New Story/Setting Page

[rivelatamods]

"Life is uncharted territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time." - Leo F. Buscaglia.

Special thanks to our player Lilly for finding the images for Rivelata City (Lacoste, France) ♥
Premise :: Tour of Rivelata City :: Timelines :: Setting Overview



Premise
In-Game / Character Information
Ask any native with a bit of time on their hands to explain how people came to be on Rivelata - clearly an island with apparently no connection to any mainland - and they will respond with something like the following:
"Many years ago, explorers from the east, known as the Old World in these times, came to the compelling and bountiful New one. It turned out to be a land of danger and beauty alike, vast and unexplored, a new frontier to humble men, and make them grow stronger. It was on the coast that they founded the luxurious city of Rivelata - "revealed" - and severed all ties with the world of yore.

What they found in the New World's lush jungles was something beyond the reaches of even the most fantastical imaginations of their time. It is said that when the young Immaculada discovered the Garnet of Journeys, God had looked down on this New World, and chose her to be its ambassador. It burned her hands and took her mortality, but after that day, people began to come to Rivelata, people not from any other world they had ever heard of - but others. These lost souls, dubbed "Arrivals", taken from their homes, were very confused. As she had been the one to awaken the crystal, it was she who spoke with them - the original immigrants made her their Queen and the first wave of people that populated the city began to create the foundations of the city as it stands today - the walls, the castle, the park, and all the streets. The original immigrants questioned the action, some wondered if she had some measure of control over these people's minds, but none would speak publicly against one with such a power.

But that was one-hundred years ago..."

About six generations later, the Child-Queen Immaculada still reigns, and the people of Rivelata have become accustomed to preparing for wave after wave of new Arrivals from other worlds. Resistant to change at first, the natives have embraced the strength, intuition, and drive of the recent Arrivals.

Still fairly insular, the natives will not even bring up that a pirate airship once crash-landed in their marketplace and a few pirates still roam the city. For some reason, they accept new Arrivals as citizens more readily than they would ever consider accepting the pirates. The natives seem so comfortable in their current lifestyle that they have forgotten how their ancestors must have felt when they were simply Arrivals too, before giving up on ever trying to find their way back to their home worlds.

That's where you come in. Will you settle in with the natives? Will you make friends with the pirates and other people who have knowledge of beyond Rivelata? Will you ally with a faction within Rivelata to find a way 'back home'? All kinds of adventures are available for you to pursue!
Out-of-Game / Player Information
Maps of the Game's Area and Related Information
World-level Map [^N vS] :: Most characters assume that Rivelata is an island, but what they don't realize is just how big the island is, nor how close to any mainland continent the island is. The problem is that no Rivelata-created ship is seaworthy, rather only being able to navigate around shorelines and just a little ways into the bay to pick up Arrivals. How did the original group get to Rivelata then? It is said that they came from beyond The Ridges - that no sooner had Immaculada touched the Garnet than The Ridges rose up from the ocean and harsh rapids all around it, making it impossible to navigate around the innumerable tall rocks. What about the pirate crew? Their airship flew over The Ridges - an accomplishment of technology not available to Rivelata natives - but after crash-landing was dismantled and the various parts sold by the pirates so that they would have some measure of wealth to live on.

City-level Map [S<->N] :: Everywhere on this map is where most of the game's events take place. Just off the coast of the mainland there is a chain of small islands, barely a mile or two around each, and upon the largest there is a large glowing, pulsating garnet crystal, taller than two men stacked, thicker than five around, emerging out of the flattened surface. While unconfirmed, it is suspected that this is the fabled Garnet of Journeys, the giant crystal that a 12-year-old Immaculada found and touched. It was she who called it the Garnet of Journeys. More detailed information on Rivelata City is given below in a visual tour format.

Jungle Map [S<->N] :: More than a few expeditions into the Jungle have resulted in drastic changes for many characters. The "Corpse Field" is now little more than a Skeleton Field after multiple burnings, but the winding path still takes characters out to a river they must cross before reaching the Deeper Jungle, the domain of vicious animals and a few characters too. Still a mystery, the imposing Temple complex has yet to be fully explored.

