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Other Rules

This chapter covers everything related to how the game operates, such as event structure, rules about the game site, and what different staff positions do.

Events

Monthly Gatherings

Novitas takes place roughly monthly at Camp Kingsley. We refer to these gatherings each as one event. Events are generally scheduled the first full weekend of the month. Most years events are held in March, April, May, June, August, September, October, November, and December each year. Some years the April event will be moved up a week to avoid conflict with Easter. Due to the Boy Scouts having an event for themselves in October (preventing us from using the site) that event is nearly always a week earlier.

Events are where the game actually takes place. While the community can be very active during the downtime, the game only ever truly happens during an event. This is significant for things such as role-playing skill advancement, we only ever count activity at an event for role-playing skill advancement.

Event Timeline

Friday

Saturday

  • 2am-10am: Nothing Scheduled.
    • Sleep, socialize, do what you will.
    • No food is provided by game during this time.
  • 10am-3pm: 2nd Shift.
    • Food is available at the inn for all players.
  • 3pm-8pm: 3rd Shift.
    • Food is available at the inn for all players.
  • 8pm-1am: 4th Shift.
    • Food is available at the inn for all players.

Sunday

  • 1am-8am: Nothing Scheduled.
    • Sleep, socialize, do what you will.
    • No food is provided by the game during this time.
  • 8am-10am: Clean-up.
    • Be sure to clean-up your personal belongings before helping with general game clean-up.
    • Some players arrive earlier than this, others arrive later. Experience is awarded for this and help is greatly appreciated. The more people involved the faster it goes.
  • 11am: Site Closes
    • Everyone who isn't staff must be off the site by this time.
  • 11am-1pm: Lunch Off-Site
    • Players still around typically go get lunch somewhere nearby after an event.
      • Nicky Doodles in Rome, NY is the current popular destination when it is open (April-October).
      • For the cold weather months we have not found a location large enough to accomodate everyone, so generally smaller groups go to different locations by preference.

Check-in

Each event all players attending need to check-in at the logistics desk in the logistics building. This will open at 7pm, please wait until that time to check-in.

You may see the logistics staff behind the desk prior to 7pm. The time before 7pm is one of the best chances they have to get work done on-site with all the things stored there. When people ask if they are ready to start check-in every few minutes, it makes getting that work done much more challenging.

When check-in begins, someone at one of the computers will take cash payment or, for those who pre-registered online, will mark you as present. To pay by credit card on site, you'll need your own device to pay over paypal.

If you did not check your current experience online before the event, they will let you know how much your current character has. Cash donations can also be turned in at this time.

Finally, you'll also let them know which PC you are playing for the event.

If you think your total amount of experience is incorrect, talk to the Logistics Marshal only if you aren't sure where your experience came from. If you know what experience is missing you'll want to talk to the Marshal responsible for that aspect of the game. For example if you didn't get experience for a prop donation, you should talk to the Props Marshal, the Logistics Marshal can't help you with that.

After you have checked in you can proceed down the table to pick up any pre-produced items you may have ordered (and pay for them if necessary).

You can also exchange out-of-date consumables or rituals at this time. If you are only exchanging one or two items this does not require doing anything special, but if you wish to exchange a 10 or more you should make sure you use the pre-production form to make it easier on the logistics staff.

If you are using a character sheet printed with our online character sheet app you do not need to have it approved by staff. If you are using a handwritten sheet, they can be checked at this part of the process. Never update an approved sheet. Instead take a new sheet, fill that out with any changes, then take both the new and the old sheet to the person checking character sheets. They will verify you filled it out correctly and mark your new sheet as approved.

In the past older character sheets were archived in case they got lost. With the online character portal that is no longer necessary, as players can retrieve their sheets at any time. Players who haven't been around since before the portal was set up can speak to logistics, who have scanned old sheets that were in the archive to keep in case they are ever needed.

Shifts

The game is broken up into 4 'shifts'. Each shift takes place over the course of 5 hours.

  • 1st shift is from 9pm on Friday to 2am on Saturday.
  • 2nd shift is from 10am to 3pm on Saturday.
  • 3rd shift is from 3pm to 8pm on Saturday.
  • 4th shift is from 8pm on Saturday to 1am on Sunday.

