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For LARP organisers and marshalsUpdated Oct 12, 20262 min read

Run a safety brief before game-on

Print the Safety & Rules Reference, then walk your players through the calls, the consent tools, weapon checks and the site before anyone says Lay on.

  • ~10 min
  • Comfortable
On this page
  1. Before you start
  2. Before the day
  3. At the gate
  4. If something's off

Five minutes before play saves a weekend. The Safety & Rules Reference holds the calls most systems share; this is how to turn it into a brief your players hear before game-on.

Before you start

  • Your game's own rulebook and safety rules — where they differ from the reference, use theirs.
  • A printer, or the reference open on a phone.
  • Your marshals, the first-aid kit, and someone at the safety table.

Before the day

  1. Open the reference

    In the LARP Realm's rail, under Reference, choose Safety & Rules Reference.

  2. Print it

    Press Print for the brief. Only the reference prints — no menus — so it works as a handout or a sheet to pin up at the gate.

  3. Mark your differences

    Note where your game's calls differ — a different word for a pause, a Cut you do or don't use — so you brief what you actually play.

At the gate

  1. The calls that stop play

    Say and demonstrate “Hold” (everyone freezes, drops to a knee and waits for a marshal) and “Man down” (a real injury — play stops around it). Then how play starts and pauses: “Time in” / “Lay on”, “Time out” / “Time freeze”, “Time stop”.

  2. The consent tools

    Show the OK check and its three answers — anything but a thumbs-up means drop character and check in. Then the Look-down / “I'm not here” sign, “Cut” if you use it, and how to opt out of anything before play.

  3. Weapons and contact

    Every boffer and latex weapon goes through the safety table before play. Pull your blows: light, controlled contact, no head, neck or groin shots.

  4. The site

    Point out first aid, the marshals, and the nearest road access; name the hazards — roots, holes, water, low light — and remind everyone to drink water and dress for the weather.

  5. Then start

    Ask for questions, then call Lay on.

Check it worked

Anyone you ask can tell you what to do on a Hold, and every weapon in play has been checked.

The calls in full are in LARP safety calls & consent tools; weapon building and the flex test in Building LARP props & weapons.

If something's off

The printout has the whole page on it
Print with Print for the brief rather than your browser's menu, and check the print preview shows only the reference.
Newcomers arrive after the brief
Brief them one-to-one before they play — at least Hold, Man down and the OK check — and send them to the safety table.

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