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Skjaldbakka
2007-10-24, 03:51 AM
Anyone here do NERO? Or other boffer larps?

Kizara
2007-10-24, 04:37 AM
I'm curious, but I have absolutely no idea what NERO or "boffer" is/are.

Care to elaborate and enlighten? I wasn't aware that there was RP systems that were exclusively live-action.

Skjaldbakka
2007-10-24, 04:55 AM
Here is a video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95SR4l-UmVA) of NERO in action.

For more info, check out the NERO website. (http://www.nerolarp.com)

To find a NERO chapter near you: link (http://www.nerolarp.com/Chapters/Chapters.htm)

NERO is a full-immersion roleplaying experience. You make a character, you come into the game in character (in full garb/costume), and you remain in character for the entire event (typically a weekend). In most chapters, new players can attend their first event for free, or at reduced cost.

At NEROkentucky, the standard weekend is $40, $20 for first time players, and $5 to NPC for a weekend.

BrotherMick
2007-10-24, 07:47 AM
Its not really a Larp But I am a memeber of Dagorhir/ Belegarth. Its a full contact Medieval combat sport using Foam (I.E. Bopper) weapons

Eldmor
2007-10-24, 08:10 AM
I do Alliance LARP, it's NERO without sitting in a field asleep for one hour due to a low level spell.
I'm a Stone Elf Scholar (goth elf spellcaster) specializing in celestial magic (read as Arcane) with archery and the pre-reqs for earth magic (divine magic). I'm going to be an NPC next event, and Halloween events are always great for new breeds of undead. Ironically, I have to miss Eberron and WoDd20 to play. It's still an awesome time, though.

Swordguy
2007-10-24, 09:05 AM
NERO is a lot of fun. The guy who owns it, Joe Valenti, is a tool. (There are 2 NEROs, NERO International and NERO Alliance. It's a long story...)

Also, fun fact, did you know that, if the guy who is allowed to sell knives and swords during game in defiance of the "don't bring weapons to NERO" policy in the rulebook tries to stab you during a game for real, and you don't let him, disarm him, and tell the chapter owner, than you'll be banned from the game for "possessing a weapon onsite" while he's allowed to keep playing?

My situation in NERO was similar. Same type of dude (sold real weapons onsite during events) decided he hated me for reasons I'm not, two years later, clear about. He sent me a nifty "anonymous" death threat via email (with his return address and name clearly visible in the "sent from" box) just before the event - also threatening anyone I came to the event with. I'm a CCW carrier, so I brought my Star-B onsite when I got there (2 hours before game - nobody there but staff), and went and informed the safety marshal of what happened, and the fact that I had a pistol on me and would she like to keep it safely in her car for the duration of the event (she's a vet and I trust[ed] her)?

Guy shows up, loaded with knives, and everyone watches him like a hawk - nothing happens. Chapter bans ME for weapons possession, and nearly banned my wife as well for association. Death Threat-boy still plays, and still sells weapons onsite, during games, and walks around loaded with knives.

Moral of the stories: NERO is cool. People are dumb.

Haakon
2007-10-24, 11:05 AM
I play in 2 different Larps (Shadow Realms (based out of Barrie, Ont and Fantasy Alive, based out of Hamilton, Ont). Both are boffer based and I am looking forward to both Halloween events, heh.

Jannex
2007-10-24, 02:43 PM
I've never done NERO (though I've heard about it from a couple of fellow LARPers who've played in it), but I play in a local boffer LARP. I'm NPCing a weekend event in a couple of weeks (which reminds me, I need to get working on the costuming stuff that the GM asked me to do). We have a pretty good system, and have been running for almost 18 years, I think. I <3 my cleric.

Sovin N'dore
2007-10-24, 05:40 PM
I do NERO :smalltongue:

Darion
2007-10-24, 05:55 PM
NERO is a lot of fun. The guy who owns it, Joe Valenti, is a tool. (There are 2 NEROs, NERO International and NERO Alliance. It's a long story...)

A yup. Not to mention, stories like Swordguy's make it easy to show why some of us "old timers" left with Mike V back, gawd, 9 years ago.

As it stands right now, NERO (New England Roleplaying Organization) International is run by Joe, and Alliance (formerly NERO Alliance, name changed as an overture during some legal issues that ended up resolving very little) is run by Mike.

Nero-int is a larger (ie- more places to play) game with little consistancy between the games in terms of plot, rules, etc (think lots of house rules and "We don't allow X source, but do allow these non-WOTC product). Alliance is a "smaller" (fewer chapters) game with a lot more emphasis on consistancy, customer service, and interactivity of the games.

I highly recomend people interesting in LARPing look at the Alliance site (Alliancelarp.com) and see if there's a game near you. If there isn't, Nero-Int is a crapshoot concerning game quality, some are worse than your 6 year old brothers attempt to DM without really reading the PHB, others are decent, ypu might get lucky, but I wouldn't count on it.

I've personally played all of the current "East Coast" Alliance games (Mass down to Penn) and all are a blast.

I'm also obviously biased.

Swordguy
2007-10-24, 06:01 PM
Let me give another vote towards NERO Alliance. If you're in an area where there's both chapters, Ally is clearly superior.

All my bad experiences have been with NERO Int. I have never had a bad experience with NERO Alliance (played both systems simultaneously for a while).

Darion (amusingly, my PC is Darrian), I played up in Kzoo...

Skjaldbakka
2007-10-24, 06:51 PM
I have never had a problem with NERO int.
K'zoo was disbanded for breaking too many rules.

I've never tried NERO alliance, and probably won't since I already have a mid-level rogue, and don't have much interest in starting over.

Lemur
2007-10-24, 08:16 PM
I've done a bit of Dagorhir, and went to Ragnarok this summer, despite being hideously unprepared for it. I'll have to get back into it at some point, preferably after I've bought a decent pair of saftey glasses :P

Swordguy
2007-10-24, 08:59 PM
K'zoo was disbanded for breaking too many rules.


That's what VALENTI says. From looking at the Chapter Owner's documents and correspondences with NERO Int'l, they were disbanded because they wanted to do the same things that NERO MAss and WAR did - make house rules to cover holes in the basic ruleset (which is nearing what? 12 years old now?). Valenti didn't like their house rules, and imposed a blanket statement on the chapter that said they couldn't run anything that was in any way different than the BASIC rules. Seth and Company basically said "screw that" and went away.

You will note that what Mr. Valenti says and what happens in reality are often substantially different (see also: NERO-legal latex weapons, a new edition of NERO, etc.).



I've never tried NERO alliance, and probably won't since I already have a mid-level rogue, and don't have much interest in starting over.

That's a fair enough reason. I will point out that if you ask nicely, Alliance will OFTEN transfer a character over from International with no serious penalties (you'll have to respend some BP, as some skills differ - assassinates and didges are bought seperately, for example, and you can buy Eviscerates [basically a melee-only Death effect]). International will NEVER transfer a character over from Alliance, as Valenti feels the existence of NERO Alliance is illegal.

See this: Why there are two NERO's (http://www.alliancelarp.com/break.php). It's on the Alliance website, sure. It's also got legal documentation, while nothing NERO Int'l has EVER put out to the public has included such.

Skjaldbakka
2007-10-24, 10:34 PM
I have friends that have played in both old K'zoo and WAR. K'zoo was NERO on crack, and that was why it was disbanded. I have played in WAR myself, and aside from the staff being somewhat unskilled in boffer combat, I don't have any gripes with them.

I mostly play in NEROkentucky, though.