LARP stands for Live Action Role-play. In popular modern games, role-play is where a group of people, called players, write out a character on a sheet and another player (usually called a Game Master, Dungeon Master, Storyteller or something similar) tells them about the world their created ‘character’ experiences.
Live Role-play is not quite like this.
Players generate a ‘character’ - they spend points on skills which describe what the character can do, give the character a name, decided upon the character’s personality, decide where the character was born, decide what kind of role they’d like to see they’re character in etc.... and then play it.
Except they don’t sit around a table to do it.
Live Role-players buy some kit - weapons, armour and costume - which they feel best represents their character. Then they act it out.
They go outside, find a place to play and then proceed to bash each other’s brains silly with foam and rubber weapons.
Or not, as some cases may be. Surprisingly for some, there are a few LARPers that don’t use weapon - and sometimes even don’t use spells. These players sometimes like to focus on rituals or brewing tonics or making items. These things are all part of the role-play experience.
It’s also surprisingly for some, a lot more fun than it sounds!