Each shift is run by a different group of Game Masters (GMs), each of whom will tell different stories unique to their shift. Players are each assigned shifts by logistics so that they can see those stories unfold over the course of the year.

While shifts are running, food is available for all players at the inn.

Role-playing can occur outside of the time shifts are occurring, but combat (or other conflict requiring rules) may not. Encounters not completed by 2am on Saturday morning or 1am Sunday morning (the end of 1st and 4th shifts respectively) are effectively over, unless the players involved want to role-play dialog afterwards. Non-player characters are welcome to end such encounters when they wish after these times, for example if they want to go to bed or are otherwise ready to get out-of-game.

Some players also get up early on Saturday morning to get additional role-playing in.

Items may be exchanged outside of shifts as long as this is not used as a method of keeping items from entering play.

Shift Balance

Players can play a character on one shift for each shift they play a non-player character.

New players are expected to play a NPC on their first shift and generally second shifts, and may play a PC for the remaining shifts if they wish (though it is often recommended that new players NPC their entire first event). Afterwards, players should contact Logistics to be assigned shifts to play on a regular basis. This is to maintain 'Shift Balance', ensuring we don't have too many PCs or NPCs on any given shift.

Groups are given special preference for 'Shift Balance' to ensure they can play together on their shifts. Each year in the winter 'Shift Balance' is redone to allow players to interact with different people and to make sure no one is stuck on one particular combination if they don't want to be.

2nd and 3rd shift are the two shifts that have daylight and as such, each player who wishes to have a daylight shift will get at least one of those shifts.

Volunteers who want double night shifts (1st and 4th) are greatly appreciated and help us stagger assignments so that not everyone is assigned to 1&2 or 3&4. 2&4 is an unpopular combination, which makes giving out 1&3 difficult as well, so most players are assigned to either 1&2, 3&4, 1&4, or 2&3. Because 2&3 are double day shifts that are back-to-back (and thus require less changing) it is exceedingly popular and incredibly hard to give to players, it generally only gets assigned to one person for each person who volunteers for 1&4. Characters with intense makeup requirements (Snow Goblins, Drakes, and Verdurans) will get preferential treatment when deciding back-to-back shifts.

Convergence

Every 6 hours starting at midnight Friday night, there is a 'Convergence' in game. From a narrative perspective this is the leylines pulsing with energy, recharging magical abilities and some items. We call the time between two convergences one 'Game Day'.

At this time:

  • Players power point pools replenish
  • Any spells with a duration of 'Game Day' expire.
  • Abilities that can be used a certain number of times per 'Game Day' replenish

Effects which last the entire event last until the end of 4th shift.

When a Convergence happens, it is common practice to yell loudly 'Convergence!' as a way to notify everyone without a watch that it has happened. This is considered an out-of-game call.

The Game Site

Camp Kingsley

Camp Kingsley is a Boy Scout camp that hosts our events. We rent out the entire camp site 8 or 9 times a year for our events. Nearly all of the buildings on site are available for us to use and they provide some basic resources (like toilet paper), everything else used is provided by Kingdoms of Novitas.

Because we are guests at the site we need to make sure we always follow the camp's policies on certain things.

  • Camp Kingsley is a dry site, no alcohol is permitted there, ever.
  • Smoking is only allowed at the designated location in the parking area.
  • Showers are available year round, but the nicest shower facilities are not available in winter (or early spring).
  • Any fire lit on site must always be attended to at all times, fires may only be lit by individuals given approval by the Operations Marshal or second, Chris Soukup or Zach Goldstein.
  • Swimming in the lake is prohibited.
  • Driving on the Sports field is prohibited, there is a leach field for the bathrooms there which could get crushed by the weight.

Work Days

About twice a year Camp Kingsley hosts volunteer work days where mostly Boy Scouts come and volunteer their time, improving and upkeeping the site. The more hands they have available the better the improvements can be, and they greatly appreciate our help. Showing up to these events make us stand out as great members of the community and help ensure a healthy relationship with our hosts. To that end we award a great deal of experience for anyone who shows up to help out at work day.

