The Larpwriter Challenge

The Larpwriter Challenge was a collaboration project between Fantasiforbundet and Education centre "Post" to

• Spread the use of live roleplaying games (larps) as an educational tool
• Evolve the knowledge about and use of larps in the Nordic countries
• Strengthen and evolve the civil society in Belarus through new methods of working

This was done through two separate competitions in creating educational re-runnable larps and through seminars, conferences and trainings in creating and using larps as an educational tool.

The Nordic Larpwriter challenge

The first larpwriter challenge was announced in the spring of 2010. The finalists were chosen during the fall and the games were played and evaluated at Grenselandet 2010.

The winner of the Nordic Larpwriter Challenge was J. Tuomas Harviainen with the game "The Tribunal", which according to the author himself is a " A participatory scenario about the mechanics of oppression"

In their announcement, the jury writes of The Tribunal:

The Tribunal aims to be a participatory scenario about the mechanics of oppression. This it manages to do with an elegant and easy to grasp design. The character design is in particular effective in how it establishes distinctive characters for a short game of this type. The Tribunal clearly shows how ordinary people become accomplices in the oppression of themselves and others in the machinery of an authoritarian society.

The winner will receive a game developer grant of NOK 4 000 and the possibility to go to Minsk, Belarus on a conference on educatinal larping to hold the game and a workshop on educational game design. The game, along with several other contributions, will also be translated to Russian and/or Belarusian to be used by Belarusian NGOs in their work with young people.

The two runner-ups were The Road Not Taken by Mike Young, and Screwing the Crew by Trine Lise Lindahl and Elin Nilsen.

The Road Not Taken is, according to the author, "an experimental larp of decisions and emotions". Of this game, the jury writes: "The Road not Taken provides a solid and interesting framework for the investigation of difficult moral choices people face as members of society. The instructions are clear and well designed as a learning tool. The system is also easily adjustable to accomodate different types of groups and thematic areas."

Screwing the Crew is a short larp about open relationships, monogamy and a group of old friends, according to the authors. The jury believes that the game "is a very well written manuscript guiding the facilitator through all aspects of running the game. The game provides a good framework for telling interesting stories about complicated human relationships".

The jury members for the Nordic Larpwriter Challenge were: Anita Myhre Andersen, Tor Kjetil Edland and Aliona Velichko

The Belarussian Larpwriter Challenge

The Belarussian Larpwriter challenge was announced during the spring 2011 and the finalists were chosen during the fall and played and evaluated at Grenselandet 2011.

The winner of the Belarussian larpwriter challenge was Sergey Loparev with the game 1942 - the Police.