No Confidence: A Resistance LARP

“Do your part to root out the insurgents. Don’t let anyone use your access cards, be careful who you talk to, and inform imperial security immediately if you suspect anyone of harboring sympathy with the rebels. Anyone you know could be a …”

“…khtzzt…”

“This is Operative Apricot, from Echo house. We need support in sector Rook, calling for a gathering of available agents for a set of covert missions. These are critical for the fight to overthrow the Empire. Coordinate with sector command for the meeting location.”

No Confidence: A Resistance LARP is a game about underground resistance members sending small teams to carry out missions against the empire. Imperial spies will be infiltrating the teams and attempting to sabotage the missions. Players are either resistance operatives or imperial spies and are trying to deduce other player’s loyalties as they work towards helping or hindering the resistance movement.

Long Description

The Empire has kept a tight grip on its subjects for far too long, but the people are too afraid to rise up against their oppressive government and its strong leader. Small cells of resistance members have formed and are recruiting agents to gather information and resources. We have reached a tipping point and the time to move is now. Long nights in the safehouse poring over multitudes of imperial dispatches has led to this, the key to a strike at the heart of imperial power, and what will let the resistance finally come out from the shadows and into the light. We must keep a close eye on each other and not let the imperial agents who have infiltrated our ranks sabotage us. Be careful about who you open up to, an overheard conversation could lead to the resistance's downfall.

At first the resistance was not worth our time. The anarchist rumblings were not to be taken seriously, but recently, an outbreak of thefts and vandalism has brought their actions into the spotlight. These anarchists must take responsibility for their actions and we must shut them down like all previous rebellions. The last rebel commander was reckless and made their opinion known through establishing confidence in the wrong operative, leading to their assassination. This new wave of resistance will be just as easy to dismantle.

In No Confidence: A Resistance LARP, players are members of an underground resistance cell, choosing and selecting teams for missions to oppose the imperial government. However, some of the players are imperial spies that have infiltrated this group, and are working to sabotage the resistance effort. Players may have distinct roles that provide some information on who to trust, as well as some with unique qualities and abilities.

The game is structured around several debrief meetings where characters discuss the outcomes of their missions, and plan out their upcoming missions and tasks. After selecting their teams, characters resolve their missions by anonymously selecting what actions they take. The core of the larp is a game of deduction and determining who you can trust. Players will be cast at the door, including role and alignment, with no survey in advance.

This larp is inspired by the hundreds of games of The Resistance and the many official and unofficial variants the authors have played. Prior knowledge of the board game Resistance is not necessary.