FRIENDSHIP LETTERS – 

Friendship Letters is a game about overcoming hardship through the bonds of friendship and family. Set in the magical kingdom of Greater Caballia (pronounced ca-BYE-ya), players take on the role of caballeros – a race of sentient, talking horses who serve humanity.   

Friendship Letters is a diceless RPG played via text, instant message, and email. It tells “slice of life” level stories in the style of classic American novels like Black Beauty or The Grapes of Wrath mixed with elements of the fantastic, as found books like American Gods or Alan the Maker. These stories revolve around the lives of caballeros who are all swept up in some kingdom-wide event: a war, a drought, a historic event of some kind, and so on. This event occurs in the background of the tale. The players are not directly involved in its resolution. They are simple mares and stallions who now must rely upon their distant friends scattered near and far over Caballia for advice, aid, and comfort in these troubling times.

The game is played in the style of an epistolary story – a story told entirely through a series of documents. In this case, most of the documents are letters written from one caballero to another. There may also be journals, diary entries, newspaper articles, radio broadcast transcripts, and telegraphs. 

BASIC PLAY
Friendship Letters is best played in groups of four. Three people take on the roles of caballeros and one takes on the role of the Post. The players must use letters written to each other to perform all actions. Letters pass through the Post to the other players. Players have a set amount of time to send letters before the Post produces a report of some kind – a newspaper article or radio broadcast transcript for example -  that summarizes the result of all the player’s actions and the consequences that follow. 

Players may also write to the Post directly in the form of a journal or diary entry. These can be used to build character backstory, elaborate on the local setting where their character lives, or express a PC’s secret motives for actions they are performing. 

Once a full round of posts have been made and the Post has summarized events, play shifts so that a new player becomes the Post and the previous Post has a chance to play a caballero. 

THE ROLE OF THE POST
The Post has complete control over how the larger events afflicting Cabailla unfold. Their first job is to set the scene by describing what challenges and developments face the kingdom. Their second job is to show how this larger problem has come to affect the daily lives of the players. This is best accomplished through an initial set of letters written in the voice of non-player characters whom the player characters know – neighbors, relatives, friends, and so on. 

After players have had their allotted time to respond, the Post takes into account the actions of the players and then describes the results. They are free to create, modify, or destroy anything in the game. Their only limitations are a series of keywords controlled by the players. 

Whenever possible the following guidelines should be observed:
•	the Post should respect each player’s intentions on how they said they would resolve the problem
•	the resolution described by the Post should represent at least a partial success for players.
•	any NPCs involved should have good intentions (though they may do stupid things or lash out when hurt).
•	the resolution should mention something intereseting that happens in the wider background of the kingdom, or within the regions where the player’s characters live. In this way, new Post players are given further story hooks they can use, or something colorful and amusing to entertain the group.

PLAYER KEYWORDS
Since Friendship Letters is a diceless system, there has to be another method for players to affect the story in a strategic way. Therefore, players have certain keywords that are general to any caballero character and others specific to their color. 
•	Players each begin with one keyword related to their color and one general keyword. They gain access to one other keyword after they have played the role of the Post and the Post has passed to the next player. 
•	Each keyword may only be invoked once. Players regain the use of their keywords after the current story has resolved and the role of the Post has shifted to the next person. 
•	Keywords may be attached to any person, place, or thing within the context of the letters or journals. The Post must note the presence of these keywords and abide by the rules that apply to each when describing the outcome of the players’ decisions. 

CABALLERO COLORS
Each color of horse has a different effect on game play, because each color grants a different set of keyword abilities unique to that color. 

Bay: Are especially good at feats of labor or stamina. A bay caballero has access to the key phrase “going the extra mile.” If the bay character declares they are doing this, whatever action they attach it to must generate some beneficial outcome during the resolution phase.  

Black: Have a unique understanding of death and the creatures of the night. If a black caballero suspects that supernatural creatures are involved, they can describe their suspicions in their journal, and the Post must tell them whether or not they are correct. 

Dun: Supernaturally attract love and wealth to anyone associated with them. Once per story, a dun caballero can mention another player or NPC in his or her journal, and the Post must ensure that some small measure of love or fortune befalls the one named.  

Grey: Have a unique ability to detect magic and an oracular sense. If a grey caballero suspects that magic is involved, they can describe their suspicions in their journal, and the Post must tell them whether or not they are correct. Alternatively, a grey caballero can openly wonder about the future in their journal, and the Post must give them some small hint about what is to come.  

Roan: Are naturally courageous and have a warrior’s spirit. If they declare their intention to personally stand against a threat or a foe in order to protect someone else, then one bad consequence or misfortune that would have befallen the target must befall the roan caballero instead.  

Speckled: Light-spirited, natural-born tricksters with a magical humor. A speckled caballero has access to either the “confused” or “amused” keyword, chosen at the start of a story. They may use this in addition to the general keywords they know. A confused target cannot function normally. An amused target cannot perform any hostile acts during this story.  

