A Queer LARP About Soulmates, or the Lack Thereof
This is a GM-less queer LARP about a support group for the people who would get thrown under the bus in a world where soulmates definitively exist. It’s pretty freeform and doesn’t have a pre-planned plot or many mechanics. Secrets aren’t a major part of the game, though players can withhold information during play and reveal this information when they choose. There are no winners in this game, and players are free to negotiate with each other about what should happen in scenes. It can take between an hour and five hours to play, depending on how many people are playing and how many support group meetings you decide to include.
Setting
The world this game is set in is a lot like ours, with one major difference. Soulmates definitively exist. When someone comes of age they generally develop a soulmark, a mark on their skin that means that they will soon meet their soulmate, who will have an identical mark. Some people have more than one mark develop at the same time, or develop another later in life. Same gender soulmates are common and accepted, as are polyamorous soulmates, as long as they are only in relationships with people they share a soulmark with.
In this world, it’s illegal to marry someone who doesn’t share a soulmark. While being in a romantic relationship with someone who doesn’t share a soulmark isn’t illegal, it is seen as childish in adults and generally frowned upon. Also frowned upon is having sexual or romantic relationships of any kind with a non-soulmate after finding one’s soulmate. It’s expected in this society for soulmates to become romantic and sexual partners. While soulmates aren’t always expected to have children, it is taboo to have children with someone who is not your soulmate, and the children of such unions are pitied and considered unlucky. If one’s soulmate dies, both soulmarks disappear. It is seen as disrespectful to one’s soulmate who has passed on to enter another relationship unless they develop another soulmark. Divorce is almost unheard of and requires a lot of legal work and psychological screenings. As such, it is highly frowned upon and seen as a sort of heartless abandonment. When it does happen, it’s assumed to be a temporary whim or evidence of mental illness.
People who don’t fit into this society because their attractions or relationships aren’t in line with the accepted norm are often referred to pejoratively as “soulless”. Some have decided to reclaim this term. One such group is the Soulless Support Society, which has chapters in most major cities. This game is about a newly formed chapter supporting each other over the course of several sessions.
This LARP is still being written.