Things are finally in place to try to get the Shadows of Humanity PBEM-RPG going. I will be using a heavily modified version of The Everlasting rules. However while it has been heavily modified (so as to deal with some issues that I've seen and experienced in using the rules and options from the core books, as well as to provide a lot more flexibility in the use of and knowledge of a wider range of skills and abilities), all of the game mechanics will be taking place behind the scenes. Thus as a player an understanding of the game mechanics will not be necessary at all, but instead the players can concentrate instead of developing a sound character concept and then playing that concept towards experiencing their own personal "Hero's Journey" or in building their own "Personal Mythology".

All activity will take place via email and will pass through the Game Master. All system mechanics will be handled behind the scenes, so the players do not need to worry about the numbers/levels/chances of success, only about the advancement of the story or their personal goals or plans. All player activity will take place in a story format as detailed below. All players will need to look over the setting material and develop a character concept, which will be submitted to the GM. The GM will then work with the player/participant to create the character and work it into the story or make minor changes to the characters background and history as needed at the start. The GM will also do the behind the scenes character statistical development (the actual stats and skills of the character, etc.; based off of the players description and so as to create characters/ protagonists that are balanced with the rest of the group).

All game related emails from players should have the following information included:
Subject: Game Name (i.e. "Shadows of Humanity", or "SoH") and Character/Protagonist Name
Body: Should read as much like a paragraph (or more) from a story (see other notes on style), with all character speech enclosed in quotation marks "example", and any out of character comments or other non-game related information appearing within square brackets [example], and any game related GM only information enclosed in rounded collection brackets {example}. I also recommend actually [[doubling up]] on {{either of these}} last two types of brackets around the appropriate text, to be sure that it is seen and does not get sent to others (unless that is the intention).

All players must enclose all spoken words in quotation marks (i.e. "blah blah blah"), while all descriptions should appear in third-person past tense (although with my own writing skills not exactly being flawless, I won't hold anybody over the coals over these requirements, its meant so that we have some consistency within the posts and so that I can complie the stories that develop for display on the web site for others to read). Anything that involves a skill check, a change in the environment, or similar situations needs to be send directly to the GM, who will then determine the outcome and reply/forward to all involved with that scene. However simple conversation between Protagonists can take place directly between the two players with the GM simply being copied on the messages when sent. However... it must be noted that players should not detail the actions/reactions of other players Protagonists, and should only do this for NPC's (Non-Player Characters) who are not central to the story (those that are not being actively run by the GM(s)).

Example:
Ted slowly looked around the corner to see if anyone or anything was there. All that could be seen was a glistening slime-trail from the grotesque alien creature he had been following. He turned back to his companions and said, "It has already been here. Be ready, in case it has already taken control of anyone." He then pulls a long handled axe from beneath his black leather trench coat and steps around the corner.

The setting will be that detailed in the Everlasting books (our own world, with other things hidden in the shadows that are not obvious to most mortals), with activities centered primarily around a fictitious metropolitain area in the Great Lakes region of North America. Think of it as a large (roughly 1,000,000+ people) metro area with a variety of industries including quite a bit of manufacturing. Similar to cities like Chicago, Toronto, Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee, or Buffalo. One thing to keep in mind is that Everlasting are relatively small in number and as such are difficult to come across if you don't know where to look or what to look for. Some groups are able to increase their numbers due to the very nature of how they "join" the Secret World, while others become part of the Secret World through destiny. There is also a lot of variation in numbers from one Gente to the next, for example Daevas and Vampires severely outnumber Angels and Dragons, while Osirians and Revenants and many of the other Gentes of Everlasting are somewhere in between in numbers.