When you see a post about a Camp Kingsley Work Day please consider volunteering your time to help out.

Buildings

There are a variety of buildings on site for our usage. With all buildings be sure to close the door behind you to keep the seasonal weather and bugs out. All of the buildings have heat in the winter, none of them are air conditioned. Buildings that are used in-game are always in-game during event hours. Reserving space in one of the A-Frames is recommended if you plan on sleeping during event hours.

The Dining Hall (Logistics and the Inn)

This is the largest building on site. Sleeping is not allowed in this building. It is split in half during events by a large curtain. A gap is available in the curtain so that people in the front half of the building can have access to the restrooms in the back and for during out-of-game hours. Please don't use the the gap in the curtains to enter or exit play as an NPC, use the doors.

The front half is "logistics" where check-in takes place at the begining of each event. During shifts gamemasters can be found at the same desk. Non-player characters will get dressed and get make-up for encounters here as well. This is the best location to find a member of staff if you need one at any time during an event. Entry to logistics is primarily through the buildings front doors. The fire place here should only be turned on or off by staff.

Meanwhile, the back half of the building is the Inn, the Spinning Jenny. During game the Inn can be accessed by either of the side doors on the building. The Inn has food for coin available during every shift. Non-player characters eat for free. Dishes can be washed in the kitchen, and space is available in the kitchen to store your dishes when not in use. Please don't leave them out on the tables.

The kitchen should only be used for cooking or storing food with approval from the Inn Marshal, Jordan Bellassai. At the back of the building is one last door which goes straight into the kitchen. This should only be used by innkeepers working a shift, operations staff who are doing their shift duties, and emergency situations.

Williams Lodge

Up until recently Willaims lodge was the location of the Spinning Jenny (the Inn). It now serves as the location in-game for the Vargainen Embassy, and for the Town Hall. Beds are available here by reservation only. Speak to the Ops Marshal, Chris Soukup to reserve one.

Harden Cabin

Harden Cabin was the original location of the Spinning Jenny, then the second location of the Slap & Tickle, before eventually becoming the location of the Glowing Coals. Currently, it serves to represent a variety of possible locations. The building should not be used by player characters in-game at this time except for during encounters. It is located inside the random encounter adventuring zone. Gamemasters will use this building during the game for random encounters that need a building to make sense. Treat the building as the same building on a single shift, but when the shift is over, give the gamemasters some freedom to write stories, and treat it as a different building located nearby.

The building sits at the end of the parking lot. Players are always welcome to sleep in this building on a first come, first served basis.

A fridge and stove are present in the building. Speak to the inn marshal, Jordan Bellassai, about using them. If you do, you will be responsible for cleaning them.

Evans Cabin

Evans Cabin was the original location of the Slap & Tickle up until 2020. The building sits in the Hooked Encounter Zone and should be not be used by player characters in-game to allow Gamemaster's to write hooked plots that require a building. Each encounter in this building could represent a different location as needed for narrative purposes. It sits down the road from Harden Cabin near one of the nicer bath facilities. Players are always welcome to sleep in this building on a first come, first served basis.

A fridge and stove are present in the building. Speak to the Inn Marshal, Jordan Bellassai, about using them. If you do, you will be responsible for cleaning them.

Cayuga Cabin

Cayuga Cabin is commonly referred to as Mercy House. Player characters should not use this building in-game. The building is located in the Hooked Encounter Zone can represent a different location each time it is used as needed by the Gamemasters for encounters.

The A-Frames

There are three A-Frames located near the Ranger's house. They are named Apache, Pawnee and Sioux going from the nearest to the Ranger's house to farthest. To get to them drive past the Ranger's house when you first get to the site. Walking to them is possible, but the path is fairly steep. These buildings are available by reservation for players to sleep in. Speak to the Ops Marshal, Chris Soukup, regarding reservations. Parking is available at all times at the A-Frames.

A fridge and stove are present in each building, however be warned they were not well cared for during 2020. Speak to the Inn Marshal, Jordan Bellassai, about using them. If you do, you will be responsible for cleaning them.

The A-frames have showers and bathrooms in them that are only available in the late Spring, Summer, and early Fall. The rest of the year the only facilities available there are two port-a-potties.

