Over the past few days I have been bombarded with LARP related posts in my G+ feed. What gives? I admit that I know nothing about LARPs or what sets one apart from another although they all look silly to me. LARPing comes across to me as an element of the RPG hobby for those that wanted to be actors or actresses but lacked the opportunity to do so in real life. Is that a fair assumption? Someone please explain this LARPing thing to me.

What is the draw to LARP versus play a traditional tabletop RPG?

Aside from physically interacting(??) with the environment, what mechanically sets LARPs apart from tabletop RPGs?

Are costumes required for most LARPs?

Having seen a few LARP-centric movies on Netflix, is real LARPing as silly as it appears in the movies?

I know there is cross-over between LARPs and tabletop RPGs players, but LARPs seem to draw some of the more eccentric folks, is that a fair assumption or that just my ignorance?

Help me understand this side of the hobby. I’m not sure it’s a thing that is for me, but I want to understand why people like it and what it has to offer.

~ Modoc

Photo credit: Ralf Hüls, Sascha Rathjen