romacitizens.com: Tour I: An Introduction to ROMA

Tour I: An Introduction to ROMA
On this tour we will learn the layout of the estate and how to get around. Don't worry if it all looks confusing at the moment. You'll soon get the hang of it. Just keep in mind that ROMA is comprised of eight connected sims. ROMA is the anchor, where most of the structures can be found. To the east is the ROMA Subura where some Citizens are able to construct and live in their own Roman style houses. To the north, outside the city walls, is ROMA Transtiberim, a rural land of hills, mountains, forests, and rivers that also contains the suburban settlement of Ostia. To the east of ROMA Transtiberim is ROMA Maritima, a mainly ocean sim where visitors can sail boats and enjoy other water pursuits. Further east is ROMA Atalante, a private sim owned and built by the avatars Ludovik Cazenove and MajorMatt Matfield. They have opened it to the public and it is part of the ROMA Estate. ROMA Insula is a private sim owned and built by the avatars Lef Leven and Popea Heron for their main stores ARS AVETE & ARS TOGA. ROMA Vinovium and ROMA Vicus house a full scale reconstruction of the Roman fort at Binchester and its adjacent civilian settlement. They are a virtual world presence of the real world Binchester excavations, sponsored by Stanford University, Durham University, and Durham County Council.
	Start this tour in the Customs House, the default place where everyone who teleports into ROMA arrives. Imagine you have just disembarked from a ship that sailed into the ROMA harbor. Take a look around. You can always find your way back here by looking for the huge Colossus that stands above the harbor.
Walk into the Customs House and you’ll see a soldier sitting at a desk ready to welcome you. His name is Aurelius Concordius and if you touch him, he will give you a copy of this introductory tour notecard and a free toga. Walk through the Customs House and you’ll see there are several scrolls on the walls. They will give you more information including the rules for visiting ROMA (called the “12 Tables”, also available on the land covenant tab of the “about land” window).
	Near the back of the Customs House is Pakoumis, the Head Librarian of the Library of Alexandria in ROMA. Take a note of his position. After the tour, you can come back here and take part in a short mystery game where you search the sewers of ROMA for one of Pakoumis’ missing friends.
Exit the Customs House and walk up the stairs at the edge of the docks. You’ll see Tibullus there, the newsreader of ROMA. If you touch his tablet, he will give you the latest newsletter for the estate. You’ll want to come back to Tibullus regularly. He’ll even play rock/paper/scissors with you if you touch the tablet on the ground near his feet!
	The large square with the fountain in it before you is the Plaza. This is the main social area of ROMA. You’ll often see Citizens hanging out here. Look to the south. The whitewashed building with arches above the windows is the Pompeii Felicitas Tavern. The huge white building with the colonnade is the Baths of Caracalla. We’ll visit both those buildings on another tour. For now, look at the collection of buildings along the north side of the Plaza. This is ROMA Urbs, the plebeian quarter of the estate.
Find the building in ROMA Urbs with the tan awning. This is the Procurator’s Office. Procurators are ROMA Citizens who volunteer their time to help out new visitors. If one is on duty, a sign here will announce this. Otherwise, go inside the office and find the ROMA Urbs HUD. Touch it to get yourself a copy and attach it. There are five main buildings in ROMA Urbs, and each one gives you information about ROMA and its Citizenry. The HUD will give you a special item if you visit each one and touch a special lamp inside while wearing the HUD.
	Leave through the back door of the Procurator’s Office and look for the building with barrels outside it. This is the hovel of a local witch. You can visit inside and by drinking one of her potions receive some visions by gazing at her magical tapestry. (These are videos about the ROMA estate you can watch by taking a seat inside and touching the bubbling drink near the fire.) [ Be sure to touch the special lamp inside while wearing your HUD to record that you visited the witch. ]
Go into the big blue building next to the donkey cart. This is where the Braggart Soldier lives in ROMA. His scrolls give a lot more information about the sims and attractions in the ROMA Estate. Find his lamp on the upper floor and touch it while wearing your HUD.
	Next door is the residence of the Merchant. The signs in here explain the various rental opportunities available in ROMA. These include commercial rentals at Trajan’s Market and the Macellum as well as residential plot rentals in ROMA Subura and ROMA Maritima. The Merchant’s lamp is near the large imported vase.
Go up the nearby staircase and you’ll find the residence of the Socialite. Here you will be able to learn all about the various groups you can join in ROMA. There are over 15 groups where you can find others who share your own interests in the ancient world. Be sure to join the ROMA Citizens group. This is the default group for all Citizens, and in that group you will receive all of the announcements for upcoming events and attractions in ROMA. The Socialite’s lamp is on the large table in the center of the room. If you want, you can make a quick detour out this room’s second eastern door and pop over to a small room above the Merchant’s residence. It has a few displays the explain the social character of ROMA further.
	The final stop in ROMA Urbs is the long, white building filled with crates and barrels. This is the Warehouse and it is here you can find the last resident of the Urbs, the Actor. His lamp is resting on a crate on the lower floor near a wall of photos posted by ROMA Citizens.
Go upstairs and find an open box on the outdoor patio. Here you will find a Clockwork Mercury (touch the ROMA Tours sign if you don’t see it). This Mercury is a special gadget that will give you a birds-eye tour of the sim. Hop on a pearl inside his magic clamshell and enjoy a short flying tour. This will give you an overview of the landscape and the layout of the estate.
The Clockwork Mercury will deposit you near the Pompeii Tavern after the tour is over. You can return to the Plaza and start another tour if you wish. You should now have a general idea of the layout of ROMA and the ROMA Estate. Remember, there are hundreds of things to see and do here!

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