These buildings are only considered in play if the players staying there wish for them to be, and even then only if they are prepared to be in-game in advance (with people's out-of-game items hidden, etc). Plots are not sent there.

The Pavillion

The Pavillion is commonly known as the Bazaar, this isn't a building, but it can be used in-game as one. A variety of picnic tables are available for player usage. There is power available in the corner closest to Williams. Players can claim up to two picnic tables for encampments or merchant stalls. Nothing protects merchandise from being stolen however.

Unavailable Buildings

This stone Chapel near the lake is not available for our use.

Heath Lodge and Hornbeck are just outside of Harden Cabin. Hornbeck was once used as a temple, but is no longer available to us for use. Heath lodge has never been available for our use.

The waterfront building by the lake is not available for our use.

Lean-Tos

The lean-to's are available for players to sleep in, though this is not recommended in the colder months unless you know what to expect. Groups can also use these to set up encampments in. These can be claimed each event on a first come, first served basis.

The Ranger lean-tos are the group of lean-tos in the middle of the Maplewood Town Zone closest to the lake. On the north end of the Maplewood Town Zone closest to the ranger's house are the Seneca Lean-Tos.

The Oneida Lean-Tos was once referred to as 'Maplewood Proper' in the early days of using the site. After various plot developments this is no longer a central part of town and is now located in the hooked plot adventuring zone. People still commonly use that name even though it isn't accurate any more.

Parking and Driving On Site

Parking in front of the Logistics Building is for loading and unloading only. When game is in progress all vehicles should be parked either in the main parking lot directly ahead of the entry driveway, or parked at the A-Frames. The camp asks us to keep our maximum speed at 5 miles per hour. Please do your best to keep to that speed. Outside of game hours, cars can be driven to drop off or pick up items in Williams Cabin or to the Lean-tos. This should not be done during game hours, when snow is on the ground (it gets VERY icy), or if it is wet enough a vehicle will leave tracks.

Tents

Players are allowed to set up tents on site, but there are some restrictions on them. Check with the Props Marshal, , regarding where it is ok to set up period tents during events. We need to make sure we don't lose prime encounter locations and we also need to make sure support ropes aren't tripping hazards.

Modern or otherwise non-period tents can be set up but must be broken down while the game is happening and for this reason are not recommended.

Special Events

Feb Feast

Every year during the winter break a special event known as Feb Feast is held, while traditionally it has always been held in February (thus the name), it is sometimes held in January.

Feb Feast is an out-of-character social event that allows the community to gather and meet each other outside of the game. During each Feb Feast we also auction, raffle and sell a variety of special items to raise funds for the game.

This is traditionally a wet event, which means it cannot be held at Camp Kingsley. Generally, a hotel or similar venue will be booked for it. The date for the event will be announced each year during the November or December preceding. Pre-registration for Feb Feast is almost always required due to catering needs. The fee for Feb Feast can be higher than a normal event as well, depending on the site it takes place at.

Winter Weekend

This is the only event typically held in the middle of winter. Generally held in February or March, when the game site is often snowy and quite icy. To account for this we cut the event down to only 2 shifts, with an increased focus on personal story for characters or groups. Clean up takes place on what would normally be 3rd shift, and an in-character feast is held in place of 4th shift.

Not every player enjoys the snowy weather so turn out for this event can be significantly lower than other events. This is expected, and gives the Game Masters an easier time focusing on telling stories for the players who do attend.

April Events

In the month of April Game Masters are given extra permission to run plots that can lean on the sillier side. This isn't to say that serious plots aren't also run in April (or that joke plots don't get run outside of April), but April is the month you can expect to see the best joke plots get pulled out. In recent years effort has been taken to limit the number of joke plots that break the fourth wall, but they do happen from time to time.

Julybilee

Every campsite we've ever been hosted at has run Summer Camp activities for kids during the month of July, meaning that we can't have an event at the same time. This isn't the worst thing considering the heat of the month and the layers of garb and equipment we all carry.

During the transition to Kingsley from the site we were at prior to that there was no June event that year, and so we had a big picnic to take its place which we termed the "Junebilee". It was so popular we've made it into a yearly tradition and moved it to July so that it was during the off month.

