Returning to LARP in a Pandemic

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We will be returning to live games in September (Event Schedule here).

COVID SCREENING AND PROTECTION

Texas Senate Bill 968: “A BUSINESS IN THIS STATE MAY NOT REQUIRE A CUSTOMER TO PROVIDE ANY DOCUMENTATION CERTIFYING THE CUSTOMER'S COVID-19 VACCINATION OR POST-TRANSMISSION RECOVERY ON ENTRY TO, TO GAIN ACCESS TO, OR TO RECEIVE SERVICE FROM THE BUSINESS. A BUSINESS THAT FAILS TO COMPLY WITH THIS SUBSECTION IS NOT ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE A GRANT OR ENTER INTO A CONTRACT PAYABLE WITH STATE FUNDS.
        (D)  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER LAW, EACH APPROPRIATE STATE AGENCY SHALL ENSURE THAT BUSINESSES IN THIS STATE COMPLY WITH SUBSECTION (C) AND MAY REQUIRE COMPLIANCE WITH THAT SUBSECTION AS A CONDITION FOR A LICENSE, PERMIT, OR OTHER STATE AUTHORIZATION NECESSARY FOR CONDUCTING BUSINESS IN THIS STATE.
        (E)  THIS SECTION MAY NOT BE CONSTRUED TO:
              (1)  RESTRICT A BUSINESS FROM IMPLEMENTING COVID-19 SCREENING AND INFECTION CONTROL PROTOCOLS IN ACCORDANCE WITH STATE AND FEDERAL LAW TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH; OR
              (2)  INTERFERE WITH AN INDIVIDUAL'S RIGHT TO ACCESS THE INDIVIDUAL'S PERSONAL HEALTH INFORMATION UNDER FEDERAL LAW.”

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, until further notice, all participants at a Dystopia Rising: Texas (“DR:TX”) hosted event must meet one of the two conditions below:

  • Present a negative COVID-19 screening test result from the past 48 hours prior to each DR:TX event. (Tests are free and available from area pharmacies with results within 72 hours. See staff if you need assistance locating a testing location).

  • OR, in the event the above is not convenient or possible, participants may provide documentation of a completed course of COVID-19 Vaccination in lieu of a negative COVID test.

DRTX reserves the right to refuse service to anyone who does not meet either of the above conditions, or who fraudulently affirms either of the above. We also request that participants notify DR:TX should they later test positive or require quarantine for COVID-19 transmission within 14 days of each DR:TX event. Participants must comply with all reasonable requirements and requests made by event staff to prevent the transmission of disease during DR:TX events. Despite precautions, the risk of infection is never 0%. DR:TX Gamerunners and staff are not liable for exposure to, or transmission of, the COVID-19 virus during or after DR:TX events.

  • If you would like to pre-emptively email us proof of completed vaccination against COVID-19 you may do so by sending a photo, front and back, of your CDC issued vaccination card to aesa@dystopiarisingtx.com.

  • If you would prefer to wait until you attend game to show proof of screening or vaccination, please bring your test result, CDC vaccination card, or a high-resolution photo or scan of either, to event check-in. As a private business, we reserve the right to turn away anyone we feel has not offered sufficient proof of COVID safety. If you require assistance in retrieving your vaccination record, message aesa@dystopiarisingtx.com and we are qualified to help you with that process.

  • The forgery of a government agency’s seal, such as the CDC logo, is a crime. Participating in or encouraging a crime within the purview of our game community will result in a ban from participating in DR:TX events indefinitely and may result in additional legal action.

  • We may require additional waivers and affidavits to be signed at your first game back that affirm compliance with our safety requirements and which acknowledge the intrinsic liability of LARPing during COVID. We may also require temperature checks at check-in, and other reasonable precautions that will help to ensure the safety of our players. If you have a concern regarding another player’s health and safety, please see a Gamerunner.

  • At this time, we will not be requiring the wearing of masks in our play spaces or social distancing, but you certainly still can choose to wear a mask/social distance yourself.

  • We do still require consent for any physical (aka non-boffer) contact between players. Now more than ever, check in before you hug, touch, or get very close to someone. If you need to carry someone, say ‘My character is carrying you. Do you consent to me touching you?’ or something similar.

  • We have always encouraged players to remove themselves from any situation that feels unsafe, for any reason. LARP can be an overwhelming experience even at the best of times. You are the only person who can know what you are able to emotionally, mentally, or physically handle. If you need to remove yourself from a scene or place, do so. You can put the OOC symbol up, speak to the Guide as needed, or just bow out. The medical room at the back of Kiva/The General Store is open at all times for people who need a place to decompress or recover.

Shared Spaces

We are a community that LARPs together. The responsibility to prevent the spread of any disease rests with each of us. To that end:

  • Don’t come to game if you don’t feel well, or have recently been exposed to someone who is ill.

  • To your comfort level, we encourage you to bunk with your household or quarantine pod. We have many open-air cabins available, though the Texas climate means we will still have indoor and weatherized cabins available as well.

