Tag: jon cole

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Larp House Presents: Eye in the Sky

MQ-Q Reaper unmanned aircraft in flight over desert

A British-led intelligence operation close to the border of Pakistan is using an American drone for overwatch. Players are military, legal and political decision makers for either the British or American team. The optional 7th player is an unexpected observer from the Pakistan embassy. How will they all cope when the mission changes and their rules of engagement are no longer clear?

The premise

The larp is an exploration of the morality and effectiveness of using drones as a weapon of war. Different characters will have different ethical concerns about when and how to use drone weapons, and those will be tested as events unfold.

The leaders of a joint British-American intelligence operation are sitting in a room in a secure location in England, remotely directing the operation by issuing orders to British agents on the ground, local military units, or the American drone on overwatch.

Eye in the Sky will premiere at The Smoke 2020. This North American sneak preview is only at Larp House!

A larp for 6-7 players, 4 hours long (including debrief)
Designed by Malcolm Campbell
Organized by Malcolm Campbell, Josh Krehbiel, and Jon Cole

When & where

7 pm to 11 pm, Friday October 4th 2019
Hosted in private home near 78th and Dell Rd in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. (Exact address will be shared with ticket-holders.)

Plentiful free parking on site. We’ll be organizing a ride share to help get people out there.

Sign-up

Get a ticket by filling out the Eye in the Sky registration form. Unlike some of our other events, these free tickets are first-come first-served. Once you have a ticket you don’t need to do anything else besides show up to play! Continue reading “Larp House Presents: Eye in the Sky”

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Salon du Larp House: Glamourous Night playtest

enchanted forest

Wizards, humans, magical creatures, and faeries attend a mundane community’s summer solstice festival. Magic is in the air, voices are stilled, and dreams can come true at a cost. Tonight shifting auras will grant attendees terrifying mystical power to pursue their desires. How far will you go to get what you want? When you are all-powerful, what is actually important to you?

What

Glamourous Night is a larp about faerie magic and wizards’ hubris for 15-25 players. It is an abstract and musical experience exploring the themes of temptation and choice. This event is a playtest for an unfinished larp designed by Jon Cole.

In Glamourous Night, players use two movement techniques to perform ensorcelling magic as their characters. Characters will experience joyful exploration and tempting darkness as they share, subjugate, and are subjugated.

When

Sunday September 1st, 2019, from 1:30 to 6 pm

Background

This is an alpha playtest of a larp. Glamourous Night isn’t finished, and this will be one of the first times it is played. There might be big holes missing or rough patches in play. If this larp sounds interesting to you even though it may not be a coherent start to finish narrative experience, we will be very glad to have you join us!
Continue reading “Salon du Larp House: Glamourous Night playtest”

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Local designers featured in The Guardian

Larp House members and local larp designers Kelley Vanda and Jon Cole have been prominently mentioned in this article in The Guardian about women designing games about reproductive rights.

The female game designers fighting back on abortion rights
The female game designers fighting back on abortion rights
Through video games, live-action role-playing games and interactive documentaries, developers are challenging the conversation around reproductive rights
www.theguardian.com

 

You can get a PDF of The Abortionists here.

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Larp House Presents: POP!

Get Connected!

Update: Sorry to burst your balloon, but this event has been cancelled.

The warm hum of a CRT monitor is drowned out by the scream of a dial-up modem. As Internet access becomes ubiquitous, people with obscure sexual interests are beginning to find one another in anonymous forums. A cursor floats over a hyperlink to looner-landing private forums 18+ only.

On one bulletin board service, a group of people connect over their common sexual interest in balloons. Who are the people behind the keyboard? What nascent community do they form, and how does it change when they meet in person for the first time?

What

POP! is a live-action game about online communities, for 8 to 12 players.

Specifically, it’s about an online community of people who love and fetishize latex balloons.

Players will immerse into the warm, soothing atmosphere of a nostalgic Internet via private messenger, forum posts, and chat rooms. At the end of play, the characters will meet for for the first time at an in-person meet-up event, which might be a joyful revelation or an awkward trainwreck. While this game is about a very specific community, the themes of finding belonging are universal.

Designed by Alex Roberts
Organized by Jon Cole and Tom S. Tea

When

Saturday, 25 May 2019, from 2 to 5 pm

Where

POP! will take place at SpringBOX, located at 262 University Ave W in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Parking is available on site. METRO Green Line and bus lines stop nearby.

Directions

Tickets

Get a “ticket” by filling out our POP! registration form before 11:59 pm on Sunday, 19 May. Unlike some of our other events, these tickets are first-come first-serve. Once you have a ticket, you don’t need to do anything else besides show up to play. In the unlikely event that too many people sign up, we will solicit volunteers to drop out of the event in exchange for a “golden ticket” of instant admittance to their next event with us.

SpringBOX is a space for community events and programming, operated by Springboard for the Arts. We are requesting a pay-what-you-want donation ($5-10 suggested) to support the work of SpringBOX in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

Continue reading “Larp House Presents: POP!”

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Larp House Presents: Sing Your Heart Out

woman singing into microphone

Who thought that a singing competition was a good idea for a nonprofit fundraiser? Now six nonprofit coworkers with a casual singing group have just one week to turn their setlist into something professional. They will have to wow the judges with their vocal talents if they can hope to land the multi-million dollar grant that will keep the doors open on their community organization. Tensions will mount, drama will ensue, and everyone will sing to express their true feelings!

What

Sing Your Heart Out is a live-action game for five players about a singing group composed of very dramatic people. Think Glee, Pitch Perfect, Fame, and A Chorus Line.

Designed by Benjamin Rosenbaum and Jamey Harvey
Organized by Jon Cole and Peregrin Winkle

When

Sunday 24 February 2019, from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm

Where

A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are registered.

Parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.

Registration

We are requesting a pay-what-you-want goodwill donation ($5 suggested) to support the work of the nonprofit in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

If you are interested in participating, fill out our Sing Your Heart Out registration form before 11:59 pm on Sunday, 17 February. We’ll let you know if you are in the larp by Monday, 18 February.

Continue reading “Larp House Presents: Sing Your Heart Out”

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Documentation for Paratopia

The Abortionists
Underground clinic mechanic
Greg's girlfriend Hailey explains why Todd needs to go
Greg explains to his parents why Todd needs to go
Greg texts his brother Todd
Todd texts his brother Greg
The life of Alex Park, teacher
Alex Park reflects if it was all worth it

Documentation for Paratopia, a larp design nano-con

Organized by TLS and Katherine Shane

3 November 2018
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Seven attendees

Events

  • Playtest: The Abortionists by Jon Cole and Kelley Vanda
  • Playtest: Better Tell Todd by Josh Krehbiel
  • Roundtable: game concept feedback for unfinished design by Shawn Stokes
  • Workshop: Ars Tegumi, presented by Jon Cole
  • Roundtable: creative process, facilitated by Tayler Stokes
  • Playtest: It Was a Beautiful Mistake by David Rothfeder
  • Playtest: Magnum Opus by Tayler Stokes