Wellington larps for 2017

Wellington
#1

No, the title isn’t a mistake. Larps take a long time to write and prep. We’ll need a pile of games next year, so its nice if people start thinking about them (and maybe volunteering) now.

What do we need? Here’s a list:

  • Something to run in early December 2016 for the end of the year.
  • A bunch of small larps for Kapcon 2017 in January. This is a good market for 8 - 12 player games if you like to write or run that size.
  • Something in February. Its still summer then, and the weather is usually still good, so outdoors is an option.
  • A pile of larps for Hydra 2017, expected to be in March or April. Hydra needs ~12 - 15 new games every year, ranging from 8 - 20 people in size, indoors or outdoors. You should contact Scott if you’re interested in running there.
  • A “winter season” of 12 - 20 player theatre-style games running from May - September. Because of the below, that means three games. They don’t have to be new, but reruns may have a limited market.
  • A 16 - 32 player game to run for NZ ComicCon on Armageddon weekend in June. Ideally newbie-friendly, genre, and done as a project so NZLARPS can pay its marketing bills. There’s been a suggestion of a “Star Wars cantina” game; if anyone wants to write something like this, I’m sure it would be gratefully received.
  • A 40 - 50 player game to run in mid-July, as a project to be a focus for Armageddon marketing and to pay the rest of the marketing bill. Again, ideally newbie-friendly and genre. If its bigger, it needs to be brand new to attract extra players from the existing community, and have flexibility to cope with maybe not filling.
  • A flagship larp (60 - 80 players) for KapCon 2018. This is a large task, requiring a team effort, and normally selected in March-ish. So if you like to write big games, there’s a market.

And that’s just the theatre-styles. There’ll be campaigns as well (Embers and Dry Spell, and it sounds like Reloaded every season), which may lighten the load a little. But we’re still going to need a lot of stuff, and a lot of it will have to be new. Basicly, if you write something, there’s probably a market for it. And there’s always Phoenix, Medusa and Chimera if you’re looking for somewhere else to run it.

This year a lot of the GMing load has fallen on a few people. The burden is lighter if it is shared around. So if you’d like to do anything specific, please stick your hand up now. Because if you don’t, you can’t really expect anyone else to.

If you don’t know how to write a larp, we can point you at some resources to help you. If you’re looking for inspiration, I do a list every year. But the best advice I can give you is “start early, so you have plenty of time to do it”. Good larps take time to write (and to ferment before you write them), so better to commit now when you can plan for it than just hope to come up with something later when you’re busy.

#2

So, can I ask - there was a thing where Hannah MacKie’s WWI game that reran recently was running short of people. Is that a regular thing with theatre style games right now, or was it just bad timing in that case? That’s a lot of new games that you’re asking for. It’s a lot of work to write a game, and even run a prewritten one - is the local market interested in that many events?

#3

[quote=“Stephanie, post:2, topic:21367, full:true”]
So, can I ask - there was a thing where Hannah MacKie’s WWI game that reran recently was running short of people. Is that a regular thing with theatre style games right now, or was it just bad timing in that case? That’s a lot of new games that you’re asking for. It’s a lot of work to write a game, and even run a prewritten one - is the local market interested in that many events?[/quote]

There have been problems. Hydra had low attendance this year, and Wilkinson-Baker Hall suffered from disinterest from some circles. OTOH, Oncoming Storm, Murder & Matchmaking, Wands at the Ready and Blackfyre Rising all ran at or near capacity (though dropouts were a bit higher than usual). We’ve also had an excellent recruitment drive at Armageddon, which has netted eleven new NZLARPS members and a bunch more people who turn up to games - and we have games planned for September and October to solidify that audience.

In terms of marketing, larp spreads by word of mouth. People try it, they enjoy themselves, they tell their friends and bring them to the next one. The best way to get people playing and grow the community is to run regular games, so there’s always something for new people to go to. That’s why I’m so keen on having a good winter season, and a series of events stacked up after Armageddon for people to try.

If you’re worried about numbers, then the ComicCon / Armageddon slots are safest. We advertise these games heavily, and a populist, genre larp which suits the Armageddon market is highly likely to fill. Otherwise, you can always deliberately undercater; if you run a 12-player game, and there’s too much demand, then you can either run twice (I know, not always possible) or you’ve got a waitlist and a readymade audience if you ever want to rerun it.

I think the Wellington market can reliably fill a 16-player one-off game without too much hassle, and this can stretch to 20 if The Stars Are Right (if its new, a popular genre, and no competing events).

#4

I should also note that most of that demand is from Hydra. Hydra’s size and high crossover with Chimera means it can really only afford one re-run (out of three games) per round, which means it is perpetually hungry for new games.