A medieval palace took the place of the already castle-like Peters Hall for a few hours on Sunday, transforming the foreign language building into a stage for The Fate of Kings, one of the Live Action Role Playing games run during this year’s OberCon.

With straight faces and language of which even Shakespeare would have been jealous, the Obies who participated in the LARP seemed to be enjoying every minute of the game. There was a little bit of everything: a king, concubines, a seneschal, knights, jesters and bards. The action proceeded on two floors simultaneously, with different people acting in different scenes. The first floor was the inside of the Duke’s castle, while the second floor was the village square where all would gather to discuss the issues of the day.

“It’s a good game because it’s a simple system and everybody has a plot and is involved,” said the King’s seneschal, senior Kathryn Hedges-Goettl.

Apart from the PCs, or the Player Characters, there were a few students wandering around seemingly randomly.

“I am an ST [Story Teller] but when I am not an ST, I am Teirisias, the blind astrologer,” said senior Mark Simmons, one of the organizers of the game.

Behind the scenes of the LARP, yet still on stage with everybody else, were the people who constantly organized and directed the action. When asked what happens in the end, organizer Joseph Maiville shared that nothing was clear because everything depends on what the characters do. Even the planned feast in the Duke’s castle would probably not take place because of the way things were going.

The plot of the game followed the traditions of Medieval drama as well.

“I’ve just arrived at this obscure village in my kingdom to find out why the roads are closed,” explained the King, senior Charles Baker. According to the Duke, played by senior Bo Coker, there is a plague, but the King has his doubts.

“I am here to find out exactly what’s going on and of course to receive the Duke’s hospitality,” Baker continued.

As it turned out later on there was a magical well in the village that the Duke wanted to preserve for himself.

“There is magic in the village: a well granting people either death or magic powers,” explained the wise woman of the village, junior Chloë Liotta-Jones.

A tiny dark figure lurking around the group will also potentially play an important role.

“I am a bandit on the roof,” junior Leah Grover said. “I am looking for an opportunity to switch the water the King is about to drink with a flask of poison.”

This would not kill the King but only make him sick enough to prevent him from getting near the well. Eventually, the Duke died from the water in the well.

The medieval atmosphere was often interrupted by the STs who wanted to explain something to the other players. This turned the event into a constant switching between brief periods of action and long discussions over game mechanics. Naturally STs have the last word, but aside from the PCs there are also Non-Player Characters, who the Fates control. The NPCs have a role, and they can also take part in the plot-building.

This is no more and no less than a contemporary version of a medieval fairy-tale, into which Oberlin students pour their talent and enthusiasm. Sacrificing their night’s sleep for the whole weekend was worth it for those who turned the third annual OberCon into a successful event. Along with the Magic: The Gathering competitions, Dungeons and Dragons, and Oberlin’s local Vampire: The Mascarade LARP, The Fate of Kings was loved by all who were initiated and enjoyed by some who were not.

“This is so much cooler than being a vampire,” Hedges-Goettl said.

Other good thoughts from the game could be applied to issues completely irrelevant to role playing.

“Kings are like small children,” said Simmons. “They need to be handled properly.”