How to Host a Harry Potter Roleplay Community in Second Life for $10,000

I was asking New World Notes readers the most money they ever spent on a virtual item, and while some spent $25 or $60 or so on, one figure in particular made my jaw drop:

“I spent more than $600 USD and to create a custom Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.”

So said Daeberethwen Arbenlow, a well-known figure in the Second Life fashion world. But nearly 10 years ago, she was roleplaying in an SL-based Harry Potter community through an avatar known as “Belladora Darkfold”. Until, that is, the virtual wizard drama became too damn much:

“I had worked as a GM at a different Hogwarts sim and it was really corrupt and they had big issues with favoritism,” as she puts it. “So I decided I wanted to make my own Hogwarts sim and that I wanted to make it look as much like Hogwarts and Hogsmeade as possible.” She hired an SL-based design studio which specialized in Harry Potter-themed content. (Yes, those exist). “I had a quidditch pitch, Hogwarts with the chamber of secrets you could access with parseltongue, Hagrid's hut, haunted forest and Hogsmeade. Oh and the Ministry of Magic.”

Cost to build? $600. Creative and community benefit: Priceless.  

“I like creating worlds that are immersive,” she says. “Roleplayers loved it, because at the time, it was the only place that really looked like Hogwarts. and everything was true to the books... I had a great bunch. Just people who shared my love of the Harry Potter universe and who really got into their characters. And my administrative team at the time worked really hard and they were fair minded.”

And if you’re wondering, no, she wasn’t worried that Warner Brothers or JK Rowling would sicc their lawyers on them:

 

 

“We had disclaimers we put up [at the entrance]... along the lines of ‘not-for-profit’ and ‘fan role play’. Never ran into any problems.” (She may have dodged a bullet on this, because other SL communities have been hit with infringement notices by lawyers with other IP brands.)

And because it was a not-for-profit project, she had to pay the land tier to Linden Lab from her own pocket. Donations from the community didn’t go very far: “I had a tip jar in the landing site but it was mostly poor students playing, I doubt I ever had more than L$100 donated.”

So really the cost came out to much more than $600: “I probably sank $10,000 USD total into it with tier and builds.”

She kept her  community running for 3 to 4 years until a new real life job kept her too busy and resource-strapped to keep her Hogwarts to herself. “I ended up selling the sim to a couple for the transfer price so they could keep it going.”

This isn’t to say she regrets what she paid; in fact, not at all:

“If I had the money I would do it again,” says Daeberethwen Arbenlow. “If I won the lottery I would probably make roleplay sims.”

Comments

[Slade Christensen]

My wife and I made that sim, it was so much fun to do and a total pleasure to work with Belladora :) I only wish mesh was available back then, we had to bake shadows into every object we uploaded.