Craft/EVA foam for armor?

F

Falross

Newbie
Hi everyone, I'm gearing up for my first event at the end of the month (Porbably going to NPC, but I might come in as a PC if I can throw something together). In other research, I see that EVA/craft foam is popular for making costumes for cosplay/convention wear. Is this feasable for LARP? Due to renovations, I have a stack of the EVA floor mats waiting to be used for something, and I don't have a ton of money right now to set aside for larping. Also, if this does work, are the black nylon straps and buckles cool for this sort of armor, or should I try to find something that looks a bit like leather?


Thanks,
Falross
 
Quick and easy answer: no.

The way most EVA foam armor is put together won't stand up to a weekend of getting hit with boffers, it'll count for at most 1 armor point per location, and most foam armor ends up looking more sci-fi than fantasy.
 
Yeah, the main thing Id caution you of is that it isn't really worth much armor IG (as stated, 1 armor per area) so it prolly wouldn't be worth the effort.
 
Where will you be playing? If you post on your chapter's local board, you might be able to find someone who can loan you some armor or sell you some of their old gear on the cheap.
 
Don't give up on the foam entirely, though. If you're a craftsy sort and you know how to make that stuff into really exciting or unique-looking pieces, talk to your local chapter's plot staff about potentially making and donating costume pieces or prosthetics for NPCs! Building up some goblin stamps and then converting your stamps to XP before entering game as a PC is a great way to start out with a really solid pool of build.
 
Plus, it can be nice for beautifying other kinds of armor. I've seen foam overlays used to turn a normal piece of old-fashioned metal or leather into something that looks considerably fancier at minimal weight addition.

Just don't use it to make foam "spikes" or the like. That's a no-no.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top