Hi, about to go to Empire for the first time (go to a very small scale larp for the last two years), I was just wondering if you had any advice about useful stuff to bring? Trying to make a list so I don't forget anything or get caught out. Thanks :D
HI! :) Thatâs fantastic, 2017 is going to be a great year for Empire and I hope you have a brilliant time!
My main LARP packing list is here, and that post has a link to a couple of others too. You might also check out this post for some OC camping gear tips, and this one for my top five items a generic LARP character should carry.
For Empire specifically, I recommend:
A small IC-looking belt pouch which holds only OC stuff - money, car keys, medication.
A larger belt pouch or satchel which holds IC stuff
IC-looking notebook and pen (check out Chowâs Emporium in the field or online if you want one to suit your character, she always has a big selection!)
Some âIC gumfâ already written in the notebook to give you a bit of a prompt - for example the lyrics to a song or two, or the tenets of your favoured Virtue, or the names of some recently famous PCs your character might want to meet!
Feel free to PM me for more specific advice about your character/culture etc. And donât forget to say hi to the redcaps when you get onto site, weâre friendly! :)
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Use your energy wisely. Donât let fear drain you from achieving your goals. Fear doesnât exist in my world. As soon as I get scared or feel my faith begin to waver I remember that fear is an EMOTION. Emotions change in a second. Why waste my energy on something that I can conquer?
Use your energy on things that promote growth. Get a bestfriend who is actually a friend. Learn a different language. Read several books at a time. Grow your energy upwards and receive results.
Hiya! I'm sure I remember reading a post of yours which contained information on when and when not to wear head-dress when playing a military character? But I cannot for the life of me find it in the post history. Any help? Thanks.
Hi! :) You may be thinking of the saluting flowchart, but Iâve never specifically done a post on when to wear head-dress.
The very simple rule (for British Forces post 1918) is:
Always wear head-dress outside; always take it off inside.
There are a very few exceptions to that ruleâ
Some units require one to wear head-dress when in the Company or Battalion offices.
If youâre getting a serious telling off or interview, it may be a âberet onâ affair.
All Sikhs who wear regimental turbans must keep them on indoors.
Muslim women who wear hijab under head-dress keep the hijab on indoors (but remove head-dress).
If youâre eating, drinking or smoking outside, take it off.
If youâre performing dirty/hazardous/hot work outside, your works party may be given permission to remove it by their supervisor.
During a loaded march or other outdoor PT in uniform, take it off.
How do you get the body of a military beret to stay inclined/flopped on one side of the head, and not end up like there is a plate badly hidden in it? Thanks!
Oh boy here we go! ITâS BERET SHAVING TIME!
You have no idea how excited I am that someone finally asked me this. My moment has come!
1. TRIM YOUR BERET
Your beret will have a lining on the inside - usually silk or cotton. Trim this off, as close to the leather band as possible.
2. SOAK YOUR BERET
Turn on the taps and get a sinkful of hot water. Soak your beret thoroughly.
If itâs a soldier pattern (wide crown - hangs down over your ear when you put it on and smear it down your head), youâll want to soak in alternating hot, then cold, then hot, to shrink the crown. If itâs officer pattern (narrow crown), just soak it in warm water.
3. SHAVE YOUR BERET
No, this isnât a wind-up!
Using a cheap disposable shaving razor (have several to hand - youâll wreck the blades!), gently shave all the wool fluff off your beret. At the start it should look fluffy and felty like this:
But by the end it will be smooth and flat, like this:
Wash/wipe the excess wool off until itâs fluff-free. Do a final soak and wring it; ideally the final soak should be in warm water, because youâre about toâŠ
4. PUT IT ON YOUR HEAD
âŠand thatâs unpleasant with cold wet wool. Don the beret. It should be relatively high at the back, and low at the front, with the band just above your eyebrows.Â
This is a lot lower than most people normally wear hats, and will feel unnatural. Cope! Donât let it slip up your forehead!
5. SMEAR IT
You want to start smearing the wet wool backwards and to the right. The place where the cap badge will go (most berets have a leather patch on the inside, and stitching on the outside, to help you locate this) should be above the outside of your left eyebrow. Smear everything so that it falls over the right side of your head, towards your ear, and all excess material is guided towards the back.
