Type Worldwide, Non-Profit Fields Multi-genre Founded 2001 | Location United States Website www.larpalliance.net | |
Slogan Providing support, promotion, and education to the LARP Community Motto Providing support, promotion, and education to the LARP Community | ||
LARP Alliance, Inc. was a non-profit organization based in the US, which was established in order to improve communication, support, and education regarding Live Action Roleplaying (LARP) throughout the entire community and with the general public. Programs and events designed to achieve this are run often and the LARP Alliance assists others by providing staff, props, resource materials, and contributing donated promotional items. The company exists to motivate and inspire the LARP community and bridge the gap to bring in new LARPers.
Contents
History
Prior to achieving non-profit status, the company goals had already been enacted and carried out regularly by the founders, Rick McCoy (LARP Historian, Weapon-maker, Game Mechanics/Rules Designer, Promoter) and Adrianne Grady (Game Designer, Promoter, Artist) independently. It was in 2001 that the original mission statement, "Uniting the Hobby One LARP At a Time", was developed by Rick McCoy. In 2003, Adrianne Grady began working with Rick McCoy to establish future goals after the founders made contact. And in 2004, Rick McCoy, Adrianne Grady, and Chris Vrem (creator of "Vrem Blades", the well-known weapon-making style of the IFGS LARPs) united to establish the LARP Alliance entity. The mission statement was later evolved by the LARP Alliance, a couple of years after the company became a corporation, into the present mission statement, "To strengthen and bring together LARPers by developing resources for players and staff; assisting with promotions, venues, and organizing community events; and facilitating education and training." LARP Alliance has since ceased operation as of 2012.
Media Assistance
The LARP Alliance, and Co-Founder, Adrianne Grady are credited with assisting Universal Studios and David Wain with the comedy movie Role Models. Rick McCoy and Adrianne Grady also assisting Joe Lynch with the horror/adventure movie Knights of Badassdom. LARP Alliance brought Iron Liege (a US-based LARP weapon and gear manufacturer) into the project to provide the majority of all on-screen weapons and shields used by the lead characters and LARPer extras. LARP Alliance, Inc. assisted in providing a number of real LARPers hired onto the movie project, arriving from all over the world, to be extras. LARPs represented by those real LARPers include the [IFGS], [NERO], Maelstrom, Dagorhir, Adventures Unlimited / Realms of Conflict, Eidolon, Apocalarp, Amtgard, and more.
Adrianne Grady, Rick McCoy, and the LARP Alliance have also assisted other productions including the movie Lloyd the Conqueror, Tosh.0 show and G4, WebTV, History Channel, Spike TV, Boing BoingTV, the band A Hawk and A Hacksaw's "Cervantine" music video, and Sony PlayStation: God of War II.
LARPMedia.com was developed and implemented for the community by the LARP Alliance to showcase LARP-related media such as movies, episodics, music videos, and other productions.
Their work has included assisting LARPers with their on-camera presence, alerting them to media opportunities such as television shows, documentaries, music videos, and movies, and connecting LARPs and LARPers with legal advisors. They have also brought together LARP-artisans (costumers, weapon and propmakers) with media project directors. Additionally, the LARP Alliance assists in the enhancement of the LARP community's visual and audio presentation within itself and to the general public by use of special videos and photography.
Events
Other Programs and Projects
In-game tools
The Adventurer's Guild (aka The Academy) is an in-game and in-character assistant directed at newbies (new LARPers or those new to a specific game system). This traveling unit provides game rules instructions and character skill practice, teaches strategy/battle prep, all while keeping players in-character and giving them each specific character plot.
Other contributions
They have contributed hundreds of weapons and props/sets/effects to LARP functions and players in order to showcase new product and provide gear to those who have none. They often are known to contribute other items and labor such as food, cooking and construction labor, and talent (musicians, actors, dancers, etc.) to enhance the atmosphere of the games.