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→Coming of Age: Typo fixing, typos fixed: each others’ → each other's (2)
The larp was driven by planned rituals, competitions and moral dilemmas led by elders of the tribes (game masters). They were carriers of culture and tradition, leading the young into adulthood. In the beginning of the larp the elders played a central role, but as the larp proceeded their influence diminished, until the participants were left with the full burden of adult life.
The first day of the larp was oriented towards introductions of the area and the cultural traditions, common and different, of the tribes. The participants were cleansed in a sweat lodge, where they also went through a spiritual dream journey to find their totem animals and names (prepared in one of the workshops). During this day the young also learned to mix the sacred colours, which the tribes used in body painting, symbolizing adulthood and the right to mate. Constant painting and repainting of each others’ other's bodies was a central activity during the rest of the larp.
The second day evolved around the exploration of the possibilities, burdens and responsibilities of adulthood. Every initiate crafted a symbol of youth, which was burned at the end of the day. They received necklaces as a symbol of their adulthood, while the elders died socially, symbolized by the donning of [[masks]]. From this moment on, the initiates could fight, love and mate as adults.
The body-painting was also a central part of the hierarchy in the larp. As painting oneself was a taboo, the amount of attention given to your paintings was a visual status symbol. Also, the dominant gender established ownership by painting their sign on their mates.
These two elements, in addition to several other aspects, made Totem a very real experience, a tangible and visceral experience for the participants constantly aware of each others’ other's actions as part of the status game. Andie Nordgren (2008) has named this detailed interaction as high resolution larping. She argues that the building a strong ensemble through diegetic rules and workshops enabled a lot of high resolution interaction, as the participants received both a framework and tools to maneuver in the larp.
''When the relationships in the game feel real, the game world feels real. You have the ability to pull the action in the game from the clunky levels of kings and politics, down into the very subtle shifts and processes in the group.'' (Nordgren 2008)
