Love and Duty is not a romantic regency larp. It is not about playing Austen heroines, or happily ever afters. Instead, this is a larp about realism, rather than the romanticized version we so often see portrayed.

For this larp we want to lean into the constraints and expectations of this time, and let themes of honour, reputation and virtue be present, both in the families and in the characters themselves.

The experiences for the different groups will also differ.

For the young generation: Though this is a larp about engagements, it is not about fairytales, and though the larp itself will end with all the engagements announced, that will not be the end of the story for your characters. We want to tell the story of your character’s life, seen through your eyes.

For the middle generation: This larp is just as much about what happened 25 years ago, during a freer era when all of you gathered in 1788. It is about the loves gained and lost and about who you used to be. It is about the choice you made then, the marriage you ended up in, and how that has affected you during the years. And finally, it is about your role as a parent as you advise, guide and strong-arm your child so that they will have the best possible future.

For the two women in the older generation: It is an experience of being almost untouchable, and having paid all your dues during life. Finally you enjoy as much freedom as a woman of your station could. You have money, means and influence, and now you can sit as a spider in the web, deciding which people to pair up, and expecting everyone to follow your lead.

All of this will differ quite a bit from the Downstairs experience. There, you will instead experience a working environment, where you must appear like a well-oiled working machinery to the Upstairs people. Here petty quibbles are paired with a sense of camaraderie, and crushes and friendships meet resentments and adversity. Though you are at the mercy of your employer, you can still enjoy a sense of freedom that the upper classes can’t, and you are not as closely scrutinised as they are. Still you cannot push things too far, or forget your place, or you might find yourself out of a job.

Policy on Off-game Gender, Ethnicity and Age

Our policy is that anyone can play in any group on equal terms, regardless of gender, ethnicity or age. Here are some clarifications:

Male characters wear trousers, and female characters wear dresses. This is the requirement for representing the gender you play, though you are of course welcome to make yourself more femme or masc to match the fashion norms of this time, as well as wear binders and the like.

When it comes to ethnicity, if you belong to the BIPOC community and you wish for this to be reflected in your character, then it will be possible for you to tell us this in your sign-up, and should you get a spot at the larp, we will write a historic BIPOC character for you appropriate for your character group. Otherwise it will not be an aspect in play (i.e. you choose yourself if you want this to be an aspect of your experience, without any expectation from us). We will also workshop how to play on this during the larp.

The different age groups will also have some distinguishing features in their dress, with older fashions coming into play for the older generations. Your off-game age doesn’t matter when it comes to which group you can play in, but you are of course welcome to wear aging make-up, should you wish.