SLARPA

Live Action Role Playing (LARP) is a type of role playing game where the players move around, acting as closely as possible (within safety limits) to what their characters would do for the duration of the game. Instead of saying “I go and talk to the bartender”, you would instead walk over and talk to the bartender. LARP in Saskatoon has been primarily of the type known as “Theatre LARP”, where physical conflicts are resolved through mechanical means, such as rolling dice or playing “paper rock scissors”. A typical game in Saskatoon will be 15-30 people and modern occult horror, often from White Wolf’s World of Darkness, though many other genres have been played, and games have been larger or smaller at times.

Why LARP?
-It is a chance to improvise a role of your design with many other people and make a communal story
-It is a (relatively) socially acceptable way to dress up and pretend you are someone or something else for an evening
-to meet new people.

Differences from Table Top
-more conflict amongst player characters, and will often be large portions of the plot.
-different roles are available, not just adventuring types. Roles such as scholar or socialite are not hindrances to the game, but are viable options. The difference between NPC and PC is often very thin, often dealing with the need for NPCs to do specific actions for the plot.
-games as a whole typically focus on the setting instead of the individual characters. Instead of being the adventures of a group as they travel around, it instead looks at the inhabitants of a place. This makes it feel more like Deadwood than Star Wars.