WARNING: This game is the ancestor of the Clerical Error game written more recently by Kathleen De Smet. The newer game has undergone heavy revision. If you read this game you will both spoil some secrets and end up with some wrong information.
First Email
Hi Folks!
Eva, Katie, Kathleen, and Viv are planning to host a LARP one of the weekends in July. We've been working on this for almost two years at this point, and we hope some of you folks are willing to subject yourselves to our directorial debut.
We were inspired by the Whately games that the Freedmans run, so we've tried to create a game that will have significant physical exploration and puzzle solving as well as interesting character interaction.
The game is called "Clerical Error" and we'd love to tell you more about it, but we made the mistake of designing the story so the rest needs to remain a mystery. There will be seven player characters available for each run with a range of acting and costuming difficulty. If you don't want to sew your own Victorian gown or recite Shakespeare that's not a problem.
There will be no combat of any sort with other characters. We are going to use the Freedmans' system of "if you want to hurt someone, talk to a narrator and they'll tell you what happens."
There will not be any crawling, but there will be some rather dark, tight spaces. If you're not comfortable with tight spaces (or the dark) that's okay. We will warn you where they are and you do not need to enter that part of the environment.
We are planning to serve a light dinner in character, so be sure to let us know if you have any food allergies or major aversions.
We are currently planning to run the LARP during a single weekend in July at the Obarski's home in Madison, WI. The cost will be $15 per player. We expect the whole game will take 4 to 6 hours and plan to run three sessions over the weekend (one Friday, one Saturday, and one Sunday). The weekend is not yet set. The choices we have available to us right now are July 7-9, 14-16, or 21-23.
If you're interested in playing please email Eva (EMAIL REMOVED) with the answers to the questionnaire below so we have some idea of which days are good for you and what you do (or don't) want out of the experience. We'll correlate the answers and chose the weekend that works for the most people. This is going to be primarily first come first served, so get back to us soon if you want in.
Since we do have 21 spots to fill, feel free to invite your friends, at least the ones you know in real life. No inviting random crazies from the Internet, please.
Eva, Katie, Kathleen and Viv
Second Email
Hi Again Folks!
So we have decided to run the "Clerical Error" LARP the weekend of July 21-23. If there is enough demand, we will also run it two additional times during the day on Saturday and Sunday. When you fill out the questionnaire please let us know if you have a preference for evening or early afternoon.
If you want to play but haven't emailed (EMAIL REMOVED) yet, please do so as soon as possible. We need to gauge general interest so we will know if the extra sessions will be filled or not. If you aren't finished with the questionnaire that's okay; you can send it at a later date.
It was brought to our attention that we really didn't say enough about what "Clerical Error" is going to be like, so let us try to clarify: there will be puzzles, exploration, and interesting-but-not-vital character interactions, in a mythological-intersects-real-world setting. It's generally player vs. environment with a distinctive goal towards which all the characters work together.
We also wanted to calm any costume-related fears. Some of the characters come from a different era, but if you don't want to make costumes you could easily get by with stuff that's already in your closet or something cheap from a thrift store.
We've included the (slightly) revised questionnaire as well as a copy of the original invitation email (which contains more details on the game) below. If you forwarded the original invitation to any friends, we would ask that you send them this one as well. If you completed the old questionnaire you don't need to do the new one.
We'll hope to hear from at least a few of you soon!
Sincerely,
Eva, Katie, Kathleen and VivFinished Character Questionnaire
Please let us know if the following dates are "Great", "Okay", "I won't be happy, but I can do it", or "Not possible". (The more flexible you can be the more likely you are to get to play.)
July 21st July 22ed July 23ed
Use 1 to 5 to indicate your level of interest in the following (1 = "No Way!", 5 = "Awesome!").
Very simple characters who aren't much work to play:
Complex characters who are more challenging:
Deal with emotional relationships:
Remember a whole lot of information:
Think logically:
Search for things in a cluttered environment:
Be bitter:
Be outspoken:
Be angry:
Flirt with others:
Be the center of attention:
Have a really easy costume:
Have a really cool costume:
Spend way too much time on your costume:
Get revenge:
Care more about material things than people:
Care more about people than material things:
Live by the manners of different era:
Party all night:
Be a war hero:
Deal with the loss of someone you love:
Be self centered:
Kill someone:
Play someone of a different culture:
Sing:
Have medical expertise:
Believe in your own superiority:
What sort of characters have you enjoyed playing in the past?
Are you allergic to any foods or do you have any major food aversions?
Is there anything else we should know? (If you have special physical needs, want to tell us about your already impressive costume collection, or just feel the need to say that you like puppies, this is the place to do it.)