Island of Araucanque online RPG

posting guidelines

Mon, 25 Apr 2005 16:35:32 GMT

As people start posting and characters interact, it'll be increasingly difficult to follow contibuity if everyone posts new entries. New entries should be reserved for a new time/place, while posts that build on a scene would be better made as comments to an earlier post.
To further make things clear and easy to follow, writing in the third person would be helpful, especially when there are several people writing a scene.
Just wanted to put that out there before things got too out of hand. I know we've got three threads active right now, but for purposes of further comments in the main room, comment to Marco Lord's intro post. Irene has moved to the balcony, so we'll treat that as a seperate location.

That's all for now, good characters so far - hope you have fun!

Rosa Huerta joins the party

Fri, 22 Apr 2005 15:48:33 GMT

I glance at my reflection as I pass a gilded mirror in the antechamber of the great hall. My hair gracefully curls around my face, my eyes have been outlined with a chunk of stolen kohl. Some of the guests are from Persia - the Persain woman and I spoke briefly in the washroom and I swiped a cast-aside bit of black eyeliner that she considered too small to work with anymore. A tray of champagne flutes in one hand and a towel draped over the other arm don’t leave me much to primp with, but I give my cleavage a squeeze with my elbows, smile broadly at myself, and survey the ballroom.

Ah, there’s Lee MacAlpine. He’s been bragging all night about all of the tigers he hunted in Siam – I’m sure that nobody else knows that he spent all but two days of that trip gripped by dysentery. I heard him on the phone with his doctor – apparently he blames the treatment he received in Siam for his long infirmity. He saw one tiger – from a distance – and it might actually have been a discarded fur coat from one of the safari-men’s wives.

I see Marco Lord sweep into the room and instinctively move into the shadows of the antechamber. Not many people would recognize me as Alejandro Huerta’s daughter – but he might. Usually sequestered in my family’s dilapidated compound, my father has had several dealings with the Lords. Marco Lord is the man who bought most of our plantation – at auction, for a song. No, I would not like him to recognize me.
He joins a small group of men and turns his back to me. I take a deep breath, one last glance in the mirror, and enter the ballroom.

Almost instantly I am blindsided by a tall redheaded woman in quite a hurry. Two of the flutes tumble off of the tray and shatter on the floor.

“Oh!” I gasp. “Miss! I didn’t see you!”

The tall redhead doesn’t even stop. She makes a beeline for the balcony and disappears into a crowd of black jackets and glittering gowns.

Welcome Marco Lord

Fri, 22 Apr 2005 14:42:40 GMT

Enter known socialite, political insider and platation owner, Marco Lord.

I am approached by Lee MacAlpine. We met while he was in Panama partaking in some exploration and travel to South America. We've had a decent friendship since then. After exchanging pleasantries, he offers me a glass of champagne, to celebrate and mourn. I know of the celebration, but I know not of the mourning. Or do I? Lee informs me of the well respected professor's death while pointing over at his colleagues and his daughter. I listen intently while sipping from my champagne. I change the subject back to celebration, but keep the somber news in mind. We continue to discuss his adventures in Siam and are joined by his convoy. We soon talk about my recent rum trading and ties to the Panama Canal.

Irene arrives at the party

Thu, 21 Apr 2005 19:51:59 GMT

I stand at the entrance to the ballroom and survey the crowd. There's the anthropology department, looking dour. My father's death has dampened their holiday celebration, but they tend to be a serious lot to begin with. I pick out groups that are the professors in the other departments, each one more in a holiday mood than the one I must visit first. I see other clumps of people not attached to the school, or at least not that I know. A tray of champagne flute comes my direction and I take one, guestering for the waiter to pause. I toss the bubbly liquid down quickly and grab another flute as I make my way to the professors to chat about my father, his death and most importantly, to try and glean with they might know about the artifacts we were seeking when we came to this Island.

The four men, part the huddle they are in to include me in their circle. I accept their condolences and let them know i am plannign to stay on the island to contiue Father's work. They are all suprized adn appaled that an unescorted woman such as myself would make such a choice. I assure them that I will be calling on them, their skills and equipment to assist me along the way. My drink is finished and I cast about for a place to put the glass and more importantly, another drink. Tom, a young American graduate student in anthropology is jsut approaching the group as I start to look about. He takes my glass and bends to murmur in my ear, "May I get you another" "champagne" I retort, with only a glance in his direction and start metally plotting a way to extract myself from ththe disaproving gazes on my father's peers. Well, mostly disaproving and occasionally the lustful gaze of an old man on my clevage...

