Main Content
What makes a human conscious? Are humans permitted to do whatever they desire in their relationship to androids?
Conscience is a larp inspired by the famous HBO tv-series Westworld, about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the moral implications of those innovations for all involved. It explores a world in which every human appetite, no matter how noble or depraved, can be indulged.
Rules
Play to flow. This game is designed to offer you the chance to experience life as your character, albeit during a short period of time and in a controlled environment. It will be a successful experience if you flow with what happens to your character. There are no objectives that will cause you to win or lose. The only thing we ask of you is to be in your character's shoes, to connect with what they feel, to think the way they would think and behave in the way they would behave, all the while allowing your character to make their own decisions. That's what we call "flow" or “letting go”.
You are your own game master, of course within the limitations of the game- and safety rules. We trust our players to be involved in the whole process, from the character creation phase to the end of the event. That's why, once the game starts, you don't need to ask us permission to do something or to decide if your character would think or do something.
Your character sheet is yours. Read it, study it, cry on it, transform it and play it. Do whatever you need as long as you respect the play challenge you agreed on.
What you see is what there is to see. There are no magic ability cards that can save you. All you see will be part of the game and you will have to deal with the consequences. Respect other people's experiences and safety: avoid any behaviour or attitude that can hurt the immersion or the experience of other players but also keep in mind that safety comes first.
There will be secrets. There are some stories that we want to be revealed in-game. So please be careful about the information you share with others out of game. Every character could have different levels of knowledge about different plots.
The off game use of any kind of electronic devices (tablets, phones, computers, etc) during the game should be discussed with the organizers.
"Verum". When we say this word we are letting you know that the next sentence is a cue that must be followed up, for example ‘make way for this car’. Only organisers can use it, although we will rarely do so.
SAFETY
SAFE WORDS
Emergency: “Emergency, stop playing”.
For every player:
- Green (or one tap on the shoulder). When someone uses this, it means the rest of the players can raise their game intensity. It is a question, not an order.
- Yellow (or tapping the shoulder twice). When someone uses this, the other players have to lower their game intensity. This is an order.
- Red. The scene stops immediately. This is an order.
For Hosts:
- Low battery: This is a safe word for Hosts. The Hosts may appear to be robots, but of course the players are not. If they're bored, tired, have spent too much time in a scene or a human is ordering something they don't want to do, they can say those magic words and ask for what they need. For example: “Low battery. I need to take a seat” or “Low battery. I need to get to Maintenance to go back to the park” or “Low battery. I won´t serve dinner”.
VIOLENCE & SEXUAL VIOLENCE
There will be a workshop where we will explain how to depict sex and violence. We will also use different coloured bracelets to communicate the experience the player wants to have.
- -White bracelet: violence.
- -Red bracelet: sexual violence.
Any scene about these topics should only be played out with other players who wear the bracelets, and only after an out of game conversation about the nature and intensity of the scene. When the scene has started any of the players can still use the safe words to ask for more intensity or to slow down the scene.
HARD LIMITS
No real sex, no touching of genitals, no touching of people who are naked. Racism or comments about the body of the players are prohibited.
SAFE SPACE
This is an out of game space that works as a safety net for the players. If your play is having any negative impact on you, you can come here and eat, rebalance, relax, or get a hug.
ARE YOU OK?
Gamemasters or other players can ask if a player is ok with this sign:
You can reply with:
“Yes, I am ok”.
“Not sure”. This hand signal, which means the player doesn't quite know how they feel, or that it's neither good or bad. This should be treated as a thumbs down by the person doing the asking. Please bring the player to the safe space.
“No, I am not”. Please bring the player to the safe space.