We have had many questions come up repeatedly on the forums and in character feedback forms, so this FAQ is an attempt to address them. Note that these questions are in no particular order. Expect this section of the site to be updated on a regular basis. If you don’t see an answer to a particular question you have, by all means direct it to our Discord or to one of the staff emails.
Costuming is one of the best parts of LARPing, but also remember that you will be walking/running in this outfit for an entire weekend. Comfortable shoes are a must, as is dressing for the weather of the game. We highly suggest you ‘field test’ your costuming by running, jumping, and wearing it before the game. While an elaborate and expensive costume may look incredible, the reality of being in the woods all weekend can damage more fragile materials.
All players are required to do a volunteer shift for each three-day event. This can be a four hour Tavern shift or a three hour Monster shift. Players playing their first game are excluded from doing this. As a thank you, all players who monster their full shift will receive one brownie.
During a Tavern shift, they will be asked to cook and prepare a meal, do dishes, and meal prep. Players are not required to change, and may do this shift in play as their character.
During a Monster shift, they will be asked to play the opponents the rest of the players fight, as well as roleplay other NPC (non player characters) that staff may ask them to be. All players should have a change of clothes into an all-black outfit to help with monster costuming and a white headband.
65 Character Points:
30CP (Base)
+ 30CP (Old Character Retirement)
+ 5 CP (Approved Background)
——————————————-
= 65 CP
Anytime after your first game, you can spend 15 Brownie for 5CP, which is available once per character. Just add this to your expenditures form.
All first time players receive a discount of $15 off their first event. Thus, a one day event would be free, a two day event would be $15, and a three day event would be $30 for a first timer. Furthermore, all new players receive a “newbie module” designed to introduce characters to the Forest of Doors. This plot-directed module sets the tone, gets players in character, and helps to teach the rules. New players also do not have to put in any time playing “Non-Player Characters” (aka Monstering) during their first event. Finally, first time players are allowed to respend their character at any time before their second game or even create an entirely new character with the experience they earned from their first game.
Fractured is –not- historical reenactment. We have fairies and goblins and magic and whatnot. While we sprinkle historical details in game for flavor, this is not a game about historical accuracy. Players should not feel compelled to adhere to any semblance of accuracy to anything except the settings as written. The Nightmare Dominancy is not actually supposed to be Victorian London nor is the Empire of Perfect Unity actually Confucian China. Obviously, a pocket watch isn’t appropriate for characters from the Abyss of the Lost, but, by the same token, players of characters from the WineDark Seas are free to design their own heraldic coats of arms without the constraints of actual historical heraldry. We do ask that players still remain however within the bounds of the setting and of course not to deliberately flaunt our rejection of historicism. If it is lame, we reserve the right to reject it.
Usually, characters enter the game at the moment they come through a gate… in whatever state they entered the Fracture according to their back story. Events held at places other than state parks (like MomoCon, etc.) might require a different way to introduce your character if it is your first event. If you have a specific way you would like your character to be introduced, you can contact us to arrange something appropriate.
Introduce yourself on the out of play chat on the Discord Server. Include your character name and what setting you are playing from. However, we often don’t update these until a character sheet has been submitted, so we will probably check the Discord server when we build your character sheet.
You get these points at the end of your next event, added to whatever character points you would ordinarily get for that event.
No. Unfortunately, keeping up with this would be very difficult with 30+ subscribers. If you are not confident you will attend enough games to get the real value of a subscription, you can always pay at the door or through PayPal before an event!
Yes. We generally only contact players if their backgrounds need something changed or clarified. If you wish to know more about the status of your background, feel free to contact us and we will let you know where your background stands.
Season Pass holders and Subscribers automatically get a full Downtime Suite after every game, even ones they miss, without having to spend Brownie. This is for 3 regular downtime actions. However, they cannot buy additional downtimes with Brownie for a game they did not attend. If you didn’t subscribe, you can spend 15 Brownie and purchase a downtime suite on a missed event. Please contact us before the event to request your Downtime Suite.
Players will not receive any CP for an event they miss; allowing players to ‘pay to level up’ is something we feel doesn’t belong in a LARP setting.
