Frequently Asked Questions
Thus is a list of common questions regarding the game.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
• Can you summarize the plot?
• Is this another "you're here for no reason, deal with it" games?
• What is the Garnet of Journeys?
• Can characters converse with Immaculada herself?
• What is the setting like?
• Is there technology and/or magic in Rivelata?
• How does the journal system work?
• Where's the friend add?
• What fandoms can one apply for?
• How many characters can one have?
• Can one play more than one character from the same fandom?
• My character has a magical ability/weapon/pet/etc. in their canon - will it be here?
• How can I tell if what my character uses is magic?
• My character isn't human or has funky body parts, such as wings or horns - will they be changed at all?
• Is it possible for characters from the same fandom to be on a different time line?
• My character is dead - can they come back?
• Can there be doubles of characters that have two different "versions" of themselves, for example Leon and Squall?
• How do we handle a character being dropped or dying?
• Characters can be killed off?
• How does time pass here in comparison to real time?
• What does the journal/icons look like to the characters? What do locked/private entries look like now?
• Can you summarize the plot?
Your character wakes up on a ship and is ushered off into the antique-like city of Rivelata, which is on the coast of a land only referred to as the "New World", a beautiful and deadly place rife with adventure, just waiting to be explored.
Shortly after Rivelata had been founded (100 years ago), a young girl named Immaculada discovered a large crystal in a deep cave on an island off the coast of the mainland. It was apparently magical, as when she touched it, it "activated" and made her ageless. More importantly, for a year after that, droves of confused individuals poured in to the city, lost and looking for direction. However, despite their disorientation, they eventually decided to make Immaculada the Queen of the city, much to the original settlers' dismay - but alas, they were outnumbered.
Rivelata has since been populated with a mix of the descendants of the original settlers and the people from other worlds... But now, the century is up, and once again, for a year, new individuals come. These individuals, however, are perhaps not so agreeable - they are your characters. They will want to go home, revolt, try to oust Immaculada, etc. But a queen who has held the throne for 100 years will not give it up so easily...
• Is this another "you're here for no reason, deal with it" games?
Heavens no! Your character has been taken to Rivelata for a reason and with purpose - many major plot points will be revealed as the game progresses, and with the participation of characters within the game and the assistance of NPCs. They'll side with Immaculada, or hold a distaste for her. They'll want to stay or go home. They'll get caught up in the middle of rebellions and escape-attempts. They will explore beyond Rivelata - and realize the danger of the place. Perhaps the wrath of God (or the gods!) will be felt! Adventure awaits.
• What is the Garnet of Journeys?
It's a very large, glowing red crystal in a cave on an island around Rivelata. It was activated 100 years ago by the Child-Queen Immaculada, and is what is pulling everyone into the New World. But why? How? Is it possible to deactivate it, or use it to bring everyone home...? That remains to be seen.
• Can characters converse with Immaculada herself?
Perhaps. It depends on if she feels you are worthy of speaking with her. She and her subjects will, indeed, make appearances here and there. Her and her followers' journal is ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
childqueen.
• What is the setting like?
Extremely reminiscent of the Caribbean, Rivelata is set in a tropical climate, and all the inhabitants dress in distinctly period clothing (a big mesh of the 15th-19th century fashions together - have a look at this for some good visuals). The architecture is a lot like that of European countries preceding the 20th century, and is especially Mediterranean-influenced. Currency is gold, silver, copper pieces.
Additionally, for the past 100 years, the city of Rivelata has been amazingly peaceful - perhaps this is because no one has bothered to explore beyond the borders of their city any further (or rather, had done so and lived to tell about it!), once the crystal had activated. No natives, no pirates, no angered gods, no legendary monsters of myth, nothing... but perhaps that's about to change.
• Is there technology and/or magic in Rivelata?
Yes, actually. The city is apparently sustained upon the crystal's power - it gives electricity, makes the plumbing work, gives power to the journals (explained below). That's about the extent of the city's technology, however. No phones, no ipods, not much modern-day at all, really! Some of the residents have minimal healing abilities. Some claim to be in contact with God/the gods, and offer fortune-telling and dead-raising (creepy!), though all of this is questionable if it's real or not... It's probably not something newcomers can learn to harness right off the bat, however. Perhaps in time.
• How does the journal system work?
When your character arrives, somewhere on their person, or near them, is a small leather journal. Opening up this journal, it's got their name in it, and a small picture of them. With it, there is a feather pen that never runs out of ink. If one writes in this thing, amazingly, it seems that it actually writes back! Other characters can see and reply to journal entries written in there. So it's like having a little portable tablet PC, except it's obviously a tad more period-appropriate...
• Where's the friend add?
