20TH ANNIVERSARY HIGHLIGHTS, APRIL 2018

Happy 20th Anniversary, James! I hope people see the poetry in the event occurring while the rules are under reconstruction and the staff/marshal hierarchy is in flux. 20 years in, still improving.

In past events, I've called the effect on either of my characters "being struck by the caravan of character development." After this event, I have no idea what to label it.

Getting mocked by Swyft and running up the path to see if it was true.

Surprise, it's your goddess in full plate mail and battle scars. Dumbfounded is an understatement.

Later on, sitting right next to her as she explains to someone else the different versions of love. A brief pause and confiding in her how scared and worried you were when she took on an attack by Necrophitus. She pulls you onto her shoulder and while comforting you, not only inadvertently gives you a rallying cry, says something in English that you OOG translated into Latin two weeks before for use when casting Her prayers.

Kaiva bringing Swyft over to Andorra and the scene between Swyft and Andorra. Forces of nature, in-game and out. Maria and Renee, y'all are inspirations.

Angel hugging Nalick; Nalick using his Minor Illusion cantrip to make angelic wings surround her.

Slow-dancing with Eryn on the food line at feast and releasing a 10-foot AoE of diabetes to everyone around. Cue classic Nalick blush.

Cara handing Chet a knight (horse) chess piece and then Chet lying on the floor with laughter.

Sunday, Chet being asked to quiet down while talking to friends so the crowd around Cennius can hear properly.

"You're making the mistake of assuming I give a ___ what a lich has to say."

He went on a roll for a good ten minutes with rants and jokes.

Chet and Caldor became even better friends.

Amizar and Chet improve their sales pitch for their organization. Paul, it's always a blast RPing with you, sometimes literally!

May will be my own KR Anniversary. Five years ago that month. I don't have words right now but I will soon. See you then.

As much as I'd like to add a witty comment or funny title for this set of highlights, I really don't think that'd do it justice. Instead, before I list my highlights, I wanna thank everyone I can.

First off, Steve, I have no clue how you pulled this event off, but everything just felt right. The casting for plot NPCs was perfect (as well as costuming), the props and ambient music were really immersive, and the rotating ward mechanic for dealing with the Deck was genius, impeccably logical from an IG perspective, and made the mod that much more challenging.

And then there's the champion patrons. You guys were amazingly interactive, and the ability to portray your personality very well in these very attention grabbing yet beautiful sets of garb made seeing any of you, even from a distance, feel awe-inspiring, intimidating and off putting all at once.

While I'm talking about costuming and amazing RP it's worth mentioning that I couldn't so much as breathe without hitting some amazing role play. You guys were ready to face the end of the world and it showed.

And most importantly, Ree. You whipped up an amazing feast for double the number of people you expected and STILL managed to get seconds and thirds for as many people as possible. That Udon and brisket were fantastic, and cheesy potatoes have become my new favorite form of potatoes.

Anyway, compared to all that my highlights are kinda short, so in no particular order:

- Marcus trying to get what he wanted most and instead becoming one with nature.

- Posing wildly at people as a statue on the Inn steps.

- Master Deck mod, and the implications of having multiple decks in Travance.

- Seeing Steve as Galmachis for the first time.

- Ritualist role play, and discussing the true meaning of protection and armor with various people.

- Bumping into Nalick and figuring out how he's doing. Finding his negative answers concerning and his positive answers more concerning

- Finding out that people like the look of Terzak's new garb! I was really excited to crack out the professing attire and I'm so happy people enjoy it!

- Tapping on people's shoulders as if they were doors as sentient chaos chests. Watching someone sprint away with one to Logistics from Ostcliff.

I'll add more once I'm awake. Thank you to each and every one of you for making this event as jaw-dropping as it was!

this one actually made me a bit nervous, as I've never done anything makeup based before. but people helped me, so it turned out. Now I need to learn how to do some of this. if anyone has pictures of my champion makeup, I'd love to see one.

this being said, the MacFhionnlaigh Family (Ceana-Daughter, Hazel-Wife, and Donny-Husband) made their appearance. there will be more. the fields were chaos as family fought alongside the town, and dad was having a collective aneurysm with all the shenanigans, as well as having shenanigans of his own. But when DOESN'T he start shenanigans?

Meeting Aguara was interesting. Learning her tenets straight from the source was interesting. Telling her "Have a nice day" was priceless. As for Andorra, Gaia and the like, being asked to guard was an honor, and the discussions.

It was an event…. On many different levels.

