So, as you guys may know, this was my first time LARPing, and I couldn't have had more fun. I even had something of a spiritual experience (but more on that later). Everyone was super nice and welcoming. I was a little apprehensive about my age, but everyone was super chill about the whole thing.
I would just like to give special shoutouts to those people who I became very close with: Lola, Mooca, Abtus, Bleu, Squire Frank, Squire Yarrow, and some others, whose names I can't recall as of right now- Including the gypsy fortune teller. Thanks for taking the time to get to know Bran and for being incredibly welcoming and awesome.
So, when it comes to my favorite bits, I unfortunately missed day one, because me and my dad ran really late and got really lost, so I missed all the troll stuff. Nonetheless, here are some of my favorite moments:
Saturday Morning Breakfast: This was a super awesome RP opportunity. Having all those people chop off their arms and eat it was a completely foreign concept to Bran, and I remember it raising some moral questions for him, such as "Why is eating people different from eating oinkbeast (which he later learned was called pig)?". It was also great, because my character was a complete noob in the world, so some very kind freewomen explained the different races too him, and why wilderkin aren't the same as the animals that they resemble.
The "Necromonkey Dilemma Mod": OH MAN. This mod was INTENSE. For those who didn't participate, we found some monkeykin arguing over who would bring their recently revived friend his scroll. We didn't want conflict, so someone proposed a dual to see who got it. In the dual, one of the monkeys cast chaos magic. He was immediately knocked out, and we began a heated debate about what we should do with him. This was literally MOMENTS after Bran was explaining his dubious past, and how his (isolated, somewhat Xenophobic) people used chaos magic to defend themselves in times of peril, not understanding the risk involved. This mod created a terrible moral dilemma for Bran, and he was naive enough to try and play devil's advocate for the "necromonkey". Harsh debate began IC, but in the end, it turned out to be a great growing experience for Bran- one he won't soon forget. I absolutely loved it, even if I did feel emotionally wiped afterwards. And yes, we discovered in the end that Mooca and Bran were right- all we had to do was bring him to the king to instill justice. Bran wasn't all too happy with the public execution, though.
The Escape from Monkey Island: E-A-R-TH-LY (as opposed to holy) crap was this nuts. At the time, I had already left dinner, and was applying more sunscreen on the boats with my dad and the Heroe's Alliance Kids (hehe- baby humans- Bran thought incredibly novel that the baby humans could fight) when we heard the commotion. As we were beginning to debate going to see what was up, we heard the distress bell. We rushed to gather our things, but as we left our boat and turned the corner, Lola instructed Bran to run to the other boats to warn them. Never have I run with so much fear and my heart. This was a primal, intense moment. Bran was panicking and running like crazy, and I was legitimately fearing for my life. Luckily, we escaped by the skin of our pants, and managed to taunt the monkeys with the king's staff as we left port. Man, to think I was actually contemplating becoming a monkey-kin. I don't think Bran ever wants to see a monkey again. Baboons are okay, though.
All of the Isle of Light: Never have I been so immersed in character that I have felt true terror. But Bran did, and so I did. The Isle of Light was straight up terrifying. Going into the dark tavern, unable to get better light than candles... Bran was literally shaking in his boots. I honestly couldn't tell you if I was actually scared or not, but I know that Bran was (thank you to those of you who did your best to watch after Bran and calm him down. He was on the verge of a panick attack, there). Venturing into the cave, doing everything in his power to keep his spirits up, it was- well, I hate to keep abusing this word, but INTENSE. The best part was afterwards, everyone had this emotional trauma. People were trying to explain to me how we had lost so much, despite winning. I felt so confused. I felt so scared. And the strangest part was that I wasn't confused or scared, Bran was. In all the intensity, I had a spiritual experience, in which I became Bran. I didn't notice it at the time, but looking back, it was absolutely eye-opening.
Alright, I'm done hamming it up- but I truly did have an out-of-body experience. I was a different person. And it was awesome. I'm sad that I can't be back until next year, but you bet your bucket I'll be playing again. I wouldn't give this up for a million bucks. I wouldn't even give this up for a statistically unbeatable Magic deck. And for those of you who don't know me- that means a LOT.
I can't wait to see you all next year, but until then- Bran's got some growing to do!
I look forward to seeing you at game again, sometime!