Article:
Creating a LARP Group: Making a Rules System

This is a post for someone writing their own set of rules for a LARP.  If you're using a franchise rules set, a lot of this won't apply to you.

Hopefully, if you're staring your own LARP group, you've already got an idea on what kind of rules system you want to use. If not, you've got a long trip ahead of you.    

Creating a rules system can be very difficult. Some games, like Exiles, Nero International, and Nero Alliance, use skill heavy systems, where characters can purchase a number of skills to improve their abilities in combat. Alternatively, games like Dagorhir, Amtgard, and Belegarth have heavy combat with comparatively little character development and mechanical advancement (ranks often rely on real world skill than a character sheet). Finally, games like World of Darkness avoid physical combat completely in order to be able to focus on storyline and to run games in any location and essentially remove insurance concerns.

Now is the time to decide if you want a game that relies more on OOG or IG skill and focuses more on combat or story.

Now, visit your Mission Statement to find the size of the game you want to run. If you're running a small game, it's very easy for your rules system to be flexible and rely on "Spirit of the Rules." Larger games need to make the rules simple so that less marshaling is required and new players can pick up the rules quickly.

Writing your own rules system can be very daunting. It's a difficult balance between designing a system simple enough for everyone to follow, yet complex enough to keep players interested. Make it too simple, and your game will have a high turnover rate as players get bored. Make it too complex, and people won't know all the rules and you'll lose people to frustration.

Here are some things to keep in mind when writing your rules system:

Players want to feel useful.
When writing your own system, make sure that you include skills that are either passive (function all the time) or reusable after a short period of time. People will become bored if all their skills and abilities can only be used once a day.