What is LARP?
L.A.R.P. stands for Live-Action Role Play. LARPs are interactive games during which players physically act as their characters with the help of costumes and props. LARPing is like a role-playing table-top game or a videogame come to life. During a LARP event, players dress, talk, and act as their characters in order to tell a story together within the game setting. These gaming events can include things like puzzles, scavenger hunts, and scripted characters who help move the story along and create conflict for the players to engage in. Sometimes the conflict comes from the players themselves, as different character personalities and motivations mean that not everyone always gets along. When LARPing is done well, these conflicts remain only within the game world and provide good fun for all involved. There are many different kinds of LARPs with different genres (dystopian, medieval fantasy, zombies, steampunk, etc.), different rules, and different styles of gameplay (parlor, political, combat).
LARPs often have something for everyone to enjoy! Some players use LARP as a creative outlet for things like refining their acting, improvisation, and/or costuming skills. Other players enjoy the fantasy aspects to escape the real world for a while, or use the games to flex their brains to solve riddles and puzzles. Some players use LARP combat as a way to stay active, while still others enjoy outdoor events that allow them to be close to nature. Regardless of your preference, LARP can also be a fun social event for players to meet other people that share their interests and make friends.
Check out the video below to learn more about LARPing.
Virtual LARPs
During the COVID-19 Pandemic, in-person gatherings of large numbers of people were deemed unsafe by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization. In order to keep their players healthy and safe during the unprecedented time, many event organizers moved to hosting virtual events via videoconferencing software.
Currently, Lost & Found Studios, LLC offers one such experience, called The Dandelion Factory. For more details on this game, click here. To see if there is a session of The Dandelion Factory scheduled, you can check out our Events Tab.
Glossary of Common LARP Terms
Below are some common terms and concepts that come up in Lost & Found Studios' LARPs.
Area of Effect (AOE)
This describes a spell or effect that impacts everyone within a certain radius (depending on the spell)
Armor Points
The number of hits your armor can take before it is broken.
Armor Pool
The total number of armor points a character has available to them based on the type of armor they are wearing.
Broken (armor or shields)
Armor may take damage and begin the process of breaking when it is struck by a weapon. When the armor pool reaches zero, the armor is considered broken and it can no longer serve as protection of one’s health points unless it is repaired by someone with the relevant profession. Players may still wear their armor before it is repaired, but it will not provide extra protection. Shields have a certain number of points that decrease with being struck with a "sunder" move. Once a shield has run out of sunder points, it is considered broken and cannot be used.
Channeling
The act of directing energy from an item to an intended target. With the proper skills, casters may cast a spell on an opponent through their striking them with their weapon (weapon channeling).
Cores, Weapon
The tough central part of many weapons. Thrown weapons may not have them (except javelins). Most cores are made of fiberglass, but homemade weapons may have PVC central cores.
Encounter Cards
Laminated note cards found in the world. They provide role-play opportunities and positive or negative effects.
Experience Points (XP)
Used to measure the progress of a player’s character.
Game Calls
Key phrases said by GMs and other players to indicate a change in gameplay (a pause, sudden difference in scenery, or effect that impacts the town).
Game Managers (GMs)
The people in charge of the game. Come to them with any questions or concerns.
Grave Injury
Once a player has reached their daily death limit of 3 deaths, the character is said to be gravely injured and can no longer be played for the remainder of the event.
Immersion
The suspended belief that we are in this world and the acceptance of the game-world as reality.
In-Game/In-Play (IG/IP)
Used to refer to events, characters, and stories that happen in the world of Solerean Adventures.
Kit
A shorthand term for a character’s costume or outfit.
Life Point
The number of lives an accelerated character has before their character permanently dies.
Loot
A shorthand term for what can be found in a chest, or on a defeated or dead being. Players must follow permission to touch rules when acquiring loot
Magical Effect
Any rp/spell effect from the magic section of the rulebook.
Meta
The acknowledgement that something in-game goes beyond the means of the game (current events, new movies, or game-related information that was acquired out-of-play).
Meta Technique
Methods used to make sure the events of the game are not adversely affecting the players in real life.
Nodes
A resource deposit often depicted by a string with materials lined up along it. These resources can be harvested in 30-minute intervals by 1 player or all at once by a group.
Non-Player Character (NPC)
Characters that only exist in the world as creations of the GMs for story and roleplay purposes.
Out-of-Game/Out-of-Play (OOG/OOP)
Used to describe real world events.
Player-Character (PC)
A shorthand term used to describe the character a player plays as during the game.
Plot Team
The people in charge of the season’s story. May or may not be GMs.
Permanent Death
This only occurs with players who work with GMs to permanently end their character's arc. It means that the character has run out of their allotted lives, dies permanently in game, and the character may no longer be played.
Permission to Loot
This phrase must asked of a player who is about to be looted. If the fallen player does not want to be touched or searched, they can respond with a “No” to “permission to loot”, but will simply give the searching player any in-play items that can be looted.
Permission to Touch
Players must ask others if it is alright to touch them. No player should touch another without permission from the person being touched. If you are not sure if a player wants to be touched, ask “permission to touch?” and wait for a response before starting any action.
Phys-rep
A shorthand term for physical representation. These may appear in place of potions, large physical objects or bombs.
Sunder
Literally to split apart. In this context, shields have sunder points based on their size (page 51). Normal hits do not take away sunder points. Only offensive magic spells or sunder abilities may take away sunder points. Once the points have gone to zero, the shield is “broken.”
Thrown spells
Represented by spell packets. The packet acts as the energy originating from the caster towards their intended target. These spells must make physical contact with the target in order to take effect and cannot be blocked by a weapon. Damaging spells may be blocked with a shield (although the shield will take 1 point of sunder damage), but mind affecting spells cannot.
Touch spells
Spells that can only take effect if the caster physically touches the intended target with their hand or a held spell packet. Players must follow permission to touch rules when casting touch spells.
Waylay
The ability to simulate the act of hitting someone with the hilt of your weapon and knocking them unconscious. The player must be fully behind the intended target and cannot be in their peripheral view.