In a Cave Beyond the Waterfall [N<->S] is where a few characters were held captive by Immaculada very early in the game, though her reasons for doing so are still unclear. At the behest of God or of her own will, not even those who were captured really know for sure. The only thing that many have heard is that another 'big red crystal' kept the characters locked in their cell for the duration.

Premise :: Tour of Rivelata City :: Timelines :: Setting Overview

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore." - Andre Gide.

Tour of Rivelata City
Click here to open the city map in a new window or tab to reference the items mentioned below.
Arrival Area (Beach & Sea-level)

"Beach (sea-level)" :: Whether picked up by the ship in the bay or after swimming towards the shore, all characters will eventually find themselves on the beach. Mostly white/beige sand greets the characters in turquoise waters, but if they turn back towards "The Ridges", they will also spy a "Mysterious Haze: - asking the guards yields no information about this and so interested characters will have to ask older Arrivals if they are so curious. In shape, it almost looks like a smaller, second sun (during the day) or moon (at night), though it doesn't shine quite as brightly and nor is it colored in the same way; the 'haze' is cyan-blue, forest-green, and dirt-brown.


Beyond the white beaches, however, the shoreline becomes extremely rocky and difficult to travel on by foot. The jungle gets thicker, the short cliffs begin to rise, and the ground becomes less level, even treacherous to cross as the waves break over the rocks and coat them in a slick ocean film innumerable times throughout the day. Who knows how many explorers fell into the bay this way? If there is any beach beyond Rivelata's immediate vicinity, it is like to be coated in dark brown sand, littered with shells and rocks, with only sparse trees near the water's edge, but then of course roots break the sand's surface as well.

Gazing up from the "Docks" will get your character their first glimpse of Rivelata - a city seemingly pulled out of the mediterranean of 17th century Earth and situated among high cliffs, with one side facing the sea and the beach, then a jungle on the mountain-side.
City Area

"1A/1B - Market District" :: Lined with shops on either side of a main thoroughfare, this was likely once simply houses, but in time the inhabitants developed trades to serve the rest of the city, so it is now mainly comprised of 2-story shops with the lower level devoted to whatever the family business happens to be and the upper level being where the family actually lives. Signs hang out over the streets and "Boardwalk" in ornate picture-displays of each shop's kind of trade.

While many shops are still run by NPC natives and freely available for players to interact with, a fair number of characters have set up (or taken over) their own shops, listed on the Businesses & Employees Page!
"2 - Warehouse District" :: Relatively small, this place overlooks the "Boardwalk" in one direction and the "Housing District" in another (and beyond it the Jungle, but it's quite a view!), leaving the "Market District" further up the slopes. Unlike the Marketplace, which still has a little room for expansion, the Warehouse District is only owned by NPCs and a few of the wealthier characters with private businesses established. Basically, new characters must get special permission to buy out an NPC's warehouse if they think their business has grown large enough to need it. This is also handled through the Businesses & Employees Page.
"3 - Airship Crash" :: When the pirates arrived in Rivelata, their ship, The Nimirum, inadvertently crashed into the marketplace's main thoroughfare street. While the ship itself has since been dismantled, there are still lasting scars on the city's ground and buildings where the event happened.
"4 - Housing Slums" :: At the base of the Housing District is the Slums area, the lowest slope ending at a wall of the city before any character could reach the Jungle - this can be seen from the topmost sloping region of the main Housing District (#5). The Slums area is where characters that cannot find housing can look for a native family that will allow them to rent out a room until they can find a permanent residence. A few characters live in this district by choice, from the time when Housing was still free. See the Housing Arrangements Page (locked to members) for more details.

"5 - Housing District" :: Most characters and a few wealthy natives live in this area, but there are absolutely no free houses right now. See the Housing Arrangements Page (locked to members) for more details. Currently, the Councillors are taking stock of which houses have been abandoned and can be sold to new Arrivals for a profit, but the evaluations are not yet complete. The topmost sloping area (the entrance to the Housing District) is so high up on the hill that it can see be seen from the Corpse/Skeleton Field, and vice versa if one stands on the city walls.

"6 - Park" :: Nestled between the Housing District (#5), the Professional District (#7), The Marketplace (#1A), and the West Gate (out "To The Jungle"), the Park is extremely accessible and basically in the center of town if not truly geographically in the center. There is a modern-style playground here cobbled together from what appear like some crudely-welded metal beams, chair and couch cushions where there should be rubber, and the wood where there might have normally been plastic. The park is about the size of four houses - 2x2 lots - and has a few tall shade trees planted throughout the area. A character can see the bell atop the Church of New World Religion from the street facing the Professional District.


