In a land not so far away, mortals of all ages build friendships while running around the park swinging harmless weapons and defending themselves with handmade shields. Though it’s a pretend world, their bonds are quite real.
Dean Scott often spends his Sundays with friends competing in live-action role-play (LARP) games. They pretend to be characters with different names, embarking on quests and playing team battle games.
“It’s a really fun community,” Scott told the Sun. “This is where you make friends. This is where you build bonds.”
I cast a spell on thee
Join Watchers Keep on the first and third Sundays of the month from noon to 4 p.m. at Rotary Centennial Park in Santa Maria. Loaner gear is available. Children 14 years and younger must be accompanied by an adult. Follow the live-actionrole-players on Instagram @watcherskeepamtgard.
On April 19, Scott—aka Wrekless—and a group of around 60 LARPers gathered at Rotary Centennial Park for the inaugural event in the first “park” of its kind in Santa Maria: Watchers Keep. The LARPers will meet on the first and third Sundays of the month to play. To become officially recognized, the park needs to sustain enough people for six months and be voted in by its kingdom, the collection of parks in California.
There are different kinds of LARPing, but Scott’s group is part of the nonprofit Amtgard International. The leader described their version as a combat sport where participants wear jersey-style tunics with numbers instead of dressing up as characters with background stories.
In addition to small local games, Amtgard LARPers can attend biannual camping events with hundreds of people. Scott and his fiancée had a blast at their first such event in King City just three months after they started playing in 2023. But afterward, their truck broke down, and while it was at the shop, someone stole their brand new LARPing gear.
Back in San Luis Obispo, fellow players donated replacements so Scott and his fiancée could keep playing.
“I’m getting teary thinking about it. It was the sweetest thing, and that was the moment where it clicked for me,” Scott said. “It’s not about the battle games. It’s not about the awards. It’s about the community. … You’re making a family.”
Scott has met mentors and some of his “best friends in the entire world” through LARPing. His nephew is now playing too, which means they get to spend more quality time together.
“The moment my nephew started playing, I was like, ‘Now I have to make this park, and I have to grow it. I have to make sure that this game grows and lives way past when I’m going to be playing,’” he explained.
Scott wanted the inaugural event in Santa Maria to be “big and flashy” in hopes of attracting the attention of locals on South College Drive and Bradley Road. He hired a photographer for the historic day, called over a Guadalupe food truck, personally invested in extra gear and obstacles, and invited friends from parks as far as Santa Cruz and Fresno. After everyone signed the Watchers Keep Declaration of Independence, the group started playing games like capture the flag.
The Watchers Keep founder has come a long way since his childhood in Santa Maria. He often felt picked on, remembering being a nerdy white kid in a town where “there was not a lot of that.” When he moved back to the area as an adult, Scott joined San Luis Obispo’s Seven Sleeping Dragons.
His LARPing journey galloped from there. Within a couple of years, he earned a masterhood in construction, making him a little bit of an “anomaly” because it usually takes LARPers a decade to earn that distinction. Scott chalked it up to the fact that he’s been an artisan his whole life.
There are many ways to level up in the LARPing universe, but most of the fun is simply escaping the world’s craziness.
“You’re literally running around with your friends in a park laughing,” Scott said, “and you just create these memories.”
Highlight
• The city of Santa Maria is hosting its first BiciChella event on May 17 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Santa Maria Transit Center (400 E. Boone St.). It’s meant to promote alternate modes of transportation like biking and public transit. Expect free bicycle repairs, transit bus demonstrations, information from local organizations, and light refreshments.
Reach Staff Writer Madison White at mwhite@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in April 30 – May 7, 2026.