The following is an account from LARPer Jeremy Brooks. Ideas and mentions listed are their own, and are not reflective of LARPed.com’s own ideals.

My name is Jeremy Brooks and I LARP in a small town in Georgia, called Barnesville. The name of the LARP I currently attend is VOTR: Castle Origins.

I got my start in LARP when my wife and I attended a our first Renaissance Festival and talked to a guy there who sold LARP weapons. I believe the vendor was called Fredrick’s Forge, it made that big of an impression on me.

Fast forward a year later and I was working as a corrections officer. When I was just a cadet, I started to really gain interest in the LARP community but didn’t have an easy connection to a LARP to join. After a quick Google search, I discovered one that was 10 minutes away from my house called LARPLand.

Sadly, LARPland didn’t last very long – I suspect because the founder burned himself out, trying to run everything by himself. He didn’t have a team to support him in logistics or story. So, that lasted about 2 months, but succeeded in giving me my first taste of the fantasy world of LARP.

I was immediately hooked. I loved wearing garb. I loved boffer combat. And I would find myself thinking about LARP all the time – I just couldn’t get enough.

Suddenly, things took a drastic turn to the worst. On December 10, 2018 as I left work at the prison for the day, I had a CVA (which is essentially a stroke). I couldn’t walk without the assistance of a walker for nearly a month, lost the use of my left hand, and temporarily lost vision in my left eye. My love and dream of LARP was put on hold. Not only was I out for the count with LARPing in a fantasy world, I couldn’t be there for my family. I found myself in a pit of depression.

After I was able to get walk without the assistance of a walker, my former sergeant from the prison invited me to go out to a game called SOLAR. Despite the fact that I was only 75% recovered, I went and enjoyed myself.

Solar ended up not being the right fit for me as a game, but it helped me get back to one of my life’s passions. Now, I am excited to attend VOTR in Barnesville, GA. The people are incredibly friendly, and it’s located nearby which is perfect for my crazy schedule. Escaping into the world of LARP really saved me from myself. There were moments when depression has taken hold of me and and being able to escape into a world where anything is possible helps me cope even to this day.

I’ve still got a lot to unpack, and consider myself new to the world to LARP. But I’m excited to see where my journey’s will take me and build this story.

My name is Jeremy Brooks, and I’ve LARPed.