Which nation should i go for a more relaxed playstyle?

New Players
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Hi all! Ive been wanting to get into empire larp for ages and I think either this year in summer or next year might be the chance i finally get to do it!!

I know this is a question that has been asked a million times but going through the forum i havent seen an answer on the exact things im looking for so I thought id just ask :0

I think i want to play an artist character and go around sketching the camp and doing portraits for people because thats something i love doing in my free time anyway! Obviously i also want to get involved in the plot and the game too but i want to take it slower and im not super interested in fighting ^^

Im struggling with picking a nation specigically in the fact I kind of want a more relaxing playstyle. Ive been reading up on lore and im loving highguard, league and the tree cover navarr gets haha. Which nation is good for things like communal activities, cafe hopping and sitting round fires and soaking in the atmosphere?

If it doesnt matrer i think i have 90% of an outfit that would be good for somwthing like highguard and i love their lore (just because i love fantasy esque clothes normally haha) but reading around i wasnt sure if it would be a good fit?

Thankyou :smiley:

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2

If you’re leaning Highguard, go Highguard

The game has enough space that you can carve out/find spaces to gently bimble and cafe hop regardless of where you end up. (And Highguard usually has a number of very nice pub/cafe spaces on the main drag near the Gate to people watch)

Go with what sparks the most joy for you

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Thankyou for the response and for the reassurance :smiley: ive been eyeing up reikos as a really cool territory for a while so I think ill go with it!

4

Welcome along Violet, to the game and these forums :smiley:

There’s plenty of room to in most nations for the sort of relaxed artist playstyle, and often a lot for the non-combative types as well.

I play in Dawn, and while I love it, we can be a little loud and intense. The League, while a bit more peaceful, can also be very busy.

As Squeek said, if Highguard, calls, go for it. You could get quite a lot of cafe-hopping just in that third of the field, between the tea shops, shrines and bars of Highguard/Urizen/Brass Coast, with good views of the main streets, the Sentinel Gate, and the Regio as well.

Reikos has had a rather busy history for the last few years. If I may reccomend a couple of themes that might tie in to your concept:

It was recaptured from the Druj less than about 5 years ago (in game time), and so any survivors of that time may still be a little shaky (or more) and inclined to live a quieter and less risky life.

A few years later, one of the Eternals (explanations available) blanketed a large part of Reikos in mushrooms and the like. Which cured the lingering poisons but wreaked havoc on things like texts, manuscripts, and likely artworks…

So you could easily be a long-term Reikos resident, survivor of occupation, intent on repairing all the damage of war and fungi with your own artwork. You could be at Anvil to show off your work (take Pride in it!) and doing examples to demonstrate your ability.

Feel free to grab any, all, or none of this, I’m just throwing around ideas :smiley:

5

No thankyou so much I love these ideas and little bits of lore!!! And will defo draw some inspo from some of them!

Hehe i did read up on the highguard and i thought doing artwork as a way to show off the virtues and heroes of the empire would be really cool!

I knew about the orcs but id love to hear more about what happened with the eternals esp since i (and some of my friends) want to play lineage characters (cambion specifically for me cuz i have some really cute horns ive never really put to use ^^) and i wonder if that could play into it at all? Like i was thinking perhaps i had a parent who was trying to use some autumnal magic to help restore parts of the gardens there to their former glory and thats how i ended up lineaged but idk?

(Regardless of my ramblings tysm for taking time out of your day to let me know of these things!!)

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Autumn doesn’t really “do” restoration of natural environment (tone light explaining)

As a Realm, it loves built environments- cities, forges, etc- because of what it encompasses as idea set.

Spring is the realm of natural environment restoration (perhaps to the excess at times)…but Spring also caused a lot of Reikos’ initial issues on the re-capture and has had some /interesting/ plot stuff

Lineage can just happen. Sometimes there’s reason, sometimes it’s just “oh, kidlet popped out with nubblins of horns, ooopp” and sometimes it’s a choice made as an adult to take the lineage on…all depends on the story you’re wanting to play with your character

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Here’s the “mushroom incident”… :smiley:

https://www.profounddecisions.co.uk/empire-wiki/A_season_of_mushrooms

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I seee! So autumn magic tying to restore the land wouldnt make too much sense, but perhaps using it to combat the spring magics overtaking of settlements would since it thrives in city like settings?

Either way thankyou for the info i will be sure to do more research on the magic :smiley:

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Thankyou!!! This is really cool! And definitely something i wanna play into :0

10

Firstly, Welcome to the Forums and Empire in general.

As others have said, if you’re feeling High Guard, checkout the High Born.
If it doesn’t feel right you can always change.

If you’re after a relaxed experience, playing a lineage, orc or Navarr may not be for you as they all involve masks, make-up, prosthetics etc.

There’s no one nation that is necessarily more chilled than another.