You can do this at any time after your First Game. You can do it then or wait to do it later. You could, if you wanted to, want and spend for it a year from now. Just notate on your Expenditures form that you are buying it.
COVID has changed a lot of things, including this likelihood. In the very unlikely event that a game is canceled, shifted to another year, or otherwise unable to happen, we will recalculate the total cost and issue a refund accordingly to each Season Pass holder and Subscriber.
Every character begins with 20 Dregs worth of items, which are “sold” at the cost to create the item. These funds can be taken as weapons, armor, gems, alchemical items, or any tagged item whose cost is listed on the site. You can find a list of items your character could purchase under the Craft and Tinkering Production rules. Any money left over is lost.
In the “OOP-General” chat of our server, make a quick post there requesting access and it will be granted. These areas, however, are only accessible to those who have actually been to an event, which simulates a character’s access to the people of the Fracture.
There are some sites that require us to wait until closer to the actual game date in order to book. Or sometimes we might want to throw in an extra War Day or Social event. These games will be announced as they are secured and will not be included in the above pricing. Generally speaking, we try to secure all of our sites before making the announcement for Season Passes and Subscriptions.
During an event, play begins when announced. After that, everyone is considered in play at all times unless players wear a white headband or use the required out-of-play gesture (hand or weapon on head). We consider being in play at all times vitally important for the feel of the game and thus every single statement made when you are not signaling that you are out of character is considered in play. Players that consistently break character will be asked to be more conscious of their in and out of game states. Frequent abusers will have their experience reduced for the event and will take sportsmanship warnings. That said, players may use the bathroom out of play, as attacking folks in such a circumstance just isn’t very nice.
You can bring whatever food you want to the game and justify its presence as long as it fits the setting to some small degree. If you wish to make steak, feel free to explain it by having hunted down a bull that wandered from another world into Fractured. If you want to bring a mixed salad with vinaigrette, feel free to claim that you purchased the ingredients from a passing merchant or foraged the ingredients yourself. The comfort of our players is very important to us and being able to eat as you want is a big part of that. However, if you wish to go the extra mile and eat “forest fare,” you are perfectly welcome to do that as well. Some characters may impose dietary restrictions based on their setting on themselves (vegetarian Heretics, junk food from the Winedark Seas, traditional fare from the Fen, etc.).
Yes, with some stipulations. The staff must be informed prior to any event at which you wish to sell. The materials you are selling must be in some way related to the game (costume, weapons, props, etc). Selling or displaying wares is prohibited while the game is actually going on, so it is restricted to the time before and after the game itself. Obviously, characters are free to sell whatever in-game items they have during the event—for in-game money—especially considering how important mercantile matters are in game.
We understand that life doesn’t always follow the plan, and we’d be very sorry to see you go! If you are a Subscriber and need to cancel your subscription due to relocation, injury, life events, etc, please contact us at FracturedPayments@gmail.com. If you are a Season Pass holder, we will work with you to refund an appropriate amount.
Please note that once a subscription is canceled, we cannot ‘restart’ it. You are, of course, always welcome to play any Fractured game!
Questions? Contact us at FracturedPayments@gmail.com.
Alchemical items aside from liquids and tablets, Vestigecraft items, Weapons, Armor, Traps, Healer’s Kits, Tinker’s Tools, and miscellaneous tagged items such as jewelry, tools, and other crafted items must be represented by props. There are a few tagged items that do not require props, however. For instance, tagged commodities such as lumber, iron, and gold are assumed to represent large quantities of these things. They do not need physical representation because they are assumed to be off screen, but those who want to bring props to represent them can do so, as long as they are reasonable and safe. As with anything that might be questionable, running it by the staff will save you a lot of headache.
All characters, upon entering Fractured, find their speech transformed into Gatespeak. It is difficult to speak (but not write) in foreign languages in the Fractured as the curious nature of the place asserts itself. Furthermore, all characters in the Fractured are literate in Gatespeak and can read it as well as write it; all text props are assumed to be in Gatespeak unless they are noted otherwise.
Brownie Points are our way of encouraging a sense of community in the game. People who help the game get benefits for doing so. The amount of Brownie given is dictated by the amount of help we receive. Often, we will ask players for specific things (monstering, tags, props, logistics, etc) and award Brownie for it. Brownie Points can be spent on extra character points, discounts on events, and extra downtime actions. Please see the “Brownie” section under the “Policy” section of the website.