You can sew the cap badge on at this point if you like. Donât sew the cap badge on before youâve shaved it!
Youâre aiming for this look:
The crease where the material folds at the front should be sharp and end just before the cap badge. You want as little air gap between the fold and the leather band/your head as possible. Smear it until itâs as tight as possible, thenâŠ
6. Tie it in place
Use a necktie or something else wide and flat, tie it in place, tying OVER the fold which overhangs your right ear. The aim is to get it to stay as shaped as possible for as long as possible.
7. Patience, Young Padawan
Leave it on for as long as you can bear it. It will take a few hours to dry, so you wonât be able to keep it on until itâs totally dry; when you must finally take it off, leave the tie in place and drape it gently over a radiator or in an airing cupboard, being careful not to lose the shape. The wool should dry in shape and when you put it on tomorrow, naturally stay in new, molded shape!
8. Wash, Rinse, Repeat
Some berets may take several moldings to get the correct shape. If youâre consistently struggling to keep a good shape, check the beret size - if your crown is too small, and youâre wearing it too low on the back of your head, it will consistently âpuffâ and stick out to the size; try a larger band size.
Godspeed and good luck!
As long as your LARP group doesnât look like this, youâre probably fine....
KIT TIP: Whatâs in your OC first aid kit, LARPHacks?
I carry an OC first aid kit to events. I regularly revise it to add and remove products depending on what I use / donât use. Whatâs in mine? Find out below the cut!
I use one of these kits as a base, because it comes with a handy internal waterproof bag, and add my own essentials.
Essentials: I carry these because I end up using them on a regular basis, at many LARP events.
Antiseptic wipes
Low adherent dressings
Zinc tape
Tick tweezers or needlenose tweezers
Ibuprofen and/or paracetamol
Emergency tampon/pad (yes you should damn well carry one even if you donât menstruate)
Nice-to-haves: I carry these because they might make my event more comfortable or solve an unusual problem, but theyâre not necessary in the average first aid kit.
Dry antiseptic spray
Self adhesive dressings
Duct tape
Fabric bandage
Cocodamol
Safety pins
Blister plasters (Compeed, Moleskine)
Antihistamine cream / hydrocortisone
Going overboard: I carry these because one day they might come in handy, but theyâre by no means necessary.
Celox
Steri-strips
Dioralyte sachets (oral rehydration)
Latex / surgical gloves
Single dose canesten / off-brand anti-thrush tablet
Added extras: I donât carry these things in my first aid kit, but some people do:
Paracetamol-based painkillers
Instant ice pack
Eye wash / eye drops
Scissors
Antiseptic / skin healing cream
Surgical tape / micropore tape
Deep heat / other muscle rub gel
Alcohol gel
CLEAN: Wet and dry antiseptics. Use wet when there is dirt or gunk that needs cleaning from around a wound - use dry when you donât want to attract more dust into the wound, or for wet seeping grazes you donât want to soak any further. Use both (wet then dry) when getting and staying clean is important - like after removing a tick.
BANDAGE: Various types of dressing. Low adherent dressings are good for minor burns and weeping grazes. Steri-strips are good for bigger wound closures that donât quite require stitches. You are highly unlikely to ever encounter a situation at LARP that requires the use of Celox.
FEET: Moleskin, compeed and zinc tape. Zinc tape prevents blisters - compeed and moleskin relieve them. Zinc tape also makes a good adhesive to hold on dressings, and an excellent athletic support (e.g. taping up weak ankles) if you know how to use it.
PAIN: Brufen and co-codamol. Never take drugs youâre not used to at a LARP event. Watch out for other peopleâs allergies.
MISC: I always carry duct tape in my first aid kit because of how much I sweat - if I get a hand injury, I will sweat the dressing off in minutes if Iâm working! Duct tape on skin isnât comfortable; donât use it on other people without trying it on yourself first. The tick tweezers I use are basically needle-nose tweezers, so I can use them to remove splinters too.
Finally, I always carry a little waterproof baggy full of sticking plasters. These are mostly to help my mates (I prefer to leave my own smaller wounds uncovered, to heal quicker, or superglue them shut if theyâre annoying) but theyâre a sound investment!
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Tumblr, I hate packing. Despise it. Avoid it at all costs.
