LARP
Culture

Almost universally banned by LARP games, these can and have caused the loss of use of an event site. Not to mention your likely expulsion from their game. Just don’t do it.

1. Alcohol

2. Recreational drugs

3. Sex acts of any kind (real ones, not pretend ones)

4. Indecent exposure

5. Bringing firearms, or other real weapons (bladed tools for things like starting fires are something to discuss with a staff safety member)

OOG – Out of Game

• Can refer to conversations, objects or places that are not part of the game.

• Can also refer to knowledge about in game information that was acquired or heard out of game.

• When you see someone OOG you should ignore them and pretend they are not present.  

• Ways to express that someone is Out of Game

  • Crossed fingers: To speak to someone OOG, cross your index and middle finger, hold it up, and either whisper or speak quietly to the person for a short amount of time. Longer or louder conversations should be taken to either a private room, or an OOG area.

  • Fist above your head: When you’re holding something or visibility is low, put your fist on top of your head.

  • Orange fabric headband: For when you need to be in or move through game space OOG. This could be while setting up your game space, your character has died, medical issues, or a myriad of other reasons.

• When going to NPC at ST camp please do so IG if at all possible. It’s generally easy to find a reason for your character to walk near that location and helps with the overall immersion of our game and player experience.

IG – In Game

• Can refer to conversations, objects or places that are part of the game.

RP - Roleplay

• A shortening of the word roleplay, generally used in reference to non combat scenes.

NPC - Non-Player Character

• NPCs are characters managed by the Storytellers. Their goals, personality and statistics are set by storytellers. These may be played by staff or players.

PC - Player character

• This is your personal player character that you will be portraying at game.

ST - Storytellers

• A team of game masters that craft, execute and respond to the stories that happen in game. They represent everything and everyone outside of the characters we play. In some games they are referred to as a ‘Plot team’. There is more information on how they operate in the staffing LARP Organizational Structure section below.

WYSIWYG – What You See Is What You Get

• This is meant to maintain an immersive environment, and deliberately excludes the possibility of mind’s eye theater, with exception for Fade to Black scenes.

Mind’s Eye Theatre

• Can refer to a specific rules system that the World of Darkness (WoD) game system created for Parlor LARPs. (LARPs without physical combat) 

• It can also refer to describing a scene as opposed to acting it out with costumes and props. 

• The colloquial use (verbally describing instead of acting) is often used during fade to black scenes.

Fade to Black

• A term for scenes that are either uncomfortable or against policy for players to act out, and instead are described to whatever level necessary, or not at all.

• This is mostly used for sex scenes. It can also be used for scenes that may be traumatic or triggering, like torture.

• A fade to black is only used when both players consent. If someone is requesting a fade to black and you're uncomfortable or not sure why, please briefly discuss this OOG. They might have a lower threshold for what they want to roleplay. Please respect the boundaries of others. And remember you should never feel pressured to consent to a fade to black scene. If this occurs please notify staff immediately.

• For further clarification, please ask a staff member or a more experienced player.

Boffer

• A foam weapon, also known as a boffer or padded weapon, or latex weapon, is a padded mock weapon used for simulated handheld combat.

• This word is not interchangeable with ‘boffing’ or ‘boff’ which is a common slang for sexual activity in England.

FOIG - Find Out In Game

• Typically said when someone asks a question about your plot or character that you don’t want to answer because of the possibility of metagaming, or spoilers. Meaning, you should find out in game.

Metagaming

• Using out of game knowledge in game to gain an unfair advantage. This is considered cheating.

Positive Meta

• Using out of game knowledge to try to make the in-game experience of others more enjoyable or less stressful. At what point positive meta can cross over into metagaming is a commonly debated topic.

  • Good example of positive meta: John knows Sally has PTSD, so he wakes her up in a specific and safe way if his character is going to attack her.

  • Not a use of positive meta: John killed Sally’s character. Sally is noticed as missing, and John spreads it among the players during game that Sally had an NPC shift in order to discourage them from looking for her by being ‘helpful’. This is actually metagaming which is a rule violation. 

