The waiting room is bland and antiseptic. You have made unimaginable sacrifices to get here. Through that door is a chance at a better life—one away from war, death, and horror. But between you and the door are a dozen fellow refugees with their own agendas, and an immigration officer eager to send you straight back to hell.
WHAT:
The Line is a science fiction scenario for 7–15 players that explores the challenges faced by contemporary refugees. Your home planet of Sarai is in the midst of a terrible civil war and it isn’t safe for your family to remain. You will take the role of one of many applicants to relocate to the Combine, a vast federation of planets. But the Combine, its culture, and its bureaucracy are all foreign to you. Today you apply, you interview, and you wait.
Designed by Jason Morningstar
Organized by Wayne Flenniken and TLS
WHEN:
Sunday, 29 July 2018 from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm
THEMES:
Players take the role of desperate refugees fleeing war and hoping to be granted asylum. This scenario directly addresses the plight of contemporary refugees.
REGISTRATION:
If you are interested in playing, fill out our The Line Sign-Up Form before 11:59 pm on Monday, July 23rd. If more people sign up than we have room for attendance will be decided by weighted lottery. You should know if you are in or out of the larp by Wednesday, July 25th. If less folks than max sign up, registration will be open after the deadline for stragglers.
PLAY STYLE:
This is a Nordic larp-style scenario. Play is comprised of a single unbroken segment in a waiting area occasionally interrupted by one-on-one interviews. Players interact with the entire play group for the majority of play. Characters are developed during play through a number of card draws, with the option to redraw individual character elements as desired. The majority of your play experience will be struggling with an unfamiliar bureaucracy and anxiously awaiting news regarding your application to emigrate.
COSTUMING: Costuming is not required.
WHERE:
A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are selected for the larp. Parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.
We are requesting a voluntary goodwill donation $5–10 to support the work of the nonprofit in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.
ACCESSIBILITY:
The play venue is ADA accessible. Plenty of seating. Water available. Climate controlled building. Gender neutral bathroom available.
CONTENT ADVISORY:
Violence, both personal and genocidal, may be described or implied but will not be portrayed in play. Cultural tension between different groups will be present but may or may not be acted upon. Arguments may ensue.
AFTERPARTY:
If you would like to socialize after the larp, a group will go to Broadway Bar & Pizza at 2025 West River Rd N, Minneapolis. Anyone is welcome to join in on this, including people who didn't attend the larp!
WINTERHORN: the code name of a small but passionate group of “peace and justice” activists. On the surface they project innocent, if misguided, zeal, but you know better. You’ve dealt with groups like this before, and there’s always a dangerous core. Gun-runners. Bomb-makers. People who deserve to be thrown in a dark hole somewhere.
As government agents, your goal is to nudge them into destroying themselves, using every trick in the book – black bag jobs, disinformation, spinning up rival front groups, and even escalating to vandalism and violence when necessary. Your mission, with the full force of the government behind you and time running out, is to get WINTERHORN’s members fighting like rats in a bucket. They need to fall apart before they can hurt anyone, and the state’s hands need to stay clean.
They won’t know what hit them.
WHAT:
WINTERHORN is a live action game for 5-8 players about how governments degrade and destroy activist groups. By playing law enforcement and intelligence operatives working diligently to demoralize and derail, you’ll learn about the techniques used in the real world in pursuit of these goals. By playing WINTERHORN you’ll have a chance to reflect on weak points in your own activism, and think about ways to harden organizations you care about against government intrusion.
Designed by Jason Morningstar
Organized by l.p.lade
WHEN:
Sunday, 8 April 2018 from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
THEMES
Political activism, state oppression, counterintelligence
REGISTRATION:
If you are interested in playing, please fill out the survey before 11:59 pm on March 26. We'll let you know who's in the larp by March 29! If more people sign up than we have room for attendance will be decided by weighted lottery. If fewer than six players sign up, registration will be open after the deadline for stragglers.
PLAY STYLE:
Hybrid between tabletop and live action play. Detective-style case board and paperwork. Mechanics light. Theme-heavy. Characters are minimally defined as either government agents or police officers. Physical contact beyond light touch not anticipated. No prior larp experience necessary.
COSTUMING:
Boring business casual suggested. Everyday clothes acceptable.
WHERE:
A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are selected for the larp. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.
We are requesting a voluntary goodwill donation of $5-10 to support the work of the nonprofit in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.
ACCESSIBILITY:
The play venue is ADA accessible. Plenty of seating. Water available. Climate controlled building. Gender neutral bathroom available.
CONTENT ADVISORY:
Offscreen violence, abuse of power, and political repression of potentially sympathetic groups and individuals by a fictional government.
Contact us with questions or concerns.
Image assets and pitch copy courtesy Bully Pulpit Games
Service is a freeform larp about residents of the United States called up for military service during a brutal war.
Each player takes on the role of a citizen who has been torn out of their everyday life and brought to the Orientation Center for deployment to basic training. Everything they own has been removed from them as they are about to embark on the transformational experience of becoming a soldier.
Service is game about saying goodbye to the life you’ve known, about patriotism versus the reality of war, and issues of personal versus societal responsibility.
WHAT:
a close-to-home US Freeform for 10-20 players
written by Shoshanna Kessock
organized by Ben, Jon Cole, Rebecca
WHEN:
7pm-11pm Friday September 26th 2014
WHERE:
10K theater
Dupre Hall basement
Macalester College in Saint Paul, MN USA
WHAT GENRE:
social realism, ethical dilemmas made personal
Service is not a win or lose type of game. Players are encouraged to play characters that are physically, mentally, and emotionally similar to themselves.
HOW DO I SIGN UP:
Sign ups are done by a lottery of all interested people. Enter the lottery by sending an e-mail to [email protected] before 9AM Saturday, September 13th. You should know if you are in or out of the larp by Monday September 15th.
COSTUMING:
No costuming is needed for Service. Characters will not be assigned in advance. The game takes place in a very near future US where regular residents arrive at the draft office for mandatory military service.
ACCESSIBILITY:
The play venue is a basement, accessible by elevators and stairs. Players must have cellphones, or another means of contacting organizers when they arrive at the play space (organizer numbers will be provided to players). Very limited seating available. No A/C. A minimally appointed off-game decompression space will be available. No food or drink will be provided. If you have an accessibility question or request please email [email protected].
CONTENT WARNING:
Play might include shouting, mandatory military service, discussions of war violence and casualties. If you have an question about this content warning please email [email protected].
CONTACT THE ORGANIZERS:
For more information about Service email [email protected]. Your inquiry will be forwarded to the organizers best suited to answer it.
THANK YOU:
Special thanks to the Macalester Gaming Society for partnering with the Larp House to host this even on their campus.
