Welcome to the Riverworld PBEM RPG!


This document is intended to help introduce the game, and to
get things going for the first turn. Things will be a little
experimental at first, so bear with me!

1. How does the game work?

PBEM roleplaying is an exercise in playing your character well
and collaborating on an ongoing story. The gamemaster (me) serves
as both your co-author and editor for the story.

The game proceeds in (roughly) weekly "Turns". A Turn occurs when
I send out email describing the story's events as they progress.
In between Turns, players email their actions to me and to
each other (assuming they aren't secret). When I've received actions
from everybody, and any disputes have been resolved, I send will
send out a Turn. Ideally, I'd like to send out a Turn every Monday,
and should therefore receive all actions by midnight Sunday,
my time zone (PDT).

If y'all are very quick and I'm not too busy, we might speed this
up to 2 Turns/week. We'll see how it goes. :)


2. How to email actions (aka "moves")

You all now belong to 2 mailing lists, one for the discussion of
issues, the other for actual public moves.

Private or secret actions should be mailed to me directly
(alansz@mellers1.psych.berkeley.edu).  NO ACTION IS OFFICIAL UNTIL IT
APPEARS IN ONE OF MY TURN MAILINGS. Just so you know. :)

To make everyone's life easier (at least in the long run), the 
following rules should be followed when sending email:

a. Write in third person. Describe what your character is doing
   or saying. Please write actions normally, 
   questions to me in []'s, and "if-then" statements in {}'s.
   Speech should be in ""'s, and you should use <>'s (on a line
   by themselves) to indicate the language you're speaking (until
   you change).
   Here's an (athematic) example:

        Krag the Bloody draws out his Battle Axe +2, +3 against plush
	beings and chops at the giant animated Undead Gund Squirrel
        <French>
        "Take THAT, you ball of fluscious, fragrant fur!"
        {If Krag kills it, he will draw out his crossbow and start shooting
	at those monkeys with the unicycles zipping above him.}
        {If Krag is just about to get killed, he will fall down onto the
	floor, twitch his feet and play dead.}
        [Are the Barbie Dolls attacking Mikhol the Magnificent?  What
	weapons are the Ken dolls holding?]

   Remember to RP poor mastery, dialect, speaking style, etc. See also
   the document on languages for more detail and a better example.

   You may include private messages to the GM in your move mail by
   enclosing it in lines that say *private* and *public*:
        *private*
        GM - while Krag placates the others, he's going to slip
        his +1 tweezers into his hand.
        *public*
	Krag grins at the others.

b. The subject line of your email should always contain your
   character's name (or pseudonym if you char is using one)
   in brackets, like this: [Burton] Let's build a boat
   If you're sending private email to me about secret actions,
   add "(private)" to the subject line: [Burton] (private) Sabotage!
   I'll follow the same convention if I have private mail to send.

c. Turns will be numbered and will have subject lines beginning
   with "Riverworld, Turn #<n>". A Turn posting will be a story
   integrating your actions, the actions of NPC's, and the results
   of whatever's happened. I'll try to write good prose. :)
   Comments from me will be in []'s

d. In the event that for some reason you can not send in a move,
   notifying me would be great. I will write your move for you
   in this case, or if I don't receive a move in time.

3. Archives and stuff

The Turns, intro info, etc, will be available on the web, at:
	http://mellers1.psych.berkeley.edu/~alansz/rw-pbem
(note: no .html at the end of that)


4. Game system

I am using a sort of game system to determine the results of some
actions, and it does involve rolling dice, when a random elements
seems appropriate, and my own judgment otherwise. Don't worry about
it, just RP your char and have fun.

5. Combat

Combat is icky by email, but will no doubt occur. When it does, try to
pack as many actions as seems reasonable into your moves, and things
will usually work out better.

6. The first Turn

So, how about getting down to *Riverworld*?
Ok, here's the background for your situation. You may begin sending
moves or other mail to me or the mailing list whenever you want.
First Turn will be published on September 11.

Consider this, then, the prelude, albeit in second person:

"Aaagg..."

How can the time between birth and death be so slow, when the time
between death and rebirth flits by in a mere second? 

Oddly, you have little memory of the circumstances of your second
death. To be awakened from your first death, your death on Earth, was
so great a shock that discovering that death on the Riverworld is
likewise impermanent is no surprise at all. But many things seem
different about this resurrection...

You know that it has been 30 days since Resurrection Day, when you
first found yourself naked beside the river. Glancing at the
cylindrical grail strapped to your wrist, you can recall its
function. You recognize the pile of towels with magnetic fastening
tabs beside you as the usual articles which accompany a new "lazarus",
but your are surprised to see that they appear beside *you*, because
you can remember none of the specific events of the last 30 days. Not
even your death and translation to this place.

You can hear the River off to the west, and to the east, the hills
become impassibly tall mountains.  Raising your head to look around
you, you realize that you are not alone in your surprise. Other
lazari, perhaps 10 in total, of many races and nationalities appear to
be awakening, all translated to this place, a secluded glade along the
hilly side of the rivervalley.

Your fellow resurrectees include:

* A young pale woman, of perhaps 19 or 20 years and 5 feet tall, with a
  broad brow and wide-set, dark eyes.
* A woman of medium hieght, with a fit body and coffee-colored skin. 
  Wide, dark brown eyes dominate a classically-shaped face.
* A tall olive-skinned woman with dark eyes.
* A lanky man with large hands, whose dark hair is beginning to grow
  out again
* A man of about 5'8" with brown eyes and reddish-brown stubble on his
  head, heavily muscled.
* A tall, willowy woman, also with the beginning of red-brown hair.
  Her complexion is delicate, her eyes grey.
* A very tall man, close to 2 meters, whose thin but athletic body
  bulges with long, ropey muscles. His skin is a dark ebony.
* A fairly non-descript man of medium height and build, with 
  piercing eyes.
* A pale-skinned woman of medium height and slender build, with a 
  haunted look in her eyes.

[Your first moves should consist of your awakening, and interactions
with one another. You'll probably want to provide fuller physical
descriptions when you've stood up and moved around a little. We're
off!]