AD 476 came and went uneventfully. Atilla and his hordes had turned south, making a fine mess of the Indian subcontinent. That was all remedied a few centuries later by the Emperor Hadrian IV. By AD 1900, the Known World was all under Roman control. It was then that the Empire began turning their vision skyward…
It is now AD 2129, and Roman scientists have unlocked the secrets of interstellar travel. With the invention of Quam Celerius Lucem (QCL) Drives, Roman vessels have established Colonia Proxima Centauri, a habitable world populated by primitive barbarians who were easily overcome.
First contact has been made with a tribe of space-faring extraterrestrial barbarians known as the Pomeranii. The first encounter did not go well.
Join now the crew of the Trireme class starship, the Stella Nova as she prepares to embark on a voyage to the edge of the Empire. Her mission is straight forward: Defend Colonia Proxima Centuri, and carry the Eagles forward for the Glory of Rome!
RULES AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Setting: The story is an alternate history/science fiction drama which takes place in the 22nd Century AD.
Premise: Imperial Rome never fell, and now it is reaching for the stars. By the end of the 20th Century AD, Rome was master of the entire world. Although each and every region of Earth was not under the Empire’s direct control (some regions being autonomous “client states”), Roman hegemony over the planet was unquestioned. Roman exploration of the solar system proceeded briskly, and with the discovery of Quam Celerius Lucem (“Faster Than Light”) technology, the exploration of nearby stars has just begun. Rome has one colony on an Earth-like world discovered at Proxima Centauri. The “barbarians” (native sentient species) living there were quickly subjugated, and Roman control of the planet has recently been consolidated. That’s when they discovered, in a rather unpleasant encounter, a new race of space-faring barbarians who appear bent on violently opposing any further human expansion.
Tone: Think “I, Claudius” meets “Starship Troopers.” The style is that of a historical novel, with the caveat that it’s a future history. The tone is serious, for the most part, though there will certainly be room for humor. Heck, trying to come up with Latin phrases for high-tech gadgetry induces a comedy style all its own…!
Game Pace: 1 scene every 10 days or so.
Writing Style: Third Person, Past Tense. (“Marcus opened the hatch cautiously.” NOT: “Marcus opens the hatch cautiously” or “I open the hatch cautiously.”) Length of posts may vary for each player, but so far the game posts have averaged 2-3 substantial paragraphs.
You can see the type of writing style we’re hoping to see by reading some of the posts already made. Well-constructed sentences using decent punctuation, spelling and capitalization should be the norm (rather than, Marcus looked at His fello romans than Opened the Door. come Quickly he yelled to The Others behind Him)
Number of players: We are looking for a total of 4 to 6 players, though that number is flexible.
Player characteristics: Our players will be humans with normal strengths and weaknesses. They will be either Roman citizens (with Romanized names) or humans from one of Rome’s semi-autonomous client states on Earth. They have the option of having been born in Roman colonies on the Moon, Mars, or one of the industrial/mining outposts on Europa, Io, Titan, or the asteroid belt. If a participant would like help in coming up with a suitably Roman-sounding name, we can assist there!
Player roles: There are several crew positions available: Operations Tribune (Officer), Communications Tribune, Engineering Tribune, Natural Philosopher (Science Officer), Contubernalis (Ensign), Veteran Legionary
Power scale: The characters in this story are talented and capable humans, with all the strengths and weaknesses one might expect. None of our players will be aliens or beings gifted with extraordinary powers. The normal human abilities of ambition, greed, malice, pride, martial or technical prowess, idealism, honor, and scientific curiosity should be sufficient to drive our characters (and the story) forward.
Leaving the Game: Players who are unable to participate for an extended period of time (vacation, RW work commitments) must notify the Narrator, who will work out a plausible storyline for the character’s absence. If a Player is no longer able to participate, that Player must contact the Narrator, and they will work out a good “exit strategy” to write their character out of the story. Players who fail to participate or check in for an extended period of time will be retired from the game; the Narrator will write the character out of the story in whichever way the Narrator determines is the best fit for the current storyline.
KEEP IN TOUCH! Players are requested to keep in touch with the Narrator. If you are going to be away for a couple of week, just let me know…please! If you decide you need to leave the game at some point, please let me know that as well…don’t keep me guessing.
*Any Questions? email me at tacronicus.cornelius@gmail.com
Hosted and narrated by:
Tacronicus Cornelius (Tacronicus)
Completed 05/01/15.
Scenes played: 23
License: Community License