There is a Post-Event form on our website used for all feedback, downtime actions, and character point expenditures. Remember that when filling out your downtimes you can double (or triple) up on one action for greater effect, or you can make three completely separate actions. Certain things are the province of specific skills, however. Learning something requires Scholarship, making friends or asking around town for information requires Diplomacy, and exploring Fractured requires Survival. The more specific your downtime, the more likely you are to achieve your goal.
We only accept downtime actions submitted 1-2 weeks after the event, and only if your character was actually present at the game or purchased a set of downtime actions with Brownie Points. Often, we schedule events one month after each other and we need time to adjudicate and write up downtime responses.
Help with writing your downtimes can be found here.
Help with feedback can be found here.
Help with investigations can be found here.
Our website has a section called Next Event which details the events we currently have scheduled. You can also view the full calendar here.
You can bring whatever props you wish to game as long as they are not real weapons or other items banned from state parks. However, for the item to have in-game value, it must have a tag. Tagged items can be purchased in-game or crafted during production periods. For instance, if a player wishes to bring a small dream-catcher to game, for trading purposes, the player could get a tag for a “Rustic Work of Art” (which costs 1 Dreg to make but sells for whatever the buyer is willing to pay) during character creation. Alternately, they could create the item themselves using the Craft skill. Regardless of its origin, this item can be sold for in game money, used as part of a Ritual, or simply as a prop with in-game value behind it.
You may not begin the game with a higher point tag, but if you upgrade your armor out of game (and we approve its new rating), you can exchange your old tag for a new one during check in, paying the cost difference in Twists. We understand the difficulty in crafting armor phys-reps, so we allow this exception to the “buy all items at character creation or in game” rule. Resilience is a character’s Armor, Protection, and Vitality added together.
We do not give blanket acceptance to any class of weapons or any manufacturer, and we inspect every weapon every game. Latex weapons are often problematic for a number of reasons, though, and are most often rejected for not having a two inch thrusting tip, for being too hard, or for allowing the core to become exposed easily when striking an opponent. To be completely clear, we reserve the right to reject those we deem unsafe or aesthetically unfit. Weapons that hurt when hitting someone will fail, regardless of construction method. Our website details how to cheaply construct boffer-safe weapons. Fractured is a “lightest touch” system.
Yes. All bows must have a 30 pound pull or less, with all crossbows limited to a 25 pound pull or less. Like nearly all weapons in Fractured, your character can use a bow without purchasing the Bow skill. However, archery is unique in that players must be certified annually by the LARP staff or archery marshal. This is usually a fairly quick process that involves a discussion of the proper and safe use of boffer LARP archery, as well as a short skills test to assure the competence of the archer. Please see our Archery Rules for more info.
Why are Thrown Weapons the only weapon that requires a character to purchase the accompanying skill?
We began the game with no limitations on thrown weapons and found that field battles became two lines lobbing weapons at one another. To protect the feel of combat and the balance of the game itself, characters wishing to use Thrown Weapons must purchase the Thrown skill.
In game, red weapons are treated as natural weaponry such as claws or fangs. They cannot be disarmed by any means, cannot be broken, and do not take damage from hits.
Yes. In Fractured, all defenses must be willingly called within 3 seconds of an attack. For instance, if you are hit with Poison and fail to call a defense within 3 seconds, your character is Poisoned, even if you have a Poison Resist. If you take damage on your Resilience you should still acknowledge the hit in some fashion such as saying “got it.” Alternately—and this is really preferred—you can roleplay the hit as long as it clear to your opponent that you are taking it. You could pretend to be knocked back slightly or cry out in pain as your opponent harms you.
Yes. The Sword Skill allows characters to use its abilities with any sword just as the Close Weapons skill allows you to use your combat abilities with all close weapons. Note that heavy weapons and shields still require the Strong trait, even if you have the appropriate skill for such.
Yes. If you call the tagline, you spend the Prowess for it whether successful or not. This also extends to Feats as well. In Forest of Doors, if a resource is spent to do something it stays spent whether it was successful or not.