Kismet

• A reward system used by Darkwood Nights. These rewards can be obtained by NPCing, volunteering as staff, performing other miscellaneous tasks for the Org, monetary donations and physical donations. Kismet is ‘spent’ to improve your character. More information can be found in our rulebook.

Afters

• A prolonged period of eating and chatting at a restaurant near the site with other players right after game.

Decorum

• A term used at some LARPs to remind people to stop chatting OOG in an IG space, and get back in game. Can be either shouted at a room, or said quietly between players.

Deco

• Can refer to personal decoration and garb, the decoration and garb owned by the game organization, or the team that handles and arbitrates all things deco. See the deco page for further information.

Bleed

• Your own emotions or sense of self and that of your character starting to blend together. It can be very damaging and distressing to your own well being, and that of others. It is important to be mindful of this phenomenon and manage it accordingly. See below for more details and ways to avoid negative bleed.

LARP Drop

• When you have such a rush or a great time at LARP, but going back to mundane life is dragging and almost depressing.

Nerd Ball

• When a single player or a ‘real world’ social group uses the game to gain power and social clout both in and out of game. This social group often ends up dominating the game by joining staff and controlling the narratives and plots. By having almost exclusive control over the game they are able to eliminate or sideline characters played by players they don’t like. Other players become fearful of speaking out because they worry they will then become a target, both IG and OOG. Then, the vicious cycle continues.

• Once Nerd ball has infected a LARP, it often becomes an odd ‘team sport’ game with strange rules, unfair rewards and biased plot lines. Uncontrolled it can cause  the death of that game. 

• At Darkwood Nights one of the ways we mitigate this insidious development is keeping staff rewards consistent with what players themselves can earn at each game by volunteering their time. This removes the appeal of joining staff by players who simply seek power or massive XP growth of their character.

• What is considered nerd ball is debated, and no game can be completely immune to it. We are aware of this and remain vigilant and mindful of this phenomenon.

• People are more important than LARP and it should never be about ‘winning’. We want everyone to have a fantastic experience and tell cool stories.

Missing Stairs

• Toxic or abusive individuals in a community that have been overlooked either accidentally or deliberately, and allowed to continue harmful behavior. These situations can be incredibly complex and difficult to deal with for many different reasons. This is not just an annoying or obnoxious person, and can be quite serious. Please refer to our Code of Conduct. 

  • Examples: A sexual predator, a stalker, someone who repeatedly victimizes people, a thief, bigot, racist, a staff member who abuses their position, etc. 

• In our game we have an investigative system in place that emphasizes transparency, responsibility, and minimizes conflict of interest. See our Infraction Policy for more details about the process. 

Machine Gunning

• Hitting multiple times in extremely fast succession with your foam weapon or spell packets. In some LARPs this is okay, but Darkwood Nights allows only one combat action per second. An action is defined as a single attempt to use a power or hit a Target with a physical attack.

Turtling

• Hiding behind a shield covering the majority of your body in order to not provide any legal targets.

Rhinohiding

• Not taking hits because they “don’t hit hard enough”. Darkwood Nights uses what is called ‘Lightest touch’. Meaning don’t hit harder than you need to. 

Gibbering

• Saying your combat or power calls too quickly for people to understand them. 

• Physical roleplay is any roleplay with another player that involves an element of touch either by another player, or with an object. This does not include boffers, latex weapons, or touch powers. Physical roleplay always needs to be consensual.

• To ask for physical roleplay, make the OOG symbol with your fingers as discussed previously, and say the words, “Do you accept physical roleplay?” Then you have a brief exchange with the other person where you describe what you intend to do. They can either agree wholeheartedly, negotiate to do something less impactful, or they can say no outright. 

  • Example: Johnny's character is angry at Brian’s character for some reason, and wants to walk up and slap Brian’s character. Johnny holds up his crossed fingers and asks, “Do you accept physical roleplay?” Brian asks what he plans on doing. Brian can agree to a variety of scenarios. He can tell Johnny to slap him full force. He can ask for Johnny to slap him lightly. He can ask for a stage slap where it looks and sounds like he was slapped, but actually wasn’t. He can also simply say no, and Johnny’s character will just yell at him instead. 

