How To Travel

DR NY March 1, 2023

The weather’s getting warmer, and all across the network we have premiere games and national events springing up. This means a lot of us will be traveling over the next few months, visiting other chapters all across the country. Travel can be one of the most rewarding things about Dystopia Rising - you have dozens of games to visit and thousands of friends to see. But it can also be stressful, challenging, and even disappointing. So how do you make sure you have an awesome experience, worth the time you put into it?

Thank You! Using Your CAPs

DR NY February 15, 2023

Dystopia Rising New York relies on you, the players, to make our events happen. Without your help, we wouldn’t be able to bring a hundred larpers to Forestburg nine times a year and make these amazing games. We often want to thank you for what you do, not just with words, but with something to enhance your play experience. Luckily, we have a way to do this… Community Action Points, or CAPs. You can spend these CAPs on a number of cool rewards, from Mind refreshes to extra resource production. But there’s a problem:

Making the Most of...

DR NY May 25, 2022

At Dystopia Rising, we spend a lot of time on our costumes, and they look great. We distress our jackets, sew all sorts of patches and accessories, and craft realistic boffer weapons. However, then we often pack those costumes into suitcases, cover our bunks in sleeping bags and spread out all sorts of non-genre items across our sleeping space.

Making the Most of... Mods

DR NY May 18, 2022

A Dystopia Rising game has many parts: the economy, roaming threats of zed and raiders, and persistent NPCs (or “Casted Characters”) to name a few. One staple of the Dystopia Rising experience are mods; short stories that typically last an hour or so, using the players on NPC shift.

Your Character As A Tool

DR NY March 30, 2022

Previously, we talked about your character not as a person in a story, but as a tool you use for storytelling. As larpers, our characters are precious to us, and often we identify with them strongly. However, we create them, and they aren’t real people but rather tools we use to role-play. As such, we should make sure they’re an effective tool, designed to help us have fun and perform the way we want. So how do we do that?

Serve Yourself - Self Steering

DR NY March 23, 2022

There’s no wrong way to larp… as long as you’re having fun and respectful to those around you. For the latter part - respect - we have many tools and techniques to make sure we treat other players properly. This includes the concept of “steering,” making out-of-character decisions for the sake of other players. Examples of steering include making sure you have consent, avoiding problematic or triggering role-play and purposely including other players in activities. But what about having fun? Sometimes, players should steer themselves with out-of-character decisions to make sure they have a good time.

Research in Requiem

DR NY March 16, 2022

Research! The word attracts the attention of some players, and inspires dread in others, but since the beginning, research has been part of Dystopia Rising. However, we don’t have many rules describing how characters can perform research during an event, and each chapter develops its own techniques to introduce new information to players. So how do you, as a player, perform research in Requiem?

Cold Weather Larping

DR NY January 5, 2022

Cold-weather larping requires more work than just carrying extra socks: while larping in the heat can be rough, the cold offers unique problems that can wear you down. Huddling together in the dark can make for great role-play, but not if the player is uncomfortable or unhappy. Here’s some tips for staying warm enough to enjoy a cold-weather larp.

Photo by Brittany Zweir. Pictured: Daniel Carrione

The Wrong (and Right) Things To Ask a New Player

DR NY December 8, 2021

We were all new once… and many of us have been new several times. Each time you try a different larp, you’re a new player, walking into a community of people who have established connections, jargon, and traditions. As we remember how tough it can be to take those first steps, most of us do all we can to welcome new players. But how can we help? Here’s three things we shouldn’t say (and three we should) to new players.

A survivor meets Jack Warren. Photo: Allana Marie. Pictured: Dylan Agan, Earl Pomeroy

3 Things To Do With an NPC (and 2 to Avoid)

DR NY November 10, 2021

In a boffer larp, monsters are easy to handle as a player - hit them until they stop moving. But when your storytellers send out NPCs… sometimes things go a little sideways. Maybe an NPC meant to promote roleplay turns into a joke, or an NPC provided as a “hook” doesn’t spark interest, or the players just can’t figure out how to engage with that political NPC. While it’s the responsibility of the storytellers and the people playing the NPCs to make them compelling, larp is collaborative, and we all work together to make the game fun and interesting. So how can you help NPCs show you a good time? Here’s a few specific tips (and a couple warnings) to help you make the most of the NPCs you meet.

REQ-uired Reading