Is larping an expensive hobby?

Community Larp discussion
#1

I’ve always thought larping was frightfully expensive hobby though for most of my larping-life I was a student. I’ve recently been chatting to people about their hobbies and the costs involved and I’m starting to think larping is still very much on the cheap side of hobbies, even if you’re spending good money on good kit. I was talking to a co-worker who plays hockey, and she was telling me about the prices of hockey sticks and turf fees and membership to the Auckland Hockey Society (their equivalent to the function nzLARPS serves) as being $600 a year.

So, how expensive is larping compared to other hobbies you know of?

#2

I think it has the advantage of being affordable to start participating with the potential to be a complete money pit.

It get’s expensive when you convince yourself you really do need that 20 acre lifestyle block to larp on.

#3

Games themselves are cheap, and NZLARPS membership pays for itself in just a few games. The expensive bit is kit and costume. And even then, you can save an awful lot with DIY (and once you’ve been doing it for a while, and have stuff built up, you can costume games - or your friends - for free).

#4

But, is the kit and equipment any more expensive than other hobbies, is what I’m getting at. I’m curious about what other hobbies people are involved in and what they cost.

I’ve heard paintball players can spend $800 on a gun. I’ve never seen an $800 larp weapon. (Now someone will find me an $800 larp weapon…)

#5

Entry level I think it’s a really cheap hobby, but when you combine it with other hobbies like weapon building or sewing it starts adding up.
When I think about how much I’ve spent on Teonn it scares me a little :open_mouth: Sewing definitly isnt as cheap as people think it is.

#6

[quote=“Anna K”]But, is the kit and equipment any more expensive than other hobbies, is what I’m getting at. I’m curious about what other hobbies people are involved in and what they cost.

I’ve heard paintball players can spend $800 on a gun. I’ve never seen an $800 larp weapon. (Now someone will find me an $800 larp weapon…)[/quote]

Only with US postage. But here’s one for $400. And I’ve certainly seen $800 armour.

A quick web browse shows that larp weapons aren’t out of line with professional sport equipment (hocky sticks, cricket bats etc). There’s no “$20 bat from the Warehouse” option, though - unless you DIY.

#7

I think there’s a real trade off between time and money - you can get cool stuff, or make a game that looks really nice, by sinking a lot of time into doing things the hard way or calling in favours; or you can just throw money at it.

But comparatively, a 3 hour game with a door charge of $10-15 is cheaper than a movie ticket (plus costuming costs, which are somewhere between zero and lots); a weekend game or convention is cheaper than a big music concert. And the quality of engagement and entertainment for larp is very high. Plus, people sinking their time into preparation work or volunteering to help out are probably doing so because they get something positive out of the activity, so you can add in longer periods of lesser but still worthwhile engagement. So yeah, it’s a cheap hobby.

You should get one! :slight_smile:

[quote=“Anna K”]But, is the kit and equipment any more expensive than other hobbies, is what I’m getting at. I’m curious about what other hobbies people are involved in and what they cost.[/quote]My partner’s into Ultimate Frisbee. What with shoes, pressure stockings, and trips for tournaments, he probably spends quite a lot.

#8

There totally is a $20 bat, but it’s every bit as good as a $20 (store bought) weapon :wink:

I have a bunch of other hobbies (notably Wargaming and Magic) and could easily spend as much on those - probably more - in any given month than I do on Larping. It costs me - including travel costs - about $500 or so for each Teonn, where I’ll spend about that much in a year on my other hobbies, but only because I’m actively not buying lots of things. If you go hard out on one or the other, and I have friends that do - you can easily spend $500 in a month, or every couple of months.

Computer/console gaming is another area where you can lay down serious money, if you’re really into it.

#9

Really depends a lot on the larp you’re in and where you live as to how it compares. In the UK and Europe a lot of larps have high standards, and the traders are expensive. Anyone who has looked at buying larp kit in pounds stirling can attest to that.

Whereas in the US larp is often done on the cheap. It used to be that way in NZ too but increasingly we have lofty goals for kit.

I would say that minimal purchased kit for larp here is very comparable to minimal gear for a lot of sports and hobbies. Say buying a sword and a tunic. But once you start getting ambitious it’s more comparable to the moderately expensive hobbies people have mentioned, especially the ones that involve collecting stuff.

It would almost never compare to the truly expensive hobbies out there though. Not for the vast majority of larpers.

#10

[quote=“Anna K”]But, is the kit and equipment any more expensive than other hobbies, is what I’m getting at. I’m curious about what other hobbies people are involved in and what they cost.

I’ve heard paintball players can spend $800 on a gun. I’ve never seen an $800 larp weapon. (Now someone will find me an $800 larp weapon…)[/quote]

We know that a lot of people have been glad to shell out $500+ for costumes. And not just a single costume, often several of them.

Costuming can be expensive and you can never have everything you want. Boots, wigs, hats, armour it all adds up.