Going into this event weekend, there was much angst and nerves about where weather was concerned; I hadn’t winter-tented in a very long time and using the Camp Tents was a semi concern due to the predicted weather….

Which, thankfully, changed almost LAST SECOND to make staying in them a bit more bearable. That I found out Saturday night my sleeping bag needs replacing due to LACK of warmth… Well the blasted thing really owes me nothing (its 12 years old….  )

But nerves over the weather was only part of it. A week before, a friend and long time player of this larp- Conrad Santini- passed away as a result of a very horrible accident and a memorial was set up for Saturday Night. An In Character/Out Of Character one… and it would fall to me to conduct it as it was an IC Brazen Mass for the Departed… and a Celebration of a Good Man’s Life for those there for OOC reasons.

A heavy burden for sure- I desperately wanted to get it right and be appropriate. A pyre was not my idea- it was another’s and James very graciously agreed to it (Conrad was an old friend to him too…) but how to do it was what I was worried about.

I can honestly say that inspiration on how to conduct it came Friday morning prior to coming to game…. Then concern over my keeping it together to do this was a real worry for me. Suffice it to say…. I managed and in the process of everything, I came up with something that is now Brazen Canon for the future should a Funeral Mass be needed for IC reasons.

And I know Conrad is looking down in approval… and that I continue to get His Creation right as its story continues to grow.

***
Game stuff Friday-
-Blood Spirits Working with the Guard for the battle against The Thing… and our efforts being among the best coordinated. That the beast dropped under OUR blades…. I don’t care if OOC it was simply a matter of timing and whatnot.
Bottom line is it dropped when WE were beating on it.
- Return of rarely seen Spirits to Game.
- Secret Squirrel stuff
- Ravyn shenanigans.
-Seeing Old School Argyle. Forest, was nice seeing you as how you looked when you first came to game. Had I known, I’d have matched you.

Saturday Morning-
-Breakfast over a fire along with fireside chats.
Saturday Evening (after returning from the real funeral)
-Learning about someone iceskating uphill again and how it nearly cost Andorra her existence…. The discussion that occurred over it between myself and a few people- older players mostly, was damn good. By the 12 gods, there needs to be In Game repercussions for that Act for SO MANY REASONS.

-Feast was excellent and the return of Cheezy Potatoes… was loved immensely.
-Coordination of Spirits and Guard for the second time… We were a well organized group and in the hiking around camp, our merry band picked up more than a few stragglers.

-Funeral Mass. Strange highlight…. But it is one for many reasons.
-more Ravyn shenanigans.

Sunday Morning-
-Just one absolute highlight…. And that highlight’s name is Hilda.


Packing up went smoothly and the ride home was good.

***
(from the Brazen Mass for the Dead, conducted Saturday Night; each TING was a hammer on an anvil and that sound carried well in the night air. It didn't go exactly like this though it was supposed to. Close enough based on memory)

(TING)
One Ring for the Friend…. Beloved by many here and not
(TING)
One Ring for the Brother… Brother in Spirit, Brother in Faith, Brother in Blood.
(TING)
One ring for the Mentor… Counseling when needed, example in others
(TING)
One ring for the Teacher… Showing you how to Get It Right and what to do when it Doesn’t Go Right
(TING)
And one final Ring… to Bid him Safe Passage and send him on his Journey to the Forge Father’s Side.

Be At Peace, and we will meet again when The Time Comes.


***

Be safe everyone, remember to tell your loved ones that you love them and I will see some of you in May.

-John

After 5 straight days of KR (while hopping in and out for personal reasons) I'm still feeling pumped up from all that happened, never done a highlight recap but i'll try to recall what i can remember

Getting in late on Wednesday evening as a plucky young adventurer eager to learn only to find half the school surrounding Osren (rin?) in a state of madness (wrong PLACE, wrong TIME, and DIDN'T DO THE READING HW)

Being as chipper and helpful as humanly possible while doing evening assignments to vanquish evil within the grounds and learn about magic (AM I THE ONLY ONE OF YOU CYNICAL EMO TEEN JERKS WHO'S ACTUALLY ENJOYING HIS LEARNING EXPERIENCE AT A WHIMSICAL MAGIC SCHOOL?!?!)

Getting good roleplay moments in while taking notes on every lesson and every event happening at the school, awesome job to anyone who interacted with the journal over the week/weekend portion, if i leave something in-game like that lying around, chances are there's a purpose to it

James, amazing job on the Secret of Power lesson, I was really impressed you were able to make a lecture like that last that long and make it seem like a realistic classroom setting.