As far as Roleplaying options within this setting, many of the Gentes of Everlasting plot and scheme against other groups within their own Gente. For example, while the Daevas are all destined to play a role in the Final Battle, each group has their own plans on how to handle it, and these differences often result in conflict between the various Deavan Households. Likewise the various Consanguinities of Vampires also have differences in their outlooks and goals (some protect human civilization as a rancher would protect his cattle, while others view humans as simply prey to be dealt with as they please). Or the Abaddon (Grim Reaper Revenants) working to return other Revenants and Dead Souls to the underworld where they belong. Then there are the various rivalries that occur between the various Gentes, such as the plotting and rivalry that exists between the Revenants, Ghuls, and the Vampires with their constant maneuvering to try to control the Court of Night. Another example of this is the battle between the Gargoyles and the various "cruel" or "brutal" races of Everlasting (Wer, Ghuls, Demons, Vampires, Revenants, etc), as they feed on the "Sins" of those who would do wrong to others, and in the process slowly become the very monsters that they hunt. And if that isn't bad enough there are even greater threats not only to the Everlasting and the humans that they sometimes try to protect, but to the entire world and this plane of existance. These threats take on the form of Demons that are trying to take control of the world which both the Angels and the Daevas are sworn or destined to battle against. Or the horribly alien Abominations that are trying to conform the earth to the horror world Otgon (the home planet of the Old Ones and their grotesque minions (as described in the works of H.P. Lovecraft, Robert Bloch, or August Derleth) however the Manitou (nature spirits who form a simbiotic relationship with a human host) battle endlessly against this threat, sometimes helped by other Gentes. It is also possible for characters to work together (not only characters of the same Gentes, but also characters of different Everlasting Races working together for the greater good of Humanity or towards some other goal) against larger forces that work to destroy what the various members of Everlasting society hold sacred.

The only character concept changes that the GM will make will be to character background (the personality, attitude, values, dreams, desires, fears, etc. of the character are the domain of the player only) so that it might fit better with the overall setting, however these changes will be discussed and negotiated and not forced on the player. The actual game stats and skills will also be developed by the GM/Storyteller, but following the ideas set forth by the player and balanced such that all the characters are at least somewhat close to one another in power and overall abilites. None of the characters will start out at even the middle levels of Everlasting society, however a few may be chosen (based on character concept and GM's plans) to start out part way up the ranks of Everlasting Society (as explained above). However all characters will have the opportunity to advance and improve as well as grow in power. It will even be possible for a very ingenious and power driven character (if played right) to surpass those who start out as being more powerful in rank and power within Everlasting society. After all Role Playing Games are a form of social entertainment through active use of imagination. Interactive and imaginitive storytelling at its best.

This will also allow characters to interact in such a way that is often difficult in a table-top or LARP setting where "in-character knowledge" and "out-of-character knowledge" are not always kept separate, as the other players will generally not know what other characters are up to other than through what they see or hear (based off of the GM's emails). Thus a much higher degree of true "Role-Playing Emersion" can be established. Admittedly the pace of such a game however will be slower due to the fact that often times a single scene of activity will take weeks or more to handle via email, however for those who want hard-core Role-Playing immersiveness, an engaging storyline and are patient, this is a viable media. This also allows people to Role-Play with a minimal time commitment, as it is possible to take part in such a format with no more than 10-30 minutes of time 2 to 5 times a week to read and respond to emails.

The hope here is to slowly grow this into a sizeable group representing a wide range of Protagonist (characters) Gentes (races?!?), as well as covering a large area that includes political and other aspects of the metro area. This will allow for all sorts of political, economic, and strategic dealings within and between each Gente, each group within any Gente, as well as against other larger and not always seen groups or entities. In addition to this there will be both small and medium player-driven plots, as well as much larger setting-spanning and epic plots that are GM driven. Thus there will be a whole lot of player freedom to do as you wish, just so long as you realize that your character's/protagonist's actions may have repricusions. Likewise characters can plot and scheme together or against each other, and with or against the many NPC's that exist within the setting. With more than 100 detailed NPC's already existing within the setting with whom you can interact, and more will be created each week as needed to progress the story-lines and plots.

I may also allow for each player to have more than one character/protagonist, as long as the character concepts are well thought out and interesting. However it is highly recomended that they be played as completely separate protagonists and that privy knowledge of one is not played out in the actions or words of the other. It is highly recomended that these characters not be of "enemy" Gentes, or of "enemy" affiliations within the same Gente (these types of requests, or others that involve cross character knowledge that may create problems will be turned down).

