I would wager there isn’t anyone out there that didn’t re-purpose a cardboard box into something awesome at some point in their lives. Any kid influenced by Calvin & Hobbes knows that cardboard boxes can become anything. Castles, sports cars, spaceships. You name it. However after watching the video above, anything we ever came up with pales in comparison to the beauty that is Boxwars.

The phenomenon of Boxwars is equal parts crafts, cosplay, and free-for-all LARPing battles. The rules appear to be as simple as can be. Participants make extravagant armor, weapons, and vehicles out of cardboard and then, for lack of a better term, have as much fun as possible while destroying each other with what they’ve made.

“You don’t stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing.”

It’s amazing to think that something silly a few friends did in their backyards to pass the time back has grown to such epic proportions. Participants come from miles around to take part in the battles and special events. They even have themed events like robot invasion, Napoleonic Wars and, fittingly, their Mad Max battle at the 2014 Sydney Festival. The team’s talents have even been used in music videos like the Doctor Who-sampled “Drop your Guard” by METALS, where they made a cardboard Dalek.

Making such creative things out of a material often just throw away is truly an inspiring feat. We can only hope they organize some Boxwars here in the U.S. because we are DYING to join in on the fun.

What would you build for a Boxwar? Let us know in the comments below!

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HT: LaughingSquid
Images: Boxwars