• Physical roleplay can also be pre-arranged beforehand between games. You can also establish your physical RP boundaries with a person or group beforehand. There are times you may see a player do something you felt should have been negotiated first. Before escalating the situation OOG please check with the receiving party and ask if that scene was pre-arranged. If it was and the receiving party feels good about what happened, everything is fine. If not, you can help that player contact staff if they wish to file a complaint.

• Touch Powers work a little differently. At Darkwood Nights, the legal areas for touch powers are the shoulder, upper back, upper arm and forearm. By playing our game, there is implied consent to being briefly and lightly touched in those areas only, in order to deliver said powers.

• Bright orange is the color used for OOG and often referred to as “construction site orange”. If you see orange marking tape, ribbon, markers or anything else marked or tagged with an obviously modern orange consider it Out of Game. 

• If it’s on a doorknob, it indicates the space behind the door is OOG. 

• Our Deco Policy goes into further details on this topic in addition to our rulebook. It will help you understand what places and objects are considered OOG at our event site.

• If you are getting confused between the feelings you are roleplaying, and your own emotions.

• You have a contentious relationship with another character IG, and begin thinking of the character’s player poorly because of it.

• Your character is experiencing setbacks or making mistakes IG and you start to see those as your own failures.

• Your character experiences something horrible and you as a player start to have a trauma response.

• Some fear, sadness, or anger can be cathartic. It becomes problematic when you cannot let those feelings go, or when they become overwhelming. Ultimately, although it was stressful for the character, you as the player should be able to look back on that scene fondly as good, cool, or interesting without getting upset.

• Play a character that is a different person and personality from you.

• Try not to refer to yourself in the first person when telling a story about something your character did.

• Create clear boundaries for yourself between you and your character.

• Verbally remind yourself that you are not your character.

• If drawing on your real life experiences for a character reaction is too much, try drawing on things you’ve seen in media like movies, tv and video games.

• Go to afters, attend community events, or just socialize with players outside of game. Getting to know the other players OOG creates a separation between your thoughts about their character and who they are as a person.

• Step away from a scene or a situation that is causing a distressing amount of bleed.

•  If something your character is doing would be unnatural or distressing for you to do in real life, narrate what your character is doing in your mind and why to create mental separation.

  • • Example: To show menace, I am baring my teeth and growling

• If something you ask of someone IG is onerous, time consuming, or might impact their ability to have fun at game, talk to them first and don’t just spring it on them.

• Be self-aware of the trauma triggers and mental health problems you may have, and adjust your game experience accordingly.

• If your character did something incredibly aggressive or combative towards someone else’s (mechanically, physically or socially), talk about it OOG either right afterwards or after game. See where the player’s head is at, and how good OOG relations and feelings can be maintained while still adhering to rules and mechanics. Not to mention that many players do not want to be warned beforehand if you’re about to do something to their character for fear that they might metagame.

• If you feel hurt, wronged, or antagonized by a character, make an effort to talk to the player after game, and perhaps even get to know them OOG. It will help with separating the player from the character in your mind.

•  If an IG romantic or physical relationship is progressing to an OOG one, actively ask yourself if that relationship would be good for you or your situation. Is the reason you want this relationship because of bleed, or do you have a real OOG connection? Would getting together with this person damage or end an existing relationship? Do you want that to happen? Talk about it with friends or family. Draw boundaries. If it would be too tempting and destructive to continue at all, break it off. Stop.

• Talk with any significant other you may have about IG intimacy both with each other and other people, and what will be allowed. No IG relationships? What can happen in an IG relationship? What can happen in your written in between game scenes? Do you want characters that are romantically involved with each other?

•  If detrimental amounts of bleed are unavoidable for you, you may need to try a less intense game, or rethink LARP as a hobby for the time being.

• Talk about it with others online. You’re probably not alone, and it helps it feel less overwhelming if you can see how normal it is. Our general chat in Discord is a great place to share that you are feeling LARP drop. It happens to the best of us at some point or another.

• Take care of yourself and be kind to yourself.

• Have a checklist of common needs you have like eating, sleeping, drinking enough water, bathing, and socializing. Make sure you’re meeting all those needs.

• If the reason why you’re experiencing LARP drop isn’t immediately clear, try to figure out why and make a plan to better address your needs.

