game information and premise
game information
general overview
Otair is a large town, filled with a variety of mostly pleasant townsfolk and amazingly colorful cultures--although they don't know that. Ask the townspeople about languages and ethnicity and your characters will receive blank stares. Besides that, on the surface, things are as ordinary as can seem.
While Otair is large for a town, people become familiar with faces and their surroundings easily enough. However, Otair's residents don't start sticking out until more people from other worlds begin to arrive.
In fact, the stronger people feel and the more people there are from outside to have feelings in Otair, new places open up or are suddenly noticed--as if the world is opening up, and growing, as well.
Can a town be compared to a person? Is a town limited to being built, expanding, then being deserted, or is there something more organic going on for Otair?
The relationships born between people are central to existing in Otair.
character arrival
Most characters will arrive in the Saturated Center. If not by daydreaming or caught unawares by a bright light, it will be by being in a state of mind that isn't fully aware of their surroundings or too tuned into what is going on around them.
Characters will find themselves sitting on the sole bench in the Saturated Center and will slowly come around to be greeted by NPC Elbis, who is outside the Saturated Center. This elderly man will exchange some words with your character but will not be of much help. Exiting from this peculiar area will have your character finds themselves in Otair.
From here, they can ask around, and any NPC will tell them there is a place for them to stay at the only hotel in Otair. For those who find themselves in the Saturated Center, Elbis will also mention directions to the hotel. Certain characters arriving by the black train will be met by NPC Rosalyn.
Arriving in the Saturated Center may make characters feel somewhat sleepy but they will get over it almost immediately. Characters arriving by train will feel exhausted for a day.
Characters who arrive in Otair feel strangely drawn to the town, whether they want to admit it or not and whether they know it or not. They will strive to learn the answers behind the mystery of Otair and its residents.
all games end
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE APPLYING
Cartography is an RPG with an ending, meaning that the NPCs will have a greater role in the plot and be more present than just on-call to players' whims. They will be partly integral to the main story line, but not completely necessary for each player to interact with.
For any future players wishing to apply to Cartography, please understand the kind of game you are signing up for when applying to Cartography. There are many other games that allow free-play within their settings but Cartography will not be that game the more the plot advances towards its end. This is a fair warning for much later in the plot.
skills and abilities
Characters will retain their abilities and skills, although those powers will be under a handicap. Certain events will cause a character's powers to be temporarily boosted or further lowered.
Considering Otair is a town with ordinary people, the cap on your characters powers while in Otair is going to be drastic. Once in the woods or in specific parts underwater, characters' abilities return closer to what they are normally capable of, but by no means are those abilities anywhere near a character's full capabilities.
NPCs
If players so choose to be involved with the NPCs, the NPCs can play a decent role in characters' stay in Cartography. For the most part they're normal folk, but in each of them is the potential for meaningful insight into the true nature of Otair and the characters themselves. Some NPCs will prove valuable assets to characters.
Some NPCs require a specific sort of reaction from characters towards them; this cannot be argued. For instance, The Innovator is an NPC characters will find themselves liking/tolerating no matter the circumstance.
lighthouses
There are a total of eight lighthouses surrounding Otair, however one of those lighthouses only appears at night and is completely unaccessible. Another lighthouse feels different from the rest and draws all outsiders to it.
Lighthouses can be visited by anyone.
What is the significance of the lighthouses to Otair?
Specific details can be found here.
setting and environment
Otair is a water town that is littered with canals instead of highways. Bikes, motorcycles, gondolas, some automobiles, and two trains are the main method of transportation besides walking.
More information can be found here.
death is more than a card
Death is normally no laughing matter, and despite the mental state of your character(s), it is definitely not a laughing matter in Otair. Death can happen with moderator approval, but as of now, dying is not an option for any character.
Living characters do not want to know what it means to die in Otair. Dead characters who have been given another chance to live in Otair definitely do not want to find out what happens when dead people die in Otair.
However, death is just another facet of life. While there is meaning in ends, perhaps Otair has a purpose for some ends more than others.
Death through violence is a definite possibility for characters, especially when it involves any plot that include the Wanted Man NPC. This game is mature, so if you cannot stomach such actions, do try to rethink applying to Cartography_RP for your own comfort.
the hotel
For an unknown reason, characters are told by any NPC (major or not) that there's a room available to them in the nameless hotel in a corner of Otair. A small and inconspicuous as it looks, It houses an infinite number of rooms. Characters may room three maximum to a room and all they have to do is pick a key to a room number with keys available and they'll be occupying said chosen room.
Players are free to switch rooms and live alone, but must wait a month to make their move after they've decided on a room to stay in.
Rooms comfortably fit three characters, each with their own room but they share the kitchen and one large bathroom.
The laundry room is large and open to all the hotel's resident's, requiring 1 Dice per use of the laundry room, despite the number of materials needing to be cleaned. The laundry room is located on the first floor basement (B1) of the hotel. Subsequent lower levels of the hotel are off-access at the moment.
Rent is expected monthly, to be deposited in the Payment Box near the front desk, and will set each character back by 60 Dice if they room alone. If two characters room together, they pay 30 Dice per character and if three characters room together they only pay 15 Dice per character.
It would be very difficult for characters to live alone for a long period of time in Otair. If a character lives alone for one month, every month after causes their rent to rise by 20 Dice.
A ghostly and harmless blob of a human figure is behind the desk to give out keys and request rent. If rent fails to be paid per month, the ghostly caretaker will automatically be in possession of the offending character's key.
Players may use this system for their plots, if they wish, but this is not meant to cause undue pressure on players. The only time a player may be pressured and warned by the mods for their rent is if they live alone for too long a period.
The more a single character pays for rent, the darker the larger the ghostly blob at the front desk appears, although this perception of reality is incorrect. Each player perceives the ghostly blob differently.
If a player is accepted into the game and all the rooms are filled, leaving them without a roommate, the ghostly entity will only charge them 20 Dice until a new character arrives.
Yes, your character(s) can live wherever they want, granted a spot is open in a room and you are not rooming with your own characters.
monthly calendar and plot events
Events listed in the calendar include obligatory and volunteer plots. It is important not to ignore what happens in Otair. Make sure your character has knowledge of any plots going on, whether the plots require participation or not.
Optional, on-going events will offer benefits for characters later on in the plot. As long as requirements are properly met, all characters will be able to reap the benefits from being part of these on-going events.
If you feel you cannot be involved in a roleplay that is plot intense, please rethink applying.
At the same time, months for plot will alternate. For the most part, one month will have plot and the next month will be open for characters to create their own subplots within the game. When a plot is extensive and important, they may cover two or more months. But the moderators know and understand the joys of having a free roleplay setting, and will try to keep plots a reasonable length as well as give appropriate time for any players' plots.
Try to set your schedule according to the game's events.
More information can be found in the FAQ, under the "calendar" section.
journals
Gameplay will take place in the main community, not character's journals. Characters are allowed to use their journals for brief gameplay with another player or phone call exchanges, but these will not count towards a character's activity. Logs can be used towards activity every other month, as long as the log is not written with the same characters.
more information
Much more information can be found in the FAQ.
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