As such, what I will need from each person who is interested in taking part in this endeavor (more than 20 invitations are being sent out to join in this RPG-PBEM experiment of sorts) will need to read over the material on the web site and then come up with a character concept and submit it using the following list of questions as a basis for the character:

1. Choose a Genos…
   These can include any of the following, or as an option, skip this part and continue on with the rest of the process and I can choose something that will fit everything else and following the trail towards a Genos can become a major part of the Journey. If uncertain, take a look at and read over the various parts of the Shadows of Humanity web site (you will see links to a page describing at least the basics of each Genos in the left hand navigation window). Any of the following will be open for characters/protagonists, but be warned that some will only be allowed in very limited numbers due to their rarity (denoted by ^ ) or will only be available if a really good character concept is developed due to the complexity involved in playing such character types (denoted by * ), likewise more flexibility and player freedom will be allowed in developing character types that are highly recommended due to their being quite common and fairly easy to play (denoted by #):
   • Angels * ^
   • Daevas # ("immortals" vaguely reminiscent of Highlander immortals or Greek/Norse/Celtic demigods)
   • Dead Souls (ghosts)
   • Djinn * (spiritual/emotional megalomaniacs)
   • Dragons ^ *
   • Dwarves
   • Elves
   • Faeries * (alien creatures from other realms of existence, from fairytales (not the Disney types either))
   • Gargoyles ^ ("sin eaters" creatures who hunt down wrong-doers and make them pay)
   • Ghuls # (rotting undying beings who have traded their humanity for immortality)
   • Manitou (animal/plant spirit bound into a human host)
   • Orcs
   • Osirians # (reincarnated magicians bound to the wheel of time)
   • Possessed * (best described as a split-personality psychopath, sort of…)
   • Questers (bound to a quest or cause which has granted them near immortality)
   • Reanimates (best described as Frankenstein's Monster or cybernetic death-mechs)
   • Revenants (dead spirits inhabiting bodies and walking the lands of the living)
   • Vampires #
   • Wer (those who suffer from the Changing Disease (Lycanthropy))
2. Create a Concept…
   Describe the basics of the character concept, including background, history, lifestyle, occupation (if the character/protagonist has a mortal occupation), culture (both present and past), gender, physical description, and anything else that seems important but does not fit into any of the other steps. Also, if a Genos has been chosen, either provide a background story to explain how your character just recently became or made the transition to that type of Everlasting, or let me know and I can come up with something. As an option, we can have the character start out as a mortal but start to make the transition into Everlasting society and thus play-up the learning and discovery process of learning of the Secret World of the Everlasting. Either way, the character should have made the transition (if it is a Genos that had previously been human) within the past year or so ago. However if the character/protagonist is of one of the Genos that do not make the transition from mortal to Everlasting (such as Angels, Djinn, Dragons, Dwarves, Elves, Gargoyles, or Orcs), then we can work together to come up with a background that explains your characters recent introduction to the mortal world within the last 6 months or so (but be warned that Dragons and Angels will be extremely rare and can be very difficult to play well). Or as another option, we can develop a background that has caused your character/protagonists to be away from the mortal world for an extended period of time and thus have only modest skills that would be used in the modern mortal world.

   Also note that many characters will start out with a mentor or some other NPC that will be there to help them learn about the Secret World of the Everlasting that exists beyond the shadows of the mortal world and help guide them at first. If the character is of one of the Gentes that make the transition from mortal to Everlasting, this Mentor will be the one who helps you make that transition towards near-immortality, while those who are of the Gentes that do not start out as mortals will have someone similar, who will help introduce them to the mortal world and help them to fit in and understand the way that mortals live and teach them how to keep their true nature hidden in the shadows. These Mentor's however will not be powerful members of Everlasting society, they will be among the typical and average population among their Genos within Everlasting Society.

