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TRENDS

2023 November 20, 21

Level: Low

The World of Live Action Role-Playing

by Manya Cramer

Instead of just reading a story, be part of it

20

For many people, the days of playing make-believe ended in childhood. But for some, the game of make-believe lives on in Live Action Role-Playing, or LARP. This is a game where people act out characters in a prepared plot. A gamemaster creates the plot and then puts together an event where people perform the story. Those who find a particular plot compelling sign up for the event. Then the gamemaster, or the players themselves, make up their characters for the story. At the event, each person comes in costume and behaves as their character.

  Although pretty much anything goes in LARP, nearly every event involves players completing a mission together. A gamemaster writes a goal into the plot and usually prepares challenges or obstacles for the players. For example, a character may interfere with the mission, making it hard to complete the goal. LARP events can be as long as the gamemasters want them to be. They can last anywhere from a few hours to several days.