"7 - Professional District" :: The corner directly across from the Market District (1A) and where the Skyship Crash (3) nearly reached is where the Church of New World Religion stands, marking off the start of the Professional District. Within it can be found all manner of sturdier structures built with the populous foremost in mind. A few businesses have shut down as of late and may be open to new Arrivals to use in the near future, as these buildings obviously came later in Rivelata's existence, most being built out of stone. Be sure to check out Businesses & Employees Page for more details!

"The Castle" :: A small handful of NPCs can be contacted (or live in) The Castle, dubbed by most characters as The Royalists: Queen Immaculada, Chancellor Nachitah, General De Viers, not to mention a few PCs who have allied themselves with the Queen. This is where The Chancellor meets with The Council (a small group of PCs) to further develop the city of Rivelata and expand its sphere of influence. It sits with its backside to the Jungle, jutting down in a sheer cliff to the valley below, and with its front to the city as the highest point in the whole region. On all sides except for the front rise high walls to protect the Queen and her most loyal subjects from attacks from the Jungle. In relative size, the full Castle complex is about 1/3 the size of the entire Housing District (#4-5), 1/2 the size of the Professional District (#7) or Market District (#1), about the size of the Warehouse District (#2), and twice the size of the Park (#6). So, while not the largest castle ever built, it makes a clear impact on the skyline. Like the Temple complex, this area has never been fully explored by PCs.

Premise :: Tour of Rivelata City :: Timelines :: Setting Overview

"We should come home from adventures, and perils, and discoveries every day with new experience and character" - Henry David Thoreau.

Timelines
Rivelata is a plot-intensive game. Things happen unexpectedly pretty often. In order to help keep everything in order no matter how busy the game gets or how long players might be away, the moderators have put together two timelines, a short, condensed one with especially major events and longer one with all important events.
Condensed Timeline
The following condensed timeline uses prose style fragments to make reading the easiest possible. A few abbreviations are also used: JM for Journals (Main Plot), LM for Logs (Main Plot), JS for Journals (Side Plot), and LS for Logs (Side Plot).

