The
Realms of Wonder is a
boffer LARP based out of
New England, mainly the
Greater Boston /
Worcester area, and up into the far reached of
New Hampshire. Players come from all areas, including
UMass,
UNH,
New York,
Connecticut,
Vermont (only a few), and
Maine. It is a
lightest-touch combat oriented system, and is faster paced and more intense than many other
LARPs. It has a hit-location based fighting
style, and is safe for all ages to play.
The
Realms of Wonder is
community run, not for
profit, and is not an entity of any kind. That means events are run by people who love the
game for the
benefit of the game, at about what it costs for the event. It is a great
community of
friends (mostly). The Realms (as it is commonly called) as we know it has been around since the mid-to-late 80's, beginning as a cheaper
alternative to
heavy list fighting in the
SCA. It evolved into a bigger game, with more rules, more refined procedures, and a
magic system.
Events are held almost every
weekend in the summer, and more sparsely during the winter. It is estimated that it has between 500 and 1000
players (sometimes a huge chunk of that at one event). It takes a lot of people to make the game work, and there are a lot of dedicated
awesome people that keep me playing.
The game has twenty-one basic rules that I feel should be mentioned here. These rules, read at the beginning of any
event, set the tone for how it should be played. They are reproduced and edited from the online omnibus @
www.realmsnet.net.:
- We should all be doing this to have fun. If you get mad or uncontrolled, it is up to you to remove yourself from the fighting. A marshal may remove you from the fighting if you do not.
- You must listen to the marshal(s) at all times (they are the referees.)
- If you have any questions it is up to you to ask (most accidents happen because people don't have foresight.)
- This is a sport of honor; treat it as such. If you are caught cheating, a marshal may remove you from any combat. Remember, honor begets honor.
- There is to be contact with weapons only (i.e. weapons hitting weapons, weapons hitting bodies and weapons hitting shields only.)
- There is no rule #6! I never got it, but it's some kind of joke
- If you see a harmful or unsafe situation, yell the word "HOLD" (i.e. someone has an unsafe weapon, gets their glasses knocked off, is about to fall off a cliff, etc....) It is the primary responsibility of a person who is hurt to call a hold. Before calling a hold for someone else in an otherwise safe situation, you must first ask if they are all right.
- If you hear the word "HOLD", stop immediately!!!!!!!!! Then say "hold" until everyone else has stopped moving. This was inherited from the SCA
- Holds should only be called in the event of a dangerous situation, and should not be used to discuss the rules.
- There is to be NO body contact of any kind (i.e. no punching, kicking, biting, grabbing, etc...)
- There is to be NO grabbing of an opponent's weapon and/or shield.
- There is to be NO throwing weapons unless they are specifically designed for that purpose.
- There are to be NO "Louisville Slugger" (baseball bat like) swings.
- There is to be NO charging. You DO NOT run at someone so that they have to get out of the way.
- There are to be NO unsafe shield maneuvers that in any way may harm someone else (i.e. NO punch blocking, shield bashing or contact with another person. Your shield is NEVER to be used as a WEAPON.)
- Only "safe" weapons and shields are to be used. A qualified Marshal may be requested to check the safety of any weapons or shields at any time.
- There is to be NO "Real Steel" in any combat situation at any time ("Real Steel" being metal knives, swords, axes, darts, spikes, spurs, etc....)
- You may ask a Marshal to inspect anything at any time if you feel something is unsafe.
- Arrows should be drawn with minimal pull necessary to score a successful hit, and arrows should never strike a participant above the shoulders. Bows should NEVER be used to parry an attack.
- Use your common sense. If something looks unsafe, it most likely is unsafe. (If it runs like a fish and barks like a fish, then it's a fish.)
- HAVE FUN!!
Notice that it begins and ends with "have fun". That's the most important part of the game. That is why people come back again and again, and that is why it has survived for coming on 15 years now.