Playing a character who is so much different from how I play Django was somewhat of a challenge, one that I enjoyed thoroughly, and I'm really gonna miss Roland. But how his story concluded was beyond fantastic, Thank you to Drew, Ben, and anyone else who helped along with the journey he took and even in his melancholy final moments, It really made the weekend that much more impactful, and allowed a LOT of character development for Django.

On to the Weekend Portion-

Was gone for a sizeable chunk of Friday, but returned to some very fun but insightful moments with Marcus, Moostrav, and others (still figuring out how to pronouce "TheVeryArtist"'s name )

eating a big plate of spaghetti smack dab in the center of the inn with the biggest shit-eating grin on my face (I CAN'T LAY THE KILLING BLOW ON NECROPHITUS IN-GAME, BUT WITH THIS MEMERY I HAVE SLAIN NECROPASTA ON AN OUT OF GAME LEVEL)

Django got a BIG level up from the Body/Build modifications from the recent rules change, and while it's been a slow adjustment, for the first time in a long while combat feels a lot more fluid for me now, I feel like I can take on bigger threats without having to be so afraid (a little fear is still there, which is good, but I was even able to land a sizeable hit on the GodEater before retreating back to support the rear lines, which certainly marks a milestone in terms of what i've accomplished with mods)

The Gods were done spectacularly, many were just how I pictured they'd be, and some of the creative choices were brilliantly executed, bravo both to the performers AND to the costume team on a fantastic job, It gave the weekend that much more weight to see such powerful beings walking amongst us, and not only the gods but veteran players returning for the fight and other supremely powerful beings on par with godhood. The fact that so many players were able to be affected by such emotion-driven RP and seeing people take so many chances to perform as their characters in new and exciting ways was a thrill. As a classically trained actor of nearly two decades of experience, seeing the level of commitment to the character driven improvisation over these last few days has been breathtaking, well done to everyone!

Of course, I could hardly mention this weekend without speaking of the pinnacle of my own personal highlights. Before I had even come to KR, me and Chris (Rudy Stonebar) had been talking about all the cool things going on at the camp in game and all the facets of what it was like while planning out my character. While we were talking, One thing grabbed my attention more than anything else we spoke of. It was at that moment that I announced to him with full confidence "That's it. That's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna be the one to finally find the Sun Card." Almost a year later and Lo and Behold, Mission Accomplished. It took searching the proper every single month on camp in the blistering heat and the freezing cold and the pouring rain and the sloppy mud and the slippery ice, spending hours upon hours walking the grounds, ripping through the deep woods and the underbrush, getting lost in the back paths of the woods, but it was all worth it in the end. That moment changed my gameplay experience entirely. I don't think I've ever heard more people say Thank You and Congratulations to me ever before in my life. Now I've been hunting through the forums searching for any previous mention of the Card (not an easy task with so many years upon years of threads.) Thank you to everyone who approached me in and out of game to offer me congratulations and thank yous, I'm looking forward to future interactions in-game regarding the card and it's brethren arcana!

The Mods regarding Necrophitus's defeat and the battles surrounding it were beautifully handled, LOVED the roleplay with the Quartz Mountain and with Galladel (hope i'm spelling half these names right ) regarding the souls of the Quartz mountain students, looking forward to seeing how THAT plot plays out in full. Loving the sort of "THE END...?" conclusion to the weekend.

Feast was, of course, exquisite. The brisket was unbelievable, the potatoes were rich and savory, the caprese salad was stupendous, and oh my god those CUPCAKES. I went up for seconds (when appropriate) and even thirds, I was in heaven with that meal, thank you so much to the kitchen staff and to the chefs for making such a memorable dinner.

I could continue on for twenty more pages, so I'll end it here, looking forward to much more roleplay in the future, and thank you again to everyone involved for making such a fantastic event!

I had to leave early Saturday morning due to real life but my Friday was AMAZING!

I want to give a big thank you to everyone that had a hand in organizing this event. That Friday night boss fight was BAD ASS! I never thought playing through an IRL MMO raid would be so much fun. Seeing the gods was pretty bad ass, I wish I had time to interact with them more. Hopefully I'll get the chance in a future event. Better luck next time Malyc.

I especially want to thank Matt for all the work he did with the item conversions. I don't know many people that can keep together under that kind of stress. I also want to thank the rules team in general. I'm really digging the new system and the addition of new proficiency system is amazing. I'll never complain about free bonus build and easier character management. Keep up the great work!

Also it warms my heart to see that after a few months away that Pendarvin is thriving. Seeing the new vassals really made my night. Crom (sp?) you were an amazing battle buddy, let's slay undead demons again soon!