For a long time, hobbies like Dungeons & Dragons and live-action role-playing came with a certain stereotype.
They were nerdy. Niche. Maybe not something you’d admit you spent your weekend doing unless you knew you were among your people.
But somewhere along the way, fantasy role-playing went mainstream.
Shows like Stranger Things introduced a whole new audience to Dungeons & Dragons, fantasy games have exploded in popularity, and suddenly grabbing some friends and disappearing into another world for a few hours doesn’t sound all that strange.
Which brings me to something I was VERY late to learn: El Paso has its own LARPing and medieval combat community!
And they’ve been here a whole lot longer than I’ve been paying attention.
El Paso Has Its Own Medieval Combat Community
Head to Memorial Park on a Saturday and you might spot members of El Paso Medieval Combat battling it out with foam swords.
And while I’ve never tried LARPing myself, I have to admit: it looks kind of fun.
Even better, this isn’t something that recently arrived in El Paso because fantasy is having a moment. Amtgard, the fantasy and medieval combat organization associated with this style of play, was actually founded right here in El Paso in 1983.
LARPing Takes Fantasy Beyond the Tabletop
If Stranger Things is about as close as you’ve gotten to this world, LARP stands for live-action role-playing. It’s not exactly the same as Dungeons & Dragons, but the easiest way to understand the appeal is that you’re taking some of that imagination and role-playing off the tabletop and into the real world.
For groups like Amtgard, that can include medieval-style combat with foam weapons along with costumes, armor, crafting and other elements of fantasy. And you don’t need to already know what you’re doing to be intrigued by it.
That’s what caught my attention about El Paso Medieval Combat. From what I’ve seen, it looks like a group of people getting together, welcoming others who are interested and having a genuinely good time.
El Paso Fantasy Fans May Have Found Their People
Maybe you’ve played D&D for years. Maybe you’re into fantasy games and movies. Maybe you’ve always wanted to try LARPing.
Or maybe you’ve never done any of it and suddenly find yourself thinking, “Running around Memorial Park with a foam sword actually looks pretty fun.”
Either way, there’s already a community for it right here in El Paso.
You can follow El Paso Medieval Combat on Instagram to see what they do and find their latest meetup information- usually Saturdays at Memorial Park.
And the fact that it all happens at Memorial Park, one of El Paso’s most historic parks, makes it even cooler. So if you’ve been looking for people who share your love of fantasy, role-playing or medieval combat, your people may have been here all along.
Just look for the swords.
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