New: Thrill Seekers - The Human Race (free, closed-ended, www, human, modern, rpg) From: lindahl@pbm.com (Greg Lindahl) Date: Thu, 04 Jul 2002 07:13:00 +0000 Name: Thrill Seekers - The Human Race Costs: Free Contact: alcalavicci@hotmail.com URL: http://rpol.net/rpol/game.cgi?gamename=Thrill+Seekers+-+The+Human+Race&dat e=1025629022 Frequency: Free form / Fast paced Type: reality adventure EEmail: alcalavicci@hotmail.com Last-Update: 2002Jul03 Keywords: free, closed-ended, www, human, modern, rpg Description: Situated in the vast Pacific basin, lies the Ring of Fire. Volcanic arcs and oceanic trenches that partly encircle the Pacific Basin form this so-called 'Ring of Fire'. It is a zone of frequent earthquakes and violent volcanic eruptions. This area is virtually brimming with volcanic islands and deep trenches. Somewhere within the borders of this vast amazing geologically active area lies, The Human Races greatest challenges. Somewhere in this Pacific Basin is hidden the relic, 'The Ring of Fire'. The teams will have to face humanities greatest test, in a race against time, and each other. Each team will start at a different location, somewhere in 'the ring of fire', which stretches from almost the southern tip of South America, up the west coast of Central and North America, through the Aleutian & Kurile Islands, back through the Japanese and Philipines, Java, Solomans and then ending off of the southwest coast of Australia. To find the talisman of the 'ring of fire', the teams will have to travel the area in search of clues. Each clue, a piece of a larger puzzle, that should lead them to the next clue's location, and ultimatly to the 'Ring of Fire' talisman itself. Each of these clue locations will be referred to as 'stations', and when a team reaches a station, that leg of the race is over for them. The clues, once found, are given to the teams, as they discover them, in encrypted messages. The encrypted messages, will either lead the teams in direction to the next clue, and/or give them -1- letter in the name of the place where the talisman is hidden. Annagrams, and other word type games will be used to convey the messages, for the clues. Each letter that the teams find along the way, will ultimatly spell out the location of 'The Ring Of Fire', but as in an annagram, they will have to re-arrange them to find the right place, and if that location has more than one word in it, will have to find the 'scrabbled (sic) scrambled' message, in the right order. To get to the next assigned station along each leg of the journey, the teams will have to perform several task's, before they can reach that station. These task's will be difficult, fun, and challenging, as each will pertain to the geographical area where the team(s) are currently located. They will range from kayaking, to rock climbing, from swimming, to scuba diving etc... To perform the required task a simple question or annagram about that geographical area will be asked or given, and usually, but not always choices given. All times will be kept by yours truely, as the official timekeeper. Each task, and other functions of the game will be alloted certain times, sometimes you will know the time that it will take you to do a task or function, sometimes this time will not be known until after you have completed the task or function of the game. All teams will be able to see what the other teams are doing, but not the times involved. Most of the posting will be done on 'public boards'. Private team boards will be available, but when the players post to them, this will incur a time penalty. This area is also where the admin will be posting the time to date for each team, and all times referring to task's and functions of the game. Once your team has run out of water and food, your team is eliminated. (Please keep in mind that most if not all of your travels will not be bringing you into very much contact with civilization, as you know it, this is a game into those remote regions of the Pacific Ocean.) Finding food and potable water along the way will be necessary, and is yet another function of the game, simple in design, hard to do, easy in terms of game time spent. It is designed to be a fast, fun, and entertaining game. Below are some of the 'Options' that will be used during the game. DELAYS: These for the most part are public service transportation delays. Like Taxi's, planes, Buses etc... They are a randomly generated event, incurred by the team players themselves. It is a word or phrase that the players HAVE SAID, or HAVE FAILED TO SAY, during the course of play. OPEN FREE MOVES: This 'free move' can be used by all teams, except the 'Native Tribe'. Open Free Moves are usually given as an 'option'. It allows a team to skip one of the following tasks. 1) Travel to a destination - the team still travels there, cost free in terms of time! 2) Skip a task clue/question. When used this way, it reduces the multiple choices by 1/2, for a question, or 1/2 of the clue is given. 