Terminology in LARP

There's a few terms and acronyms you may commonly find bandied about in live role-playing systems.  These include:

In Character (IC)

When "in character", you are role-playing your alter ego, and don't make references to the 'real' world.

Out Of Character (OOC)

When "out of character", you're back to your regular self, with your real name, acting the way you would in everyday life.

Time In

During Time In, the dungeon is underway, you are In Character.

Time Out

The dungeon has paused (or has finished), and you can freely chat Out Of Character.

Time Freeze

In-game time is suspended, you are expected to close your eyes and hum so you are unaware (out of character) what is going on around you - for example, a monster may have just materialised in front of you.  Once Time In is called after this, your role-playing continues where it left off: so your character may be completely unaware that an evil wizard has appeared behind him/her until something draws your attention to it!

Battleboard

After a fight, the referee will speak to you individually and ask for the sum of what has taken place since he last battleboarded in terms of damage (how many times you've been hit, and what by), spells used (if applicable), power used or gained (if applicable).  The ref will then calculate how injured you are - or aren't! - and inform you so you can role-play appropriately (e.g. you may want to seek curing).  We talk more about larp battleboards in the How LARP works section of this website.