The “lightest touch” moniker for Fractured refers to the lightest touch your target can actually feel. You are allowed to hit players in thick armor harder in order to allow them to feel the hit, and adjudicating the force necessary for an opponent to feel a hit is a real skill that players will quickly develop. Some opponents, such as those with exposed skin, should be hit very lightly. However, players in heavy or solid armor need a larger amount of force to feel the blow. Feel free to apply more force if you feel you can safely and painlessly hit such players. If the player says you are hitting too hard, immediately scale back the force of your blows. As always, be conscious of the person at the other end of your weapon; if they say you are hitting too hard, you probably are.
When a character that is not Strong holds a heavy weapon or wields a large shield, the weapon or shield is treated as the character’s arm for the purposes of wounds. Any attack that hits the weapon or shield counts as if it struck the character’s arm, and it will immediately disarm them. Furthermore, characters without Strong obviously cannot make attacks or use combat abilities with such weapons and shields. You should role play this out, but be careful to not damage the phys rep by dragging it carelessly along the ground.
Resilience is lost in alphabetical order: Armor, Protection, and then Vitality. This is only important when figuring when/if armor needs to be maintained, protections need to be reset, or you need to rest. There are no powers that bypass a specific kind of resilience that do not bypass them all, so you will not have to calculate these on the spot.
No. Resilience protects a character’s entire body at all times. Resilience is meant to be an abstract concept that represents how hard it is to wound a character, not how protected a character is in any specific location. Note that Resilience is not the same thing as wounds. A character can be wounded and yet still have Resilience, in certain circumstances. Restoring any component of Resilience (Armor, Protection, or Vitality) does not heal wounds.
Absolutely yes. Advanced Styles require that the character use only the weapon (or weapon and shield) configuration listed. This means that Scholar’s Sword style is not compatible with a shield. Likewise, Noble Paladin only works with a War Mace and a Small Shield; A hammer or sword is insufficient, and if the Paladin has their shield broken or lost somehow, they lose access to their Advanced Style powers, as an example. Advanced Styles are very strict in their requirements.
Like magical schools, fighting styles must be taught by someone who already knows them, with both student and teacher spending a downtime action for this purpose. More than that, however, Advanced styles can ONLY be taught by someone who has completely mastered the school itself, achieving level 6 in it. The character must also meet the skill requirements before initiation. Once the basics are taught, a character may progress through the skill with no further training needed. See Chapter 6, Advanced Styles for more information.
You should closely approach the downed monster and say “Searching.” The monster’s player will likely give you any items the monster had. If your character has the “Harvest Game” ability from the Survival Skill, you can also call “Harvest Game” to see if there are any valuable parts of the creature that can be salvaged. Note that we do not send out very much “lewt” with monsters, or even most NPCs, so don’t expect the spoils of combat to be a driving economic force.
Here is a list of Common Taglines and Effects, as well as General Game Concepts.
Place some bird seed in the middle of a 6 inch square of cloth. The color of the cloth relates to the type of magic the packet will be used for (see the section on Magic for more details on colors, near the end of part 1). Draw up the corners so that all the bird seed is contained in the packet with none leaking out, and fasten the corners closed with a rubber band. Make sure the packet isn’t so hard that it will hurt when thrown; the birdseed should still be somewhat mobile within the cloth. A tutorial can be found here.
Spells last as long as their description indicates. If the spell does not indicate a duration, then the spell lasts for the entire event. Readied Spells can be maintained indefinitely as long as the caster maintains the requirements for the spell and is not rendered unconscious (either through in game effects or actually sleeping). Characters with Readied Spells active cannot perform Rituals or cast other spells, in general.
No. Rituals can be performed back to back or in ways that easily flow into one another, but they cannot be performed concurrently. I’ve spent a Charge I obtained from a Ritual. How do I get that Charge back? First, you must have no Charges of that School of Magic at all, either by spending them or simply “Revoking” them (taking 3 seconds of concentration to divest yourself of the charge(s)). Then, you must successfully perform one of your Rituals. This Ritual becomes “Active” and cannot be used again until you are carrying no Charges from that School of Magic.
Rituals are an important part of the game and gaining Charges from Rituals without actually doing them is considered cheating. If you don’t wish to actually do your Rituals, chances are you don’t really want to play a magic user in Fractured. If you don’t want to play a magic user in Fractured, there are plenty of other character options that don’t involve performing Rituals.