Tom arrives with my new glass of champagne and one of his own. I thank him and excuse myself from the group. "i'm sorry, I see a friend of Father's with whom I simply must speak." And I turn and move across the room at a brisk pace, unsure of my destination.

a much-delayed beginning

Wed, 13 Apr 2005 20:35:19 GMT

December 31, 1921

The usual salt-spray smell off the playa is masked by the sweet aromas of the street vendors' offerings: Stewed pork with pineapples, tamales, and citrus ices sold to the crowd celebrating year's end. For distinguished foreigners, a different celebration is being held - a mixed group of local administrative types mingle with formally-dressed representatives of the world at large.

Conversations run to the political and philosophical, fueled by champagne imported just for the occasion - said champagne ensuring a good turnout by the faculty of the university, which further fuels conversation. The two-member department of Psychology is currently engaged in a debate on Alfred Adler's latest, making up for the Anthropology department's somewhat somber cast, following the untimely death of the visiting professor Charles Madison.

Less academic guests are also in attendance. Lee MacAlpine, the famed big-game hunter is telling tales of his recent tiger-hunting adventures in Siam. He has come to enjoy some sport fishing with a small coterie of British sportsmen, also in attendance.

Local businessmen also populate the room, their conversation boring at first appraisal, until one catches nuggets of smuggling, corruption, and shameless affluence. Prohibition in the United States has increased demand for the local rum, and the resulting profits have been as intoxicating as the contraband they've been slipping past the Coast Guard.

Thu, 24 Mar 2005 10:48:29 GMT

If you're reading this, and your name isn't Scott, you haven't posted a character description! If you're waiting for something, please let me know what you need to begin.

economy

Wed, 09 Feb 2005 22:39:59 GMT

Agriculture is the backbone of Araucanque's economy. The original sugar plantations, still important to the locally-produced rum, have been augmented by crops such as banana, coffee, citrus fruits, cocoa, rice, and figs.

The large lagoon provides safe anchor for a substantial fleet of fishing boats,both commercial and for hire to tourists wishing to engage in sport fishing. The tourism industry is small but growing, with the city of Gull Beach on Esplandia's sheltered coast quickly becoming the primary tourist destination.

Gold was panned from Araucanque's streams early in the early years of her settlement, but never in an amount that justified further exploration. Limestone is quarried for the construction of local buildings, but is not a profitable export commodity.

There are ample deposits of Bauxite ore on the island, but the world market for aluminum is small at this point in history, and won't be a major source of trade for some thirty years.

geography

Wed, 09 Feb 2005 22:38:45 GMT

The nation of Araucanque lies at 17 degrees north latitude by 83 degrees west longitude, and is made up of two islands enclosing a substantial lagoon. Montalvo, often referred to simply as "the big island" is 3,840 square miles of mostly mountainous terrain, tapering to low hills along the north coast. Esplandia, the relatively flat smaller island, lies to the east and measures 370 square miles.

The annual average rainfall is 76 inches, though some areas of the mountains receive in excess of 200 inches of rainfall annually. The annual average temperature is 81 degrees Fahrenheit (27 Celsius).

characters

Sat, 05 Feb 2005 15:37:40 GMT

If you want to play, you'll need a character. Post their descriptions as a response to this post, labeled with the character's name. This will make it easier for everyone to remember who the characters are. So what will you need in the description?

First, a little physical detail helps paint a picture. Age, gender, and ethnicity are all obvious traits, but some description of style and mannerisms really bring a character to life. You can cheat until some ideas start to form, if you're not sure who you want to play as. Keep in mind that the game is set in a mostly plausible 1920's caribbean setting; so elves, cyborgs, and aliens are all out. Fantastic elements are welcome but should be low-key.

Second, where's your character been, and what are they doing now? The game begins in the caribbean in 1922. Is your character a native to the island? Did they serve in The Great War, just recently ended? Are they profiting on prohibition? Agitating in favor of socialism? Lost in the excesses of the jazz age? This is especially helpful for me, as it suggests plots to introduce. If you want to do more than strike up conversations in hotel bars, it's a good idea to have a goal.

Last, you'll need a name. Fortunately, there are places to find random names either mundane, or
pumped-up. You might also look at film credits to find names with the right flavor.