DateDescription of Event
Day 6
(2008-02-27)
- Commentary on the natives [JM]
- Immaculada announces a ball [JM]
- Training magical powers takes time [LM]
Day 7
(2008-02-28)
- Digging for written texts on Immaculada [JM]
- Immaculada is not easily contacted [JM]
- Discussing the mural and discovering the library [LM]
Day 8
(2008-02-29)
- Deciphering ancient writing is no easy task [JM]
- Beware the ocean's sea-monsters [JS]
Day 9
(2008-03-01)
- The Queen offers an audience [JM]
Day 10
(2008-03-02)
- Of the many businesses that characters would start up (the first two being Eagle's Splendour and Paradise Blossoms), the first professional building is the Rivelata Clinical Center, or The Clinic [JM]
Day 12
(2008-03-04)
- The Queen chooses Dr. Gregory House to meet with her [JM]
Day 13
(2008-03-05 to 2008-03-11)
- Dr. Gregory House takes questions before his audience with the Queen [JM]
- A group goes to explore the jungle [JM] and they discover a field of corpses, a temple, and a nasty jaguar that takes more than a few bullets to kill [LM]
- Meanwhile, Larsa and Zexion discuss the library [link]
- The Queen's Ball [LM] is initially pleasant and Dr. House gets his audience [LM] before it erupts into a Blood Bath [LM]
- General De Viers, Colonel Casimiro, and Major Valery (NPCs) appear to announce that 13 characters were taken captive during the ball [JM] and are being held somewhere [LM]
Day 14-17
(2008-03-12 to 2008-03-15)
- There was much outrage from the captives and non-captives, but some decided to take action, like verbally attacking the Queen [JM] and trying to aid the captives through the journals [JM]
- Mobilizing people for a rescue attempt came next [JM] and organization followed [JM]
- Investigation of the city uncovered new questions, such as the fabled Sanitarium [LM]
- Some captives did their best to help their rescuers with descriptions of the cave [JM] and advice for their fellow captives [JM]
- Rescue Mission strategy meetings began [LM]
- Meanwhile, it was discovered that powers in Rivelata can flicker in & out [LS]
Day 19
(2008-03-17)
- Dr. House was called in to investigate the Sanitarium [JM] near the beach with Schuldig #1 [LM]
- Meanwhile, abuse of the journals with large sparkles on stolen journals [JM] and something resembling a hack attempt [JM] led the Queen to remove the privacy settings on the journals [JM]
Day 25
(2008-03-23)
- Cross Marian calls out the other Rescue Team that hasn't gone out to do the Rescuing yet [JM]
- Batman responds with a summons [JM] and then a meeting to take action [LM], leading to a preliminary information-gathering mission [LM]
Day 26
(2008-03-24 to 2008-04-15)
03/24 - Cross Marian's group sets out [LM]
03/24 - Batman's group begins at the library [LM] before heading out to the jungle
03/24 - Despite being captured by Sync the Tempest, Fon Master Ion has translated some of the ancient writing [JM]
03/24 - Major Valery kills Axel #1 (one of the captives) [JM] in front of the remaining twelve, horrifying them
03/25 - The Queen posts bounties for the eight most critical people who stand against her [JM]
03/27 - The appearance of Ribika (from Lamento) showcases another feature of the journals - transmitting smells. Examples: 01, 02, 03, 04 and a log 05
03/30 - Whisperings of a Council to speak to the Queen [JM]
03/31 - House Bunansa has kidnapped Claire (3/27 [LM]) and tries to get Cross Marian to come to her [JM] so they can collect his bounty, but it ends in failure [LM]
04/03 - To take their minds off things, some characters pitch the idea of a Dating Service [JS] in Rivelata; this turns out to be the journal entry with the most comments so far (650)
04/04 - Rivelata's Madam makes her appearance by opening Husband's Alley [JM]
04/05 - The Queen reminds people about the Bounties [JM] while the General prepares his men for something [JM]
04/06 - The Rivelata Shinsengumi commandeer a weapons shop [JS] on the same day that the first character death is claimed by a fellow player character - Tira kills Edward Elric #1 [JS]
04/06 - The Rivelata SOS Brigade goes into the jungle to try to rescue Cross' Rescue Team [LM]
04/12 - Maximum Ride is the first flying character to discover an artificial ceiling over the city (another limit on powers) and the Sky Snakes [JM]
04/14 - Batman's Rescue Group reaches the captives [LM] and takes pains to free them
04/15 - Axel returns to life with no memory of Rivelata (first instance of character rebirth along with Luki, a girl who died in Cross' Rescue Group) and the state of dead bodies in Rivelata is clarified for the first time [JM]
04/15 - The journal cannot be 'coded' despite character beliefs that they can [JM]; the technology is still a mystery
Day 27 and catch-up Day 28
(2008-04-16)
- Just as the captives had finally been freed, Zikhadhara revived for the second time [JM]
Day 29
(2008-04-17)
- Time is flowing normally; attempts are being made to decipher the script used by the Ribika (clearly weak to the Godking's call) [JM]
- Notice posted that the Corpse Field was burned by the group that successfully rescued the captives [JM]
Day 33
(2008-04-21)
- Trying to restore Batman's sight [LM]
- Kagari and Kurama prove why they became the Seconds to Leaks among the "Culties" [LM]
Day 38
(2008-04-26)
- Farfarello and Schuldig (two of the bounties) have been turned in by Dr. House [JM]
- Still doing the Godking's bidding, the Ribika and others who have succumbed to the Blood Curse did a little Spring Cleaning [JM] killing many characters just as Zikhadhara goes looking for more followers [JM]
- Note that even computer languages can be translated by the journals [JM]
Day 39
(2008-04-27)
- Rather than succumb to the blood call, Kuja [JM] arranges his own death [LM]
- Zexion muses on the workings of Rivelata [JM] (as has Larsa many a time) while Maximum Ride takes on the task of sorting out the best fighters, healers, etc. among the non-Cultists [JM]
- One of the best remembered instances of in-game "Fourth-Wall Breaking": L Lawliet of Death Note by the Gintama cast [JM]
Day 40
(2008-04-28)
- Maximum Ride and Claire Bennet set in motion what would become the Resistance, led by the Rebel Council [LM] - basically those who did not want to serve Immaculada or Zikhadhara. Their communications involved the new concept of "first-posting" to get around the privacy settings of the journals - writing in their own oldest entries to the journals, expecting that the other Rebel Council characters were actively reading those old entries. First among them was Claire Bennet's Journal on Day 40; Batman's Journal on Day 53; Maximum Ride's Journal, Hiruma Youichi's Journal, and Zexion's Journal on Day 55; and finally Lelouch Lamperouge's Journal on Day 129
- Zexion makes a similar call to Max and Claire [JM]
Day 41
(2008-04-29)
- The First Meeting of the Resistance [LM]
Day 43
(2008-05-01)
- Haruhi and her SOS Brigade discuss how to end the cat curse [LM] going with an infiltration plan
Day 46
(2008-05-04)
- Just as the Resistance is getting organized, Queen Immaculada reveals some things about Zikhadhara that many are reluctant to believe and then declares war on him [JM]
- The Rebel Council makes an emergency summons [JM] to discuss what they intend to do [LM], going with surveillance on Zikhadhara as the top priority headed up by Hiruma [JM] and play nice with Immaculada in the meantime
- Larsa tries to push again for the Queen to hear out a Council of those who could advise her because they were rulers back home [JM]
Day 47
(2008-05-05)
- Kagari takes up Denmother status among the Culties (those affected by the Blood Curse) [JM] inviting them to feast on Shadhavar [LM]
Day 50
(2008-05-08)
- Appearance of Chancellor Nacitah (NPC) and the initial organization of the Council [JM]
Day 56
(2008-05-14)
- Lelouch takes a group into the jungle to try to save the Culties from themselves [LM]
Day 58
(2008-05-16)
- The Chancellor makes the list of those who will be interviewed and may get to sit on the Council [JM], but during the interview it becomes apparent that Chancellor Nachitah is a middle-aged dark-skinned woman [LM] despite what her icons show to the journals
Day 59
(2008-05-17)
- Claire Bennet creates the first "Newbie Guide" [JM]
Day 71
(2008-05-29)
- Batman has utilized Kuja's connection [LM] to Naoe Nagi [LM] to try to track down the lone member of Schwarz that may be able to work with the Rebel Council in freeing his comrades and adding valuable allies to the Rebel Council's forces [LM]
Day 72
(2008-05-30)
- Batman and Naoe Nagi rescue Farfarello and Schuldig from the Sanitarium while fire-bombs ravage the city [LM]
Day 74
(2008-06-01)
- Maximum
Day 103
(2008-06-30)
- Maximum
Day 104
(2008-07-01)
- Maximum
Day 134
(2008-07-31)
- Maximum