• Give yourself a treat to enjoy outside of your LARP hobby if you can.

• Have other social groups to hang out with outside of LARP.

• Make fun, but low stakes plans after game so you have something to look forward to that won’t be stressful.

• Have other hobbies that aren’t related to LARPing.

• Read the source material and lore for your faction and subfaction. This helps you learn how best to operate within your faction. You'll learn the culture of that faction,  how to be useful, and how not to get yourself in trouble. There will be more information later in this document for how to access those books.

• While you are a PC, it can be easy to think only about your character and your story. When unplanned things come up from other PCs, don't be afraid to weave that into your story. In RPGs, sometimes the character becomes a party member, others might just be a sympathetic NPC. Think about what you can offer to help their story. 

• Get curious about the characters and stories of other people. You may feel like a main character, but LARP is a tapestry of dramas that interweave with each other. Sometimes other people have really cool stories to tell. It makes everyone’s game more interesting.

• Go out and NPC for ST! It helps the world feel more alive, and gets you involved in more stories than just your own.

• If an action that you take will not add to the enjoyment of the players, but will only cause OOG distress and unhappiness, maybe don’t do it. People don’t like the excuse of, “but it’s what my character would’ve done”. It’s unpleasant in tabletop games, and it’s unpleasant in LARP.

• If your character is an antagonist or straight up evil, make sure that what you’re doing is adding to the game and experiences of other people. You’re not a jerk if you’re making interesting story. Does your evil plan give other players a chance to respond? Does it link into an existing storyline? Does this change dynamics between characters or add a new complication? If the answer to that is yes, you’re probably being an interesting antagonist or villain. 

• Give your character a goal to work towards. Try to think about short term goals (things you want to accomplish in the next event or two), medium term goals (things you want to accomplish in the next year or two), and long term goals (things you want to accomplish in the character's lifetime). ST is a small team, and the playership is big. ST is not going to be able to personally entertain everyone all the time. Having goals for your character helps you find stuff to do and people to talk to. Darkwood Nights is a very character driven LARP.

• Try to avoid breaking character whenever possible. Breaking character breaks the immersion of others, and getting back into character is difficult. If you must break character, please try to do so discreetly.

• Please keep food that’s in IG spaces in IG appropriate containers. You can have your Mountain Dew or an energy drink, just please put it in a mug or a glass bottle and call it something else. You will have people telling you to do this if you leave it on a table.

• Deco your space! When you wake up and go to sleep or have secret meetings in your room, it helps so much with creating an immersive environment. Put your character's things on a side table. Bring your own lighting. Cover your bins with a cloth to make a table.

• Actively give your character flaws that you as a player are aware of. It adds interest and depth to your character, as well as creates a further level of separation between you and the character. It creates interesting roleplay too.

• There will be jump scares, there will be horrifying monsters, there will be things in the dark that can and will jump you on the road. A player needs to be prepared for that to happen.

• In a horror game and especially a World of Darkness game, the expectation should be that there are no real heroes. No one is gonna go beat up the big bad and get universally praised by the town, it's not that kind of setting. You will need to make hard, morally gray choices no matter what kind of character you play.

• Sometimes there is a brief, limited, or permanent loss of player agency. Certain powers can make you do things. Other powers and abilities can negate them, but your character may have to do something they normally wouldn’t. Blood bonds or fae oaths can make your character have intensified feelings or not be able to act against the person that did it to you. Your character might die. Please read the rules on these things if one of them happens to you. You should be prepared for those sorts of things to happen. They can also be amazing story opportunities.

• Darkwood Nights is a LARP that deals with some very dark themes. If you don’t think you can handle that at the time being, please come back when or if you can. However, we try not to bring in certain issues people deal with in the real world like sexism or racism, especially when it relates to things a player has no control over presenting. Prejudice or suspicion against foreigners or non-locals however is valid in this game.

• The horror of Mage is your loss of humanity as you gain power. The horror of Vampire is your need to victimize others in order to survive. The horror of Fae is the facism inherent in how the courts treat each other in order to gain dominion while they slowly go extinct and their world is crumbling and changing without them. The horror of Human is being a small fish in a sea of monsters. You have your wits, and whatever leverage you manage to gain to keep you alive and relevant. These are the types of themes we tend to play with and explore in this game the most.

