Draft Idea 1: My Useless Academy Squad

[Arch9CivilReactor]

I’ve thought about the rough draft idea and settled on this one. It’s a bit different from the whole ‘Gift’ system type I did when writing “An Identity Beyond Self”. That story I couldn’t continue due to IRL issues thwarting my schedule. Nor did I make enough notes.

My memory isn’t the best, so revisiting stuff is hard.

Anyway, unlike the usual vibe being closer to Chivalry of a Failed Knight, I think the interesting way my version of Anti-Magic Academy worked is a better setting for this. The magibabble is much more tolerable and sometimes fun since it’s mixed with espionage and action segments.

For those who don’t know, I did a poll before this to choose tropes for a preplanned story. The ones that were chosen were ‘Battle Academy Romcom Fun’ and ‘Cards Have The Superpowers’… with other getting less votes.

I’ve yet to decide whether to add Cards Have The Superpowers as an EVERYONE thing or just the MCs special thing. It was a funny thought changing my usual martial arts tactics into them taking out cards to summon spells and aeons.

I don’t want to disregard the fist fighting aspect since that just doesn’t make sense to me. The only thing that is making it hard to decide whether to give everyone card powers is if it will be interesting or not. I feel like it’ll be too gimmicky. Like I would write myself into a corner.

I’d never really watched card game anime so I’m lost on knowledge regarding how things usually pan out. Other than the old YuGiOH series and that one set in a Duel Academy, I’d never really finished the other series about ‘rare cards’.

I remember YuGiOh 5Ds has a useable idea of having the antagonists seek special ‘cards’ that are evil or something. Like the cards having unimaginable horrors sealed inside them that are just waiting to be set free into the real world.

“My Useless Academy Squadron” (placeholder title) is a fusion of the ‘Battle Academy Romcom Fun’ and ‘Cards Have The Superpowers’. The base of the idea is formed with the main character falling into a portal with his handheld console. In which he suddenly gains a system upon reincarnation into the world of a novel (he does not know at first until later).

He vows to stay away from the main plot to survive, but is quickly found by the ‘Last Boss’ of the story. The principal of the future Anti-Martial Academy finds him due to his unique constitution and even visits his house personally.

That’s where I’m at with the idea right now. In future the MC meets the main characters and replaces someone who was originally supposed to be on their squadron. The real difference is whether I should use this opportunity or not.

Due to the ‘Last Boss’ playing a major role in evolving the magic system, he can either be aware or unaware of the MC’s power. If he stays unaware, then the Academy will be the same as the MCs memories. If found out, then the Last Boss will reverse engineer ‘Cards’ to evolve the magic system. Essentially making everyone stronger than they were in the original story.

The fact the magic system change starts here means I can’t use the ‘Ancient Cards With Evil’ idea anyway (or else it’ll become contrived). The only change would be that the MC’s existence had brought a change to the ‘original plot’.

Which do you think is a better choice?

 

[RepresentingWrath]

No unique cheats.

 

[Arch9CivilReactor]

No unique cheats.

That means everyone will get ‘Cards Have The Superpowers’. You can throw your vote, but I’m happy to see the comment first. I’m happy that the MC not being ‘unique’ won’t hurt my story too much, as now I know not everyone likes that.

I liked the idea of the MC meeting the Last Boss will cause a change.

 

[RepresentingWrath]

That means everyone will get ‘Cards Have The Superpowers’. You can throw your vote, but I’m happy to see the comment first. I’m happy that the MC not being ‘unique’ won’t hurt my story too much, as now I know not everyone likes that.

I liked the idea of the MC meeting the Last Boss will cause a change.

It might hurt you on other sites. All of it is very debatable, and depends on a lot of things.

Also, I mention my own like\dislike, and it is important to understand that SH forums are non-representative. Don't forget that not everyone here will actually read your work. And even those who do are a small fraction of actual readerbase. It looks like you have a plan and a goal, but I felt like mentioning it just in case. Don't let yourself be fooled by the enthusiasm, stay calm, and good luck with your drafting and planning.

 

[Sergeandgreen]

I can't take mcs who get an absurd gold finger seriously. I like it when someone uses the known in a unique way to make himself special. So no unique cheats from me.

 

[Arch9CivilReactor]

I can't take mcs who get an absurd gold finger seriously. I like it when someone uses the known in a unique way to make himself special. So no unique cheats from me.