Good armour will cost at least $500 for a reasonable outfit (mail, greaves, vambraces an a helmet) a nice set will be at least $1000, maybe $2000.

#11

I have a ridiculous number of hobbies and here is how they compare.

Snowboarding - $1200/yr
Golf ~$400/yr
Model Trains - ~$400/yr
Gardening - ~$1000/yr
Larp - ~$800/yr
Computer Games ~$500/yr

So as far as I can see Larp comes in about middle of my various hobbies.

#12

You’re not including data charges in there I take it… :slight_smile:

#13

You’re not including data charges in there I take it… :slight_smile:[/quote]

Nope, flat rate plan and I consider internet service a required utility :slight_smile:

#14

I think one of the cool things about larp in general is that you really can choose how much you want to spend. You can choose whether to shell out for a fancy sword from overseas or to borrow one from a friend for the weekend. You can choose whether to buy some nice, genuine looking medieval garb from an artisan or to spend an afternoon opshopping. You can choose whether to buy an old in-character looking tent or to take the modern one you already have.

My only other real hobby is music, and so far that’s definitely been more expensive. At one end you’re buying instruments, equipment, consumables, maintenance, and software, and at the other you’re buying cds and merch and tickets to the bands you’re into. Playing and/or producing music tends to be particularly expensive, especially if you’re looking at instruments other than guitar/bass/drums. I’d be paying several thousand dollars for a decent upright piano, about twelve thousand for a cheap baby grand, and about half a million for the piano I really want - whereas all of my guitars have been under about six hundred and the two I use now come in under five hundred combined.

To an extent there are similar options to those above - I could borrow a keytar for a gig; I could pick up a much cheaper violin at a second hand instrument store; I could wring another week out of a reed rather than replace it when I’d prefer to. I think these sort of options probably exist for a lot of hobbies.

So, I think larp can be expensive, and probably is more expensive than a lot of other hobbies, but it depends a great deal on how it is approached and managed.

#15

Yes I think larp is a relatively cheap hobby.

Our other big hobby is clubsport motorsport (entry level dirt road rally stages etcs). Entry level is a cheap car you don’t mind trashing, say $1000, crash helmet + overalls + fire extinguisher = $350. Then another $25-$70 entry fee for a one day event. And from there the spending is unlimited. Usually you go through a set of tyres $1000 each year or two, plus unexpected bonus spending on fixing up the car when mistakes happen, or you just want the car to go better. There is a lot of DIY on this side of things.

There are other hobbies that we have been interested in but don’t feel like spending the money on it (or don’t have time for). Like sailing, where we could get a little Sunburst sailboat, $2000 + gear of $200 life jacket, wetsuit, wetboots, etc.
Figure Ice skating - a set of boots $200 each year (jumping damages the leather needs replacing quite a bit), plus $30 lesson.
Speed Ice Skating - $50 skate hire, $50 yearly fee, + $10 per one hour session, once a week.

I think its worth while comparing what other people spend on their hobbies. Like how much is a ticket to the rugby at Eden Park (+food + drink at the venue?)

#16

In my mind, yes it is expensive. But not comparatively. And the level of cost is scale-able to many budgets.

For instance, my latest acquisition is my ex-seeker kit. $500. To me it is priceless. To buy it piecemeal would have been prohibitive. Those of us that have seeker kit are really quite lucky bastards.

And I get good mileage I used parts or all of this kit for half of my games at Chimera and I spent nothing on costumes for Chimera, all from existing kit (of course 12 years of larping does this even though I hardly boast a full larping closet).

As for game and membership costs $20 is very good value for money. 2 weekend games a year and it’s paid for itself.

Game fees are in relative terms fantastic… a weekend of entertainment, lodgings and food for less than $100?

Expensive as it may or may not be, it has such great value for the expenditure…

#17

being in a band:
instruments: between 50-1000$ each, amps: same, recording: 100$, pressing CDS: too much, outfits: 50$

not so much a hobby, but the general way to socialise for people my age:
gig tickets: 10-100$, drinks: 50$, dresses, shoes, make up: easily 500$

roller derby:
training: 104$ per year minimum, skates: minimum 500$

larp
game: 10-100$, costume: up to 100$ (female, good sewing ability)

religious stuff
books: 20$, attire: 50$

#18

I spent $2,500 plane ticket to go to a larp in Germany! :smiley:

It’s not the most expensive hobby out there, but certainly the most expensive one I’ve had (but that’s totally my fault - I could do it cheaper but wouldn’t enjoy it the same way!)

#19

[quote=“amphigori”]I spent $2,500 plane ticket to go to a larp in Germany! :smiley:[\quote]
Did you do other tourism stuff while you were over there?

#20

One of the big things which probably pulls down the price of LARPs, is that they are generally non-profit. Most other hobbies, if you go to a club to do it, then you have quite a high chance that they want to make a profit out of it.