One of the most common questions in Finnish larp sign up forms is “Describe yourself as a larper” and I find it really hard to answer. I would rather describe some of my friends, I would probably be able to give more honest opinion about their larping than my own. It’s long enough since I organized a larp myself that I would remember what people used to write in that question, in fact I don’t remember if we asked it even. My answers to that question usually vary. While I do realize that it should be the part where you sell yourself for the game masters, it seems to me as unhonest as lying about your larp experience as a newbie.
My more or less honest answers to various larp sign ups include the next sentences:
“I’m not the most active player, but I do my best to create game for others by sharing plots and trying to take others into my storyline.”
“I’m lazy preparer who usually gets chosen to a larp because people now my name larpwise and expect it to mean I would have some random larpskills even though my biggest skill larpwise is updating larp calendar for the last 13 years. Last time I added a game into calendar was last year, others are doing that mostly, but I’m still visible character in that scene.”
“Hello, I’m Heidi, I hate pizza but I can tolerate it ingame.”
“I played mostly around 2000-2008, which leads to the problem that the quick soap operish playing style very common these days is alien to me, and I feel pressure at some larps, to archive more.”
“I suck at playing unemphatic or stupid characters, as some personal traits are really hard to turn off.”
“I hate playing romances as I don’t consider myself generally desirable. I’m okay playing marriages though, as in larps they’re not usually about intense emotions but raising children.”
“I enjoy quick and witty dialogue and hate cold and offgaming.”
I generally thing I’m quite capable in realizing my good and bad habits. Why I’m lovely/horrible co-worker/boss/partner/human-being/volunteer-worker/drinking company. But I feel I’m horribly bad as descibing myself as a larper.
Heidi larpwise 