Preparing for the Big Freeze
At Dystopia Rising NJ we run events all year round from the heat of summer, right through the bitter cold of winter. Whether this is your first winter larping, or you’ve done this before, we’ve come to the time of year to check your kit and ensure that it’s ready for much lower temps than the last few months.
Prepare for Cold Weather
The first step to being able to larp through cold weather is by properly preparing. Finding a good set of thermal under-layers can easily help trap heat, along with a good hat and gloves. There are even heated clothing options out there that run on a portable power pack. I suggest multiple pairs of underlayers if you can swing it since it will let you switch between them each day.
While the current DRNJ site has multiple heated buildings, it’s still worth checking your bedding out. Summer months might only require a light sheet, but a quilt or insulated blanket will help keep your temperature regulated when you finally crash for a few hours.
Bring more food than usual, or plan to buy it from food plan or players selling in-game. You expend more calories to keep yourself warm during the winter, which means you need to take in more calories so you don’t end up frozen and trying to thaw in one of the buildings.
There are also options for keeping yourself warm even while waiting for a mod to go off at midnight. Heated vests are a game changer, along with using hand warmers to keep yourself toasty. If you’ll be there to watch it, a propane heater in an enclosed outdoor area can keep you nice and warm so that you aren’t half-frozen to your chair when the zed attack.
Check Your Kit
Depending on when you built your kit, it might not be ideal for games in extreme temperatures. Be sure to check your kit before and after each cold-weather game to ensure that you’ll be able to stay warm while playing and that the colder temperatures haven’t damaged any of your gear.
This absolutely includes your latex weapons and shields too. Extreme temperatures can damage latex weapons, so you just want to check for degradation issues like splitting, or cracking.
A good idea is also to put on your full kit with new layers and make any tweaks or adjustments you need to make. This might include adjusting belts, swapping out a tank top for a sweater, etc. Just remember that when you’re moving and fighting, it’ll feel 10-20 degrees warmer than when standing still, so you don’t want to overdo it and end up overheating.
This is also the time to decide if you want to add new pieces to your kit for the winter. Along with thermal layers, this might include swapping to better-insulated boots, adding a jacket, or shifting what pieces of costume you commit to for the duration of game. The important part is to prepare your kit so that it can take the weather and give you enough protection to worry more about the threats to town.
Final Tips
Since it’s only November we have time until the real cold hits, but that’s why you want to prepare in advance. This way when the bitter cold events happen (and they will happen) you’re ready for them. With that in mind, we have a few tips to keep in mind for beating the chill.
Socks: You will always need more socks. Seriously.
Tossing a few hand warmers under the covers will ensure that your bed is toasty when you climb in at 5am.
Invest in several pairs of thermal layers and swap them out at dusk. This way the sweat doesn’t drop your temp as it gets colder.
Insulated boots will protect your toes
Insulated quilts are a boss bedding layer and super affordable
Scarves, hats & gloves will get lost: invest in spares
Our next event is A Seat at the Table 11/17-11/19. See you there!