Charges are what fuel magic, and each and every spell costs but a single Charge to cast. Most commonly, magicians get their charges through performing rituals, which are learned (like spells) as they increase in skill. All rituals take a certain amount of time to perform (1-15 minutes, most commonly), with the general rule that if a ritual is easy to perform, it will take a longer time. Rituals that demand sacrifice, or only operate under very specific conditions, are usually quick. Note: no ritual can be performed while a caster has a Readied spell active.
This means they can be used with any arcane school. Regardless of the type or source, the number of Perfect charges a character may bear is equal to their Artifice level. Characters without Artifice may not hold Perfect charges at all.
Artifice allows an occultist to draw Perfect Charges out of magical items or places of power, which is a process known as Channeling. In order to channel from an item, a character must hold it, close their eyes, and then take a slow three count: “Channeling 1, Channeling 2, Channeling 3,” after which they drain the item of a number of charges up to their Artifice level, which is the maximum any character can hold outside those awarded from rituals. If they are drawing Charges from a Place of Power, they gain this full allotment after they meet whatever other requirements the location has. Note that Places of Power are all unique, and these requirements will vary widely based on location, size, stability, age, and myriad other factors. Most places of power will have a physical manifestation of their nature, and it is this manifestation which must be interacted with in order to channel at the location. Typically, a character will only be able to Channel from a Place of Power a limited number of times per day, but each time they do, they get their maximum number of charges.
Mastery is a measure of a character’s magical power, which governs the potency of each and every spell a character knows. Every spell incorporates Mastery in some manner, either through duration, scope, number of uses, or damage. Whenever a character casts a spell, the character’s Mastery dictates how powerful the spell will be. For instance, most Readied spells give the caster their Mastery in uses when the spell is cast, and Circle spells can measure up to five yards in circumference per point of Mastery. Exactly how Mastery increases the power of the spell is listed in each individual spell description.
Mastery is equal to a caster’s highest level spell school, plus their level in the Willful Trait, plus any bonuses from Occult.
You must find a tutor of that school who is also an Occult Adept, and who is willing to teach you. Both student and teacher must spend an out-of-game downtime action on instruction for you to learn the new style of magic, and you can learn only one style per downtime session. The tutor may be a player or NPC.
You must find a tutor of that Working who is willing to teach you. Both student and teacher must spend an out-of-game downtime action on instruction for you to learn the new Greater Working. The tutor may be a player or NPC and does not have to be capable of casting it in order to teach. You may also use Scholarship to research your own in downtime actions.
These are the items that are always good to bring with you to a LARP; some of them are rather obvious, while others might seem a little less intuitive until you run into a situation where they are indispensable. If you are not paying for a meal plan, you will need to bring food for the entire weekend; please note that some of our sites are rather remote, so there may not be a convenient option for getting food off site.
For All Events:
- Boffer weapons (including scabbards and quivers to carry them)
- Bug repellant
- Cash (for food)
- Costume
- Drinks (such as bottled water or juice)
- First aid kit (including any personal medication)
- Headband (white for out of play, orange for non-combatants)
- In Play Tools (healing kit for the healing skill, picks and probes for tinkering, instrument for performance)
- Makeup (if required for character)
- Non-costume clothing (for before and after game)
- Paper and Pen/Pencil
- Props (for decoration, in-game interaction, rituals, or magic requirements)
- Physical Representations (such as glow sticks)
- Rulebook
- Snacks (such as trail mix, granola bars, or other prepackaged snacks)
- Shoes (comfortable, durable shoes are best)
- Spell packets (for magic users)
- Sunscreen
- Watch
- Weapon repair materials (such as tape, foam, etc)
For Two and Three Day Events:
- Bathrobe
- Blankets (heated for cold weather)
- Decorative props (such as candles, standards, or art)
- Extra costumes
- Extra socks
- Extra underwear
- Fan (for hot weather)
- Flashlight
- Pillows
- Sandals/Flip flops (for showers)
- Tent (for camp-over events only)
- Toilet Paper
- Toiletries
- Towel; always remember to bring a Towel.