3. Choose an Ethos…
   The following quote is borrowed from The Everlasting, Book of the Spirits (page 40): "In order to have real legendmaking, a protagonist must undertake a Hero's Journey. This involves the protagonist leaving the comfort of her present position to venture out and overcome great obstacles for some important reward. There are many variations on the Hero's Journey and the Ethos represent these variations. An Ethos represents a simple means of defining the mythological role of a protagonist. This information is used in choosing good storylines with appropriate trials, mood, goals, and rewards for a protagonist." If unsure or unfamiliar with this concept, let me know and we can discuss it and I may be able to help pick one based on your character concept and what you want to get out of the game (and what you see your character/protagonist wanting to get out of the Hero's Journey). The following explanations of the various Ethos possibilities is quoted from The Everlasting, Book of the Spirits (page 41-43):

   • Child- Tales of the Child involve personal growth; the hero moves from innocence and safety to understanding and independence; with knowledge come pain and strength. The Child is weak and powerless within her current situations and often naïve and immature. The Child must grow and eventually take command of her own life. The Child must turn loose of the things to which she clings, learning those things are unhealthy and limiting.
   • Craven- The Craven is not only a reluctant her, she is a coward to boot. She may or may not lack the skills and abilities necessary for success, but she definitely does not have the self-confidence and courage required. The Craven must come face to face with her own impotence and overcome it by facing her fears and rising to the call of adventure. By striving, failing, and continuing to try, the Craven will learn what she needs to succeed. By learning to risk everything she holds valuable to help others the Craven will be craven no more.
   • Crusader- Tales of the Crusader involve championing the ideas and ways of a particular group over all others. The Crusader often works for law and order, a particular society, or a religion. The Crusader must not only face outer forces that oppose her crusade, but also question her own faith and belief in her crusade. She must either realize her crusade is wrong or she must defeat her greatest foes so that her cause will reign supreme.
   • Enigma- Tales of the Enigma involve self-discovery; the hero is unaware of who or what she is, or what she has just become. These journeys are deeply internal, but by facing external threats, the Enigma learns more about the riddle of her own existence and will eventually attain full awareness. Self-awareness may be a curse as well as a blessing since the Enigma most likely has a darker side of her soul that she must also explore.
   • Explorer- Tales of the Explorer involve the discovery of new and wondrous people and places. The explorer's journey is a very outward one in which the Explorer must triumph over great obstacles and forces that stand in her way. She attains power and knowledge and she expands the known world by successfully completing her exploration. She can bring back new knowledge and great gifts for others, but she can also destroy what she has discovered if she is not careful to protect it from the influence and eventual corruption that she brings with her.
   • Fatebound-Tales of the Fatebound involve freeing one's self from a seemingly unalterable dark destiny. The fatebound must first glean prophetic awareness of her ties to a dark fate. Often this understanding of fate is a gradual process. Only by following that fate and getting closer to its ultimate culmination can the Fatebound hope to understand her destined role. She must then either free herself from her fate by going against her normal behavior and belief, or embrace her dark destiny with her own free will. In either case the ultimate reward is self-understanding and enlightenment about the purpose of life.
   • Gloryseeker-Tales of the Gloryseeker involve attaining great renown and becoming the greatest to ever live in whatever endeavor she undertakes to achieve glory. The Gloryseeker must test herself through various challenges and defeat all others who seek the same prize. If successful, the Gloryseeker either becomes wise enough to forsake personally glory for some greater goal or she achieves her dream of becoming the greatest to ever live.
   • Healer- The Healer may start out as self-centered and selfish, but, either through witnessing suffering and developing empathy from it, or by suffering greatly herself, the Healer develops the driving goal of easing the suffering of others. Some Healers spend the majority of their lives healing people. Some Healers work to heal entire cultures, nations, or societies. Some Healers, of a darker sort, believe they can ease pain only by brining painless death to the weak or suffering. Other dark Healers "heal" those who have been victims by exacting vengeance for those who cannot themselves, thereby relieving the suffering of those people.
   • Lover- Tales of the Lover involve risking everything to find and protect the hero's true love. The Lover must first find her true love, then either her true love is lost or put in great peril. The Lover must risk losing everything, even her own life, to save her beloved. Tales of this sort are always romantic and beautiful, though they can sometimes prove tragic as well.
