Accessibility

This page will be updated if we are able to access the venue and notice anything else we need to add prior to bookings opening. This information (as of November 2024) is based on prior visits to the venue pre and during the recent renovation works. We have done our best to pick up on things that may affect accessibility to both the venue and the event in general and put them here.

In summary:

This venue and event will not be suitable if you have mobility issues, have phobias relating to our themes, or don't like wandering around outdoors on mildly hilly terrain in February in Cumbria (it rains there sometimes).

Physical Access

Some Anecdotal Experience

• In our judgement the venue and event is not accessible for wheelchair users (based on feedback from wheelchair users that have been at previous events here) 

• If you are an intermittent stick user or have an injury that limits your mobility a little you may be able to have a good time here, please read the full info and make your own judgement

  • Cath and Monica both reffed an event here in leg braces and intermittently using a stick and it was pretty much okay

• The house is mostly fine if you are a constant stick user, the grounds (which will be a lot of the play area) are not .

  • Monica once crewed a game here with a broken knee, and suggests needing a stick for mobility at all times would mean you'd be cut off from a lot of the game and the main features of this venue (it was a pretty miserable experience)

  • As such, in our judgement this game is not accessible for constant stick users

• Monica has an intermittent fatigue condition and while she cannot speak for everybody, people who can manage to walk a mile and then have a little rest 3-4 times a day, and brief bursts of combat situations 1-2 times a day might be fine here. You might not be able to take part in every encounter outside of the house and skip some combats, but there will usually be stuff to do indoors if you skip an outside encounter. 

  • Stuff will be happening most of the time, you may miss out on something if you need to have a nap but it shouldn't be a particular barrier to continuing to engage with the scenario.

  • Monica would consider booking to play this kind of game with her levels of various ills but typically it would likely wipe her out for two days after.
    
    

• Every person's needs and ways they manage them is different, and anecdotes here are only our experiences and direct feedback from other venue users. Please read this whole page and make your own best judgements based on your own needs.

The House

There is a small lip over the front door when entering from the driveway.

There is a step to access the house through the rear door to the kitchen.

All bedrooms (with one exception) are upstairs. The house stairs are slightly narrower than a typical modern home, and a little steeper.

All bathrooms and showers are on the ground floor. There is one shower/toilet wet room with handrails.

The ground floor bedroom has a low step to access it.

The house is well-heated with oil-fired central heating throughout and a log burner in the main living space for additional warmth. Some parts may get cold if the heating isn't on for some reason.

Most of the ground floor flooring is natural stone slabs. This is not perfectly flat, and can get slippery around entryways if people walk through the house in wet shoes. We will mitigate this with mats and sweeping where we can.

There is one low beam across a walkway that most adults will have to duck to pass, moreso if you have lineage trappings that give you additional height.

Most of the beds are bunk beds. Bottom bunks will be assigned based on access needs. You must bring your own bedding and a pillow (sleeping bags are fine).

All rooms are shared. We'll do our best to make sure everybody is comfortable with sleeping arrangements with the space we have available.

All rooms have power sockets, although some are in odd places as the older part of the house predates electricity. We'll bring some power strips to help with this.

The Grounds

The play area will encompass as much of the outdoor space we have available (taking into account any weather limitations and whether someone's put sheep somewhere), which is (from memory):

• A gravel driveway that turns into a small hill

• An uneven but mostly flat "lawn" area directly behind the house

• One uneven field with a gentle incline across half of it

• One uneven field with a small mound in the middle of it

• A gravel pathway, approx 300m long, from the house to a light woods/uneven terrain area, mostly even/flat

• A mature (ish) small pine forest, mostly flat-ish with a steep hill on one side up to the car access road

• A younger, denser small pine forest on a steep incline with a steep path alongside

• Some access roads that are slightly tatty tarmac/gravel, at least one of which has a steep incline

• Natural pathways, some of which have been gravelled, some of which are not much more than sheep trails

• Some paths have wooden stiles across fences or large wooden gates

• Some paths prone to getting muddy have had boards put down, these can get slippery in damp conditions

• There is a good chance of being up to your shins/knees in mud if weather happens and you try and take a shortcut

There is public right of way on many of the paths through the play area, although there is unlikely to be a lot of foot traffic in late February. We have had the odd rambler and dog walker wander through when we've run events here previously, but it's not frequent.

Map of Play Area

Weather

Duddon Valley, where our venue is, has same weather as much of the rest of Cumbria - that is, potentially every type of weather is possible in a single day, and it rains a bunch, but is equally likely to be randomly the most beautiful sun-soaked lush landscape you'll ever see. We are running in early spring, which means there's a fairly high chance it's going to rain at some point. If there is rain we will still be running encounters outside if it is physically safe to do so, with additional safety precautions if needed. We would suggest packing under the assumption you will get rained on and walk in mud at some point. Bring the good walking boots and/or wellies, leave the fancy historical footwear at home.

As it's a sheltered valley, it doesn't get particularly windy, but it can be very cold outside at night. Sunset for the valley is a little earlier than the surrounding regions, as the hills and mountains around it are quite high.

The house is heated and has a drying room and laundry facilities.

Combat

The entire play area should be considered "combat possible", to use PD's language.

While it should be fairly obvious when a "talky" situation could cause an NPC or monster to kick off, potentially there could be combat anywhere within the play area, including within the house. Indoor combat encounters will have additional safety controls (no running in the house, for example) but will be no less dangerous.

There will be combat encounters as part of exploration and missions into the surrounding grounds, forests and hills.