Every nation has really intense players, you’ll find them active on the FB pages, forums, speaking at musters, in as many plots, meetings, skirmishes, battles and events as they can get.

Similarly, you’ll have players who want nothing more than to hang out, sing a few songs, have a few drinks, make new friends and have fun.

Just like the Winds of War, Fortune, Magic etc. they’re things that many people will know. However, unless you’re a general, senator etc. you don’t have to know any of it.

Whatever character you play, wherever you end up I hope you have a blast.
Feel free to pop round to Yaya’s Prosperity Pavillion if you fancy trying games of Wit, Wisdom, Skill and Chance. :slight_smile:

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Hehe thankyou for the invite i may take you up on it ^^ and the advice too ofc!!

I realise i might not have spoke correctly about what a relaxed game is for me but I do not mind at all dressing up and wearing horns and doing some makeup (i do enough bright colourful makeup in my daily life that its not a big jump for me!) Im more worried about getting overwhelmed by noise/people haha

12

As a parent of ND kids who want to LARP I understand where you are coming from. While the battlefield is away from Anvil, things can still get loud and intense at times.

However, there are lots of Neuro Diverse LARPers and people with sensory issues in Anvil.

You will find many LARPers walking around with anxiety badges as well as pronoun badges. So most people will completely understand if you need to go and sit in your tent for a bit, take a break etc.

If noise is a big issue, you may find that camping Out of Character is preferable. I have a mate with anxiety and sensory issues who camps OC, specifically so when things get a bit much they can go and chill. Dipping in and out of the game as and when.

I have even seen people with ear defenders (and heard talk of people mounting their changing antlers or cambion horns on a set of ear defenders), loop earplugs etc. to help when there are big parades, arguments and music.

As someone who weaves paracord I have had a lot of interest from ND larpers wanting fidget toys to help with being in meetings. :slight_smile:

13

More Autumn would offer boons to improve the ability to rebuild towns/built landscapes, rather than an outright re-build

Magic, especially on the side of Eternals, is more political than you’d think it would be on an initial read… Autumn is probably the “worst” for it as a Realm as it is also thematically linked to subtly and bargains

(The current Archmage- a position that’s more like an ambassador than a Big Hat Wizard- for Autumn is very good at what he does.

If you’re interested, trying to find him in field is a very good way of getting to know the field and all the little teahouses/pubs… because I’ve yet to find him in the first location I’ve looked for him in.)

I would also, as a genuine way of playing with character, have a nosy at different Nations’ attitudes towards magic. It’s something that can give you some good books into conversations with others…and some fun little IC arguments/debates

14

Thankyou for the response thats good to know ^^ Im defo planning on camping out of character (if only because I already have the supplies for that and I think costume and ticket is gonna take most of my savings oop) but definitely a relief to find out that we’re supported there ^^

15

Interesting! and yeah I’d love to do that it sounds like a fun lil quest :smiley:
This is an aside but all of these tips, reccomendations and locations and stuff to do in game make me very happy haha, I’m excited to write them down and check them out!

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Mean, as shouts for pubs/teahouses to start your wandering:

Varushka- Sovereign’s Head

Urizen- The Shade (which is super allergen friendly and aims to make the cost of tea and nibbles new player friendly)

Navarr- Drunken Goose and the general bobble of NaMarket

Highguard- Balthazar’s Vineyard (especially for Gate watching, as they tend to be pitched towards the top end of the camp)

Marches- Black Rat (can get quite loud, but gives excellent flavour of the player base in the Marches)

Brass Coast- (there’s more than a few, but I’ve never had chance to just chill in this camp yet…but Star Bar keeps being mentioned but is loud so I avoid it on sensories)

Wintermark- Lumi’s

League- Broken Oud (also hosts the Great Debarcle, which is an IC debate club/space) and the League Theater

Dawn and the Imperial Orc camps have some as well, but I cannot recall names /vouch for them

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17

The Sovereign’s Head in Varushka is only open Saturday evenings. For teahouses in Varushka, you want to visit the Hearth & Honey Tea Shoppe, which is at the national hearth.

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18

Plenty of teahouses in the Brass Coast, but one that is cheap (even as a new player), quiet and has a nice selection is the Spilled Tea! Went there my first event and keep going back! The Star Bar is great as well, but as you said, can get loud

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Dawn has Wise Guise (bar, open afternoon-evenings, can get loud) and the Weaver’s Rest (tearoom, daytime opening, very chill and welcoming).

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20

If it helps there is another artist who draws from a little table under an awning in Highguard already, part of the Shattered Tower, so it does fit nicely with the Highguard brief. There are also plenty of Chapters who would be willing to host you and at least offer seating, and somewhere to dump cloaks and snacks, just don’t be surprised if we try to recruit you, we like newbies!
I play Hannaniah of Cantiarch’s Hold, we would be happy to introduce you around if that would help?

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