What is Carpe Noctum?
Carpe Noctum is a local Live Action Role Playing (LARP) group who plays a fantasy roleplaying game set in the World of Darkness and focuses on Vampire: The Masquerade. We vary in age from early 20s to 50s and above. Some of us have been playing for a year or two, some of us for 20 or more years. We are a founding game of One World By Night (OWBN).
What is One World By Night (OWBN)?
One World By Night (OWBN) is an international organization of LARPers who have come together to create a world wide group of players who travel across the United States and beyond to play with each other's characters. They host events all year long in various parts of the country for players to attend to meet other people, experience plots that run on a national scale, and to expand your influence in the game by making connections with other Player Characters.
What is a Live Action Role Playing game?
Most of us are familiar with Dungeons and Dragons. You sit down with a group of friends with dice, paper, and a stack of books. One person is in control, and they tell the story and control the bad guys (The Dungeon Master). The players roll dice, explain what their characters are doing, and build a story with their actions.
Live Action Role Playing takes this to a new level. The Dungeon Master here is called a Story Teller. They build stories, not dungeons so to say. There are no dice. Decisions between players and the Story Tellers or between each other is done with Rock, Paper, Scissors. You still have a character sheet you build with powers and abilities that you use when necessary to see who wins a challenge.
The biggest difference is the character interactions. You don't sit at a table and describe what you're doing: You act it out. Like an improvisational play with rules to follow. Some people dress up in elaborate costumes, some show up more subdued. The level of involvement in the action and how you portray your character is entirely up to you.
Live Action Role Playing takes this to a new level. The Dungeon Master here is called a Story Teller. They build stories, not dungeons so to say. There are no dice. Decisions between players and the Story Tellers or between each other is done with Rock, Paper, Scissors. You still have a character sheet you build with powers and abilities that you use when necessary to see who wins a challenge.
The biggest difference is the character interactions. You don't sit at a table and describe what you're doing: You act it out. Like an improvisational play with rules to follow. Some people dress up in elaborate costumes, some show up more subdued. The level of involvement in the action and how you portray your character is entirely up to you.
What is Vampire: the Masquerade?
To summarize from Wikipedia: Vampire: the Masquerade was originally a tabletop role-playing game released in 1991 for it's World of Darkness line of books and games. It's set in a fictionalized "gothic-punk" version of the modern world where you assume the role of a vampire and clash with other denizens of the night such a Werewolves, Wraith, Mages, etc.
How do I learn more?
Well, there is no straight answer to this one. We do have a links section with lots of information on the internet about what it is we do, the various clans and sects of vampires, as well as links to One World By Night's website. We also have our house rules and other documents specific to Carpe Noctum there. You can also purchase "Laws of the Night: Revised", the primary book we use for our rules and read more there. That is if you learn by reading.
If you are a hands on "I learn by doing" kind of person, then come by game and see how it's all done. We can give you a basic character sheet that's already written up that you can keep and build upon to make it your own, or you can make your own character whenever you feel comfortable.
If you are a hands on "I learn by doing" kind of person, then come by game and see how it's all done. We can give you a basic character sheet that's already written up that you can keep and build upon to make it your own, or you can make your own character whenever you feel comfortable.