   • Martyr- Tales of the Martyr involve sacrificing one's self for the greater good. The hero follows some greater purpose that leads her along many dangerous paths. The Martyr may gain strength and power, but all her efforts short of ultimate sacrifice will not be enough in the end. In the end, the Martyr must give up everything; possibly even die, to achieve her goal. This is a difficult Hero's Journey since the ultimate reward is self-sacrifice for greater good. The hero transcends material existence, becoming something more than anyone can attain through worldly works. Through martyrdom comes glory, vast benefit to the world, and divine rewards for the Martyr.
   • Outsider- Tales of the Outsider involve acquiring acceptance as a valued member of a society. The Outsider begins her Hero's Journey as someone who is not liked or trusted. She may be a loner by choice, other members of her society may have cast her out, or she may be a stranger in a strange land. Over the course of the quest she must prove her value to society by respecting it, by offering it something of value, or by protecting it. While others may see her as different at first, eventually they will come to understand that she is like them in many ways.
   • Penitent- Tales of the Penitent involve finding atonement for past transgressions. The Penitent must first come to grips with her terrible sins, whether they are against her or the world as a whole. She must then desire making amends for her terrible past by setting right the things she has made wrong. This process of atonement will lead to a great understanding of the value of heroism and goodness and the Penitent will find forgiveness as her reward, from both herself and others. There is, however, always a dark side to the Penitent that can erase all the good she has done, setting things wrong again, so she must be ever vigilant.
   • Progenitor- Tales of the Progenitor involve the creation of something of great importance. The progenitor is the creator and giver of life to anything ranging from worlds, to lifeforms, to organizations, to new societies. The creation process is never easy. It requires the discovery of a need for something followed by great effort in its design, creation, and eventual perfection or independence. The quest may end either with the birth of something of great significance that will affect the lives of everyone, or some time after the creation has passed beyond its childhood, making the Progenitor a mother figure as well as a life-giver.
   • Promethean- Tales of the Promethean involve finding and brining back to the world a wondrous gift that will benefit everyone. The Promethean must first recognize the need for a particular gift and then she must search long and hard for it, over many obstacles, before finding the gift. The Promethean must acquire the gift once it has been found, either by facing more challenges or by stealing it. She must then return it for the benefit of all people. Thus, the Promethean's ultimate reward is also a great reward for the entire world.
   • Prophet- Tales of the Prophet involve warning the world about cataclysmic events that will take place in the future unless something is done to prevent the events. In many ways the world is destined for certain events and it is the Prophet who must instigate change so that the world can avert great disaster. The Prophet may take an active personal role against the coming future by attempting to directly stop terrible events from occurring. However, only by convincing others of the truth, and by getting their help, can the future take a new and brighter course. Preventing catastrophe is its own reward, but often the Prophet becomes a great leader by saving the world.
   • Schemer- Tales of the Schemer involve developing and implementing some great master plan for acquiring great personal power. This ethos is better suited for antagonists than for protagonists, but it is possible to have a Schemer protagonist, so long as the Schemer's plan will benefit some greater good. The Schemer starts as a humble servant, becomes the master of his own destiny, and eventually becomes the master of many other peoples destinies. Her schemes are most likely things that will drastically alter the world for her own benefit and those she wishes to help.
   • Scourge- Tales of the Scourge involve annihilating something. The Scourge is a force of destruction whose sole purpose is to destroy everything in her wake. She often starts out as a victim who suffers greatly, perhaps losing everything but her life. The tragedy, however gives her great inner strength fueled by rage and pain. She then vows to destroy that which caused her suffering, learns what she needs to know in order to destroy her enemies, and then begins the eradication. She ravages the force that caused her pain and eventually destroys it or succumbs to her own inner rage, becoming that what she sought to destroy. Even if the defeats the force that caused her pain, she must still come to grips with her own rage. If successful, she finds happiness and learns to live again.
   • Trickster- Tales of the Trickster involve taking advantage of the naiveté of others and rejecting tradition in favor of crafty common sense. The Trickster is charged with pranking and deluding all suckers, and takes special interest in hypocrites and dullards. The Trickster is sometimes best used as an ethos for antagonists, since Trickster protagonists can annoy other protagonists and their roleplayers. While the Trickster always works for her own advantage, her pranks are often useful in teaching her victims valuable lessons or in giving some special gift to the world.