  • Take reasonable hygiene precautions including washing hands and showering. Uh, keep your fluids to yourself.

  • Use and discard makeup applicators instead of touching makeup sticks directly. We will keep many extra foam wedges and plates at our makeup station in Ops. We will be using more makeup that you can dispense onto a separate palette (liquid colors etc) instead of the mehron sticks.

  • Bring your own tattered zed and dark colored NPC clothing for NPC shift if you can! We will allow the substitution of your own post-apoc clothing for our simplest NPC roles to prevent unnecessary clothing swapping. We also will be washing soiled clothing throughout the weekend.

  • We will be increasing the frequency and method of cleaning and laundering NPC supplies and communal areas. This will be overseen by the Logistics Director, our Admin Assistant, and our Ops and Settings Guides each shift. Part of early cleanup and special NPC shifts will be to help with this process.

  • As previously, a food handler’s certificate is required to use the industrial kitchen inside of Ops. Otherwise we do not require it to use the cabin kitchenettes or to make food on site elsewhere.

Item Cards and Expiration Dates

  • Players can cash out their virtual inventories when they pre-register or check-in for our live events. Where possible, we will have these prepared in advance but due to the time-intensiveness of this task, staff will work with players to provide reasonable access to their inventories in a timely fashion.

  • Any item created from 09/2019 - 02/2020 will have 18 months added on to the original expiration. You do not need to bring the card to staff in DR:TX to be rewritten, it is just extended automatically.

Original Expiration

03/2020

04/2020

05/2020

06/2020

07/2020

08/2020

09/2020

10/2020

11/2020

12/2020

New Expiration

09/2021

10/2021

11/2021

12/2021

01/2022

02/2022

03/2022

04/2022

05/2022

06/2022

  • Any item created from 03/2020 - 08/2021 will enter play as though it was created in 09/2021 and any relevant expiration calculated from that date.

Frequently asked questions

  • I haven’t played any 3.0 games at all! How do I convert my character and cash in my 2.0 stuff?

  • Can I rewrite my character?

    • If you have not converted your character from 2.0 > 3.0 yet, or are a Texas player with less than 3 attended 3.0 live games you are eligible for a rewrite. If you're not sure if that's you, or if you are looking to change your build due to a significant rules change, then message me and we'll sort out if you're eligible for that reason. If in doubt, go ahead and email aesa@dystopiarisingtx.com!

  • I would like to apply for a Professional Focus Achievement! How can I do this?

    • If you are looking for personal plot, like a Professional Focus Achievement or other story-oriented plot, this is the form to use. We work our way down the list and do a half dozen or so PFA trials every event, but it still may be a few games before we get to you. For this reason, we request that you allow for a cool-down between personal plot requests of 4 months.

  • Are you looking for Guides/ST’s?

  • Are y’all (the Gamerunners) gonna drive around Texas the way you did before 3.0, helping people convert their stuff?

    • I’ll be real, my soul has not yet recovered from doing that last year.. so there isn’t a plan for a roadtrip this year, but there will be a way to request your virtual inventory to be cashed out when we put registration up in August for our September event! And for your older items, the section above goes over how we’re handling that time gap.

  • When do tickets go live for September?

    • Currently Ticket Sales and Pre-reg for our September 24-26th Event will open on Monday, August 30th, 2021! Pre-reg will close at midnight Friday, September 17th to give us time to prepare character sheets and materials. The sooner you pre-reg the more likely we’ll have your virtual inventories ready for pickup at check-in!

  • Can I back-buy DR:TX events?

    • Yes! If you are a DR:TX-based player, you can backbuy the 3.0 and virtual events you missed, along with any extra XP we offered! If you are a traveler, you can buy up the extra XP for any event you held a ticket for. Email us to find out what you’re eligible for.

  • What is the Event Schedule for this coming season?

  • Can I smoke/vape on site?

    • Our site is a non-smoking campus. Players cannot smoke cigarettes, pipes, cigars, or charcoal hookahs while on the camp grounds, which includes the parking lot. Players are able to smoke if the means is electronic, such as a vape or an electronic hookah.

  • I want to transfer to Texas (or another chapter!) How do?

    • Email us and we’ll get in contact with the originating/target chapter and get it sorted out!

  • If I transfer do I lose my stuff?

    • Not anymore! But just keep in mind that all your characters are based out of a single chapter now instead of multiple chapters, so whatever chapter you pick is yours for all your characters for the purposes of XP progression etc.

  • How do you plan to balance the resource advantage from Virtual events versus that of players who didn’t/couldn’t participate online?

    • Great question! On the one hand we do want to appreciate those players that stuck around to support DR:TX through the pandemic! On the other hand we don’t want anyone to feel out of the loop/left behind! We have a bunch of ideas the Storytelling Senate is working on for resource sinks that provide fun for everyone through plot and story, as well as improving the status of the town as a whole. You’ll see a lot of that as ZOMs and mechanics as we get closer to our Fall Events.

  • This is all logistics crap. I want a story/gameplay update!

  • I have a question you didn’t answer!/How do I contact staff again?