This event is organized by the Player Outreach and Education staff and [=Feb Feast items are typically offered as well. Expect event details to be announced for this around April of each year, or earlier if we expect issues with booking.

Harvest Fest

Harvest Fest is a special event where two shifts (2nd and 3rd) are used for every single player to be playing their player character. Players who do not have characters yet can play townsfolk so they can also enjoy the festivities. Each player group typically volunteers to run a carnival style game and are given prizes to award to the winners of that event. Harvest Fest prizes are epic items that only have magic properties for one year.

Past games run include: trivia contests, Simon says games, archery contests, tag bag throwing matches, obstacle courses and more. Just about anything where there is a clear winner, that is done in roughly 30 minutes works.

Each year there is also a fighter's tournament with custom rules to balance the field in order to allow everyone to participate.

Harvest Fest has traditionally been held in the Fall in the past, but is now being held yearly in August to try to make the hottest month of the year a little more relaxed.

Players will PC as normal for one of either 1st or 4th shift, with a special shift balance made by logistics for just the one event.

Dungeon Crawl

A dungeon crawl event is a special event run periodically, every few years. Players in groups of typically 10 will explore a dungeon (with walls built of plastic sheeting) full of monsters and traps. The layout of the dungeon is fairly static because of how challenging it can be to set up, but the content of the dungeon (the narrative and what monsters are inside) will be different for each group.

At a dungeon crawl all players must temporarily work in groups, even those who are normally independent will join a group for the event.

Dungeon crawls will replace a normally scheduled event, typically the September or October event. A dungeon crawl is unlikely to occur in the same year as a Castle Siege event. Dungeon Crawls generally require pre-registration and may have a higher than normal event fee to cover the cost of setting up the dungeon.

These events do not happen every year both to keep them special, and because they are a GREAT DEAL of extra work for the staff to plan and execute, not to mention quite expensive.

Castle Siege

A Castle Siege is a special event run periodically every few years where we rent out a paint ball site such as EMR event park and take advantage of the wood castles built there to tell a story involving large scale mass combat.

Castle Siege events will typically replace an existing normal event, typically the September or October event. A Castle Siege event is unlikely to take place in the same year as a Dungeon Crawl. Castle Sieges generally require pre-registration and may have a higher than normal event fee to cover the cost of setting up the venue.

November Events

Every year Halloween is a great source of new props for our game. The Props Marshal will typically put out a want list of things they are hoping to acquire on sale from Halloween vendors during post Halloween clearance sales. It is also very common for there to be double experience value for cash donations made between October and November to help us take advantage of these sales.

While there is no in-game tradition to run anything specific for Halloween, many Game Masters do take the opportunity to flex their creativity and do something unusual or spooky with things they find because of the season.

December Events

As the last event of the year which is then followed by a 2-4 month break, many Game Masters will wrap up some of their ongoing plots. There's nothing sadder than seeing a plot people are engaged with wither and die because everyone forgot the details over Winter break. Not every plot will be wrapped up at this time, but generally smaller ones that are unlikely to be recalled will end by this month at the latest. If you don't think your adventuring group is going to continue to stay together over the winter break it's a good idea to let any Game Masters running ongoing plots for you know this so that they can wrap them up accordingly.

Adrastea Inc

Kingdoms of Novitas is a game run by Adrastea Inc, a charitable not-for-profit organization based out of New York. The game was originally founded in 2004 by MVGC inc and sold to Adrastea in December 2022. We do not generally use Adrastea Inc to refer to the company, legally we do business as (DBA) Kingdoms of Novitas. The board of directors for Adrastea Inc are Christina Mevec, James Vertucci, and Ryan Green, who serve as the first marshals of Kingdoms of Novitas.

A Charitable Non-For-Profit

As a charitable organization, some things related to Kingdoms of Novitas are tax deductible. It's important to note that not everything is and you should know the difference to correctly fill out tax information.

What is NOT tax deductible:

  • Event Entry Fees (you're getting something in return)
  • Merchandise purchases
  • Raffles
  • Volunteer Time

What is Tax Deductible:

  • Donations
  • Auctions (minus the resale value of anything won).
  • Gas or other expenses spent going to VOLUNTEER
    • Standard Game Events are never volunteer situations, but donating time helping to improve Camp Kingsley at one of their work days is.

