Contributor: Torrin
Submission: Behind the Curtain: LARP Combat
Ultralight boffer weapons look pretty harmless, and the combat looks like a bunch of people flailing at each other, shouting and throwing bags of birdseed. I find YouTube videos of LARP fighting particularly silly looking, mainly because, frankly, it is. Everything in a LARP is geared toward the experience of the participants and the safety therein. It is NOT a "spectacle" experience, like stage combat. So with all the focus on the participant experience how it "looks" to an audience, takes a back seat.
Combat at a boffer LARP, even though it may look random is really anything but. Since ultra-light boffer weapons do seem so harmless the training to use them can get overlooked. Unfortunately any "sport" that requires controlled impacts against unarmored bodies really needs some training to do correctly and safely.
Submission: Behind the Curtain: LARP Combat
A behind the scenes guide to combat in a boffer LARP. This is directed at boffer LARPs that are more story-based with mods, wandering monsters and field fights as part of plot lines, rather than the combat-only LARPs that are out there. No disparagement is intended, just clarification of focus.
Ultralight boffer weapons look pretty harmless, and the combat looks like a bunch of people flailing at each other, shouting and throwing bags of birdseed. I find YouTube videos of LARP fighting particularly silly looking, mainly because, frankly, it is. Everything in a LARP is geared toward the experience of the participants and the safety therein. It is NOT a "spectacle" experience, like stage combat. So with all the focus on the participant experience how it "looks" to an audience, takes a back seat.
Combat at a boffer LARP, even though it may look random is really anything but. Since ultra-light boffer weapons do seem so harmless the training to use them can get overlooked. Unfortunately any "sport" that requires controlled impacts against unarmored bodies really needs some training to do correctly and safely.
