Welcome to Roanoke, Virginia, a typical small city, except for one thing... The Senshi. This is the North American branch of Sailor Myth, and is home to Graikos, Romanus, Angelus, Astronomia, and the Dark Universe.

The first Sailor Myth continuity is set in Roanoke, Virginia, in the United States. The year is 2001 A.D.

First, let me get rid of the myth that we are set in a small town. Roanoke is a small city, but for the purposes of Sailor Myth, we have  made it more of an international cultural center. (It's already a pretty good international cultural center; I just added the ISAS school.) Why? Well, the place Sailor Myth was set in needed to be a place connected with the world, but there's generally too much information associated with big cities. I happen to be living in Roanoke, so I can accurately tell you what it's like right now, rather than guess at the atmosphere somewhere else. And Roanoke actually has a good atmosphere, unlike most big cities.

Moving right along... Roanoke has a healthy Vietnamese population, as well as a good Serbian population. It is apparently one of the semi-major immigrant destinations in the US. There are quite a few good night-life clubs and the like. The city is generally okay with gays and lesbians, and it was recently the site of a NightLine Town Meeting on the subject. I didn't watch, but I heard we came out pretty tolerant. Most major religious dominations are represented. You can find a church for every branch of Christianity it seems, and there are also two Jewish institutions, one being Reform and the other Conservative (no Orthodox congregation yet). There's actually a good Wiccan population that keeps relatively quiet, though the vast majority of the populace is Christian. The downtown area is fairly small with a few tall buildings, most notably the First Union building, which is the tallest in the area.

Here are the schools in the area. As a note: Roanoke is located directly next to Salem and Vinton, two smaller towns. They share borders. Feel free to place your character in Salem or Vinton instead of Roanoke directly.

• Virginia Tech - The famed football college is just 45 minutes away, in Blacksburg. Features more than just a good football team. (They've got some good academic programs, too.)
• Hollins University - Formerly Hollins College. A school for girls (with some male students as well) with a strong English curriculum.
• Roanoke College - A small college which has a good medical program.
• Radford University - A local university.
• the International School for the Arts and Sciences (private) - (ISAS) A fictitious school with world-renowned visual arts and sciences programs. Students from around the world come here. Grades 8 - 12. It's a boarding school; only about 5% of the students are residents of Roanoke and the surrounding areas.
• William Fleming High School (Roanoke City Public Schools) - Magnet School for the Arts, IB Programme. Grades 9 - 12 (with some of the smarter middle schoolers from Ruffner coming to take classes).
• Patrick Henry High School (RCPS) - Features the School for the Humanities and Governor's School. Grades 9 - 12.
• Cave Spring (Roanoke County Schools) - A high school run by Roanoke County situated in Roanoke. Grades 9 - 12.
• Northside (RCS) - A high school run by Roanoke County situated in Roanoke. Grades 9 - 12.
• William Byrd (RCS) - Located right next door to Roanoke in the small town of Vinton. Grades 9 - 12.
• Glenvar High (RCS) - Located right next door to Roanoke in the town of Salem. Grades 9 - 12.
• Salem High (Salem City School System) - The other Salem high school. Grades 9 - 12.
• North Cross (private) - A private Christian academy known for its academics.
• Middle Schools (RCPS)
  • Lucy Addison Aerospace Magnet Middle School
  • James Breckinridge Middle School
  • Stonewall Jackson Middle School
  • James Madison Computing Magnet Middle School
  • William Ruffner Middle School
  • Woodrow Wilson Middle School
• Community School (private) - Located on the grounds of Hollins University. The grass-roots school in the area, with great teachers and students. Has both a middle school and an elementary. A warning: this is perhaps the most creative school, but the middle school generally has a total of only 30 - 50 students. Grades K - 8.

I'm assuming most senshi will be middle school/high school/college-age, but if you need an elementary school, feel free to e-mail me. (Or just go to the school system sites! They've got lists.)

If you are creating an international student... Fleming has a foreign exchange program, as does Community School, and the fictitious ISAS is, of course, always an option.

Places to Go, Things to Do:

• Center in the Square - Located at the heart of Downtown, this refers to the area consisting of the Farmer's Market, the International Food Court, the Science Museum and Planetarium, the Art Museum, and the History Museum. There are some shops; Mill Mountain Coffee & Tea is a popular destination for the counterculture movement, while the old people go to Saltori's for coffee. Seeds of Light is a nice little shop with a lot of mystic jewelry and incense. The main evening destinations for diners are Nawab, the Indian restaurant, and Awful Arthur's, the seafood place.
• Valley View Mall - Probably one of the most popular weekend destinations for high schoolers. Features the Valley View Grande (the new theatre with the stadium seats that movie-goers swear by). This mall has some food, some clothing, and some neat stores like Spencer's, Electronics Boutique, and Saturday Matinee. There are a bunch of little "hip" stores that sell accessories and popular junk.
• Tanglewood Mall - The smaller of the two real malls, this is where smart people go for clothing, since it has a better selection than Valley View Mall. It's the nerdier mall, with a comic book shop, Babbages, Radio Shack, a bookstore inside and a Barnes & Noble outside. There's an okay Carmike Cinema here, but they never turn the lights out enough during the movie.
• Crossroads - A strip mall near Valley View featuring the Books-A-Million. Across the street from one of the two Taco Bells and the only Wendy's (to my knowledge).
• Towers Mall - The other big strip mall, has a nice little bookstore (Ram's Head), toy store (Imagination Station), Radio Shack, and one of the best eateries in town: Wildflour.
• Grandin Road - The only place to see those great niche and foreign films is the Grandin Theatre. There's also a coffee shop nearby and the Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op & Deli. The Deli's really good. The Co-op is a sort of Mecca for spiritual people and vegetarians.
• Busch Gardens/Williamsburg - A few hours away is Busch Gardens. Great roller coasters. Historic Williamsburg is pretty big.
• Emerald Pointe - A water park located about two hours south in North Carolina.
• Staunton - Has a nifty colonial recreation museum. Most elementary schools take a day trip here at some point.