Full Timeline
- Main Plot / Mod-Driven Plot :: Journal Posts :: Log Posts
- Side Plot / Player-Driven Plot :: Journal Posts :: Log Posts
- Detailed Timeline of Events, maintained by players.
Rivelata Wiki (Other Player-contributed Information)

Premise :: Tour of Rivelata City :: Timelines :: Setting Overview

"Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for." -John Keating, Dead Poets Society.

Setting
Environment
Bay [link to this sub-header]
The bay officially is an Estuary, a classification of a Marine ecosystem where you are likely to find all kinds of lifeforms. Most notably:
- the bay floor is covered in a great deal of algae
- there are abundant jellyfish and sea anemones
- of all the various fishes, the most common are sardines, anchovy, ling cod, clownfish (also known as anemonefish), and bottom fish which include halibut or ling cod; predators include sharks and barracuda
- a few species of reptiles such as sea turtles, Marine Iguana, sea snakes, and Saltwater Crocodiles
- birds like albatross, gannets, and auks -- something remarkably similar to penguins have been spotted near The Ridges and are the talk of legends, along with the Sea Monsters
- a few mammals such as dolphins, porpoises, seals, and sea otters

Just before the bay drops off into the open ocean (20 feet out from the beach), there are Reefs which include sea-clams that are known to produce pearls and many plants essential to Rivelata-based herbology and alchemy. Who knows what other kinds of animals might be lurking in these waters, waiting to be found by inquisitive adventurers?