Lucky for you, this deep loathing has led me to develop a series of cheats, in the form of pre-prepared checklists. I am about to share one of them with you. Behold, my generic LARP packing list. Bookmark it, reblog it with additions, whatever you like!
Other LARP packing lists here and here - consult these too.
Armour for women - what works, what doesn't? (I know the general answer is "Whatever works for you.", but some specific advice might be handy to women warriors old and new.)
Hey, definitely, and thanks for asking! :)Â
You asked about âarmour for womenâ, but Iâm afraid thatâs not exactly the question Iâm going to answer. Iâm primarily going to cover the physical issues of armour for people of all genders with typically female bodies in this post. I will also discuss a few social/cultural issues around gender and armour, particularly relevant to women of all body types, at the end.
You may also find bits of this post useful if you have a body with some but not all typically female characteristics, like wide hips or breast tissue or low testosterone.
N.B. Throughout this post I am going to say âchainmailâ when I refer to armour made out of lots of little rings joined together, because I gain sustenance from the tears of angry pedants.
Photo by Tom Garnett, from Empire LARP.
1. Two Out Of Three
If you have a typically female body, and are buying off-the-shelf LARP armour, I reckon you can expect to get two out of three of this tripod:
Comfort
Practicality/durability
Appearance
If you have a less typical body in size or shape, you may only get one of these in any given set of armour, particularly around the torso. While itâs better now than it was five years ago (and will be better again in five more!), in the meantime you should think carefully about your priorities.Â
Going to be wearing the armour for 6 hour sweaty battles through the mud? It wants to be comfortable.Â
Trying to impress your fellow Knights at tourney? Itâs all about the look.
Taking it on and off a lot, playing a system where ârealisticâ armour is important for survival, and want to keep it for years? Practicality/durability is where itâs at.
This ladyâs gorgeous custom scale armour is very likely close to achieving all three - but itâs heavy on the time and money investment. Photo by Tom Garnett, from Empire LARP.
2. These Hips Donât Lie
Most typical female bodies have hips which are substantially wider than their waists. Most historical armour was designed for people with typically male bodies, which tend to have hips and waists which are closer to the same width.Â
As a result, youâll often find that armour - particularly plate armour - bangs on your hips, leaving bruises on your hip-bones. Worse, if you have wide hips and a short torso, you can find breastplates and backplates forced upwards, jarring against your chin or neck.Â
There are three ways Iâve fixed this in the past:
Short breastplates / plackarts - plackarts, like the one pictured below, can really be a female bodyâs best friend. They are short and light enough to sit comfortably above your hips, often very adjustable (the short height means theyâre easy to bend into shape) and leave your breast area free for however you want to armour that. Alternatively, getting your armourer to make you a shorter breastplate, or cutting a few inches off an existing one (much cheaper than a custom build! I got my ÂŁ60 breastplate cut down for ÂŁ5 and a packet of crisps), can ensure that your hips are left free.
Chainmail or flexible armour - Scale, chainmail, brigandine, lorica segmentata and other forms of flexible or semi-flexible armour (including many leather armours) tend to avoid this problem by flexing around your hips instead of trying to ride roughshod over them.  Youâll still get some tightness, particularly from brigs and lorica, but I find it more bearable. Metal lamellar doesnât tend to have the same effect, because it goes straight up and down and doesnât bend outwards very happily.
Custom armour - if youâre going to an armourer to get something made, make sure theyâve made kit for clients with hips before and if you can, speak to a client with your body shape. Many male armourers donât appreciate the âhipsâ issue and while theyâll leave plenty of room for your breasts, theyâll cut the breastplate straight or (worse) tucked in low at the waist - recipe for disaster.
Photographer unknown, from White City LARP.
3. Go Generic
As with any piece of LARP kit, if youâre buying your first piece of LARP armour, I recommend going as generic as possible. Get something you can reuse in multiple systems and wonât regret owning if your current character dies tomorrow.Â
For my money, the best âgeneric buyâ for someone with tits and hips is a short-sleeved butted chainmail shirt or vest, which should set you back about ÂŁ60-ÂŁ100; Iâve used mine in everything from sci-fi to medieval fantasy to Renaissance city-states. You can ornament armour with paint, ribbons, flowers, furs, a Sharpie⊠but the more generic your base, the happier future-you will be.
