“You all are no match for the mighty Tashika!” she shouts to the laughing group of five others dressed in costumes ranging from medieval-inspired cloaks to fluffy animal ears sparring with padded swords and shields. “Stay back there like the cowards you are!”
They are the Shire of Aes Sidhe, the Chapel Hill branch of the worldwide live action role-playing society Amtgard.
Chapel Hill resident Amanda Usary, 31, discovered the group while walking her dog. She plays as Tashika, a fairy character she created from Irish folklore.
Aes Sidhe, a name from Celtic mythology that translates to “people of the hills,” is the only branch of Amtgard in North Carolina.
Noah Fisher, a UNC junior majoring in dramatic arts, started the group after encountering the game for the first time on an AmeriCorps project in Utah last year.
“I found I enjoyed it much more than I expected and tried to bring back what I could,” he said. “I had an interest in fantasy, but nothing like this.”
There are other live action role-playing games with varying rules and intensity, but Amtgard strikes a balance between fighting and assuming characters, Fisher said.
“You have people who want to be combat-centric and others who want to be role play-centric, so it’s a good middle ground for people,” Fisher said. “If they want to come out and fight and take hits and that kind of thing, they can do that, but if they just want to come and have fun and make things, they can do that, too.”
