How to get into LARPing

If you like the idea of LARP but aren't sure how to get into it, here's a few ways.

Ask your mate

The easiest LARP to get into is the one your mate plays.  They're probably mad keen for you to go, and will want to fascilitate it by doing things like offering you a lift to site, loaning you kit, helping you make a character and so on.  If it's a camping LARP and you've never camped before, your mate will know all the things that make camping unpleasant and how to avoid them.  If it's a larp with weapons, they can help you with a bit of fighting practice beforehand.

Your mate wants you to LARP.  They will make it happen.

Go to LarpCon

Don't have a mate who LARPs or don't fancy the LARP they play?  Go to LarpCon.  A bunch of LARP organisers have stalls at LarpCon, and will be delighted to tell you about their game.  There's also a bunch of kit traders, so you can pick up costume and other kit at the same time.  And in the evening is the Larp Awards, where you can learn even more about the different games available, and which ones are likely to suit you in terms of genre, size, family friendliness and other considerations.

Get on FaceBook

There's a massive LARP community on FaceBook, and UK LARP EVENTS is a pretty good place to start.  Not only are there adverts for a lot of upcoming games, there are also occasional posts where someone asks for recommendations in a particular genre and/or location, and usually gets a bunch of good suggestions.

Pretty much every LARP group has its own FaceBook group, where you can talk to the existing players and get a feel for what its like.  And once the algorithm starts to think you're interested in LARP, it will start recommending groups to you.

Be a monster

In association with all of the above, a great way to get into LARP is to be a monster.  Unlike tabletop, where the GM plays everyone who isn't the PCs, live games need some actual humans to put on goblin masks and go and get killed.  You can learn the rules without worrying about getting your character killed, because you don't have a character.  You can try out a bunch of different skills and character types and find out what you enjoy without committing to anything.  You can meet the existing players and see how you get on with them.

You can usually get away with minimal kit, because the team running the game will have a bunch of things you can borrow, and you can usually book a monster ticket for free, meaning you'll have minimal expenses beyond travel and food.  If you're unsure about how you're going to get on with LARP, monstering is a great way to find out.

Obviously this is all based off my own experience, which is primarily with weekend-long larps with costumes, kit and usually weapons.  I know absolutely nothing about parlour larp, or mind's eye theatre type games.

But if the idea of a full weekend of dressing up in a costume and fighting evil for a weekend appeals, it's out there and waiting for you.