Racial, Cultural and Spiritual Sensitivity Policy
As an ST team, we wish to run a responsible LARP in which all players feel welcome, feel able to play the characters they wish, and can enjoy the game while both being and feeling safe from any harm. We have therefore sought advice and guidance on the matter and read the rules of other LARPs run by those of the BIPOC community, as well as the research and opinions of those who have spent time in this field.
We expect everyone involved in this LARP - whether PC, NPC or ST - to adhere to this policy, so please make sure you have read and understood this content. If you have questions about why this approach has been taken, you may find answers to these in the Design Philosophy section further down. Otherwise for any questions about the policy itself, please contact the Head ST (Rob).
Policy Overview
We are not putting in any explicit restrictions that limit the racial, cultural or faith choices you can make for your characters, however we ask that you only adopt character elements where you are certain you can provide an accurate representation without causing harm.
The primary question when considering your character’s behaviour or costume, if they are of a race, culture or faith that you do not have experience of, should always be “Have I sought out the best way to portray this?” If the answer is ‘no’, please do the appropriate research or speak to individuals of the relevant race, culture or faith to ensure that your representation is accurate and respectful.
Additionally, all elements of a character’s appearance must adhere to the costuming and makeup guidelines set out further down.
We will work closely with players throughout character generation, to prevent things from entering the LARP space which could be offensive or harmful. However, each player is responsible for ensuring that their portrayal is not offensive; just because the ST team has initially permitted something, this does not mean it will be allowed to continue if it proves harmful.
Should it become clear that this policy is not sufficient, we reserve the right to implement a stricter policy with hard restrictions and will require that changes be made to any aspect of a character (narrative or physical) in order to align with the new policy. We will notify players via our usual channels if this is the case.
Raising Concerns
Any participant has the right to raise an issue with whichever member of the ST team they feel most comfortable approaching, to flag something they have seen or heard which they have been offended by.
Issues brought to the ST Team will be logged, and the ST will liaise with relevant parties about all concerns raised. We will always strive for a diplomatic change which satisfies all parties concerned, and if necessary a warning will be issued. Players found to be taking part in wilfully offensive behaviour will be asked to leave the game.
Players must not confront one another directly on these topics, but must use the ST team as described above.
Costuming and Makeup Guidance
Part of portraying characters of different races, cultures and faiths is costuming and make up. The game is adopting these rules to support our policy.
No makeup that is designed to alter the colour of your skin to a different natural human shade.
Makeup to make your character look corpse-like or monstrous is allowed—even encouraged. However, if you opt for an inhuman or monstrous look, we ask you to pick a colour that is unquestionably unnatural: green or blue, for example, rather than brown or black.
Costumes and personas may include cultural signifiers from cultures other than your own, as long as their inclusion could not be deemed cultural appropriation.
Cultural appropriation refers to the use of objects or elements of a non-dominant culture in a way that reinforces stereotypes or contributes to oppression, and doesn't respect their original meaning or give credit to their source.
The authority on whether something is cultural appropriation rests with members of the culture being referenced. If an objection is raised by a member of the culture in question, we will work with that member to agree a different approach that avoids harm - or if the portrayal is wholly inappropriate, require that it be removed.
Excluded Symbols / Representations
This list will be updated if additional entries are needed. We will notify players via our usual channels when additions are made.
If you are concerned about the use of a particular symbol of a race, culture or faith that you follow or associate with, which you would like included on this list, please message the storyteller team and that symbol will be considered for exclusion from the game.
Hooked Crosses - while we are aware that this is a symbol that appears in many cultures and religions throughout time, the Nazi appropriation of the swastika has burdened it with significant enough negative associations that our LARP is not a fitting venue to reclaim its prior positive associations.
Changes made to Canon Theme
Children of Haqim and Followers of Set: we have made changes to both clans, to better portray them as groups with a long and complex association with non-Western non-Christian civilisations and thought, rather than stereotypical “foreign” antagonists. To allow for players to discover these details in play, we have not included everything in the rules and setting we have released to everyone.
Ravnos: We have chosen not to include this clan in our game at this time, due to the horrific stereotypes written into the canon theme. While they do still exist in the world at large, they will not be appearing as PCs, NPCs, in Uptime plots or in any Downtime content. If we decide to change this in future, the clan theme will be wholly rewritten before inclusion.
