Live Role playing and the LT

Live Action Role Playing (LARP or LRP)

This is the act of taking on the part of a specific character and then acting it out. Players picks skills they would like to have and actually wear the costumes appropriate to the person that they are playing. Perhaps a good way to look at it is that it is a kind of free form theatre, with the exception that you are not acting for an audience... but only for yourself and the other role-players interacting with you. At the Gathering last year their where over approximately 3600 people according to figures - all in costume all there for the same reason.

The Factions, The Bakura, and The Guilds

A faction is like a Nation or Empire. In our case our faction is so big its an Empire, we are called the Vipers or Viper Faction and the land we live on is called Teutonia. All factions are named after an animal which is most like their personalities. The Bakura are a group/squad within the Viper faction. The Guilds are independent bodies that help and serve the factions and or people/groups within the factions.

Events

The Bakura Group play in the LT system and go to LT events but of course their is no need to go to lots of events during the year if you don't want to. LRP can be as cheap or expensive as the individual wants it to be. There is no need to spend vast amounts of money on this hobby. Classification of events: Local event: 20 people max and normaly dosn't cost anything. Faction or Guild event: 100 -150 people - normally deals with its internal problems, politics, wars etc. (Normally an event like this is over three days and costs 15 - 35 pounds, large one day events cost no more then 10 pounds and are sometimes free) Its always cheaper to pre-book events then pay on the gate plus your place will be guaranteed. The Big Four during the year are: Heartland games, Faction Moot 1, Faction Moot 2, and The Gathering. The sorts of numbers that go to these events are up there in the 3000 - and I mean 3000 people all role playing at the same time! Over 3 - 4 days (don't worry about missing work - the the big events normally run over bank holiday weekends and most events normally happen during weekends) Each these 4 major events costs 45 - 50 pounds on the gate OR 35 pounds if you PRE BOOK, I guess this isn't bad considering a premiership football match ticket will cost you over 30 pounds for only 90 minutes! Anyway if you want a booking form, I've put downloadable booking forms in the Events and Dates section with each events brief description.

Make a Character (see our character creation page)

http://notzen.com/Gathering/ - here is a copy of the rule book (online version). To find out how to make a character chick on the Lorien trust rules then character creation then basic skills list If you are new to the Bakura and need any help with character creation contact one of us and we can help you. In the Bakura feel free to play whatever character you want because the group has many different people of many different talents.

Other information

There is also tones of information on the web if you want to find out more use a search engine like Yahoo and type in the word Erdreja this should give you a broad set of web sites to explore. I have also included some useful links on this web-site as well as links to the messages boards this is were a lot of down time plot is handled (down time plot is when your not role-playing at an event but the story continues).

As I am writing this I am trying to figure words to describe this gaming system and its world, but I can't justify it in writing you have to see for your self. When you go to an LRP event you dress up in your various costumes and take on the role and personality of a totally different person from yourself. At an event a world has been created for you, a place to interact with other characters, a world were anything is possible. Consider this anything you can do in this world you can do in LRP except on a medieval/fantasy scale. Its about going out there and discovering the story as it were to be in it and to be a part of it.

The Loren Trust

The LT was formed in late 1991, after a group of experienced live role-players decided to run something better than the events that had been run before. After a few large meetings, this group of players formed a company, the Lorien Trust. They set up a board of trustees to run the company and the events on a co-operative basis. The LT are now the largest role-play organisers in the UK. Their rule system is one of the most used in the UK.

The World of Erdreja (the world the advantures are set)

Before the founding the elder races lived long and peaceful lives on Erdreja. Elves dwarves and fairy folk, all lived in relative peace for millennia. When the younger races came to the world this peace was shattered. Within a few centuries of their arrival, the Race Wars began and many thousands of lives were lost within just a few decades.

During the wars, the younger races developed a device that was powered by the magic of the elder races. Although normally Long-lived, the elder races aged quickly and died while they continued to use their incantation magic (incantation: priest spells). The device was hidden from the elder races. In a desperate attempt to counter it the elder races performed a mighty ritual, banishing the knowledge of incantation magic from all Erdreja. Only the dark elves were unaffected, shielded as they were by miles of solid rock between their underground home and the surface. They guarded the knowledge of incantation magic against the time when it would be needed again on the surface of Erdreja.