   • Wisdomseeker- The Wisdomseeker is the hero whose reward for the Hero's Journey is knowledge, powerful knowledge, capable of creating a greater good. The journey itself is less external and more internal, as it is a test of the Wisdomseeker's worldliness and wisdom. The Wisdomseeker must endure hardships and loss in order to grow wiser through the pain and suffering. The Wisdomseeker will face threats and she must outsmart them. The Wisdomseeker must face sin and overcome (or possibly accept) its blot upon the soul. The Wisdomseeker must face temptation and learn strength of will. The reward at the end of the Hero's Journey will help to enlighten the entire world through the spread of the wisdom.
4. Choose Persona Qualities…
   That will help to define your characters outlook. They are broken down into the following classes: Beliefs, Outlooks, Passions, Relations, and for a few possibly Dementia. Anyone who is not familiar with the Everlasting rules, should discuss this with me as they are developing their character concept and while I go through the character creation process, as this will define to some degree how your character will handle some situations or how they will react to some things, as well as define what is important to them and what isn't. For those not familiar with this concept, this involves defining to a lesser degree a ranking of sorts for any important relationships that the character has with various people, religious or societal beliefs that they adhere to (and define how strong their beliefs are), what is important to them as far as their outlook on life, as well as any causes, desires, goals, hobbies, people, places that the character is passionate about.
5. Choose Aspects…
   We will be using 12 stats/attributes in this game (again modified slightly from the 9 that are used in the Everlasting rules), as explained below. Please provide a slight descriptive ranking of how good your character-concept/protagonist is in terms of these 12 attributes (this can be done either by using simply verbs (Great, Mediocre, Fantastic, etc.), or a number ranking (on a scale of 1-10 or some other range), or any other way that you feel is reasonable to get across the idea of how good your character is in each of these categories:
   • Body- physical endurance
   • Agility- manual dexterity or coordination
   • Quickness- speed of movement
   • Strength- physical power
   • Mind- mental endurance and strength
   • Discipline- self discipline, will power, self control
   • Knowledge- education level and general knowledge
   • Reasoning- to think coherently and logically, draw conclusions from facts, solve problems
   • Spirit- strength of a characters soul or psyche
   • Charisma- personal magnetism, charm, ability to influence others
   • Intuition- ability to understand or empathize with others, wisdom
   • Perception- alertness to surroundings and ability to notice or find things
6. Choose Abilities…
   These should include any skills that your character would have due to their background, occupation, history, training, or education. We will not be limiting this to the 10 Aptitudes and the 7 skills under each that is listed in the Everlasting books. Instead we are striving for a much broader range of abilities and skills. Thus anything that you feel is appropriate, include it hear, but understand that things will need to be balanced, thus if you have a very large number of skills listed your character may not be all that good at them. It is best to pick a small number that your character/protagonist is really good at, as well as others that you imagine your character having but may not have yet mastered. Be sure to provide an indication of how good these skills are relative to one-another. Also note that some broad ranging skills may be handled differently than very specific skills (similar to the way that in the basic Everlasting rules/guidelines they are broken down into the broad Aptitudes, under which there are more specific and focused Skills.
7. Choose Distinctions…
   For those who are familiar with The Everlasting you will understand this, for those who are not, think of them as Talents and Flaws, Assets and Complications, or Gifts and Faults from other game systems. This will help to define some of your characters background, and we can openly discuss and define this during the character creation process. There is almost no limit to this, other than that it has to balance out with other things (thus if you want to be super wealthy, it needs to be paid for with major faults or problems that counter it from a power perspective). But overall, the total can be more positive than negative. In terms of the base Everlasting rules, these should total 9 points as per the basic rules, although due to the mechanisms and heavy modification of the base rules system, there will be quite a bit of flexibility, so if you have an idea that isn't in the current books, let me know and we may be able to work it in.
8. Choose Preternaturae and Magick…
   This will be limited to some degree on the chosen Genos from step one above as well as a few other things, and may need to be discussed during the character creation process. But this will be dealt with for each character as needed. For those who are not familiar with the Everlasting, you can think of this as Supernormal Powers, or special racial/profession skills and abilities from other RPG's.

If interested in participating, or if you have any questions you can contact me via email at the following link (use "SoH", "Everlasting", or "Shadows of Humanity" in the subject line):

E-mail me at...