COWDYDF

It makes sense to focus on the big picture stuff first. I'm really glad we agree on the tone, it really sucks to be working on a story when you're trying to keep it fun and light and the other person tries to go super grimdark, or when you're trying to tell a serious story and they want to write something sillier or lighter. At least in my experience, it is one of the things that can really make collaborating tough. But it sounds like we both want more or less the same general tone/direction, so that's fantastic!


Ok! I'm glad it made sense, I wasn't quite sure how personal or universal my symbolism/mythology stuff thoughts were.


Alright, plot hole patched.


I always did imagine that, while initially unassuming, Elizabeth would be a somewhat terrifying person to be around simply because she is so intense and has such an unbending force of will. She is absolutely certain that her path is the only correct, logical, and moral conclusion to reach and is willing to destroy anything and anyone that tries to stop her. She practically radiates an aura of 'don't fuck with me', and has a special kind of terrifying charisma. Even though doesn't look that intimidating people just get the sense that she can and will take them down without a second thought.


By the way, a while ago we discussed 'beast forms' for the chosen, and I'm not sure if those are still on the table but if they are I think I've come up with a really good one for Elizabeth: A generic, androgynous human silhouette, with no identifying features or hair, in a neutral grey color (exactly halfway between black and white). The form would not interact with lighting in any way, neither being cast in shadow or lit up no matter what. This would also make it appear almost two-dimensional, since there would be no shading on it (It would be normally three-dimensional, the lack of shadows/highlights would just make it hard to tell).

What do you think? What do you like/dislike about the idea?

Oh! That makes a bit more sense, I guess. Personally I think they have different vibe, though. They're always in the background and looked down on, and then POOF!- magical makeover into flawless, athletic, intelligent, charismatic star. This is coupled with suddenly being cosmically important, what with being tasked by a greater Power to save the world and all that! Being Chosen is basically the best thing to ever happen to them. But will importance and attention really make them as happy as they thought it would?


I'm glad you like it! It was meant to make her mysterious and ominous so I'm glad that that idea came through.


Definitely! I've actually been trying to think about this, it's part of why my response is so late.

Things we've decided on:
The major motif/theme of the story is the conflict between Hope and Despair.
All magical power comes from hope and ideals.
The main object of the story is to get to the Worldcore, a massive source of wish energy that has slowly coalesced from the collective humanity living on Earth.
The Worldcore is coveted by the two Powers: Light (selflessness, order, and reason) and Dark (individuality, chaos, and absurdity). These Powers are the two underlying, driving forces behind reality and have fought over countless Worldcores on countless planets throughout time and space.
However, only a mortal of the people from which the Worldcore originated can claim it. Therefore, each Power selects a few people (the same number for each power) from the worldwide population to become the Chosen. These people have their own magical abilities unlocked and are tasked with seeking out the Worldcore for that Power to use.
Chosen are picked based on two main criteria: How likely they are to agree with and aid that Power and its ideals, and how steadfast their will and conviction in their wishes and ideals is (this also determines the potency of a person's magic).
Each Chosen is visited by an Agent (semi-sentient manifestation of the magic) of each Power, who debriefs them on their mission and the ideals of that Power (while trash=talking the other Power) and unlocks their magic.
To claim the Worldcore, each Chosen must journey through mystical rifts that lead into the different layers of the 'Onion'- a labyrinth of other planes created by excess magic leaking out of the Worldcore and twisting dimensions around it.
Also emerged from the Worldcore are many 'Shards' of its magic which have 'bubbled up' through the planes of reality. While far lesser than the full might of the Worldcore, the Shards are still potent bits of pure hope that can greatly boost magical ability.
However, it should be noted the the Worldcore doesn't HAVE to be used for the sake of either Power (although their agents are careful to never mention that this is the case). It's magical energy could be used to grant the wishes of any consciousness who grabs it, and has the will to use it.
Chosen will often compete, rather than cooperate; either to hinder the efforts of the other Power's Chosen, or because they seek the Worldcore for themselves.
Thousands of years ago, this Great Battle was started on Earth.
One of the Chosen of Light, Elizabeth, determined that the only way to truly end suffering was to eliminate reality itself. Her magical power was so great, and her goal so against both Light and Dark, that Chosen from both sides (as well as some other independents) were forced to work together to stop her.
In the end, they did so by claiming and using the Worldcore to create the Great Seal. This mighty spell sealed away all magic and all remnants of the Powers, preventing them from interfering with the planet. It also contained the consciousnesses of the Chosen. In the event that the Seal broke, they could live on in the minds of the next generation of Chosen, to guide them through the Battle to come. However, Elizabeth was also included in this effect- the wish had been 'tainted' by another Chosen, Alexander, who refused to believe that she deserved destruction and could not be saved.
Over time, humanity recovered from the Battle. The species moved on, and over time magic, Chosen, Powers, and all the events they caused faded to myth and legend.
Thousands of years later, the setting is similar to modern-day Earth, with minor alterations (including some new shared mythology).
Near the start of the story, the Seal breaks, the Powers pick a new set of Chosen, and the first group of Chosen (G1) are successfully bonded to the minds of the second set of Chosen (G2).
The G1s appear are visible and audible to the g2s and each other just as though they were real, but are intangible and cannot be detected at all by ordinary mortals.
Over the millennia they spent sealed away the G1s have lost many pieces of their memories.
G1s can still use weaker forms of all the powers they used to have. It is only when the G1 and their G2 host fully synchronize and unite their minds that the G1 can fully affect reality again, uniting their and the G2s magic into one (this is probably called 'Spirit Fusion' or something similarly cheesy).
The ending of the story will come from many of the Chosen turing their backs on the Powers (as they have realized that neither on is truly good) and in some way using the Worldcore to benefit humanity as a whole.