White: Have a unique connection to the forces of good. Once per story, a white caballero can muse about the true intentions of another character and must receive some true information from the Post in return. 

General Keywords: When attached to a target, these keywords force the Post to influence the story as described by the rules of the keyword. Keywords may not be applied to other caballeros. Only to NPCs, objects, or places. 

beautiful: The target either raises the spirits of good characters who see it or causes bad characters to treat the target less harshly. The Post decides which.
brave: The target cannot be affected by fear, and acts rationally for the greater good. 
kind: NPCs must look more favorably upon the target. 
lucky: Something fortunate must happen to the target, of the Post’s choice.
magical: The target is able to resist or oppose the supernatural. Or the target generates a beneficial magical effect. The Post decides which and how this manifests.  
precious: The target is personally important to the caballero. Information on the target must include more details than normal during resolution of the story.
rare: Characters are motivated to ensure the safety of the target, guarding the target against being lost, abandoned, or forgotten.  
sacred: Nothing bad can happen to the target.
strong: The target cannot be physically harmed, or acts directly to oppose a problem or a danger. The Post chooses which and how it occurs.  
versatile: The target performs one action as described by the caballero during resolution of the story as well as anything else the Post decides. 

THE WORLD

The magical kingdom of Greater Cabailla stretches across most of the continent. The kingdom is ruled by a council of four elders – two mares and two stallions. Local cities and towns have their own governments controlled by mayors. 

Technology is at the level of 1930’s America. Electricity is common in urban areas. Long-distance communication takes place via devices called “teletypers,” which allow a caballero in one location to press down on extra large typewriter keys with their hooves, and their entries are typed out simultaneously on the receiving end.  Travel is largely by rail, although horse-driven taxis are present in larger cities. Most of the population still live in small towns and work the land to produce food. Owning weapons is not normal (firearms do not exist), and Greater Cabailla is – by default – almost entirely peaceful.

Greater Cabailla has a Latin American cultural look and feel to it. It’s physical geography is meant to be a blend of the United States and various Latin American countries. Players and the Post are free to use as much or as little of these many landscapes as they wish. 

The supernatural entities and mythology present in the game also come from Latin American cultures. The following is by no means an exhaustive list, only the most well-known:
alligatormen: the original Killer Croc
blessed virgins: goddess figures who watch over specific towns or regions. 
chanque: elementals, spirits of natural forces
chonchon: magical bird people
chupacabras: blood-sucking possessed pinata-looking creatures with razor sharp fangs.
curandero: magical healers. A mixture of shaman and saint. 
darkumles: black mules who can summon storms. The sight of one is bad luck.
Day of the Dead: The day when the spirits of all those who have died in the year or been put down are permanently laid to rest. They are guided into the Underworld to make way for all the souls of those yet to be born. A time of celebration, like waving off of a new ship on its maiden voyage.
devil oil: a good luck charm that wards off evil
duendue: dwarf or gnome-like fair folk who grant wishes
flying snakes: Magical flying snakes.
feathered serpents: providing visions of the future 
imbuche: twisted warlocks with patchwork 
llorna: weeping ghost-fae type figures who capture children. 
luz mala: aggressive wil-o-wisp type spirits
magical dances: many magic rituals take the form of special folk dances performed in elaborate costumes.
mohana: river spirits who take the form of freshwater dolphins
nahual: sorcerers who can shift into deadly animals 
papa bois: hulking satyr-like figures with leaves in place of hair who guard animals and trees.
sack men: terrifying boogie-men type creatures
seguas: horse-headed vampires with blood-shot eyes who feed on fear. 
sibons: whistling ghosts who eat horse flesh. The farther away the whistle, the closer they are. 
sombrerons: black-skinned goblin-like figures who’s heads are hidden by their large dark hats. Bewitch people into being unable to eat or sleep. 
viuditas: black-veiled seductress tricksters who seek out unfaithful men to play pranks on. Have no mouth or hair.
Vivoron: a massive black snake who makes pacts with corrupt rulers to devour sacrifices in exchange for favors. 
wekufe: summoned creatures who’s morality reflects the true morality of their summoner. Used by sorcerers as servants and assassins. 
xtabays: supernatural prostitutes combining a succubui and Santa Claus. Give what their lovers pay them with to the poor and helpless, are guarded by neighborhood dogs, and when one is killed, beautiful flowers will grow where one is buried.
xolotl: Sentient talking dogs who can hear and deliver messages from the dead.

FOR THE NEXT WRITER: If you like to write to music, here are my suggestions for what to listen to while working on this game:
The soundtracks for Carnivale (television series), Fried Green Tomatoes, Legends of the Fall, Medicine Man, A River Runs Through It, The Shawshank Redemption, The Village (M. Night Shamaylan director), Warhorse. 
Traditional music from Central America, Mexico, Puerto Rico,  and South America