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SFeraKon 2013 day three: Death of the Japanese Emperor

Coming straight from Jaska 11 (which is the reason why there's no "day two" review), I had time for breakfast and coffee before SFeraKon started. Sunday is not a very popular day on SFeraKon, and this year it was no different as population paled compared to the one on Friday (and probably Saturday, but as I was not there I cannot guarantee it). I also managed to visit the only content on SFeraKon other than mine for the duration of the convention - my sister-in-law's presentation of Destination Star Trek in London last year which she visited. After that, I ran Death of the Japanese Emperor.



Only three people have signed up for the run - one less than the minimum number - but I still decided to run it. The “secret crush” part was not done as it was meaningless in such a small group, and it was impossible to fully control the lighting due to the run being in the early afternoon, so no light turning off was possible. However, the idea from A Party Full of Secrets was introduced (everyone was to decide two positive and one negative characteristic about themselves), and players were placed in an intentionally small “cell”, with only one chair as an in-game prop.

Also, due to events happening on Christmas Eve 2012, the larp switched genres from “near future” to “alternate past”. Apart from the murderer, two people were cast as “the insecure person” and “the changed person” - actually, looking back on it it was probably the best choice for the three-people run. Two players were male, and one was female. Their main personal story revolved from attending university together.

The role-play (by the players which I might add had no prior larp experience) started out insecure, but intensified during the game, and the murderer confessed to their friends and then to the guard - a strong drama was produced by the “play to lose” principle of playing which was mentioned to this group of players. The event was a success, and participants were satisfied with it - and so did I. It managed to function without cutting the time. And it provided another unique view on the story.

I'm looking forward to running it again on some other convention.
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