Matthias - Dun Abhon wrote:I understand and very much enjoy encouraging new people to seek out veterans to learn lots of stuff about our game. I personally LOVE helping out new people. I put myself at their disposal as much as I can. But there's a point at which that's not really feasible. For people who see some cool video, somehow discover us, find that there's no realm within a hundred miles of them, it's not super practical for them to seek out veterans to help them with all kinds of stuff, since it'd involve a hell of a lot of travel time for one or both of them. Yes, we still have the boards, but unreliable internet access and the limitations of the medium are still problems; it's far easier to show someone in person what you're talking about than it is to describe it in a post for most things, for example.
That said, I really think it might be more productive to collect information and condense it into a comprehensive newbie guide (with pictures, maybe video, wherever necessary) for occasions like what I described; besides, it's not like having that guide would hurt any realm that had vets around anyway. Like I said before, that would allow us to keep our rulebook a little lighter, it'd provide an additional (hopefully very good) resource for new members and realms, and it'd help get our collective wisdom a little more out in the open and a little more accessible to everyone.
I really like this idea. I'm in an area where 3-4 new realms pop up every year within 60 miles of me. However, So Cal doesn't actually let me see them all that often. 10 miles of driving here might be 1 hour in traffic! Though we try to make annual pilgrimages, this is hardly enough for fledgling realms that don't have Bel vets as a resource. Adding on to the quote above, I think our Guide should do the following:
1) Give a historical perspective to the BOW and the intended purposes for most or all rules
2) What the application of these rules looks like (photos, diagrams, video, ect).
3) What the common conventions during game-play are: including possible regional differences
4) Helping people transition from LARP or backyard play into Bel by explaining key differences
4A) Differences between Dag/Amt
5) Explaining CAMPING EVENTS: social customs, expectations, ect.
There's probably more that we can do, but the obvious thing we need is for many people in the community to chip in to make it happen.