Network Forum

(As per Aaron's great suggestion/request to get an interview from
Steve, and a huge thank you to Stephen Weese for doing it for us and
so quickly! *big grin*...)

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Costume pics attached too! (see them in the Photos section of this group)
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How long have you been LARPing?

In 1995, my friend Tim Delong that I was in Computer Science with at
George Mason brought me to VALOR. It was a three day, and I was
totally hooked.

What do you enjoy about LARPing?

Are you kidding? It is like playing D&D (or whatever game you like)
but you get to DO it instead of sit at the table. I am an athletic
person so I like the opportunity to use my fencing skills and also
jump and leap about and pretend I'm acrobatic. Besides that, when you
get with some good role players, it is truly amazing. Plus you are at
a place with a bunch of people who enjoy the same things you do and
are instant friends.

What do you not enjoy, and/or what would you
change in LARPs?

I play for the role playing, primarily. I don't care about levels,
power, magic items, etc. I wish that the pure "power gamers" would at
least try to do some role playing. I hate it when characters just do
what will give them more stats/power rather than doing any roleplaying.

Do you run games? If so, tell us about one (what
was it, how did you do it, etc.?)

I haven't run an entire LARP before. I do run D&D and Paranoia, my
favorite tabletop games. A few of my plot ideas have been used. A
major storyline for a weekend that I wrote was used recently at NERO
Piedmont in NC. At least, I think so, I haven't heard how it went yet.

What was your favorite role/costume that you have
done?

Wow, it is really hard to say. Part of my favorite stuff is throwing
myself totally into random NPCs that I play, making them more than
just speed bumps to kill. One time at a METRO event I was part of a
goblin group and I was poisoned (gas) and wandered into the woods.
When I (the goblin) found out that the rest of my buddies were dead, I
became the "Avenging Goblin", hiding in the trees waiting to ambush
the evil humans. I leaped out in front of a half-Ogre (Zug Zug, played
by Tiny) and screamed, "I am the avenging goblin! You killed my
brothers! I will kill you all!" in a high pitched goblin voice. I
think I freaked the hell out of Tiny too, it was great. Then, they all
killed me, of course.

What was one of your favorite moments in a LARP,
and why?

If you have played LARPs as long as I have, you probably have 53,692
stories. In fact, I have observed that LARPers could spend the entire
weekend trading stories instead of playing the game. For some reason,
tabletop doesn't seem to generate these kind of great moments, because
I have never sat around for hours swapping tabletop stories. Most of
my stories are funny but I'll tell you a more sentimental one. Every
December at METRO in Virginia I would play my minstrel character,
Redberry, and bring my guitar. I found out that another girl there,
Sarah, knew an old colonial era madrigal that I performed. So, it kind
of became a "Christmas" tradition for us to sing the song. One of
these Decembers we actually had the lights turned off and the room was
lit by candles. We sang together "Blow the Candles out." It was an
almost magical experience, I miss that tradition.

How do you work LARPing into your "normal" life?
What do your friends and family think
about it?

I wrote an article for that LARP magazine a while ago, explaining how
many of us tell folks that we are going "camping" for the weekend. So
that is what I tell some people. My friends and family are actually
pretty cool with it, and of course some of my friends play.

What kind of LARPs do you like? What elements?

I do like the boffer LARPs, I like the physical element of running,
fighting, and hiding. My main character is a rogue and over the years
I've actually gotten pretty good at hiding and sneaking up on people.
However, I have had some GREAT fun at conventions where there is just
a one-shot weekend LARP. A friend of mine ran one once where I got to
play, literally, "Undead Elvis." I even had a performance and played
Jailhouse Rock for the other LARPers.

Where do you see the state of the LARP at now, and
where do you see it going?

My gosh, I have no idea. I think in some way it will always be
relegated to the ultra-nerdy label, since most people think we are
absolutely nuts. One time we were at a sci-fi convention in Raleigh
where we were LARPing, but there was also an investors convention
there. I was hanging by the elevator in costume when a meeting let
out, and the investors all walked by. Many of them stopped to make fun
of me. A lady said, "Isn't it a bit early for Halloween, honey?"
Another man came up to me with his lighter (I am not making this up)
and kept flicking it at me saying, "Fire, Fire!" Another guy asked if
we knew we were grown-ups. I will always love LARP but I don't think
it will ever become mainstream. That's ok really, I quite enjoy being
a freak. I'll take a LARP, or a con, or an SCA gathering any day over
a boring investor's meeting.

--END INTERVIEW-- Steve wishes for www.steveracer.com , his official
website, to be included in this, as well to direct people here
regarding future contact. It is his most complete and up-to-date
online presence. Please check it out!

~LARP Alliance~
<note: Also posted on the LARP Alliance MySpace Group and Yahoo LARP Alliance Group>