3) The teams can use this to cancel 1 delay. TIME SAVER'S: A time saver is a better form of transportation that the team has found. A team can use it to travel 1st class to the next destination/station, NO TIME PENALTIES ARE INCURRED! It is usually awarded as an 'option'. FREE ANSWERS: A free answer is just that, it is used in conjuction with an OPEN FREE MOVE to cancel answering 1 clue/question of their choice. The answer then is freely given. It is usually awarded to the team with the best time to each station. SHORT CUT: A short cut is a way to get to the next destination/station in 1/2 the time. It can also be used to cancel 1 delay. Usually awarded as an 'option'. DECEPTION: A deception is offering another team a deceptive exchange of information, or goods. The teams have to be at the same location to exchange the information or goods. They can of course negotiate this before hand, and then agree to meet. This deception works exactly like the 'Tribal deception', and can be used against the tribe, or other teams. It is usually awarded to the team with the best time to each station. (Note - the team with the best time to the station will not have a choice of an Open Free Move, Or a Deception, It allows me the GM the option of choosing which one I want to award. And who knows I may offer both, and use it as an added incentive to get to the next station.) INTRIGUE: An intrique allows a team to cancel another teams deception. Or It can be used to cancel another teams Shortcut or Open Free Move. And instead, in both cases, causes the team who attempts to decieve, shortcut, or open free move, to have a DELAY, on that teams immediate next move. This is a randomly generated event, generated by the players themselves, it is a word or phrase that the players HAVE SAID, or HAVE FAILED TO SAY. SPY: Spying allows 1 member of a team to spy on another team. That member is allowed access to the other teams private board, for a short duration. This duration is determined by yours truely, but will in all likelyhood not be for more than a 5 or 6 hour period of actual time, most likely in the evenings. What the spy does there is totally up to him/her. They may post if they like, but this will give away their spying, and it might open up unknowns for the spying teams future, and any post that they do make should be the last event of their spying, and is not considered 'caught'. Of course the team member who does spy can try to remain unknown, this intent must be relayed to the GM. If a spy is not caught during this attempt, by the spyed on team, they get away scott free! Otherwise, the team caught spying must give up one of their 'OPTIONS', chosen at random by the team spyed on. This is one instance that the teams involved, do not have to be in the same geographical area. Spying may occur at any time, & anywhere the teams in question, are located! TO ACQUIRE a spy option, a team must complete a task in 1/2 the time it normally takes, AND exchange an 'Intrigue', and a 'Open free Move' with the GM. EXCHANGE STATIONS: This allows a team to exhange stations or places (geographical), with another team. This transfer occurs immediatly when the owning team chooses to play it. To acquire one of these a team must exchange with the GM a 'DECEPTION', AND AN 'INTRIGUE'. The deceptions and intrigues can be bartered for between the players, at any time, but in order to exhange them remember they have to be geographically at the same location. TRIBAL CHANGE: This allows the team that possesses it to become the 'local tribe', thus taking this power away from the team that currently has it! To acquire it the team has to exchange with another team a 'DECEPTION'OR 'INTRIGUE' & A 'CHANGE STATION'. Or exchange with another team, an 'OPEN FREE MOVE', + A 'TIME SAVER', + A 'FREE ANSWER'. Each 'OPTION' and the number of each, that the team has, will be posted to the appropriate teams private board. ITEMS FOR BARTER between the teams are obvious -- FOOD & WATER, being the most obvious. Each team will start out the game with only two days supply of food an water. The tribes will have to forage for these throughout the game, some teams may find more than other teams, and can use these as a barter for the above "OPTIONS". Remember once a team has ran out of food and water that team is eliminated from play! The key word here is food AND water. Both must be depleted in order for elimination to occur. Of course all of the above 'OPTIONS' are up for barter between the teams. What your team chooses to barter, is up to them. Water & Food will be a challenge to acquire during the game, and will most likely be used as an option in certain circumstances. As you will see, the choices made throughout the game, will determine your success or failure. Many challenges/tasks will include only 1 member of a team, it will be up to that team member to decide what he/she wants to do. That team member can confer with the other team member only on the teams private board! Which will incur a time penalty, but is the only way that the two can confer! TO WIN: THE WINNING TEAM IS THE FIRST ONE (TIMEWISE) THAT FINDS THE TALISMAN KNOWN AS 'THE RING OF FIRE'. [ This is a new entry for the PBM List. You can find the list itself, and instructions for adding games or comments, at http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/pbm_list/ -- greg ] Up