Why Everyone HATES Larpers...

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Before making fun of LARPer you have to know that... atleast they touched grass.

I unironically think larping is the coolest aspect of any part of nerd culture

LARPing is a real "you had to be there" kind of thing. It's like going with your friends to see a great jam band or to a rave.. yeah, I could explain it or show you a video on YouTube, but you really wouldn't get it unless you experienced it. LARPers are a fun and accepting bunch. They are quirky and smart.. They are great at being social. It's a social game after all. I think it would be more accepted if people thought of it as it really is - It's improv acting in an interactive story. It's acting, just like in movies. That means it's really challenging and you totally suck at first. If you apply yourself you slowly get better at improvising and understanding the rules and plotlines while making 50 new friends that you will see pretty often. The players tend to stay year after year, so you get to know people the way you might have in school. That's rare as an adult. It's easily the most well rounded activity in geek culture. It involves friends, aspects of camping, being physical, being clever, playing a game that has many different facets from fighting to politics to crafting. It's pretty cool, but really you had to be there to understand.

I casually larped as a teen. Threw together my own costumes and even owned a larp sword. At that time I suddenly got to socialize with like minded people and participate in some battles, and it was fun! Now that I'm an adult with a job I consider getting back into it, but properly this time. It still seems like great fun.

I used to work with a guy who did LARP, genuinely one of the nicest, kindest individuals I've ever met despite the fact we disagreed a lot on some things, I really admired the dedication and craftsmanship of his work that he would show me, it is not cheap or easy to make, he would tell me countless stories and it honestly sounded like fun but it's not really my thing, much respect though for anyone who has a passion.

I was a National Taekwondo Competitor, Flamenco Guitarist, Military Veteran with combat deployment, business owner, and Archery enthusiast. Was NOWHERE near this type of community. Until my PTSD and depression kicked in. Decided I was sick of staying home and only target shooting with my Bow&arrow. Looked for an Archery club, Nada. But you know what was available? Shooting some nerds. Nerds that would go on to be extremely welcoming, helpful, and good for my brain. So naturally, I dived head first into the LARPing world and made my first costume as detailed as I could and am trying to be active in the community. Met some AMAZING people who give without asking for anything in return. I’ll stop whoever in their tracks if they have something stupid to say about LARP as a whole.

Hey! You showed one of my vids! We are heading to Conquest this year and would be MORE than happy to help you get to know the LARP scene. We are fairly new to it but have fallen absolutely in love with the community and the experiences we have had so far. Nice rundown of the history. Cheers

Swedish/nordic LARP is on a whole other level. It's movie quality. We look at it like a movie being filmed, without it actually being filmed! I'm an orc larper from Sweden currently in two different orc clans. One was formed in 1994 and I just joined it this year! I'm also a full-time musician and gym junkie/calisthenics athlete. So perhaps, I'm a weird combo that defies a lot of stereotypes. Most people don't really get "LARPing". It's not about fighting with foam weapons. For me, it's about looking like we're straight out of Lord of the Rings, IMMERSION and improv-acting! When hundreds of people are serious about it. It feels amazing! But there are things that even makes me cringe. Plastic armor is one thing. Real leather and real steel is a must here! :)

It’s kind of funny that LARPing is considered nerdy, yet sports like American Football are not. It’s at the end of the end bunch of adults, dressing up in armor, playing games from their childhood and taking it super seriously.

Some civil war reenactments are considered larping as well. These guys will camp out and fulfill their duties outside of combat for like an entire 3 day weekend, like making camp and maintaining equipment.

The way Larp looks in america is the way Germanys larp looked like 20 years ago. Everytime I show people Conquest, Drachenfest or EpicEmpires videos and images of the high quality standart of the groups here in germany, they are positively suprised and love it! So I think the reason why Larp is seen as "cringe" online and in america is because of low quality costumes, boffer weapons and point oriented combat. Many People find it hard to immerse themselves into something that looks so ... artificial.

I think the thing keeping LARPs from breaking through into the mainstream the same way D&D or MtG did is because there's no universal system. Every larp is essentially operating under their own rules. There will be similar rules, but no two systems will be identical. The few games that were widespread like NERO and Solar are dying out now. Most new LARPers' first question is "Where's a game?" Because it's not like you can go pick up a LARP pack from your local game store. Don't even get me started on the cost. A D&D book costs ~$50. A deck of Magic cards is about $20 out the box. My chainshirt costs $130 and that was for a cheap one. And you're in England. That's a great spot for LARPing. Europe is bursting at the seams with LARP groups.

As a former cosplayer LARPers amaze me! Not only do they have the total confidence and ownership over what they like enough to potentially look a fool in the name of fun, but they're willing to do all that on the spot! They care for one another, there's a true sense of community with LARPers that cosplay also has but less abundantly. With cosplay you can just put on the costume and look like the character, it's a whole other thing to act like them.

Current and active larper. Larping is a great escape from reality and all your stress, when in character there is no room for embarrassment and shame because everyone is welcome, in on the joke and playing the game. At first, I thought it was dumb, but my friend took me along, and by the end of my first event, I was hooked. I was on the front line during covid and only survived the anxiety of losing loved ones because one day, I will return to Erdreja. I will be traveling nearly 300 miles to another event in two weeks to put my Ork head back on and ground some elves in the dirt.

This needs a large bit of correction: LARPers are looked down upon even in nerd circles primarily in the US - the situation is very, very different in Europe, where they're "the cool nerds", and LARPing isn't really stigmatized. And that's also where the vast majority of large, cool, big production events are. You don't hide it here as your "dirty little secret". I think a big reason for this difference is that, for a variety of reasons (among them geography, disposable time and imcome, gatekeping vs free-for-everyone, selfishness vs. community spirit) - US LARP often just looks far worse than LARPs in Europe, and a thing that looks bad or amateurish is more easily ridiculed than one that looks good and professional. The difference was far worse 10-15 years ago and the US is catching up - but that doesn't change how it looked then, and how you can still see it in pictures and videos.

My friend who LARPs describes it as "beating up nerds". But it's also much more than that. It's all the leadup to it. It's the creating of a character, not just in personality, but in reality. It's various arts and crafts, people picking up and learning serious skills such as leathercraft, sewing, chainmail making. Armour and weapons tends to be foam but so much is handmade and built all by the players and their friends. And honestly, if you want the best homemade mead you've ever tasted, go to a large LARP. Nothing compares, and people will make a tonne of bottles for the event. For the several day events, it's also not just a big ol' battle. At least described to me, you'll be camping in character, making meals on a fire and just living like that for a few days. It's also just a massive piss up and a big social. I never went to any myself but had a few freinds that did. It was partially the cost that stopped me, as the outfits can get expensive, especially if you don't make your own

Hi Jimmy, I'm the Art Director for the largest LARP Event in the world, ConQuest of Mythodea. It takes place in August of every year, and has 10,000 Participants. Ready for an adventure?

I've never heard of larping until now and to be honest it seems super fun, it is really not clicking in my brain that they are bullied for it especially since actors are so praised in society

A cousin did viking larping I believe. Dude had a full set of armour, proper sword and everything that looked super expensive. And he showed me videos and they were literally storming a castle with hundreds of people, shit blowing up, fires raging around the field and by the broken down wall. Shit looked intense and cool af