City [link to this sub-header]
Admittedly not a lot of vegetation has survived in the city due to it being a largely urban setting. The Park (#6) is a showcase for what crops up throughout the rest of the city: evergreen trees such as pine, cypress and cork oak; shrubs such as myrtle and laurel; and garigue tough grasses and sweet-smelling herbs such as rosemary, lavender and thyme. It's very much a Mediterranean climate - prone to floods, fires, and droughts.

Only a few species of animal live in the city and almost all vermin, including many rodents - like rats, mice, and squirrels - and insects like cockroaches. More populous and infamous than the seabirds that fly over the city are the many Sky Snakes have been known to descend upon the city from the jungle, when the Queen also released Ghost Bats to fight them. The largest among the Sky Snakes was the Temple Guardian, but it was slain. Of a benevolent sort are the bear-bees that hatched during the Sky Snake attack, brought from the fandom Kyou Kara Maou.

Jungle [link to this sub-header]
Aside from the obvious - the jaguar god Zikhadhara, Shadhavars, (man-eating unicorns), the giant sky-snake / Quetzlcoatl "Temple Guardian", the Sky-Snakes, giant venus fly-traps, and cow-sized wolves (all animals that many characters have encountered) - the Jungle is still much like any other jungle to be found in southern India, except for the distinct lack of large cats (tigers and lions) - the only small varieties being the jaguarundi and the fishing cat.

It may seem obvious but there is a LOT of diversity in the flora and fauna of the Jungle. Some highlights can be found here:
- Non-flowering plants such as Whisk ferns, clubmosses, horsetails, Mule's foot ferns, (King) Sago Palms, Monkey-puzzle conifers, and yellow hemp
- Flowering plants such as Winter's Bark (fragrant, used for essential oils), London Plane, Pokeweed, Rock-roses, Oleaster shrubs, Pua keni keni (Perfume Flower Tree), Water-plantains, Palms along the beaches, Spiderwort, Bromeliads (Pineapples and Spanish moss), Water hyacinths, and also rarer strains that are extremely important to Rivelata-based herbology / alchemy like the pollen grains and bilocular anthers of Sterculia plants (extinct on Earth).
- Among the "normal sized" jungle animals are snakes, lemurs, monkeys, macaques, langurs, mongoose, orangutans, sloths, deer, pigs, foxes, dholes, red pandas, porcupines, rabbits, rats, lizards, toads & frogs, quails, ducks, plus many other fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals
- All kinds of insects like spiders, beetles, dragonflies, butterflies, and ants.
Language & Culture [link to this sub-header]
The people who founded Rivelata did not speak, understand, read, or write Rivelatian, the 'universal translator language' that the journals utilize and is now the primary language of the native inhabitants. When the predecessor technology to the Journals was developed (the Logbooks that the Pirates were accustomed to using), the people reverse engineered a root language that could easily translate the various languages used in Ce Monde at the time. If you're familiar with this scene from Disney's Atlantis (1:50-3:45) then you should have an idea of what we're talking about. In such a tight-knit community as that which was created when Rivelata was first founded, the different languages spoken were a burden to getting any work done on a large scale. Thus, the 'translator language' became what was used as the primary language among all who came to make their homes in Rivelata over the next six generations. (The 7th generation back is the Founders; the 6th generation back was the first wave of Arrivals) All that the natives know about the Arrivals is that they can understand their speech; they really aren't sure how it works - if it's specific to Rivelata City or not.

In terms of culture, it's important to remember that the base for Rivelata's society looks something like the Mediterranean on Earth between 1550 & 1650. Many cultures that comprise "Mediterranean", and this is easiest to to see in terms of food, as this page shows - defining the culture includes such key phrases as Algeria, Andalusia, the Balkans, Barcelona, Catalonia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, North Africa, Palestine, Portugal, Sicily, Spain, and Turkey. It is a period of Troubadour performers and classical instruments existing side by side with gyros and fruit salads.