Staff

Workgroups

Kingdoms of Novitas is run by players who volunteer their time to make everything function. Staff is led by the first marshals: Christina Mevec, James Vertucci, and Ryan Green. They set the tone for the entire game, handle the paperwork, and deal with any major issues. If you ever have an issue of great importance please bring it to the attention of one of the first marshals as soon as possible.

Underneath the first marshals there are seven workgroups who work on maintaining different aspects of events.

The seven workgroups are:

Who To Talk To

Use this guide to help figure out which person is the right person to speak with:

Staff Retreat

Every year, generally in January, staff gathers for what is known as staff retreat. At staff retreat members of staff talk about the past year and plan for the coming year. Most major decisions are made at staff retreat and then announced at the next public event afterwards.

Staff retreats are closed to the public, though sometimes a new player or two will be invited along in order to help get perspective from someone outside of staff.

Providing Feedback

Staff always welcomes feedback from players. When delivering that feedback there is some advice on how to make it have the most impact.

  • Be direct: Tell us what you like or dislike about a specific thing. Stating "I think that the inn should have bbq sauce for hot dogs" is more useful feedback than "There should be more condiments in the inn".
  • Use names, don't generalize: When expressing an opinion being able to name who feels this way is going to be more persuasive than "A lot of people think that..." statements. It tells us who to talk to for more feedback.
  • Remember that this game is many things to many people: This game has been around for a long time and represents many different things to many different people. Recognizing who benefits and who will be negatively impacted by proposals is important.
  • Remember that staff are volunteers: Everyone involved in this organization from staff to the players have day jobs and lives they are part of between events. Suggestions that require large amounts of work need people to do that work, are you willing to put that work in? If you are, you should say so with the feedback, it will help.
  • There are many players impacted by changes: A lot of rules suggestions, other things as well, come from a place of "this change would benefit me". This is understandable, seeing first hand something not working gives you a good source for new ideas. However if you really want to sell that feedback you need to sell why changing something is going to benefit more than just you. Are other people also affected by your issue? Say that. "Characters who use non-martial weapons would benefit from this change..." is better than "I think that non-martial weapons would be better for me if you...".
  • Give us time: Changes in a large organization run by volunteers can be very hard to implement. Some things we want to change, but want to wait for the right moment, generally when we can communicate the information to a large number of people at once. If we say we are working on something please believe us, and show patience. Periodically asking for an update on progress is very reasonable, expecting something to be done immediately often isn't.
  • This game has an identity of its own: Kingdoms of Novitas has established genres and goals that it tries to represent. We are a full contact, but not full force boffer larp. If you enjoy lightest touch boffing, it's ok to say that we'll certainly make a note of which players want a different identity. However, don't expect the game to change because that is what YOU enjoy. A change in the games identity is a major undertaking we would not undergo lightly. It's understandable and reasonable to want something different, but please understand that this feedback more than any other kind of feedback is something we often will not have a response to beyond making a note of it. This covers other topics too, like the fact that we do not have Steampunk or Anime elements in our atmosphere.

We get feedback on what the game 'should be' a LOT, especially from brand new players who can sometimes be disappointed when what we are doesn't match their expectations of what they hoped we would be. It's totally ok to wish we were something different, what people want from a live action experience isn't always the same.

Using this as a reason to tell us what we 'should be' is going to go over poorly. This game has lasted for twenty years as what it is, it adapts and changes over time, but its fundamental identity is what the people attending want, at least on some level. So while change might be better for one person, please consider who already enjoys the game as is. Instead consider offering suggestions of things we could add to the game that wouldn't change it, these are the best suggestions.

  • The game's identity does evolve over time: With the rich history of Novitas, a lot of changes have happened over the years. This can be daunting for older players who return after a hiatus. Especially now when the game has many new players since moving between sites. If you are one of those older players, please understand the game's identity has evolved, what people want from the game has evolved. What was the right answer 10 years ago might not be the right answer now. Unrequested history lessons aren't persuasive arguments. Tell us why players now will benefit.

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