August Event Warmup
Hello ACO community! Katie here as usual with your pre-event blog post for the August 2025 event - Little Home on the Prairie. We’re eight days out from the event and pre-registration closes tomorrow, so it’s time to get those last minute check-ins done before prices go up and the meal plan goes off sale! Remember; you can find tickets at https://www.alliancelarp.co/store and check in at https://db.alliancelarp.com/events/867 . Today’s blog post will mostly be about the specifics of the site and other practical aspects of the event, so lets get down to brass tacks!
Let’s kick things off with basic site and check in information off the rip - this event will be hosted at YMCA Camp Tumbleson Lake, a site we enjoyed last year. The site has been the subject of some major renovations from a new kitchen, to a new bathhouse, to even more, so expect a smoother and more polished experience than last event! The site address is 173 Co Rd 96, Ward, CO 80481 , a bit more than an hour outside of Denver. Players are welcome to come on site and claim bunks as early as 5pm. Checkin will be at the Arts and crafts building near the main parking lot, which is also where NPC camp will be. Opening announcements will take place at 9:00pm Friday, followed by a 9:30 soft layon while plot starts to spin the first pieces of content up. Game will run until Sunday at noon; announcements will take place at the log amphitheater adjoining our cabin pod. Please be there on time to receive important site information, and communicate in advance if you will be late.
The next thing to cover is an important disclosure; over the past year, YMCA Camp Tumbleson Lake has dramatically increased the capacity of their site; along with that they have made the decision to change their rental model to potentially accommodate multiple groups on site during the summer. About two weeks ago, we were made aware that another group of roughly 50 folks will be on site with another group. I’m sure this isn’t the news that people are excited to be hearing, but we would like to assure everyone; we have been working around the clock to come up with a plan that allows us to share the site with minimal disruption to our game and minimal interaction between our groups.
First off, instead of centering our game around the main dining hall, our primary spaces will be located within a ‘tent pod’ - an assemblage of ten 14 bunk tents, one yurt, and one large log longhouse. For this event we will be staying in the Fortis tent pod a ways down the road, while the other group will be staying in the Sky tent pod nearest to the dining hall. Other guests will have it clearly communicated to them to avoid our areas and minimize interactions with us; we have also received their schedule and will be shaping the content we run to make sure that we are NOT operating within the same spaces at the same time. We ask for a little extra grace and understanding of this game as we work to run a fantastic event. Though ACO is confident that sharing site this weekend will not cause any major issues this game, we also understand that for some players privacy is a much higher priority at LARP events. For this reason, if a player feels they do not wish to attend this event as a result of the shared facilities, our refund and cancellation window for this event is being extended to Monday instead of the usual Friday. Please email customerservice@alliancelarp.co with regards to this.
It is also worth noting - we do NOT expect to be sharing the site for the September and October events, so things will be back to business at that point. Just bear with us for this game!
Lets cover some more details about the lodgings! We will be sleeping in large glamping style tents (Think soft walled cabins) which have 14 bunks each in them. The bunks are full rather than twin size, so if you bring sheets to game, please be aware your twin set will not work here. These tents do not have heating or power - while we are expecting warm nights, our game also has three portable propane heaters we can distribute on a first come first serve basis. Players are welcome to bring their own portable closed flame heater as well. The tents have pretty good natural lighting, but we recommend packing flashlights and portable charger packs to make sure your space is lit and your devices are powered. We also encourage players to bring their own camp tables and folding chairs - whether to set up in and around the longhouse or around your own tent, seating will be at a little bit of a premium - so let’s all work together to fill the gap!
We are doing our best to set advance tent assignments for this event - so long as you pre-reg by Friday, you will see your name on the cabin assignment list that we post midway through next week. We are doing our best to reach an assignment setup that accommodates player preferences; if you have any concerns once you see your assignment on the list please let us know IMMEDIATELY if you want us to have time to make changes. Please assume that these concerns will be resolved by moving you rather than the individual you have a concern with.
Do you have a need for medical sleep spaces, or a cabin with electricity for a C-PAP machine? If you haven’t reached out yet, please do so. We have a limited number of medical sleep cabins with electricity down on Miner’s row - they’re a little further from the action, but they will do the job just fine. That space is at a premium so if you haven’t noted the need either to customer service or via your pre-reg, we might have challenges fitting you in.
Meal services will also be a little different than usual due to our shared use of the space. The other group will have use of the kitchen and dining hall during their scheduled meal times; for this reason, the classic ‘tavern’ space will not be where we center our game - it will be open to us during OUR scheduled meal times, which we will make sure to publish around site, as well as in the evenings after the other group has finished their last service. For this reason, while we will have some use of the space, we will not be decorating it, and the ONLY thing that players should be storing in the dining hall are food items, which should not be kept anywhere else. There will be a dedicated space in the kitchen/storage for player food, and we anticipate some refrigerator space, though players may wish to bring a cooler to be safe. Haven’t purchased the meal plan yet? Remember that it goes off sale on Friday! You can find the listing with the menu below.
In previous events, we heard your concerns about how poorly lit town fight spaces have been. We are happy to announce that we’re working on getting some battery powered portable lighting solutions in place to diversify the variety and safety of locations where we can host evening combats. We look forward to showing you what we come up with at event!
Regular Menu
*Friday Dinner: 8:00pm to 9:30pm Rustic Beef Stew, Garlic & Bread Crumb Green Beans, Yeast Rolls, Honey Cakes
*Saturday Breakfast: 9:00am to 10:30am Scrambled Eggs, Bacon/Sausage, country potatoes
*Saturday Lunch: 1:00pm to 2:30pm Spinach Artichoke Chicken Alfredo, Salad Bar *Saturday Dinner: 7:00pm to 8:30pm Oven-Roasted Chicken Quarters with Herb Butter, Roasted Vegetable, Southern Lima Beans, Yeast Rolls, Mini Cheesecake Bites
*Sunday Breakfast: 9:00am to 10:30am Bagels, toast, cream cheese, jelly
Vegetarian Menu
*Friday Dinner: 8:00pm to 9:30pm Rustic Vegetable Stew, Garlic & Bread Crumb Green Beans, Yeast Rolls, Honey Cakes
*Saturday Breakfast: 9:00am to 10:30am Scrambled Eggs, Vegetarian Bacon/Sausage, country potatoes
*Saturday Lunch: 1:00pm to 2:30pm Spinach Artichoke Alfredo, Salad Bar
*Saturday Dinner: 7:00pm to 8:30pm Oven-Roasted Herb Butter Cauliflower Steaks & Chickpea Veggie Medley, Roasted Vegetables, Southern Lima Beans, Yeast Rolls, Mini Cheesecake Bites
*Sunday Breakfast: 9:00am to 10:30am Bagels, toast, cream cheese, jelly
That should cover all of the major points for this blog - all that’s left is to GET THOSE PREREGISTRATIONS IN!!!!!!!! Can’t wait to see everyone at the event!
See you in the Shattered Lands,
Katie B
Head of Publicity