If you are struggling to find chainmail that fits you, another good option is a leather cuirass or jerkin. Softer leathers will be more permissive to your shape, and there are more armourers who make leather kit specifically designed for people with breasts and bigger hips.
4. Huge Tracts of Land
The first thing most people think of when they consider female bodies in armour, particularly plate armour, is to panic about the breasts. But where will the BREASTS go?!
The truth is that I have never worn a rigid breastplate (or⊠any other torso armour, actually, except maybe my lorica, which is pretty snug) where I noticed any interference with my breasts. Iâm a C cup. I expect that most people with C and smaller cup sizes would experience the same. As an example, look at this picture of Jean Seberg playing Joan of Arc:
Sheâs clearly wearing a flat breastplate, and the way itâs sitting quite naturally and tucking well to her waist (note the high waist and flare to flexible lames, which will be very comfy for her hips!) suggests she must have some pretty small tits under that, no? Actually, no:
OK, thereâs clearly some Wonderbra assistance in this photo, but my point is that sheâs by no means flat-chested.
Bodies with larger breasts, especially at E cup and above, may find rigid breastplates which fit their shoulders are uncomfortably tight on their chests. A sports bra can help with this effect, or at the extreme end, a binder. There are some rigid breastplates, like those in the Gothic style, which leave a lot of room in the chest between metal and flesh; that room is ripe to be filled with breast tissue.Â
By contrast, if you have larger breasts (E+) and donât like them squashed, avoid off-the-shelf versions of armours like muscle plate, lamellar and Wisby plate. Also avoid tight brigandines - while the âtailâ may flex around your hips, it is heavy and the chest wonât flex so well around breast tissue. Theyâre not good armours to pick unless theyâve been specifically tailored to you - they sit flat and close to the chest, and will crush you mercilessly.
If youâre a trans* bloke, youâre crossplaying or you otherwise want to appear flat chested, plate armour, lorica, muscle plate and similar can be a great way to integrate the visual equivalent of a binder into your costume.
YES YES FINALLY I HAVE AN EXCUSE TO POST THIS PHOTO YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW UNCONTROLLABLY EXCITED IT MAKES ME. HOW FUCKING AMAZING DOES SHE LOOK WITH THIS BEARD. I JUST. BRING ME THAT BEARD I WISH TO WEAR IT AND/OR SEDUCE IT. UNF. Female LARPer with breasts, playing male character, in beard and muscle plate. Photo by Oliver Facey, from Empire LARP.
This trans male LARPer is taking advantage of the excellent flattening effect provided by lorica - in this case, leather lorica - and DAMN heâs looking badass while doing it. Photo by Charlotte Moss, from Odyssey LARP.
Those with very large breasts may sometimes find chainmail uncomfortable to wear. Although chainmail sized for breastless chests (which is all off-the-shelf stuff that hasnât had darts specially added!) will naturally flatten your breasts a bit, some people at F cup and above report that the mail âhangsâ downwards after the widest point of the chest, which can be uncomfortable.Â
You should always try to belt your chainmail if you can (see âweight bearingâ, below), and if you suffer from this, try a wider/hero belt worn as high up the waist as possible. It will help alleviate the âhangingâ effect and reduce weight on delicate tissues.
5. Weight Bearing
You should check out this post if your armourâs going to weigh more than you usually walk around wearing, and particularly pay attention to the point about where weight is best distributed. In brief, if you have narrow shoulders and broad hips, try loading downwards towards the hips and keep as much weight off your shoulders as you can.
That aside, it is worth mentioning that the average female body can carry less weight than the average male body. Most female-bodied LARPers I know can jaunt about in armour for a few hours with no ill effect. However, if you have narrower shoulders, lower lung capacity and less muscle mass than your male-bodied friends, donât expect to be carrying the same weight as them for the same duration right out the door and feel as comfortable afterwards. And for Godsâ sakes donât hurt yourself by loading on heavy plate in the name of âkeeping up with the guysâ.
Typical female bodies are more vulnerable to stress fractures than typical male bodies, particularly under weight. Iâve not come across this as a problem much in the LARPing community, but itâs a huge issue in military training. If youâre going to be carrying heavy weight (20%+ of your bodyweight) for upwards of 4 hours a week, regularly, follow these guidelines to avoid injury:
Eat and hydrate well.
Avoid painkillers. If youâre in enough pain that you need to take a painkiller before you carry weight, donât carry the weight.
Listen to your body. If you get lower limb, shoulder, back or hip pain, take the weight off, stop exercise and see a doctor if it persists.
Lots of calcium. Extreme exercise can deplete calcium over time, especially in people without typical-male levels of testosterone, which increases your vulnerability to stress fractures.
Lots of iron. Female bodies are more susceptible to anaemia than male bodies, and low iron wonât help your strength and fitness one bit. Steak, broccoli, Guiness and supplements.
Lots of sleep. You should aim to sleep at least 8 hours the night before strenuous weight-bearing exercise, and another 8 the night after to recover.
Good footwear. If you have never had boots properly fitted or had gait analysis, consider it; excess heel striking or pronation can cause shin splints or hip misalignment under weight, for example. Female bodiesâ joints tend to be more flexible, which can be a risk factor for some injuries.Â
Reduce leg weight. Weight on your legs (e.g. heavy steel greaves) is disproportionately difficult to keep moving over time compared to weight higher up the trunk. If you can swap out your greaves for lighter ones, or move the armour coverage up to your thighs or arms, youâll increase your endurance under load.
6. Boob Plate
OK! Letâs switch fire away from female bodies, and talk about cultural attitudes to armour and gender for a minute.
This is the bit where Iâm meant to say that âboob plateâ and chainmail bras are the great Satan, and theyâre the cancer thatâs destroying womenâs armour, and all the rest. And yeah, sure, I find those things pretty distasteful. I think overdone boob plate sometimes looks dumb and chainmail bras key into a legacy of exploitation and objectification of women, and I wouldnât wear one to LARP in. But ultimately your costume choice is your choice, and first it has to be about character and setting.Â
Lots of people dislike armour which has curves to follow the line of the breasts because it âisnât historically accurateâ or âdoesnât make sense from a protection point of viewâ. The first of those is irrelevant to us - weâre LARPers. The second is kinda relevant and kinda not - if youâre playing in a setting which might include, for example, Roman or Greek style muscle plate, that stuff isnât molded like that because it turns blades. Its purpose is aesthetic and psychological, to accentuate the desired physicality of the wearer.Â
If he can have his desired physicality accentuated, while getting good LARP armour coverage, why canât a woman (or anyone else whose desired physicality includes breasts) have theirs accentuated? And damn right this applies whether or not they have tits under there.
Are chainmail bikinis exploitative? No. You wanna wear that, you go right ahead. Are fictional settings which put their men in practical plate armour and their women in skimpy breast-enhancing outfits, and pretend both have the same protection from damage, exploitative and sexist? Yes. Sure they are. Avoid.
Ultimately, is it possible to wear flat-chested armour which doesnât emphasise your assets, and still be badass and sexy and feminine?
Fuck yeah.
And is it possible to wear armour that shows a curve in the breast line, and still be totally practical and ready to rock in a swordfight?
YES.
WE.
CAN.
(Both photos by Tom Garnett, from Odyssey LARP.)
In summary: Crack on, choose comfort or practicality or appearance - whatever suits you - and enjoy your armour!
The erudite and talented Pufferfish has kindly written a guest post about PAX makeup and allowed me to reproduce it here!
What is PAX?
PAX is a mixture of prosaide (prosthetic adhesive) and acrylic paint. You can use it to paint your skin for approx 4-5 days before it starts to flake off as your skin renews itself underneath. Typically the mixture is 50/50 though you may want to experiment a bit to find what's best for your own skin. You may find that closer to 70% acrylic paint is better if you only intend to leave it on for one or two days.
LARPHacks Note: If youâve read âacrylic paintâ and are freaking out about safety, please scroll to the bottom!
PAX makeup job blended with foam prosthetic. Photo by Tom Garnett, from Maelstrom LARP.
Where do you get PAX?
You have to make it yourself, but the constituent parts are easy to get hold of.
The best place to get prosaid in the UK is www.henna-boy.co.uk, who charge very reasonable prices, although you can do pretty well on ebay. Anyone charging more than a tenner for 50ml is ripping you off, and you will probably be able to pay less than that.
Craft/budget grade acrylic paint is perfectly fine and available at most art shops. I tend to get "student artist" paints just because there is more guarantee of colour consistency from batch to batch and they dry up a bit slower.
Stick an equal mix of both these things in a pot and stir it up until there's no streaks in the colour. if making white PAX, stir it a bit more, because you won't be able to tell when it's fully mixed. I find as long as the lid's decently tight, the mixed up colour will last for a couple of years or more.
LARPHacks note: Iâm still using a bottle of PAX my friend mixed for me in 2007. Itâs going strong.
How do you put it on yourself?
I tend to get the cheapest bathroom sponge I can find that doesn't have massive irregular holes in, and cut bits off it. You won't get to use the sponge more than once so cheap is good here. Dab it gently on- don't rub with the sponge, or it will look manky. You can do several thin coats so don't get too overenthusiastic on the first go.
Blue PAX, with âfishscaleâ sequins pressed in while itâs still drying. Photo by Tom Garnett, from Empire LARP.
...Scales?
PAX is excellent for scales. The magic ingredient is fishnet tights. Dab on a layer of base colour as before, and then stretch a piece of fishnet tights over the area on which you want scales, and carefully dab on a small amount of paint of a different colour through the fishnets. Putting the tights in an embroidery hoop (available for a couple of quid from most sewing/craft stores, or the internet) makes it a lot easier to do this without a helper.
Stopping it coming off again
PAX will be a bit sticky unless set with some kind of powder. Translucent makeup setting powder is ideal, but plain old talcum powder will do if you're on a budget or working on short notice. On most skin it'll last like this for four or five days. Powdering once a day is ideal but not essential.
The brown âbarkâ is PAX blended into a latex prosthetic; the green is eyeshadow. Photo by Tom Garnett, from Empire LARP.
Making it come off when you want it to
Proprietary prosaide removers are available. I'm told isopropyl alcohol works, but I haven't personally tried either of these things because after four days I can remove it by scrubbing with hot soapy water and a flannel. The more acrylic paint in the mix, the easier it will be to remove, but the easier it'll come off before you want it to as well.
Limitations?
PAX in many cases is the Wonder Paint that is the answer to all your hatred of having to put on a complex makeup job anew every morning. But it does have some limitations that you may want to be aware of. I don't recommend scales without a base colour, or any pattern involving thin lines or small areas, because PAX does come off a little at the edges of each individual painted bit, so you'll lose a lot of definition.
You're also likely to find a certain amount of paint flaking off from areas that come under constant abrasion- under bra straps or circlets, say. I have colour-matched my PAX for Eleri to two colours of Diamond FX paint so I can use PAX on my face and conventional paint across my collarbones and neck. Others' mileages may vary.
PAX colour-matched to an elasticated half-mask. Photo by Oliver Facey, from Pioneers LARP.
LARPHacks Notes:
1. Slap Me Some Skin
One use that Pufferfish doesnât mention is âblankingâ tattoos and other marks you donât want your character to have. Mix up a bottle of PAX to match your skin tone, and apply a layer or two over the tat - voila - tat hidden! I have a Latin tat which isnât suitable for all settings, and I just draw a line over it in PAX and call it a scar when itâll be on show.
The surface that skin tone PAX leaves isnât precisely like real skin; itâs more like a scar, very flat and matte in visual texture. For this reason, it can also be great for creating old scars.
Iâve never tried it myself, but some people recommend mixing liquid foundation in with Pros-Aide to make a good skin tone - it sounds like an expensive experiment to me.
PAX makeup blended with forehead prosthetic. Photo by model, from Empire LARP.
2. Safety
Some people (including this article and others) have expressed concerns about using acrylic paint in makeup. Some acrylic paints (particularly expensive ones) do contain toxic substances; I understand this can be more of a problem in America than the UK.Â
If you are concerned, artist quality acrylics should always list their pigments on the tubes, and you can cross-reference those pigments with a list of toxic ones (start here or engage in a bit of Googling for toxicity info).Â
Most toxic pigments these days are only used in super high quality paints;Â âstudent artistâ ones will use safer (cheaper) imitations.Â
American laws in some states can be super-paranoid about toxicity. I own makeup with the warning "do not put near eyes and mouth in the state of California".... ;)
Ultimately, donât do anything you donât feel safe doing; read the label; and do your research.