I'm insanely behind on these and we got like six of them last weekend right before I left for a training trip. Most were borderline and got my "do better" form letter. This one is amazingly detailed... I almost passed it without peer-review. Let me know if you see anything I missed. title = Chiaroscuro blurb = Do you like vampires and other supernatural creatures, writing, roleplaying games, gothic horror, and the ability to create fascinating characters? Then you may have found your haven at last. Chiaroscuro is a fictional coastal California city, occupying roughly the area of Carmel and surrounding environs on the Real World map. The year is 1999 and the news is alive with stories that Vampires, Werewolves, and even stranger things may indeed be.... real. Alleged vampire, Sebastin St. Martin, has given his exclusive story to internationally known and respected journalist, Allison Marks. Moreover, he has consented to allow a team of scientists and doctors to examine and study him and is currently residing in a secret lab, rumored to be located in New Mexico. He has said in interviews with Allison that, should he ever return to the world or be discovered by his own kind, his death is assured. His reasons for this rather extraordinary decision on his part remain unclear. Hysteria and skepticism mingle in the human population. Some proclaim that this heralds the end of the world, that monsters are now loose to prey upon mankind at the end of the millinium. Others assert that these mysterious beings, having always been here, are a natural part of our world, their secrets soon to be explained by science, with benefits to all mankind. Still others maintain that it will all prove to be a hoax of monumental proportions. Against this tempestous background is the jewel of a city known as Chiaroscuro, an elegant artistic communtiy by the sea with areas of charming cottages and cobbled paths and others that are home to slick highrises and chic and gothic nightclubs. There are mansions, museums, art galleries and, on the outskirts of the city, farthest from the coastline, there is the dark and dangerous area all larger cities seem to have, an acknowledged red light district where anything goes for those brave, foolish, desperate or simply unfortunate enough to find themselves there. Isabeau Plantagenet, vampiric Mistress of the City, newly come to her position, struggles to assert her rule and consolidate her power in a time that brings true threat again to her kind for the first time in hundreds of years. This is not her story alone. It is the story of all the inhabitants of Chiaroscuro, both mortal and immortal alike. A story you are invited to join and help craft with your own unique characters. web = http://www.mcn.net/~lamia/ genre = Horror/ Vampire/ Gothic/ Supernatural/ Werewolf system = Original system, explained on website about = Well, I've been playing and running role-playing games for a bit over twenty years now. Yes, that means I played D&D back in the days when it was 3 skinny booklets and some stat sheets in a box. Still have it too! Anyway, vampires are my personal literary and movie obsession and I have wanted to explore dark themes in a role-playing setting that focused more on character developement than rolling dice and gaining experience points. Hence, the decidedly hybrid Chiaroscuro, one part RPG, one part writer's collective. I hope you'll check it out. -- Carl D Cravens (raven@phoenyx.net) A man about to speak the truth should keep one foot in the stirrup. -- -------------------------------------------------------------- Listowner tools are found at http://www.phoenyx.net/listowners
