• In Character
  • Out Of Character
  • Behind The Scenes
  • Making
  • Galleries
  • Politics
  • About
LARP.GUIDE
In Character 1

Thoughts on Gaming the Play

By · On February 28, 2015

How many people reading this have taken an option when building their character not because it is what they would want for their character but because it makes up for what otherwise would be a weakness with their build.

Its called ‘min-maxing’ or ‘gaming stats’ among other names, table top games suffer from most commonly, but is it something that happens in LARP games? Does it happen less? Or does it simply not noticeably happen?

Or is it something that is more acceptable in LARP? Any one who has played Dungeons and Dragons will have heard of a character having X and Y, where they get the upside of X for the downside of Y. These are usually skills that do not really affect the gameplay. Perhaps there are comparable systems in LARP.

Is this idea more prevalent in different systems? Or is it something that is more about the players their play-styles than its about the system itself and what the rules allow. Perhaps some rule systems promote this kind of mix-maxing more than others, and maybe some even have loopholes that encourage it?

Is it a way of playing the game or gaming the rules? Do some systems  purposefully open themselves to this kind of application, some roleplaying games do and some even encouraged it. Are there LARP systems that do similar? What if you do this in a system that does not?

What do you think of people who play this aspect of the game? Is there a place for them in your game? Would you be comfortable in a setting where everyone played the game this way? If everyone is doing it anyway, would you just join in?

Do you make a stand? And what do you do about people who try play the game this way when it’s not welcome? If you are an organiser, how would you communicate to players that this is not an acceptable behaviour in character creation or advancement? Or perhaps you want to communicate that it is desirable when they are creating their characters?

 

GamingMix-MaxingRules
Share Tweet

You Might Also Like

  • In Character

    Colour at LARP: Sumptuous vs Austere

  • In Character

    Beginner Mistakes in SFX Makeup

  • In Character

    How to Create Realistic Wounds Using Latex

1 Comment

  • Tom Garnett says: March 2, 2015 at 12:22 pm

    It happens, but my experience is that it’s more often about building on strengths, than on covering weaknesses.

    It can be symptomatic of a more general problem of incompatible playstyles, and/or people trying to play the game in different ways, but it is not “bad”, per se, just different – or more specifically, different from the larp I have enjoyed the most.

    Log in to Reply
  • Leave a reply Cancel reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.

    Subscribe & Follow

    Follow on Instagram
    Follow larpguide
    • Popular
    • Comments
    • Tags
    • Clothes Not Costume – How to layer and improve your LARP costume!

      August 21, 2015
    • LARP has a Woman Problem

      February 20, 2015
    • Feminism at LARP – and Why We Need It

      August 9, 2016
    • That event is too expensive

      August 28, 2015
    • Just Say No

      April 3, 2015
    LARP LRP Costume Running a game Gallery Making Sculpting Mandala LRP Cosplay Photography Minion Mondays Mask Making Creating a game Photographs Inspiration Empire Airsoft Empire LRP

    Find us on Facebook

    Tagcloud

    Cosplay Costume Creating a game Gallery LARP LRP Making Mandala LRP Mask Making Minion Mondays Photographs Photography Running a game Sculpting
    • In Character
    • Out Of Character
    • Behind The Scenes
    • Making
    • Galleries
    • Politics
    • About

    TWEET US

    My Tweets

    CATEGORIES

    • Behind the Scenes (84)
    • Gallery (46)
    • Garb Inspiration (9)
    • In Character (45)
    • Interview (2)
    • Making (59)
    • Mandala's Minion (72)
    • Out Of Character (44)
    • Politics (8)
    • Reviews (1)
    • Shopping (5)
    • Site Operation (3)
    • Slider (1)

    Latest POSTS

    • Staying Creative for LARP During Lockdown

      January 18, 2021
    • Free Crafting Classes for the Pandemic

      March 26, 2020
    • featured on larp guide

      Get Featured on Larp.Guide

      February 10, 2020
    • Designing Logos for Larp

      December 10, 2019
    • Simple Handmade Notebooks DIY for LARP

      November 24, 2019

    SEARCH

    ADVERTISING DISCLOSURE

    LARP.guide may be compensated in exchange for featured placement of certain sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website.

    © 2013 Solo Pine Designs, Inc. All rights reserved.