Something a little different for today. Last Friday we asked readers to submit some questions on the game and here are responses to three of those questions.
Question 1: As stories will be currency, will there be any in game help for people with less propensity to weave and engaging tale?
Story telling aids
The communication of a characters actions will be a key theme of the game, especially for those wanting to play Druids, but it does not mean players need to be expert orators in order to succeed. The actions of the character told in the tale will be key to its success in receiving in game rewards such as story tokens and the notice of the Gods and Spirits.
For those who require it out of character notes will be permitted as a memory aid but they must remain as such and not become shared reading material in or out of character.
Question 2: How do you see combat functioning in Alba? Or what will be its style and flavour? Obviously comparisons are being drawn with Odyssey’s arena but are these accurate at all. Will it be of heroic warbands clashing for supremacy at regular intervals? Desperate groupings struggling for survival and scarce resources with quick flashes of lethal violence?
Tactical Skirmish fighting
The mechanics have been designed to create a combat environment more akin to open, swift moving skirmish lines rather than slow moving juggernauts of shield walls clashing in grinding death churns. Instead we intend to create a live environment, which where possible will be a mixture of woodland, glades and smaller fields encompassing the main in game camp and ritual sites.
It’s nothing new, roaming bands of enemies with intent is common enough. The difference we intend to make is to move away from the timed/scheduled encounter model (sometimes called camp attacks/battles). For these in game combat interactions we will use a more reactive live environment style, creating the potential for in game threat anywhere, anytime but also providing a level of agency for players to seek out danger on their own terms .
Question 3: What age range of people will Alba be for?
Due to the design of Alba persons under 18 will not be permitted to attend.
Given the combination of themes, a live game area and the ever present threat of in character danger/combat it would be irresponsible of us to allow younger players to attend.
The exception to this will be babies who require close proximity to their parents for their well-being.
It became clear during the design process that Alba would not be a family orientated larp. This will be disappointing for some there but there are other existing UK games which do cater for families and younger players.
For larp with good provisions for players under the age of 18 we recommend Legacy and Empire, both of which are linked below.