The banishing of incantation was one of the last, desperate acts of the elder races. The fairy folk had retreated to the unseen court, the dwarves and their kin had fallen back into the far south and only the elves were left to fight the younger races. Kingdom by Kingdom, the elves were gradually overrun and pushed eastwards, where they made a final stand. Over a thousand years ago, the younger races defeated the last elven army and the few remaining elven lords took the last of their people into hiding.

The wars were finally over and the younger races stood victorious. Cities were built and a great civilisation was created. Tebron who was the greatest warlord of the younger races, was declared Emperor and ruled from the great city of Tebronia, that bore his name. The empire of the younger races was founded on the day that Tebron first sat upon his imperial throne and the calendar began anew with the first year AF (after Founding). After Tebron's death the capital was re-named Malkan and it remained so until its destruction.

The elemental colleges, as guardians of the empire's knowledge, created a great library in the north, built on the ruins of an elven city once renowned for its learning. The city of Norhault grew up around this library, which became the greatest seat of learning in the known world. The library was formally opened one year to the day after Tebron was crowned; the first day of January in the year 1 AF. For several centuries the empire prospered, and peace returned to the lands.

Just before 500 AF, a great cataclysm took place. A ritual was being performed in the capitals great ritual circle to bring rain to the drought stricken southern farms. It is still not known how this ritual was disrupted, or by whom but it seems that the unexpected disturbance released all the magic within the circle. This uncontrolled power flowed to every other known ritual circle, shattering many and killing hundreds of people. Violent earthquakes rocked the land, mountains were smashed and the capital Malkan itself was dragged beneath the waves, as the whole of the Imperial Heartland's sank. The water of the great seas rushed in to separate forever the northern and southern continents. Albion, Cymria, Erin and Western Norsca (now Orkneyjar) became islands as the land around them disappeared and seas flooded in. Whole communities died, including the emperor, his family and most of the ruling lords of the empire.

The end of the empire began a period of almost six hundred years of war between the remaining nobles, over who would rule the new lands. It soon became apparent that none of them could achieve total victory. The empire was gone forever and instead the Heartland countries became small independent nations. They were ruled over by lord generals, who warred continuously with each other over borders of the disputed lands.

In 1091 AF, the last true battle for the city of Norhault was fought and the lord general of Caledonia took back control. This was also the year of the formation of the grand council, an alliance composed of representatives from all the factions. After much discussion amongst the people of the Heartlands, most agreed that they had fought the last war and looked forward to a new age of peace.

During the discussions of the grand council, the Gathering Treaty was drawn up and signed by all the lord generals of the Heartlands. The treated stated and still states that the grand council would discuss disputes between the factions in a civilised manner. Should a dispute not be resolved by diplomacy then, at an annual Gathering, representative forces of the disputing factions would fight a battle under a magical ritual of peace. This ritual would allow combatants to subdue, but not kill each other. The victory conditions for these battles would be determined before the combat took place.

In 1095 a brave group of people found and destroyed the Mordred device, that the younger races had created so long ago to hide the knowledge of incantation magic from Erdreja. The courage and dedication of these adventurers allowed incantation to return to he surface of the world. To this day, the factions of the Heartlands still hold to the principles of the Gathering Treaty. The original document has undergone revision, leaders have come and gone, nations have fallen and knew Kingdoms have risen from the ashes. Yet still the principles and agreement of peace remain.

Erdreja is a world where the sword rules and use of sorcery is power. Gunpowder does not exist, alchemy is the most advanced science and magic is used instead of technology for almost everything else. The campaign is set mainly within this fantasy world, within the Heartlands of Erdreja, although some characters may have travelled from other lands in Erdreja. The Heartlands consist of of the countries of Albion, Caledonia, Cymrja, Erin, Estragales, Lyoness, Norsca, Orkneyja, and Teutonia. Also included within the Heartlands but not shown on any map, is the adjacent magical land of Avalon, the Underdark realm of the Tarantulas and the Unicorns home the island of Mauritana. (There is a comprehensive map around but unfortunately I don't have a copy at this time. There is sure to be one on the web).