15 replies to this topic

[Funky Mutha Facko]

After talking with Mr. Mediocre on Saturday we thought it would be a good idea to try to put together a weekend of camping and nerf for any and all who might like to attend.

This thread is to see if there is sufficient intrest from the community to put it together. It will also be used for planning the event and discussing ideas/ concerns.

The event would most likely take place in late July at a camp grounds somewhere between Chicago and Milwaukee. We would arrive on Friday, war on Saturday, then pack up to leave Sunday morning.

Having an entire nerf weekend will allow us to do things that you couldn't normally pull off at your standard war like night time zombie rounds, a group cookout, and being able to play late or take a longer break mid war.

Feedback is appreciated. Lets hear your thoughts.

[Duke Wintermaul]

For something this massive, i'm willing to make the drive from Dayton.

[Joe Espinoza]

I would definitely attend. And I would contribute such as bring hot dogs and a mini grill.

[Bchamp22795]

I have a busy summer ahead of me, but if this falls in a weekend that I am free, I'm down+1 And someone should set the date for cataclysm cause I need to plan now.

[AcepilotZero]

I would almost certainly attend, and I would bring anything useful I possibly could.

[cheerios]

I'd be down for this. Also Cataclysm will not occur in May this year Bchamp, mid-June looks like the best time for it.

[Demon Lord]

June 15th is when SPANO is this year, so Cataclysm shouldn't happen that weekend. That being said I would push for the second weekend in July.

[ultranewt]

must say, i am intrigued by the ider of a whole nerf weekend thinger

[zx532]

If enough people are attending, and I was free that weekend, Id probably be willing to make the drive from CT (and would most likely be bringing a couple people and some camping gear with me)

[KaneTheMediocre]

Unsurprisingly, given the OP, I'm interested.

I do think that, in addition to finding an appropriate site, that we need to establish age-related restrictions on this event. Most of us nerfing adults are not what you'd call responsible adults, and fewer still want to be looking after children on this trip. While the safe and easy route would be simply to establish this as an 18+ event, there are quite a few nerfers under 18 that are interested in and grown-up-enough for this sort of thing.

Another option would be to insist that under-18s be accompanied by an adult for the duration of the event. This would probably alleviate my concerns of liability, but I suspect it would impact attendance in roughly the same manner as simply banishing the chilluns. The last possibility would be some sort of permission slip requirement for those under 18, which might reduce our liability and prevent us from being accused of kidnapping these kids, but some adult or adults would still be somewhat responsible to look after the safety and well being of the younger attendees.

I would suggest that for starters, we should just establish a minimum age of 16, and have some additional requirements regarding those in the 16-18 range, but I don't claim to know the best way to do that.

[zx532]

Another big thing that might impact attendance by the younger nerfers is the perceived presence of (or actual presence of) alcohol. Most parents would/are probably fine with a one day war, but an extended war/camping trip, with people who are of legal drinking age is probably different.

(Even if alcohol/similar things are banned outright, there will probably still be parents against it)

Has anything like this been done before?

[Langley]

I imagine it would be up to the host or whomever is responsible for reserving the site to make that decision. That having been said, I wouldn't want to be responsible for anyone under 18 at an overnight nerf event, and I would only consider making an exception for nerfers I've already met, supervised by parents I've met. If you end up using a real campground, probably the easiest thing to do is leave it up to your attendees to reserve their own camp site, and the adult supervision situation will sort itself out. Good luck with your event, and with finding a good site.

[orangeparkour]

Yeah, I thought I'd just throw it out and agree with others. While me an my bro think this sounds like crazy fun, the chance of us getting our parents to agree to let us camp with you guys is almost none. So honestly, we probably won't even waste our time asking if we can go. Sorry,sucks to be young.

[Zorns Lemma]

Under 18 can just show up sometime Saturday and leave sometime Saturday and it would be like any other war.

[Funky Mutha Facko]

I'm thinking that anybody that can't camp but want to nerf can come Saturday only. Anybody under 18 would need their parent with them to camp. I really don't feel like making permission slips and being responsible for other peoples children overnight.

[DX-Robert]

Every major, Community water war is a Friday-to-Sunday camp out. I hosted one of those 6 months ago (water war in December, don't ask) and will again this year at least once. While water wars and Nerf wars are not exactly the same, the lessons I've learned about camp out wars in general could be helpful.

- Get your date set ASAP! Campsites get reserved amazingly early, especially if they are in the "Reserve America" system. For Downpour 2011, more than half the sites in the campground were gone a month before the war. Make sure your camping area has more than enough sites. Primitive camping does not have these problems, but not everyone can handle that, so stick with a place that has reservable, easily accessed sites.

- Participants should reserve their own campsites. The host should not be responsible if someone no-shows. However, it is easier if you collect all the money and pay in one go. I gave drivers free camping at Downpour 2011 because people came from NC and DC and all and their efforts are often under-appreciated.

- Hash out a schedule ahead of time, make sure everyone knows it, and stick to it. You'd be amazed how much time can be wasted. People don't drive or fly the distance to stand around and talk.

- Set an alcohol policy and note that campgrounds often have their own. If you have several underage players and players camping with their parents on-site, it's probably a better idea to not have alcohol at the war.

- Plan meal options, especially lunch and dinner. People won't want to snack on packed food all weekend. Know what stores and restaurants are nearby and minimize time spent in transit. Pizza at the campsite is a popular dinner option and only one person needs to leave to get it. Cooking on the grill is popular for lunch.

- You can make it work for younger players. I had 2 players under 13 at my war last year and everything went fine. Make sure parents know exactly what to expect before the war. I originally was going to institute an age limit because the opening playing area involved 4 miles of walking with full water guns on a barrier beach in winter conditions and large, abandoned buildings full of hazards. However, I made sure everyone was aware of this and they still granted permission after discussion. You don't need waivers, just lots of common sense. There hasn't been a single safety incident at the past 5 of these things and we've done some pretty crazy things.

- Make younger players get their own campsite with their parents. This alleviates many concerns for obvious reasons.

- Try to keep parents at arms' length during main daytime events. It just gets awkward. That said, older players don't drive 12 hours to babysit, so younger players do need to have some sense of independence. As people mentioned, you could treat Saturday like a normal war and thus the parents being on the field isn't so awkward. It's really up to the host.

- Use Sunday morning. If you still have a good amount of people, and they want to play, go for it. Otherwise, it's not that much different than a regular war. People spend the night all the time for regular NIC wars. I spend 2 sometimes due to the distance or weather.

That's all I can think of right now. Feel free to use or not use whatever advice you like. I'd interested in coming if the date works. The drive would be murder and my budget is in shambles after 3 trips to North Carolina in 3 months, a DC, a Bmore, and like 2 Phillys in 2 weeks but we'll see.