Things we need to decide on:
The actual main plot events, obviously.
How many Chosen there are.
How many WDYD forum members are referenced/represented by various G1s?
What Elizabeth's story role will be.
Who the various Chosen are: what they are like, what they look like, what powers they get, ect.

Probably a bunch of other stuff too!

Alright, i think that hits just about everything! I tried to kind of put as much of it as I could in an order that makes sense?

I think 32 might be a bit too many, personally. I agree that as many G1s as possible ought to be based off of WDYDers, and I think that before trying to decide on a cast size we should figure out how many of us are willing to have our avatars written in as G1s.

Speaking of which, I've been doing some work on my own G1 equivalent. I didn't really have much to work off of except cyan+whales+fire, but I think I fashioned an acceptable concept from that? His concept is basically the opposition to disease, decay, and corruption. Role-wise he'd basically be the white mage/paladin equivalent, but with a focus on purification and growth rather than just straight healing. He'd probably be a Light Chosen. Personality-wise, he's suuuuper chill, and plays sort of a peacekeeper role with everyone trying to get them to be chill, too. Although he can sometimes seem unconcerned with reality and rather less worried and serious about things than he ought to be, this projected attitude stems from his deep appreciation for and fear of mortality and death. He knows everything is going to wither away eventually, and he's just trying to make what time everybody has as painless as possible. Because of this he has a tendency to repress, rather than deal with, his own emotional baggage- after all, emotions like anger and grief aren't helping anyone and just make life harder. Deep-set into the core of his being is an underlying fear of disease and age, of his body and mind failing him and diminishing from what they once were. His granted magic allows him to forestall and reverse corruption and decay in all forms, and mostly takes the shape of purifying cyan flames that burn away imperfection. While they can be applied offensively in some cases, he mostly uses his powers for healing/buffing himself and others, removing any effects that compromise or diminish them. As for his beast form, probably just an anthropomorphic whale? Probably with wings/halo of some kind, using angel symbolism to reinforce the idea of holiness or purity, as well as the connection to fire.
His other power is puns. To engage in conversation with him is to experience a never-ending barrage of terrible nautical puns. This is arguably his greatest offensive technique.

I'll probably upload some sketches tomorrow. What do you think so far? Like I said, I didn't have much to work with, so I just kind of made up a character that I thought would be fun to write

So, been brewing another character idea, this one around CMP. So, a while back I mentioned I thought a guy that was based on "progress" would be cool, but couldn't quite figure out a way to make it entirely satisfying, because I couldn't really think os a way to make a powerset representative of the idea while still being believable. The character himself wishes to, "make the world better." He doesn't really know how to go about doing that. He lost an arm as a child, but, thanks to the miracles of modern medicine, he got a prosthetic, which inspired him to go into STEM research, probably either robotics or medicine. He knows he wants to make the world a better place, but what with research grant denials, and all the competition and profiteering of the industry he works in, he's beginning to lose hope. That's when his Angel comes calling, and makes the deal. So, I had to think, what kind of power would suit a wish like that? Well, what if his power was that he could "upgrade" things? That is, what if he mentally, metaphysically, broke things down to their basic parts, changed an aspect or two, and put them back together? And the changes wouldn't have to necessarily obey physics. Like, for instance, he takes apart a bag, stretches out the inside, then puts it back together, essentially creating a TARDIS bag or Bag of Holding or something like that. Or maybe it could be more an equivalent exchange type deal, where he applies certain aspects of one object to another as a way to avoid it being completely broken. I dunno, something along those lines.