested player base at home, and will have more experience in running a con game. We have more props too. I think we should do it as a continuing learning experience, and who knows? This might be the year we get the locals to pay attention. 

By locals we're referring, at least in part, to the other boffer larp group that dominates the small town of Killeen. They play a game similar to Amtgard that is very focused on fighting without the level of roleplay we've been shooting for.   Their leadership has a low opinion of our game, or at least seems to to me, but some of his players showed some interest in what we offered. Our demo's were scheduled right after them in the same room. Everyone tried to be professional, but sparring out in the courtyard lead to my players taking regular shots to the head and overpowered hits from one of their players. I heard tell he was new.

Our own RP demo didn't go well either. The players we had were either very introverted, or quickly bored, and tended to wander off rather than attempt to engage with each other. I know larping outside of hitting with sticks can be scary. We just need to find a better way to create interest on a low prop and manpower budget. We could do something larger if we had a room to ourselves for hours of set up and take down, but that isn't what we got. I think next year we'll need to establish a better arrangement.

Still, we had a great time in the dealer's room, chatted up a lot of people, and enjoyed the enthusiasm of this convention. We're definitely coming back next year with something new to present.

http://www.starsatnight.org/geekfest/



My Town - Geekfest 2012 from Ten17media on Vimeo.

Keeping the sanctity of non-combat areas

Another learning the hard way story. It already occurs to me a lot of these posts will probably start this way and I'm going to run out of creative ways of saying the same thing. Now at least you've been warned. What's more these posts may be on the dull side, since unless you were there for the sudden breakdown in game play, who cares, right? So these are mostly for myself so I can recount them later and add them to a future game expansion so people who don't read this will think I'm a genius.

Hey! I can dream!

So here's the deal. As I've mentioned before my background is in Amtgard and later derivitives. In those games there is a designated non-combat zone where people can feel safe to hang out without being whacked with a stick. When we wrote Mystic Crossroads we recognized this as important to allow people who weren't keen on boffer fighting a place to play a role in the game. Unlike those previous games, we allow characters to freely roam in and out of this non-com area, which we call "Town". Town has become a very important space in our games and a lot of character interaction happens there. More than I think we expected when we started. It has also become a safe base to run and hide in when threats outside become too much to handle. Those are all good things... sorta.

The problem is this safe base mentality. Remember playing tag as a kid, and someone was on base so they couldn't be tagged? They'd lean off base, or step just far enough off that they could run back as soon as the It person ran for them? This became the game here too, and was just a fun as you remember. It slowed down game play, it didn't make any sense in game, and was frustrating as hell! When it came down to an altercation between players where one was trying to physically drag another out of town so he could be slain properly, well, that's when you know things are broke.

After game I talked to one of my players, Matt Web, and he had some bright ideas.

Matt W- "One thing I was thinking of... if you want to keep the sanctity of town, it might be useful to make it not so easy to just stride over back to safety. Like, I don't know, calling out 'fair escape' and having to count to 5 first before you are 'safe'. That's just a nascent idea, but it makes it far less easy to just run away. Or rather, you'd actually have to run, not stride casually over and stand right beside the safety zone. Like, you can't step into town for five seconds if you got someone right in your face. Or rather, you can't go back into town at all if someone is there with a sword to stop you. Hell, just declaring a center point outside of town as 'the gate.' And you have to touch that tree or pole for five seconds, and then you can go safely into town. That would more easily separate out the space. Yeah, that's what it represents, the town gate. That way you don't have to put your back up against the wall or anything, and can still maneuver, and if people are still trying to interdict against you, you can't just run off.”

And there it was right in front of my face like I should have thought of it long before needing to playtest. Of course town needs a gate. Therefore, before entering, one must stop at a certain two posts at the gazebo we call town. There they must repeat “Entering town!” ten times loud enough to be heard. Then they may pass between the two posts of the “gate” and enter. If someone within the town wants to block their way they have that much time to engage them either from within or without. The very next game I presented the new rule and everyone seemed happy, or relieved, to hear it.


I think we still have other problems with how town works, so I'm sure I'll be posting again, but this felt like a little piece of brilliance.

Mystic Crossroads featured on FanService

Recently I had a chance to talk about LARP on a local cable show, FanService, hosted by the Diabolical League of Awesome. While I fully expected the most Diabolical, as it turns out their lair is a pretty neat studio. I am sure that many of their most devious plans were merely tucked away so that I could not catch glimpse of them, but all in all it was a pretty cool group of folks. Gavin, the Diabolical leader of the show was excited to talk about LARP, and as it turns out one of his co-schemers was one I had done some sparring with in the past. 

I arrived early not knowing just what to expect, and Gavin was quite friendly. (I’m sure he also did not quite know what to expect) We were both gamers of sorts and overall the show went well. We got to discuss some upcoming games and films and then moved on to LARP. I brought along some different props and we discussed some of the aspects of LARP one does not get to see and experience when watching things like Role Models. After some discussion we got down to business with some light combat, which is always interesting in a confined space, and even got one of Gavin’s minions to try it out. 

Fun was had, nothing expensive was broken, and folks know a bit more about LARP than they did before. I was invited back (to become part of some diabolical experiment I’m sure) and I think ZPG Games may return to perhaps interest more gaming folks to try out LARP, or at least show the league what they are missing. I’m not sure they were really Diabolical, but they definitely were awesome and I am very glad we got to cross paths.