However, 100 years have passed and six generations of Arrivals have contributed quite a bit to the society, as detailed below in the Technology section.
Technology
Introduction: [link to this sub-header]
Those who first arrived in Rivelata 100 years ago had precious few remnants of their old lives elsewhere in Ce Monde, and the island rather lacks the resources to re-create a lot of technology. Over the last 100 years, arrivals have brought with them more modern morals, fashion, music, cooking recipes, vocabulary and other intangible pieces of "culture" and "technology", but without resources, they are unable to re-create the comforts of home that modern and futuristic characters would normally desire in daily life

The kinds of hard technology (objects) that are available to the characters can be approximated by the year 1650 on Earth. If the item in question was created before 1650 AD anywhere on Earth, then chances are good that some form of it exists in Rivelata - but just because it exists there doesn't mean it's up for sale in the marketplace. The closer the date of invention is to 1650, the rarer the item will be and thus more expensive; the older the date of invention, the more common the item will be and thus cheaper to buy or to reproduce. This is not always the case, however, so if you are honestly curious as to whether or not something is available in Rivelata, do not hesitate to ask on this entry or the FAQ page. All the same, some items have been highlighted below to give you an idea of the technology available in this time-period (around the 17th Century on Earth).

Among the things that are distinctly lacking in Rivelata: [link to this sub-header]

- any form of trash compacting or pick-up or public utilities/indoor plumbing of any kind; there's a dump somewhere behind the castle, but no large infrastructure at all - no exposed pipes or electrical lines, just some wells at major junctions throughout the city and lamps lining the streets (it's a mystery to most natives as to how they work). However, there are three things that would make characters think there is indoor plumbing unless they were to investigate further: sink taps, shower-heads, and toilets.
- dishwashers; sink, soap, suds - that's what there is to work with
- washers & dryers; laundry tub, soaps to scrub, then hanging it to line dry is the norm
- electric grills / barbeques, stovetop ovens, and all large electrical kitchen hardware; substitutes are detailed below (Roasting baskets and dutch ovens) as well as potbelly stoves and open-pit grills
- most small small kitchen appliances and none of the ones in existence are electrical; there are however whisks for mixing, butter churns, kettles and tea pots, a variety of kitchen knives and spatulas, hand-held nut-crackers, potato peelers, scales and measuring cups, traditional rice making equipment, a variety of cooking baskets and pots, woks, skewers/kebab pokers, and roasting baskets.
- refrigerator; it's about 100 years too early for that. However, there is a merchant who sells "ice boxes" (about the size of a a cooler; [here] for size comparison) but they must be restocked with ice regularly, leading to stories about the "ice cellars" of the nobility (more below)
- grocery stores and hardware stores; skilled artisans and merchants / traders are the professionals who set up shops and stalls all throughout the market district that can get you anything you need that is on the "Commonplace" list.
- Fire-alarms, smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, and other safety measures; nothing but Player Character actions
- any motorized vehicles or public transportation; there are wagons, carts, wheelbarrows, and other such means of transporting heavy things under the power of working animals, in addition to the rumors about go-karts under construction by some Player Characters.

Commonplace [link to this sub-header]

- Transportation - very low-tech (riverboats and the loan ship that picks up Arrivals) because the people of Rivelata have never had anywhere to go!
- Brewing - one of the oldest re-inventions of Rivelata
- Cooking utensils - "Roasting baskets" (kinda like microwaves), copper utensils & pots/pans/etc., dutch ovens, and woks
- Agriculture - the rudimentary tools have been in circulation long enough to be commonplace, but this is still pretty low-tech for the period
- Communication - the Journals were developed in place of the movable type printing press as far as history of the period goes, so any and all books found in the Library appear to be hand-written
- Metallurgy - if there's one thing Rivelata has consistently had access to in terms of resources, it's minerals and ore - they've tried to stay away from clear-cutting trees due to Zikhadhara's influence, but that is quickly changing. The most modern kinds of mining for Rivelatians is black-powder blasting, but certainly other methods are still in use. Available products include: Porcelain, Glue, (Damascus) Steel, Cristallo (glass) and a whole range of objects produced by traditional workmanship as from a Blacksmith or Silversmith
- Medicine (anything before 1650) - the field of medicine has been blessed with two facts since Rivelata was founded: 1) of all the professions, doctors and nurses are most likely to carry their "tools of the trade" with them and thus have them on their person when they Arrive in Rivelata and 2) the profession as a whole, in Rivelata, has been extremely interested in blending magical remedies with "modern" solutions as well as "natural"/"local" herbal blends, many of which are summarized here
- Engineering accomplishments - water-pumps, crankshafts, cam-levers, combination locks, segmental gears, mechanical controls, and escapement mechanisms.
- Road/Path-building supplies - the main streets of Rivelata are paved with cobblestone while the alleyways are still packed dirt. The nobility have brick walkways up to their houses and some put up walls around their property, but it's an expensive endeavor.

