Maelstrom Rules: Our Approach

Setting
The game takes place in a world divided by the Maelstrom, a turbulent storm of magical energies that splits the world in two. In recent years, a way through the Maelstrom has been discovered to the New World that lies beyond it. The leaders of the Known World have sent their bravest and best to the New World, to conquer this strange land and deliver up its bounty. The campaign is set in the New World, with many players as the representatives of the Known World attempting to colonize the land and discover its secrets.

Magic is the greatest discovery in the New World, but by no means the only one. The game is set at the dawn of an age of discovery: sorcerous magic fills the New World; terrible darkpowder weapons have been manufactured and new creations are ready to be invented by the intrepid artisan. There are hundreds of skills, spells and powers waiting to be discovered by those who delve into the mysteries of the New World.

Style
Maelstrom is a game of adventure and exploration set in a world of trade and diplomacy. The game is set in the New World, a land controlled by colonies, trading houses, churches and powerful groups of natives. These political structures are totally controlled by players and the game revolves around the conflicts that develop between them as a result of their actions and their consequences.

Unlike many other large scale live role-playing games, Maelstrom is a game that relies upon the interaction of its players to generate its stories and interest. Many other live role-playing games assist player interaction by providing an overarching story that players can interact with. Sometimes, this story can be affected by the players, but its shape generally remains within the control and preserve of the game organizers.

In Maelstrom, this does not happen. All of the major events that occur within the game are initiated, shaped and controlled by the players themselves. This can take a little getting used to, even for seasoned live role-players, as it really does mean that if you want something to happen then you have to go and make it happen.

There are no artificial or engineered battles in Maelstrom. All conflict, like the rest of the plot, is generated by the interactions of players. Large battles are rare and extremely deadly. Small and medium sized combats may occur more often but most conflict is political in nature.

Motivation
Most characters in the New World have an allegiance to a political power of the Known World. This provides some initial motivations to build upon.

Colonies are established by settlers from the powerful nations of the Known World. They are responsible for the New World colonists on their land; which is a huge challenge in itself, when food is in short supply. Colonies have many advantages provided to them by their government to aid them in establishing their new home. A colony's main goal is to expand and thrive in this New World, thereby providing glory and riches for their Known World nation.

Trading houses are groups of diverse individuals working for one of the Known World commercial organizations. They receive trade goods at discount prices from ports in the Known World, a valuable resource when worked goods are in short supply. Most seek to dominate their trade and thereby earn great wealth.

Churches are groups of the faithful from the Known World. They are in the New World to promote their religion and beliefs and to convert people to their faith. Those that serve the interests of their deity will receive divine aid in return, as well as assistance from the head of the church in the Known World.

Independents are groups beholden to no known power. They have few responsibilities, although some owe debts to trading houses or colonies for buildings, ships, or other resources that they own. Their primary motivation is survival, making a living for themselves, paying debts, and remaining safe without the help provided to others.

Natives are those groups in the New World who have lived there all their lives. They had a way of existing, a natural cycle, that has been disrupted by these new conquering nations and the sudden appearance of magic. They have land and resources but now they must learn how to survive alongside these strange new creatures.

Downtime
Downtime is an online and postal system that exists for you to assign actions for your character in the time between the major events. This is intended to allow you to direct your character's time and abilities between events in order to pursue your character's goals. It may allow your character to make equipment, learn new skills and spells, lead invading armies and conduct extensive trade and investment. Although characters cannot die during downtime, their actions form the dramatic backdrop to the live role-playing events.

Goals
Our intention with Maelstrom is to create a character driven campaign; one in which the decisions taken by all characters have a profound effect on the world that they inhabit. In a time of great political change, in an age of incredible discovery, only those with the ambition, imagination and the determination to see their plans to fruition will be the ones who write the pages of history.

And so it began......

Dawn breaks, war looms, the evil Lord is gathering his armies to wage a campaign of destruction upon the free peoples of the world. It is up to I, Sir Maximilan Pegasus to stop him, with my trusted band of adventurers we must gather the enchanted sword of Tek, the Shield of Way-Lem and the amulet of Subsidence and together we shall slay this abomination! “TIME FREEZE” And bam, the fantasy world fades away, the enchanted sword of Tek in my hand is a rubber sword smothered in coloured ribbons with a laminated card cable tied to the hilt, I look down and I’m wearing plastic armour and unflattering heropants, and the magical world of my imagination washes away to reveal a field in Wigan, but you know what? It’s larp and I’m a larper, it’s what I do.
I started larping when I was 17, I’d never role-played before, I’d never played D&D or Warhammer, never played WoW or any form of online game, I’d never even read Lord of the Rings, I feel somewhat privileged that I hadn’t done any of those things, I think it gave me an untainted attitude towards what larp could be, I had no preconceptions about saving the maiden fair, slaying the dragon or smiting the liche, to me it was just a new thing to try.
It was cold, really cold, 10am on a September morning, the rain was battering down and I’d been given a faux fur tunic, a mouldy old sword and been pointed towards a man and told, “You’re monstering, there’s the ref he’ll tell you what to do.” I obeyed, I played wave after wave of zombies, orcs and various line monsters and to be honest, was cold, bored and hungry. That is, until lunchtime, the teams switched sides, I got into the kit I’d scrounged up, as with most first timers, a black trenchcoat. I took the mouldy old sword, stood with my fellow adventurers and it hit me, I’m a god damn hero!
Pow, there it was, a new larper was born.