Camarilla Agram 1 - how it was

In Camarilla, positions of power are quite clear.

Mile and Teddea, our hosts, both playing Malkavians

The first full event of Camarilla Agram series incorporated plenty of experiences we learned from our first three playtests. The larp was played in a private apartment, and the set dressing was created that went way beyond what was done in the second playtest event.

A lot of effort has been placed in set dressing - the entire play area was illuminated by a large number of red candles instead of electricity, cloth was draped over crucial locations, there was fake blood in the bathtub and sink... a real effort was made to make it look like an actual Vampire haven.

The apartment had a well-fitting number of rooms which made it fitting for a social environment for the number of players who showed up on this larp. A total of 25 players took part in it - 20 of them were on-site for the full time, as some were late or had to go early. Several players had make-up, teeth and/or specific, high-quality costumes which added a lot to the environment (a hint to all the players - carnival is approaching, it's a great opportunity to get some supplies in the stores).

A Brujah troublemaker

A Ventrue and a soon-to-be Malkavian Primogen

The storyline was heavily social-based. It revolved about accepting new Kindred into the Camarilla, as well as several other setting-specific elements including: electing the new Primogens of the Tremere and Malkavian clans, announcing the new Harpy (and players scurrying to register their boons - which provided a lot of content), and pleasing the Princess enough to be granted rich hunting grounds for a short while.

The Hunting Grounds element will also become recurring in the next Camarilla Agram larps. They are granted to a clan and a single person outside of that clan. Ventrue won the clan award this time, and one of the Malkavian players was granted the single person rights. This basically allows all players granted this boon to feed in the downtime without expanding downtime actions or Herd. We expect this to become a familiar, recurring feature of social dynamics of all the big Camarilla Agram larps.

However, I'd say that the dramatic highlight of the evening was a certain Brujah troublemaker, opposing the Princess defiantly. It provided for some shouting contests and came close to escalating to open violence in Elysium, and it provided a lot of high-quality play moments in the second half of the larp as a lot of players got themselves involved in this.

Overall, the event was widely considered a success (by all GMs and all the players we asked). As GMs, we consider it the best Vampire larp that we organized so far (compared to the first three intro events), and it's certainly a direction future events will take.

The Princess surrounded by the Ventrue

The February will feature four "low-fidelity" games (no makeup, teeth, optional costuming, played in a public space) named Elysium, which will be played every Wednesday. The next big event will be played March 1st, same place, and ran by Mario Bošnir and Goran Bjelić. Event links are available on the Camarilla Agram website, and the larp is discussed in the Vampire larp Zagreb Facebook group. The photo album from the event is available here.

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Diary of a Croatian larper

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