Expensive But Available [link to this sub-header]

- Mining & Metallurgy - this includes such wonders as telescopes, glass lens, and pendulum clocks
- Architecture and Building - The resources and methods are still extremely rudimentary, but one way in which the "modern arts" have been able to express itself anachronistically is in the designs of some houses, store-fronts, and nobles' mansions
*** Most modern Agricultural buildings have at least one rendition in Rivelata
*** Commercial buildings like bars, pubs, and brothels in addition to some other buildings like public bath-houses and a marina/dock area
*** There's a large room designed to be a concert hall in the Castle, but that's about it currently
*** A myriad of the smaller religious buildings can be found in Rivelata, particularly the Church of New World Religion that has taken religious beliefs and building styles and made it highly syncretic in nature.
- In much the same way as Medicine, the fine arts profited from highly mobile professional tools, and as such the most basic forms of photography, Daguerrotypes, but this is mainly where one Photographer owns the camera, takes pictures of the clients, and the clients pay for the photos, never owning the equipment or knowing how the process works.
- The availability of musical instruments - is another highly anachronistic part of Rivelata. Most common are any of the woodwinds and strings families (pricey but actually available for purchase), followed by the percussions due to their older status in history, then by the brass due to their more complex production structure - most of the brass instruments found in Rivelata are probably old family heirlooms or magically-made replicas of those heirlooms. Cherished among the nobility are such recreations as dulcimer hammers, harpsichords, and pianos because they take the most effort to produce in terms of complexity and resources.
- Traditional Art Supplies - these are expensive only because they're hard to recreate, but are actually available in volume due to the passion for the arts that Rivelata has developed.

Rivetech (Nobility Only) [link to this sub-header]

These are all items that the lower class has heard rumors of, but never seen, and the only explanation they have for how the things work is "probably the same way the lights work". Who knows if they work mechanically, electrically, or tied into the mysterious power source that fuels the street-lights (as the locals actually believe)
- Thermometer
- "Storm Glasses" (described like barometers as created by Goethe)
- Bifocal lenses
- Anaesthetic
- "Ice Cellars" (sounds like bigger Ice Boxes)
- "Toasting Pan" (sounds like a better, metal Roasting Basket)
- "Breezer" (sounds like a big fan)
- Pocketwatches

Castle and Military Armaments [link to this sub-header]

The Castle Complex has a number of military-specific buildings: the barracks, bunkers, and towers. The Guards also supervise the gates into the city and patrol the walls around the city. Things of note that characters can see from outside the castle include:
- Turrets and other features designed to withstand Siege warfare
- The Plate Armour that Guards wear and the "Byrnne" (Chainmail) that is worn by the Guards who work the Arrival Boat.
- Weapons like swords, polearms, shields, and bows are arrows are readily available, but firearms (smoothbore long guns) like the arquebus and musket are only available to military personnel
- Any other pre-1650 military equipment including martial arts training / hand-to-hand combat training, mêlée weapons, armour, munitions, firearms, and artillery.

Not Available Currently (But Can Be Re-invented) [link to this sub-header]

- Agricultural advances along the lines of the British Agricultural Revolution
- Typewriters - the resources are there, but the motivation isn't, due to the Journals being available, so the moveable type printing press would need to come first
- Anything steam-powered - the steam-engine was invented in 1698, so it's not far beyond the hard line of 1650, but it has not been invented in Rivelata YET!
- Water as an energy source - knowledge of waterways, dams, canals, and mills is available, but has not been harnessed yet because the nearest river was so close to Zikhadhara's Temple; however, it is well within the resources of characters in Rivelata.
- Lamp oil, as candles are still in use
- Sewing machines since fashion is being so heavily pursued by many Rivelatians, Native and Arrival alike
- Probably a lot of other things that were invented between 1650 and 1750 on Earth; if you are interested in pursuing re-inventing, please comment to the OOC Plotting Post with "Reinvention" in the subject and the moderators will be sure to entertain your proposal!

Premise :: Tour of Rivelata City :: Timelines :: Setting Overview