• Please mentally check in with yourself. LARP is supposed to be fun, not cause you distress.

• If you cannot handle a horror game right now or at all, that’s ok. You’re not a weak person for that. Find a game that works for you because there very well may be one in the area. Ask around. Many of us also go to multiple games, so we might see you in other places.

• LARPers are generally a friendly bunch that love welcoming new people and helping them out. We get excited when we get new people! We all started as new somewhere and having new players means more stories and adventure to share.

• Join the Discord, post on the Facebook page, and get to know people! Coming into a new social group is tough. It’s easier if you talk to some of them first before showing up in person.

• Come in with a group if possible. Group goals help drive story, you have a small circle of people to ask questions, and you have some guaranteed social interaction. If you don’t have people you already know joining us feel free to post in Discord that you are looking for ties for your new character. You’ll soon have a lot of choices to make as our players will be thrilled to help you out with that.  

• Come to afters, community events and parties. Socialize with the community outside of game. You’re even welcome to do that if we have one before the game you want to attend so you can meet people first.

Program Manager, Game Owner, or Executive Officers

• The person or group that legally owns and/or runs the game. This can be different between various LARPs. A LARP that keeps running once the founder has left or stepped down typically has some kind of Executive officer committee. 

• Darkwood Nights is a program under WyldFae Productions (a 501c3 non-profit organization) and has a Program Manager.

Rules Team

• The team that is in charge of writing, organizing, and clarifying the game rules. They also settle disputes and answer questions concerning them. 

Logistics

• This team runs check-in at each event. They manage player characters in Odoo, process your tags for each game and apply post game XP and earned Kismet. Essentially they are the ones who manage your character digitally. If you’ve already checked in online before game, you’ll sign in and pick up any coins or tags that you pre-ordered for your character. 

• If you weren’t able to check-in online that’s OK! The team will take care of you on site, just please be patient with the process.

Deco

• This team makes the deco guidelines and rules, makes sure that set up and tear down of game is done on time and properly, and maintains any org owned props and clothing between events. Read our Deco Policy to learn more.

• At the end of every event the players help with cleanup. In some game spaces players will assist the Deco team with tear down so everyone can leave the site on time.

Storytellers

• Storytellers (ST) are responsible for telling the overarching story of the game, and sending out NPCs in order to convey that story. In addition to often playing NPCs, they will recruit help from the playership to play them as well. Everything needed to play the characters is generally provided at ST Camp, including clothing, weapons, makeup, props, etc.

• Our ST team also creates the ‘rumors’ that will be distributed OOG before each game in our Discord faction only channels.  They help generate discussion and inform each faction of things they should know before the event; you won’t want to miss them!

• ST also acts as character guides when first submitting a character for approval. This means they tell you whether or not your character concept fits the canon of our game, and can give suggestions if it doesn’t. Some games even have an entire team dedicated to character guiding.

Safety

• This team makes sure that everyone is safe, and physically taken care of. They check IG weapons, place tealights at hazards, act as combat marshals as well as assisting you if you get hurt. You can learn more by reading our Safety Policies.

Tech

• Tech is either one person or a team, and usually manages the website, the app, and any official online forums. They work out bugs and make improvements. They are typically not moderators, or that is not their main job.

Treasurer

• This person keeps track of the real world money associated with the game, such as attendance payments, monetary donations, and site fees.

Heads of Staff

• This includes the Heads of each team that has more than one person.

Investigative Team

• When complaints occur about violations of our rules or policies this team handles that investigation. It is made up of the Program Manager, Head of Rules and Head of Logistics. Refer to the Infraction Policy to learn more.

• Staff are not your enemy. Oftentimes we’re your friends or hope we could be. Please treat staff with compassion and understanding. We strive to be flexible and hear your concerns because we are all human beings 

• If you have an issue with another player and you don’t feel like you can talk to them directly about it, please talk to a staff member. We can help by either being a mediator, helping you put in an official complaint, or telling you when it’s serious enough that you need to get the law involved.

