90% attitude, 10% skill...

JordarAd

Newbie
I've been doing this awhile. In the Spring of '96, I went with some high school friends of mine to a convention in Michigan to meet Kevin Siembieda (Creator of RIFTS and a bunch of other OP RPGs). Once there, we saw a makeshift garbage bag and PVC and a number of people dressed in garb with a plethora of padded weapons. Long story short, it was my first experience with a LARP, and many of my friends who joined me that day brought others, and the whole thing steamrolled. (Two of them run Alliance South Michigan).

What stuck in my head from those first few adventures was how RolePlaying was the most important thing - stats meant little after playing for awhile. The guy who taught me how to LARP, Bill Godfrey, told me LARPing is 90% attitude, and 10% skill.

None of that is In Game skill, mind you. That 10% is learning how to fight, cast a spell, pick a lock, disarm a trap, or hide properly.

The best LARPs allow you to have numerous opportunities to carve your own path, to take the rules and the world and find your character's place in it. HOW you interact with the world is what makes or breaks this game for me.

So new players, treat every character you see as a living, breathing (or shambling) entity in a world. In the game, there are no PCs or NPCs. Some of the best characters I've roleplayed with have been one shot NPCs who have come in IG just to eat dinner. There is no "us and them" - there is only roleplay opportunities.

Have a character and stick to it. This character should be different from you. An accent, walk, or minor change in the pitch of your voice can make a huge difference for people knowing when you're in game. Keep in character all weekend if you can. It's easier if you're with others who bring out the best in your roleplay. Avoid those folks who make you slide OOG - it happens to the best of us, but it's better if you can have people to check you back in mentally.

The skill comes with time and practice. Toss those little birdseed packets at things. Practice those incants until they're memorized by heart. Spar with people better than you (and practice with multiple weapons).

To this day, I'm not the best fighter or caster out there - I'm getting slow, and there are people younger than half my age who are now legal players. But the Role Play - that's where you want to shine. People may remember some fights, but it's the EXPERIENCE that they will tell stories about. The characters come and go - if yours dies, it just gives you another chance to tell an amazing story.

Commit to the game. Commit to your character. Roleplay. Everything else is secondary.
 
I've been doing this awhile. In the Spring of '96, I went with some high school friends of mine to a convention in Michigan to meet Kevin Siembieda (Creator of RIFTS and a bunch of other OP RPGs). Once there, we saw a makeshift garbage bag and PVC and a number of people dressed in garb with a plethora of padded weapons. Long story short, it was my first experience with a LARP, and many of my friends who joined me that day brought others, and the whole thing steamrolled. (Two of them run Alliance South Michigan).

What stuck in my head from those first few adventures was how RolePlaying was the most important thing - stats meant little after playing for awhile. The guy who taught me how to LARP, Bill Godfrey, told me LARPing is 90% attitude, and 10% skill.

None of that is In Game skill, mind you. That 10% is learning how to fight, cast a spell, pick a lock, disarm a trap, or hide properly.

The best LARPs allow you to have numerous opportunities to carve your own path, to take the rules and the world and find your character's place in it. HOW you interact with the world is what makes or breaks this game for me.

So new players, treat every character you see as a living, breathing (or shambling) entity in a world. In the game, there are no PCs or NPCs. Some of the best characters I've roleplayed with have been one shot NPCs who have come in IG just to eat dinner. There is no "us and them" - there is only roleplay opportunities.

Have a character and stick to it. This character should be different from you. An accent, walk, or minor change in the pitch of your voice can make a huge difference for people knowing when you're in game. Keep in character all weekend if you can. It's easier if you're with others who bring out the best in your roleplay. Avoid those folks who make you slide OOG - it happens to the best of us, but it's better if you can have people to check you back in mentally.

The skill comes with time and practice. Toss those little birdseed packets at things. Practice those incants until they're memorized by heart. Spar with people better than you (and practice with multiple weapons).

To this day, I'm not the best fighter or caster out there - I'm getting slow, and there are people younger than half my age who are now legal players. But the Role Play - that's where you want to shine. People may remember some fights, but it's the EXPERIENCE that they will tell stories about. The characters come and go - if yours dies, it just gives you another chance to tell an amazing story.

Commit to the game. Commit to your character. Roleplay. Everything else is secondary.
This is amazing! May I please share this?

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
 
Sure.
 
Back
Top