How does this idea sound?

William's comment concerning the Guard is spot on.

That said, I am a decent fighter and I tend not to look for low or medium level mods in which to intrude as they are not for me. I have no problem occupying my time with worthwhile RP endeavors, and if such NPCs intrude on my activities, I offer them the opportunity to leave in peace.

OTOH, and although at this time only having one, at times I have as many as Shiva, should said NPCs threaten a friend, or people I know, all bets are off.

Also to chime in a bit...

I'm not a rules/new player/monster/roleplay marshal... but I've a decent amount of experience with LARP combat and SCA level stuff- far less of that than some might think, believe it or not...

I've often likened KR to a giant free-form Dungeons and Dragons game and it is in many ways.... and just like the pen/paper encounter charts, sometimes stuff shows up you have no business facing or what is encountered is not even a sweat-breaking challenge. And to me.... that's just fine.

I've gone out as Wendigo, a bodyguard for a Census Taker, a bounty-hunter/treasure seeker, a farmer looking for food or money... And as undead too. Hell, I went out as a dire wolf once... Then there was the Westboro Valosian Priest...
Of the things I have gone out as, the ONLY thing that lower PC's should not have tangled with would be the wendigo- and that time, we were told to go LOOKING to mess with higher PC's (and one in particular too!)

Bigger PCs who have played in this game might cherry-pick what they do... its going to happen and does in every LARP I’ve heard of to one degree or another. But even then, surprises happen- like that hapless paladin mentioned by Eli.

To me, part of the game, the draw.... is the UNKNOWN of what an encounter will and can bring. Each and every thing encountered on the road can be interesting in some fashion, be it a fight or rp thing.
My own PC is an old soul Ranger, knowledgeable in his trades and a long-time soldier- a soldier who is somewhat tired of senseless fighting- especially among folks who are supposedly civilized. He would like to resolve everything via diplomacy if possible but knows in Travance, some things just can’t be talked to… or just don’t want to talk to you.

Every so often, I get the peaceful resolution/interaction…. And I enjoy those as much as the non-peaceful ones (though if I get dropped, its less fun unless it was an epic fight)
For instance... More than one occasion, I've encountered NPCs who were just merchants, a pair of would-be cutpurses just looking to feed their family and a band of Goblins protesting the winter. All of these could have gone violent and in the case of the cutpurses, what should have been violent went peaceful as they were talked to....

I’ve also broken the 1st Rule of Travance and traveled alone- which resulted in my getting jumped by the Venier two months ago. Epic fight but still sucked to be crippled without my prized sword….

So yeah, Not every meeting on the road need start or end with "Defend Yourself!" though it often happens….. And I find it fun to find out what the encounter is and see if it can’t be turned on its head.
I think if you look at it from the Grand Adventure perspective, y’all will have as much fun as I and very many others do…. And just remember, Nothing says you have to get involved in fighting- as Reece mentioned, there is no shame in running away. If it fits the persona, why worry?

Your mileage, as it does for others, will vary.

Long time player here *waves hand. Big Gap between start and now in play. That gaps shown me how much this game has changed. New pcs now level five. I started level one with nothing but the phys reps I had and steel blades in Game There are younger pcs that I in this game with bigger better weapons baubles tricks and magic than I carry even now. The tower was a secret. The Upper levels, old lower, remember its inverted, were not even clear for adventure. Slavers came through town and would take you!. Going out by day alone meant death was likely. Remeber level one pcs, so you ran to the big guys or buildings for safety when anything came by.

And most importantly you never ever knew what was out there or if it wanted to kill you. There was no trade system to live well on and get more build. Working the camp didn't happen because we rented. Set up was rewarded with SPs and 1000 was a LOT!

Now what does this have to do with purple headbands... Flash to now. Mods made with level caps. Entire programs to get new pcs started. New player marshals dedicated to you... The new players. Treasure given out after every mod not just plucked off NPCs. Roaming NPCs dedicated you whom is out and pointed in directions. Vendors in game selling real food and wears. Lords ladies knights squires... Older PCs dedicated to lands. Get into trouble recognize one go ask for help! Its their duty. If they dont help RP it.

All this is added new and keeps with full emersion. We can't lose that. If we start labeling things in the manner you suggest its like the computer game with ID above the heads of NPCs. By your own scenario the player thinking through all that, loses the characters responses in the process. When I go IC its my PC that does the thinking i just sit in the back of my head making sure its a safe thing to do and thats it.

In another larp a mechanic used was to have monsters have specific immunities to upgraded or more advanced materials used in weapons. For instance in KR steel would be the only type that would harm an individual npc.

Another idea i have seen was like a reverse threshold, where damage under a certain amount would count, but anything higher would be minimum damage. Perhaps add an immunity to specific spells or superior attacks.

The rationale could be an enemy's attempt to ward his minions against Travance's elite warriors.

These are all very good points, most of which I hadn't thought of. I would like to offer a counter argument that may or may not be 100% relevant.

Does a king go out of his castle to catch every thief? Does he make sure to land a blow on every member of the invading army? No, he has peasants, knight, people who in his eyes are less important*, to make up the body of his army. Same goes for a general, which is probably a better metaphor anyway.


*That's not to say new players are viewed as less important, it's just the only phrase I could think of. At least, I sure hope not, given I can't speak for experienced players personally...

Historically, a king had justicairs to dispense justice. Nobles could as well, depending on their rank. Peasants and other non-nobles rarely,m if ever, had such power in Western civilization. There was a well established system and order, often having little to do with justice.

As to "generals" that is laughable in Europe. The ranking noble, unless the King expressly ordered otherwise (and that was a rare occurrence, indeed) took overall command. The "battle" was usually divided into three sections, left, center, and right, with the "pride of place" going to the commander of the right (some nobles realized that a reserve was a good thing to have, and usually kept that with themselves). Naturally, that devolved to the highest ranking noble besides the leader.

Following orders was a hit or miss thing. Percy did not receive the sobriquent "Hotspur" due to his sanguine disposition. :cool:

Travance, for better or worse, has a more egalitarian manner of assigning commands. It would be interesting to see the results and repercussions if say, a Lord disagreed with Grim's disposition of forces prior to a battle being joined.

Long winded exposition - and I know history does not matter in the instance of KR.