Is LARPing Child’s Play or Serious Business?

LARPing is an acronym for “Live Action Role Playing.” Think of the knights at your local renaissance festival. While many tend to make fun of those that engage in the practice, it has a place in the gun world. Not everyone has the time, money, or location suited for structured firearm training. In this article, we will take a serious look at this playful practice.

Some Training Required

The fact remains that you should train with your firearm. You should do so safely, and often. Going to the range every few weeks may provide a good foundation for basic marksmanship, but it will not prepare you for the various real world scenarios you may encounter in a self-defense situation.

Let us preface this conversation by saying that we are not experts in firearms training. Our focus is ensuring they look and operate as best as they can. But we want to share our experience in this realm so that you can decide if LARPing with your weapons is something you should consider doing.

Before anything close to training for real-world scenarios, you should have a solid foundation in firearms safety. Additionally, you should know every aspect of the weapon you are training with. Especially the safety features. Know how to clear the weapon in a safe manner and ensure you do so every time you pick it up. NO EXCEPTIONS!

We have connections with some of the best firearms instructors in the Oklahoma area. There’s no excuse not to take a basic handgun course. It supports a local business owner and provides you with certified training tailored to your needs. Contact us for more information on trainers available.

Finding Your Sights

Every gun needs sights to operate safely. This is why you will see many gun ranges will not allow you to use a gun if it does not have some type of optic or iron sights. Finding the sights is different depending on the gun you are using. Some are simple and require nothing more than a glance. Others make you focus on them so that you are as precise as possible.

Finding your sights means aligning the front sight with the rear sight to create an imaginary straight line to the target. In the case of a scope or a gun that uses a “dot,” you are making sure the crosshairs or dot are “on target.” The faster you find this combination, the faster you can safely fire the weapon.

You may think it is cool to shoot from the hip, but that is not a typical situation you would likely find yourself in. To make sure you are hitting your target and only that target, you must find your sights and put them precisely where they belong. Imagine how easy it is for that imaginary line to move and miss the target completely. Do not leave it to chance.

The Big Picture

We talked about imagining a straight line, similar to a laser beam, when you are using standard iron sights. Using a scope is pretty much self-explanatory thanks to the ability to put the crosshairs on target. But what about red dots? How exactly do they work, and how can you train with them?

When you look at most common dot-type optics, you will see a tiny dot when looking through the lens. Rather than closing your non-dominant eye, you should keep both eyes open. This allows you to keep a view of your peripheral area available. It also allows you to find your target quicker.

For situations where you know shooting the weapon will cause your rounds to go slightly off target, some red dots provide a different reticle view. These can come in a variety of shapes such as a circle or crosshairs. These represent a larger MOA or spread of bullets when aiming at a target. As long as any portion of the reticle area is over the threat, that round should find its target.

Connect the Dots

Back to the subject of LARPing. Once you have gained a solid foundation of safety with your firearm, it is time to go back to drama class and do some acting. That doesn’t mean you should gear up and put on full plate armor. It does mean you should get in the mindset of safety, precision, and speed. Preferably in that order.

After ensuring your firearm is clear, take a walk around wherever you have decided to do your training. Start identifying any objects that are in a safe direction with a known backstop. Never point a firearm in an unsafe direction while practicing. You are not trying to aim precisely at this point.

With the firearm pointed down in a low-ready position (basically 30-45 degrees from the floor), do the following:

Identify a safe target.
Raise the weapon to bring the sights into view while still focusing on the target.
Put the sights over the target. (IMAGINARY BANG)
Lower the weapon back to low-ready.

You will notice that we are not actually dry-firing. While we may be LARPing with our tools, there is no reason to put additional wear on your firearm’s firing pin or other components. We are simply trying to lessen the time it takes to be ready to pull the trigger when the time is right.

If you have access to an outdoor area, this type of LARPing can involve endless targets at varying ranges. You will find that when you do start firing live rounds, you will do so with greater confidence. And if those rounds hit in the A-C zones, even better!

Quest Reward

If you think LARPing is for you, there are more products out there that can help you on your quest. From inexpensive laser training bullets to full-blown dry fire systems for modern sporting rifles, there’s a good option for any up and coming operator.

At the time of this writing. We found an amazing deal on Romeo5 red dot sights. Check it out: