General Guidelines for Events

Face/Unique Characters

Note: For these guidelines, “face character” refers to any costume that represents a specific person from the SW universe. Some examples include Darth Vader, Luke, Leia, Padme, Chewbacca, Boba Fett, Kylo Ren, and Rey. This is not an exhaustive list. 

As membership in Cloud City Garrison and Kashyyyk Base increases, so does the potential for more overlapping face characters. Thanks to the feedback we’ve received from several members, the admin teams from CCG and KB have had an extensive discussion and created the following guidelines that might help anyone with a “there can be only one” costume as you’re signing up for events.

• Talk it out. If you only have one costume and someone else with that costume signs up for an event you’d like to attend before you get a chance to sign up, talk to that member directly and see if you can come to a compromise that lets both of you enjoy the event. You can also talk with your CO or XO for assistance. We suggest having these conversations through PM or email to keep from cluttering the event topic on the forum.
• If you have more than one costume, be flexible about which one you wear when someone with only one costume would also like to attend an event.
• Depending on the event (length of troop, space/area, etc.), we will accommodate two of the same character by creating shifts or having distinct zones within the trooping location. Talk with a CO, XO, or GEC to coordinate this.
• When a troop is posted with shifts, face characters will be limited to a single shift to allow others with the same costume to roster as well. Read the event details for more information.
• If you’re concerned about missing new event postings, remember that there are options for getting notified of new events. Sign up for reminders on the forum or for calendar invites.
• When costumers from other areas (like Titan/Alpha) attend our events, our local CCG/KB members will have priority with face character rostering.
• Some special events (like Weird Al concerts) will be handled differently to ensure all members have an equal opportunity to get involved. Details about signups that aren’t handled on a first come/first served basis will be included in the event post.
• If you have a face character costume and find that your signups are conflicting with others’ more often that you like, make a new costume! More costumes = more choices!

The 501^st Legion also provides guidance on this type of situation, which you can read in section 1.2.7.3 of the Command Survival Guide here: https://databank.501st.com/databank/CommandSurvivalGuide#Face_Characters

Children at Troops

Membership in the 501st and Rebel Legions is for adults only, and ultimately, our responsibility and priority lies with ensuring that our adult members can participate fully in this hobby. We also know that Star Wars is a family affair, and many (though not all) of our events are kid-friendly. As much as possible, we want to offer the opportunity for our members to share the costuming experience with their children while also respecting our members without children at events and ensuring the safety of all children.

The policy guidelines presented below were created based on input from the entire admin team, which was influenced by feedback from a variety of members, and have been voted on and agreed on by the COs and XOs of both CCG and KB. We believe that this policy is a good compromise for everyone and welcome feedback from you, as always. 

This policy applies to all minors under 18 years of age, regardless of membership in the Galactic Academy.

LFL and their legal team have also formalized some procedures relating to children under the age of 18 at Open Invite events (like sporting events). 501^st Legion members can read about that on the 501^st forum.

Section 1: Events

• Children under the age of 18 may attend events when permitted by event hosts. Examples of events that are likely to exclude children might include conventions, locations that serve alcohol, and events with age limits like the Starlight Parade.
• If you want to bring children to an event, then include that information when you sign up. Requests to include children can be denied by the admin team.
• Children will not be individually listed on official rosters. Children may be listed with their accompanying adult.
• For events with a roster cap, adult members have priority. Children may be withheld or removed from rosters in order to allow members to fill the roster cap.
• Children might not be eligible for discounted tickets or free passes at events that require paid entry. When limited, discounts or free passes will always be available to members first.

Section 2: Spotting

• Unaccompanied children under the age of 18 may not be spotters at events.
• Parents, relatives, or other parent-designated adults may share their duties with children. For example, your child may act as a spotter under your direct supervision in the same role.

Section 3: Costumes

• Children under the age of 18 may attend some events in costume.
• Children in costume may be asked to step out of photos with adult members in costume.
• To avoid any possible confusion, when an adult member is attending an event with an approved face character costume, older children may not wear the same costume.

Section 4: Expectations Regarding Behavior

• Children must be supervised by a parent, relative, or parent-designated adult at all times.
• Children should not be present in the changing area when adults are changing. Parents should be sensitive to the needs of others and remove their children when adults are changing.

Adults who do not take responsibility for children attending events may be asked to leave an event and may lose the privilege of inviting children to events in the future.

Formalness of Costumes at Events

Unless otherwise noted in the event description, costumes should include only and all parts/pieces that were submitted and approved. When you wear your costume at Legion events, it should look like it did in your submission photos without additional personalization or modification.

There are some events where we are welcome to adorn our costumes with extra pieces or decoration. Examples include but are not limited to the following:

• Adding holiday flair (scarves, mittens, Santa hats, candy canes, tinsel, etc.) for Salvation Army Bell Ringing and other holiday events
• Adding Robin Hood flair (hats, feathers, bow & arrow sets, etc.) for the Sherwood parade
• Adding lighting effects for the Starlight parade

Droids at Events

We are all excited about the new droids that are being built by our members and love having more of them available for our events! We also value the relationship we have with our local droid builders group and want to keep nurturing it. 

Leaders from the Droid Builders, CCG, and KB have discussed the best way for droids to get signed up for events, and we’d like everyone to be aware of the following procedures we’re collectively implementing. The Droid Builders are posting this to their members as well.

Conventions, LFL Open Invites, and Other “Special” Events

For conventions, LFL Open Invites (usually sporting events), and other special events as identified in event postings, all droids should be signed up through the droid builders group. We will not list them on our CCG/KB rosters. Continue signing yourself up on the SWO forum if you’re attending these events in a 50st or RL costume.

This ensures that any duplicate droids or droid rostering caps can be efficiently handled internally by the Droid Builders group. 

Everything Else (Most of our Events)

For a vast majority of our events, there is no change in rostering for folks with droids. Unless otherwise noted in the event details, you’re welcome to sign up here for an event with your droid as you’ve done in the past.

Why?

Conventions often present special needs for droids (space, charging rooms, etc.), so it’s important for droids to be rostered and tracked by the droid group. LFL Open Invites commonly have caps on the number of droids allowed, and those caps can change, so signups in one place with the droid builders makes it easier to track who’s attending. Other special events (like Weird Al concerts) might also require special treatment best handled directly by the droid builders group.