 
 	        	IFGS Information Summary

			    By Dara Naraghi,
		      Central Ohio IFGS President


	IFGS stands for International Fantasy Gaming Society, and it is based
on a group of the same name in the novels DREAMPARK, THE BARSOOM PROJECT,
and THE CALIFORNIA VOODOO GAME by Larry Niven and Steve Barnes.  This is a
non-profit organization that promotes, designs, and runs safe LIVE role
playing games, complete with rules for combat (with foam padded weapons) and
other fantasy elements (e.g. spell casting).  Our emphasis is on having fun
and role playing, not beating other players or hoarding treasure.  After all,
these are fantasy GAMES, and we want everyone to have a great time.  Safety
is also a key word, as each chapter has a Safety Officer who checks weapons
construction, fighting styles, and game sites to make sure they are in
accordance with the IFGS safety guidelines.  In addition, before a game is
run, it goes through a sanctioning process by the chapter which checks game
design, logistics, and safety.  All players in an officially sanctioned IFGS
game are also covered by the society's insurance policy in case of an
accident.

	The IFGS was started 12 years ago in Colorado.  It now has 15 chapters
and provisional chapters in Alabama, California, Colorado, Georgia, 
Massachusets, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Wisconsin, and Washington DC.

	The IFGS has a complete Rules Book that covers all aspects of a game:
creating characters, costuming, fighting, magic, spell casting, and the eight
character classes.  Weapons are made from a bamboo or fiberglass tube core,
covered with closed cell foam.  Weapons that can catch limbs or other weapons
(e.g. tridents) are usually not allowed, and neither are weapons with chains
(e.g.  nunchakus).  Shields have to be covered with foam, on the face and the
edge, and we never fire any arrows or bolts of any kind.  Armor is represented
by a patch of cloth of a specific color (e.g brown patch = leather armor).  We
do not recommend wearing actual armor because it is not necessary as far as
safety goes; in fact, certain types of armor could be barred from a game by a
Game Safety Officer if they are deemed to be unsafe to the wearer or other
players.  Also, actuall armor can prevent you from feeling a touch during
combat, since our weapons are lightweight.  This can cuse problems because we
go by the rule that "every touch does damage", to prevent people from really
bashing each other.

	Combat rules are very simple.  Each weapon does a base amount of
damage, plus any bonuses from character level or magic.  It is your own skill
that determines whether you hit your opponent or not, but once you hit, you
call out the damage, and your opponent takes that amount of damage, minus
armor or any other protection.  Each character class has a base number of life 
points, and this goes up by level.  You also have limb points, so it's possible
to lose an arm or a leg.  You keep track of your own life points during a game,
but there are score keepers with each party who also record damage.

	Throwing stars, flasks of acid, oil, or holy water, and certain special
abilities are represented by a specific color of bean bag.  Once again, your
skill determines whether you hit someone or not, and the range is as far as you
can throw the beanbags.  Arrows and spells work on a system that is
based on costume color.  Each character's costume has to be 80% one color,
and players on the same party can't have the same color costume.  When a
player calls out "Arrow, red" the player wearing red is informed by the game
master if he was hit by an arrow or not, and how much damage he takes.  Spell
casting works the same way, the spell caster chants for the appropriate
amount of time, calls out the name of the spell, the color of the costume(s)
affected by the spell, and the damage (or other effect).

	Player characters have eight classes to choose from: Fighter, Ranger,
Knight, Magic User, Cleric, Druid, Thief (Rogue), and Monk.  Each character
class has distinct abilities which are gained at each level.  The IFGS
Registry keeps a record of all characters, including experience, level, gold,
and items found.  This way, you can play any of your characters in any IFGS
chapter.  You can also decide to play a Non Player Character in a game, or
help as a Game Master or Score Keeper and still get experience that you can
apply to any of your characters.  Above all, though, the emphasis of the
IFGS is on role-playing and having a good time doing it, not hoarding
experience points.

	Membership is $5 for one year, with an optional $5 for a 
subscription to the IFGS newsletter, THE CHAINMAIL.  Non-members are
entitled to 2 "trial" games, but after that they must become members in order
to play in more games (this is to keep the IRS happy with our tax exempt
status.)  Membership in local chapters is not mandatory, but it is recommended
because most chapters give members discounts on games, and their newsletters
contains info on upcoming games and events.  Central Ohio chapter membership
is $10 for one year, and that gets you 10 issues of our newsletter,
ARTIFACTS & ARTIFICTION, and $1 discount on all games you play as a PC.

*****************************************************************************

If you are interested in learning more about the IFGS, write them at:

			IFGS
			P.O. Box 3577
			Boulder, CO 80307-3577

If you live in or around Ohio and want more information about the Central Ohio
Provisional Chapter of the IFGS, e-mail me (Dara Naraghi) at:

			dnaraghi@magnusug.acs.ohio-state.edu

or write us at:

			Central Ohio IFGS
			P.O. Box 14142
			Columbus, OH 43214-4142

*****************************************************************************