Design Philosophy
We recognise that the running of LARPs has historically been dominated by ethnically white and culturally Western European Christian Storytellers/Games Masters, and that historically the LARP space and the wider area of RPG settings have been prone to cultural appropriation and other tacit racisms. Accepting these portrayals of oppressed ethnic minorities without examination in the name of “adhering to canon” reinforces stereotypes and thereby causes harm, either directly to those participating in the game or indirectly to those outside of the game.
We also recognise that this cultural bias in LARP and the wider RPG community is not restricted to ethnicity but also to cultural groups, religions, and any marginalised area of society. The need to consider less visible risks of misrepresentation is especially important for this game where one of the key minority groups will be Slavic pagans.
While Tenebrae is a LARP based out of a domain in central Europe, the game is concerned with Kindred politics across the whole of Europe and the surrounding area so cannot completely exclude portrayals of non-white non-Christian cultured characters without erasing the histories of minorities.
The game is also likely to touch significantly on the formation of global Kindred society. We recognise this creates a risk of accidentally continuing tacit Western colonialist assumptions and so we have to find ways to keep space for portrayals of non-Western and non-Christian societies that reflect their strengths and histories, or challenge colonialist assumptions.
Our Approach
Clear guidance, early engagement and a supportive escalation process.
We are not restricting players from creating characters of another race, culture or faith than their own. Doing so in a game run in the UK would run the risk of erasing influential cultures from and ‘whitewashing’ the setting. However, we have created this policy and set of guidelines that players will follow, so that they can incorporate any such features with respect. We will be putting in place a clear process for people to raise instances where players have been offended by something another player (PC or NPC) or member of the ST team has portrayed through actions, words or costuming.
This lack of specific restrictions on playing characters of any race, culture or faith should be considered an attempt not to silence respectful portrayals, not an indication that non-Western non-Christian characters must or should display clear indicators of those qualities, or tacit permission to include something simply because it doesn’t seem unquestionably offensive.
We have discussed respect and sensitivity while reviewing concepts and will be working closely with all players throughout the character generation process in order to vet any ideas and ensure that we identify potential areas of risk that may arise before they enter the LARP space. Similarly, we will advise on any costume, prop, make-up, or accent choices that people may be looking to adopt to ensure that they are not offensive.
The Escalation Process
In choosing not to put in place any restrictions, we recognise that we open ourselves up to the possibility that people may make mistakes; but we believe that it is how you address these issues that is most important. Therefore, if anyone identifies something that they believe to be problematic, then they should raise it with a member of the ST team so that the ST team can review and discuss with the players in question. We do not support players directly confronting one another on this matter as it has the potential to lead to bad will between players.
Please bear in mind that no one can be aware of everything that may be considered important or offensive to an individual, group or culture. Therefore we ask that players assume that the individual is unaware in the first instance and simply approach an ST to escalate the issue, giving the individual a chance to address it. Once someone knows that their actions or choices are causing another discomfort or offence it is likely they will be more than willing to change.
Making decisions on a matter of whether something is offensive to an individual, group or culture is highly subjective and so the ST team will always support any issues raised regarding a player, NPC or ST’s actions or choices. But, please note that bad-faith complaints made to limit another player for malicious reasons will also not be tolerated.
Why not restrict people to their own racial, cultural or faith experience?
We are hopeful that by taking this approach we may allow opportunities for communities to understand one another better and that this is only possible by allowing some level of permissiveness rather than erecting hard barriers that drive division. We also do not wish to exclude someone with a genuine deep understanding of a culture from choosing to bring that into the game because they do not meet a specific hard rule.
We are choosing to take a more permissive policy at this time because we have faith in our players to be responsible and treat one another and society in general with respect.
Is Tenebrae taking the right approach?
Please be aware that this is a challenging subject with differing opinions, both in our player base as well as in the ST team, on the best way to respect diversity. Not everyone may agree with the approach we are taking, but in order to be able to enjoy our hobby together we must create a space that allows diverse opinions.
If you wish to discuss a specific portrayal, whether one you have witnessed or one you are considering doing, please approach an ST of your choice. If you wish to discuss the policy itself, then please only do so with the Head ST (Rob).