Team Members
CMT Profiles Labyrinthe Team Members
Labyrinthe is run by a small team who are commonly collectively referred to as the C.M.T. (the Caves Management Team). Profiles for each of the team members can be found below:
Andy Byatt
I have been involved in role-playing games since the age of about 14 (which feels like a very long time ago now), with my first experiences (like those of so many others) being with D+D table-top role-playing – specifically playing the Dragonlance series of adventures. This usually involved a group of 6 or 7 of us descending on one household or another and spending an entire day (and night sometimes) in one room and getting take-out to keep us going!
During my years at college and university I played a huge variety of different table top games and have some very colourful memories of some of those tabel-top sessions (most memorable probably being playing Toons in a very seedy pub in Southampton on the same night as a England football game!).
While at university I established the role-playing society and I still remember the night when someone brought in a copy of GM (at least I think that was the magazine name) that had an advert for Labyrinthe in it. We quickly pitched for funding from the students union and arranged a trip for the entire group to play at Labyrinthe. We absolutely loved the first event, and quickly made our Labyrinthe visit a one-per-semester affair, sometimes with us all staying in a B+B for Saturday night so we could monster the next day.
Towards the end of my time at university a friend and I set-up and ran a live role-playing system in Southampton which ran for a few years before I sold it on in order to be able to move up to London to work in banking. After a while I moved into the Bromley area and thought I’d come and visit Labyrinthe – and quickly caught the bug again. Since then I’ve been involved as a player, monster and referee until Phil, Duncan and I bought Labyrinthe in 2006.
Phil Branscombe
Even though it shocks me to think on it, my involvement in role-playing started back in 1980. Like so many others, my first experience was the old favourite, D+D. I began with the first edition (I still have the first edition rule books) when being elven constituted both race and class. I progressed onto second edition (where you could at last play different classes of elf, which was a real revalation) and then broadened to a wide selection of different table top role-playing games.
I came to Chislehurst caves for my first experience in line role-playing in 1987, and was just simply blown away by the experience. The dark caverns and deep dungeons of my imagination became more of a reality, and the feelings and emotions created by playing at Labyrinthe were so much more intense than anything I had experienced with table-top.
Real-world considerations, in the form of work, motorbikes and girls, got in the way of my hobby interests for a few years, but I returned to Labyrinthe in the mid-nineties and have been involved here ever since. In 2006 Andy, Duncan and I bought Labyrinthe and we have been busy ever since slowly working through our ever-growing to-do list.
Phil and Andy are ably assisted in running Labyrinthe by their partners, who each play a vital role in the smooth running of the club.
Jo Branscombe
My first introduction to role-playing was at Labyrinthe – unlike many of the others who had experience of table-top role playing first. I didn’t actually start playing at Labyrinthe for quite a few months after I had joined as a club member, preferring to help monster/crew events to perhaps get an insight into what Live Role-Playing actually meant.
I found that the club members at Labyrinthe were very friendly and welcoming to absolute beginners, and to this day I can remember when I first met Rachael (quite an amusing story!). Once I had found my feet by helping crew events, I decided it was about time for me to take the plunge and get stuck in by playing a character myself. I can definitely say that the first time I played was amazing – I can remember the whole day like it was only yesterday. After that experience I was completely hooked and soon found that my new-found addiction began encrouching on my other hobby – shopping! Instead of finding that great new pair of strappy shoes for a night out partying I began finding the perfect pair of in-character boots!
So, five years later I still find myself getting excited about playing at Labyrinthe, and now also enjoy reffing and organinsing events as well – building plotlines and adding new and challenging enemies for a group of adventurers to pit themselves against. In April 2006 Phil, Andy and Duncan bought Labyrinthe and since then life has become very busy indeed and we find that we have all embarked on a completely new type of adventure!
Rachael Byatt
I was introduced to D&D/AD&D table top back when I was a wee lass of 17 by my future husband, Andy. I soon found myself hooked as I've always enjoyed reading copious numbers of SF and Fantasy books, and this was another way to get my fix. When we found out about Live Role Playing for the first time and saw the advert for Labyrinthe in the old Dragon magazine I couldn't resist tagging along with the Uni Crew. And WOW! It was fun. I got to dress up in some really cool outfits and actually play out the role of those 'heroines' in the books.. sort of...
Honestly, I haven't really looked back since. I managed to travel up with them pretty much every trip to the caves (every 6 months or so) until eventually real life took over and we had to stop. (Booo hiss...)
Some years later however Andy and I moved up to London, an lo and behold found Labyrinthe still running. Whoot! Well, it didn't take us long to become regular faces, both as players and Ref/ monster team. We rapidly made many new friends and found some old ones and it gave me an excuse to make more costume.. The opportunity arose to buy Labyrinthe and well that, as they say, was that. Andy, Phil and Duncan jumped at the chance.
For all my sins I volunteered to run the Armoury and now have a fantastic Team to help out. Between us we ensure the Refs and their monster crews are kitted out with a variety of costumes weapons and strange and unusual props to help make everyones day enjoyable. If I have any spare time I also make the odd piece of costume, but mainly I love popping out and about looking for other bits and pieces that can be used for Props..(besides what girl wouldn't use an excuse to shop) you'd be amazed some of the stuff we've bought recently... lol. I also enjoy prop-setting special rooms for refs too, just to add that little wow factor for the particular encounters. It's all just another excuse for me to practise my otherwise stiffled artistic side.. (chuckle)
So, if that age old saying “No rest for the Wicked..” is anything to go by, I can only assume I've been a very, very bad girl.
Mark Cox - Game System Manager
I started coming to the caves in 1988. Back in those days, the young players were a huge contingency especially during the school holidays, 6-8 areas full for both sections. My school friends and I would religiously make the journey in a variety of parent’s cars keenly awaiting our next instalment of goblin bashing, skeleton crashing and general young player shenanigans. We’d wear dressing gowns and curtains, bin bags, and cereal boxes, fight with gaffa weapons we’d had made ourselves, or from generally unsafe stuff found in our sheds. My personal favourite was a broom handle cut in half and covered in the rarest of stuff, brown gaffa – we didn’t believe in things like foam – how could you hurt someone if you had wrapped foam on your weapon? Well it was acceptable in the 80’s.
Back then there was only one computer per school, and a youngster’s creative and spontaneous imagination could thrive in those days- home computers were rare and Hungry Horace Goes Skiing and Daley Thompson’s Decathlon was the best you’d get.
I played and monstered my way through young players, then on to adult adventures, then at 16 became a Gopher [a sort of desk assistant], and at 18 a desk staff member.
I’ve reffed a fair bit as well in my time at all levels and event lengths, including three myths and several theme days.
Since Summer 2005 I’ve been in charge of the game rules and abilities and how they are interpreted, some systems call such people God, at Labyrinthe the title is Game System Manager [GSM], at Labyrinthe due to the wealth and depth of the system there is only one, and there can be only one.
It’s an amazingly time consuming job, as well as keeping an eye on the published system there is also the unpublished system – non-standards or yellow paper as its known, guild abilities, funky adventure items, answering questions, and the updating of the publications, on top of all that there is playing, and with occasion reffing.
If you have any specific questions they are best asked by email to childofmorgoth@yahoo.com and I’ll do my best to answer asap – for more general questions you’ll find a wealth of experience on the forums.
Happy Quadding
Mark Cox
GSM