• Asking for clarifications on things is normal, and you don’t even necessarily have to ask staff. Most people are happy to answer questions, or point you towards the people that can help. Even seasoned LARPers will have questions.

• Contact us through email, Oodo, Discord or Facebook. Each staff member usually has a preferred platform on which to be contacted so you can get a faster response. If one method doesn’t seem to work, try another one.

• As you gain experience with the game and when we have an opening, please consider joining staff to help us grow! 

• If you have celiac or other severe food restrictions it may be best to bring your own food for consumption. While we do have food prepared on site for the playership IG we can not guarantee that all special dietary needs will be met. There are many places on site to safely store and prepare food.

• If you have an emergency medical device like an epipen or an inhaler etc., keep it either on your person or easily accessible by others. In Odoo under your player information there is a section for pertinent medical information and Safety staff has access to that data. 

  • It’s also a good idea to talk to a safety team member on site after you arrive. This ensures they know where you are sleeping and how best to help you in an emergency.

• If you have diabetes, make sure you remember to monitor it. Game can get very busy and sometimes it can be hard to remember the important things like checking your blood sugar. So be mindful of that and take care of yourself. 

• If you have emergency or situational medication like migraine pills, please keep some in your OOG belongings and bags. 

• Please drink water. Getting dehydrated is unfortunately common.

• Eat food regularly. You will have a clearer mind and be less cranky.

• Sleep for at least 5 hours per night. We have mechanics that reward you for this. ST camp shuts down after 2 am and doesn’t open again till 8 am.

• Remember to bathe or at least birdbath using a sink. At our current site, some of the best bathrooms for showers are the ones between the two separate houses by the hall, and the group of houses by the inn. These are open to everyone.

• Check yourself and others for hypothermia during especially wet and cold games. Wearing wet cotton can be a considerable risk factor. A lot of the clothes in ST are made of cotton for ease of laundering.

• LARP can also be a good place for you if you have difficulties with socializing. Many of us are neuro-divergent or introverted and have also dealt with these struggles. Having a safe space to be someone else for a little while may also help.

• If you get hurt or have an emergency on site, talk to Safety. 

• At Darkwood Nights we have a ‘Comfort Box’ kept discreetly available to players on site. It contains hygiene items, over the counter medications, period products and other convenience items that you may have forgotten at home. If you need something and  you're not sure where this is located, check with a member of Safety staff.

• Check out secondhand bookstores in the games section.

• Buy them on sites like ebay, thriftbooks, or drivethrurpg.

• Ask to borrow from other players, staff, or friends.

• Take a long shot at the library, you may get lucky.

• The list of source books we utilize can be found in our rulebook.

• What needs to be understood about World of Darkness is that many of these books contain material that we now often consider to be racially or culturally insensitive. The Dark Ages books were written in the 90’s, a time when many of the topics were not taboo and more tolerated. As you read them keep that in mind. Darkwood Nights changed a few of the subfaction names and cultural contexts that are now considered problematic. We then made it fit with obscure lore so it still feels immersive. 

• Because these books were written by Occult enthusiasts in the 90’s, they can sometimes play fast and loose with history. Just because something was a certain way in the real world, doesn’t mean that always translates to the alternate history of the game world. This is more true with the smaller details than the overarching historical beats.

• Some of these books contain incredibly disturbing material. If a book was published under Black Dog instead of White Wolf, that means the topics were too controversial for their normal publisher. The Baali clanbook is a good example of a Black Dog book and is part of our canon. It is a deeply disturbing book so you are warned if you choose to read it. Not even Devil’s Due (the book on demons) is as extreme. That being said, any of the White Wolf books used in our canon can contain material that may be stressful or upsetting for some readers.

• Many of these books have conflicting information and histories, sometimes within the same book. The tabletop RPG games weren’t generally designed with cross play in mind. But, as a benefit, conflicting information gives the game master or Storyteller room to tell their own stories. It’s meant to make players and fans wonder, “what really happened?” and then make up whatever they think is most plausible. Many players have their own pet theories. Conflicting histories can even create conflict between or within factions that drive the story. Basically, inconsistency in source material isn’t necessarily a bad thing.