ExileCon 2026 Cosplay Weapon Preflight Checklist

A convention-ready prop starts with a safety and entry check before construction, packing, or travel.

Start with the admission boundary

Set accurate expectations before the attendee relies on the checklist.

• This checklist applies specifically to the supplied ExileCon 2026 costume-weapons policy.
• Event staff inspect costume weapons and decide whether an item may enter.
• Checklist completion reduces avoidable conflicts but does not determine the inspection result.
• Plan for the possibility that a prop will be refused or held for collection at the end of the day.

Remove functional and projectile capability

Screen out features that conflict directly with the published safety policy.

• Confirm that the prop cannot function as a real weapon.
• Remove live rounds, ammunition, and any mechanism able to fire a projectile.
• Do not bring a replica gun; the policy excludes replica guns under all circumstances.
• Treat BB, airsoft, foam-dart, and similar firing capability as prohibited rather than as harmless convention features.

Check materials, edges, and points

Apply the material and shape restrictions to blade-like and other pointed props.

• Use nonmetal construction for replica blades and keep their edges blunt and rounded.
• Check the entire prop for metal weapon components, including an otherwise nonmetal staff fitted with a metal head.
• Remove sharpened edges, needles, and other sharp points.
• Use lightweight materials for large props; visual resemblance does not outweigh the construction and safety requirements.

Review bows, crossbows, and arrows separately

Prevent a general prop review from missing category-specific restrictions.

• A replica bow or crossbow should have no string or a string without enough tension to launch a projectile.
• An accompanying arrow should have no head or should use a soft head that is substantially blunt and rounded.
• Review the bow and every accompanying arrow as separate inspection items.
• Do not assume decorative intent overrides the rule against projectile capability.

Test size and movement around attendees

Translate the policy's oversized-item standard into a practical movement check.

• Confirm that the prop can be carried and turned without striking people nearby.
• Consider whether its size would inconvenience attendees in entrances, queues, aisles, or crowded spaces.
• Keep large items light enough to control throughout the event.
• Treat difficult movement or turning as a warning that staff may consider the item oversized.

Prepare for inspection and tagging

Help attendees arrive with realistic expectations about the entry process.

• Expect staff to inspect every costume weapon before admittance.
• Once an accepted item is tagged, leave the tag attached and unaltered.
• Keep the prop in its compliant condition after inspection.
• Have a contingency for refusal because the published standards do not remove staff discretion.

Decision checklist

• The costume weapon has no functional weapon capability.
• The item contains no live rounds or ammunition.
• The item cannot fire any kind of projectile.
• The item is not a replica gun.
• A replica bow or crossbow has no tensile string, or has no string.
• Each accompanying arrow has no head, or has a soft, substantially blunt and rounded head.
• Every replica blade is nonmetal with blunt, rounded edges.
• The prop has no sharp edge, needle, or sharp point and no metal weapon component arranged as part of the weapon replica itself or as a metal head on an otherwise nonmetal prop as described by the policy example; review any uncertain hardware against the current organizer policy before travel rather than assuming it will pass inspection. It is lightweight, controllable, and appropriately sized for crowded movement; the costume uses no stilts; the attendee understands that a large costume may prevent access to allocated seating for the keynote talks on both days and the Sunday closing talks; the attendee will leave an inspection tag attached and unaltered; the attendee has a contingency if staff refuse the item or hold it for collection; planned posing does not involve forceful, dangerous, or aggressive use of the prop.

Worked example

An attendee plans a broad fantasy sword made from lightweight nonmetal material. Before travel, they confirm that it has no functional mechanism, metal blade component, sharp point, or hard edge; round the edges; and test whether they can turn in a crowded space without hitting anyone. They also prepare for staff inspection, plan to leave any inspection tag untouched, and accept that staff may still refuse the prop.

Common mistakes

• Assuming a lightweight replica gun is permitted because it cannot fire.
• Leaving tension on a replica bow string even when no arrow will be launched.
• Using blunt metal for a replica blade and focusing only on sharpness.
• Checking the main prop while overlooking the heads of accompanying arrows.
• Treating a large costume as separate from seating and movement constraints.
• Removing or altering the inspection tag after entry.

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