There isn't one. All posts should go in either ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif)
rivelata or rivelatalogs.
• What fandoms can one apply for?
Anime, manga, video games, books, TV shows, etc. However, if it's particularly obscure, you may be asked to provide sources. If you can't, and there is no sufficient proof of this character's existence, you probably won't be able to apply for them.
Pretty much anything that's an officially published work available in English is allowed. If it's only available in a different language, such as Japanese (and doesn't have subtitles or any translations at all), you can't apply for it - the moderators don't speak Japanese, after all, and have no way to judge. Please note that we do not allow original characters or webcomic characters.
• How many characters can one have?
You can begin with as many as 3. If you have been active for at least one month (successfully complete an activity check without reminders), you will then be allowed another 3. The same thing will happen for the month after that. However, the maximum amount of characters you can allot at the moment is 9.
• Can one play more than one character from the same fandom?
You may only play 2 characters in the same fandom. Additionally, interaction between these characters needs to be kept to an absolute minimum.
• My character has a magical ability/weapon/pet/etc. in their canon - will it be here?
Anything that requires magic will be severely watered down, especially if they have to call on a source of energy in their home - it doesn't exist at all here, and whatever magic survives is severely diluted by the Garnet of Journeys. Physical objects and creatures may come along, but they won't be guaranteed to be fully functional, or at all. For example, if you've got a magical sword, it'd probably become a lot like an ordinary sword, save just a tad more powerful. If that sword happens to draw its power from a source local to your canon, it's not going to be magical at all.
• How can I tell if what my character uses is magic?
Rivelata's definition of what is magic - and thus, will be watered down and potentially unusable by the characters who wield it - is that it is pretty much anything that can't be done in real life. Telepathy, summons, flying, disappearing, shooting lasers, etc. The only exception to this rule would be purely physical things, such as stronger-than-average strength and endurance (but not to a ridiculous extent), as long as it hasn't really been altered with the use of any outside source besides the fact that the individual trained a lot in order to accomplish these abilities. (No gems, runes, magical liopleurodons, etc.) If the character is not a human or of any species found on Earth, any of their abilities that can't be physically accomplished here most likely fall into the magic category as well.
• My character isn't human or has funky body parts, such as wings or horns - will they be changed at all?
Nope. Their physical appearance and genetic makeup and all that stays pretty much the same. Same goes for clothes - they will come here wearing whatever they happened to have on at the time they were taken away, albeit tattered and dirty. Whether they chose to dress like the locals or wear the same clothes all of the time (well, ew) is up to them.
• Is it possible for characters from the same fandom to be on a different time line?
Yes. If it's there, it makes for fun-times and confusion amongst the characters, after all!
• My character is dead - can they come back?
They aren't going to come back, but you can take them from any time period in their canon before they died.
• Can there be doubles of characters that have two different "versions" of themselves, for example Leon and Squall?
No. Only one version. You can only apply as a different version if that character happens to be dropped.
• How do we handle a character being dropped or dying?
The character is assumed to be taken back to their home world by the crystal. Or, they can simply be killed, or had gotten lost in the jungles... even if they happen to die, however, this actually leaves room for another version of the character to be pulled in by the crystal. Perhaps it didn't like the first version of that character well enough.
• Characters can be killed off?
Oh, certainly. Rivelata becomes increasingly dangerous as the days wear on, after all, because the newcomers have minds of their own. Let's not forget the temperamental queen, or the dangerous jungles beyond the city - which characters will be encouraged to explore...
And if they do die, you can either take the character back by completely starting over with them and having them arrive again, or just considering the character dropped. If it's dropped, obviously, they might never come back again, unless someone applies for them. You'll never play the same version of a character twice though - they need to be from a different point in their time line.
• How does time pass here in comparison to real time?
24 hours to a day as it is with us, and for reference it follows about Central (GMT -6) time. Logs, obviously, do not coincide with this time frame and you're welcome to write those as you wish.
• What does the journal/icons look like to the characters? What do locked/private entries look like now?
The journal comes bound like a book. Names do not appear in the journals, but generic portraits of the characters (i.e. icons) do show up next to each entry and comment. As of March 18 (Out of Game Time), Queen Immaculada has disabled private/locking capabilities. How this appears in the journals is a complete erasure of the affected entries and comments - as if they had never been written in the first place.
If you have a question yourself, feel free to ask it here via comment, or email the mods at: rivelata[AT]gmail[DOT]com.PROFILE | STORY & SETTING | RULES | F.A.Q. | APPLICATIONS | RESERVED | WANTED | TAKEN | HIATUS/DROP | PLOTS & IDEAS | CONCERNS & COMPLAINTS | MOD CONTACT (locked)
