tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post2563264653383018680..comments2023-04-28T10:46:14.916-04:00Comments on Run a Game: Designing Elysium Style LARPsRun a Gamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12555528519708213579noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post-14538188856165729782015-02-06T08:18:30.033-05:002015-02-06T08:18:30.033-05:00Er, "Brujah never like to see Ventrue placate...Er, "Brujah never like to see Ventrue placated" that is.Run a Gamehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12555528519708213579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post-75230466448347627202015-02-06T08:11:30.512-05:002015-02-06T08:11:30.512-05:00The "social contract" of this sort of ga...The "social contract" of this sort of game is that you come to play in a game where your competition is against the other players. The main activity isn't to dissimilar from a game of Diplomacy or a murder mystery dinner party: People are finding alliances, putting on false fronts, and manipulating each other; all while trying to find out where the other guy stands.<br /><br />They get hooked into the various games within the LARP by being told OOC explicitly what they are when they join. I wrote, <br /><br />"Games are clear and accessible. You need to explicitly, out of character, announce to the players:<br />This game is happening.<br />This is how you win.<br />This is what you have to do to win."<br /><br />They tend to be short duration sessions (3-5 hours) and it takes a lot of work from the GM (see the article) to keep the games (the competitions within the LARP) alive. Once a game resolves, all the activity involved with it goes away, hence all the "footballs" I listed to help GMs create games that stay fresh longer.<br /><br />Here's an example: You create a Vampire LARP with only the "core book" Cam clans. You expect 20 players, so you announce that there will be three coteries that the characters will need to select from. You then create four independent games:<br /><br />Each coterie has a "who's in charge of the coterie" plot.<br /><br />There's the "who's prince" plot (including all the attendant city positions selected by the prince except for the primogen, who are selected by each coterie.<br /><br />There's an information plot where one coterie was wronged in a horrible crime, the other coterie committed the crime, and the third has evidence about it and is playing both sides for maximum advantage, while both sides try to wheedle, trick, bribe, or just rob them.<br /><br />And there's a plot about a new highway being built that would develop the wilderness around the area. Ventrue and Toreador PCs stand to gain free Influence and more effective Influence actions; Malkavians and Nosferatu are playing both sides; while Gangrel stand to lose hunting ground, ley line disruption worries the Tremere, and Brujah never like to see Gangrel placated.<br /><br />Each player is made aware of all four plots (games) within the LARP before joining, and is urged to make a character who is hooked into as many of them as possible. (Think of the character you would make, for instance.)<br /><br />If one of the four plots stagnates temporarily, the LARP runs at 75% until the GM can get it moving again. For instance, if the question of "who is Prince" gets settled, the highway plan, murder mystery, and coterie leadership questions remain unresolved. So the GM has some time to shake up the Prince OR create a whole new football for the players to struggle over. Run a Gamehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12555528519708213579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post-75421133503488102712015-02-05T22:20:37.441-05:002015-02-05T22:20:37.441-05:00They call those Downtime Actions over here. So .....They call those Downtime Actions over here. So ... would totally find further articles on Elysium style to be interesting. How do players keep themselves occupied in such a game? What are some low rank plays folks can do?Shannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00456068019298922261noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post-51389987692798686092014-03-24T11:16:23.133-04:002014-03-24T11:16:23.133-04:00Between Game Action. Here is a BGA form for a LAR...Between Game Action. Here is a BGA form for a LARP I found randomly online: http://ruleof3.net/d2d/bga.php<br /><br />Run a Gamehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12555528519708213579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6737331211018613722.post-43892144765202599192014-02-01T17:46:16.577-05:002014-02-01T17:46:16.577-05:00What's a BGA?What's a BGA?Shannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00456068019298922261noreply@blogger.com