Tho everyone is ‘unique’ in this story due a flexible power system that doesn’t rely on only one area of expertise. Adding that he’ll start off with a cheat anyway that everyone else will benefit from via the Last Boss’s plagiarism.

 

[MesaMesa17]

I'm literally writing about an overpowered MC with a unique power in a battle academy as well so I have a clear preference in your poll lol

 

[CharlesEBrown]

The card thing gives you your answer I think - the boss has a lot more cards than anyone else, and thus is more flexible, but the MC has one or more unique or rare cards (the specific card(s) revealed early in the story, perhaps far before their significance was known or even usable) or a card with a unique feature (like a linked miniature which can be a sort of cheat code, perhaps granting a "second hand" or something).

Most of the card battlers I've seen (about a dozen total episodes from at least three shows), essentially play a version of the old "Battlechess" game (which follows standard chess rules, but gives it - often comedic and/or bloody - animated outcomes) with "War" rules but at least 200 possible cards, which can combine powers or split into multiple hands due to various special properties, but essentially it is "High Card Wins" ... just that "high card" may have a "power" of one million instead of just 1-52...

 

[Arch9CivilReactor]

Tj

The card thing gives you your answer I think - the boss has a lot more cards than anyone else, and thus is more flexible, but the MC has one or more unique or rare cards (the specific card(s) revealed early in the story, perhaps far before their significance was known or even usable) or a card with a unique feature (like a linked miniature which can be a sort of cheat code, perhaps granting a "second hand" or something).

Most of the card battlers I've seen (about a dozen total episodes from at least three shows), essentially play a version of the old "Battlechess" game (which follows standard chess rules, but gives it - often comedic and/or bloody - animated outcomes) with "War" rules but at least 200 possible cards, which can combine powers or split into multiple hands due to various special properties, but essentially it is "High Card Wins" ... just that "high card" may have a "power" of one million instead of just 1-52...

That was very insightful. Having a number to work with sounds fun the sci-fi elements in the mix. This academy rarely makes students ‘battle’ each other (unless to promote or demote the cadets). Espionage and ‘team compositions’ are what I’m thinking of working with right now.

Will post idea in draft 2.

 

[laccoff_mawning]

Due to the ‘Last Boss’ playing a major role in evolving the magic system, he can either be aware or unaware of the MC’s power. If he stays unaware, then the Academy will be the same as the MCs memories. If found out, then the Last Boss will reverse engineer ‘Cards’ to evolve the magic system. Essentially making everyone stronger than they were in the original story.

It sounds like cards didn't originally exist in the story, but then "last boss" interferes due to the arrival of the MC, and now everyone uses cards.

Doesn't that mean from the MC's perspective that a novel without cards has turned into a card-game isekai?
To be honest, it sounds like you thought up an isekai novel and then slapped "card-game" onto it because it sounded interesting.

In which case i'd probably suggest leaving cards solely to the MC. Otherwise your novel would have two competing powers: The original power system and the cards.

 

[Arch9CivilReactor]

It sounds like cards didn't originally exist in the story, but then "last boss" interferes due to the arrival of the MC, and now everyone uses cards.

Doesn't that mean from the MC's perspective that a novel without cards has turned into a card-game isekai?
To be honest, it sounds like you thought up an isekai novel and then slapped "card-game" onto it because it sounded interesting.

In which case i'd probably suggest leaving cards solely to the MC. Otherwise your novel would have two competing powers: The original power system and the cards.

The ‘introduction of new power system’ would have stayed the same regardless of the MC to be honest. In the original draft, the MC is someone else who lives in this world and is affected by the new weapon-based power system. His teachers are also ‘skilled, but weak’ because they followed a lesser variant of the power system created by the Final Boss.

The difference now would be an initial weakening of new students, along with introducing the potential they can reach with this system. Think of this as a mid-apocalypse novel where they are making students fight criminals in the most chaotic city imaginable… as experience gaining activities before fighting ‘real monsters’.

Anyway, the ‘Isekai’ part was the one added on so the setting and story will still run even without MC interference.

It sounds like cards didn't originally exist in the story, but then "last boss" interferes due to the arrival of the MC, and now everyone uses cards.

Doesn't that mean from the MC's perspective that a novel without cards has turned into a card-game isekai?
To be honest, it sounds like you thought up an isekai novel and then slapped "card-game" onto it because it sounded interesting.

In which case i'd probably suggest leaving cards solely to the MC. Otherwise your novel would have two competing powers: The original power system and the cards.

Also, yes… He is hit by a sense of absurdity when his favourite characters are using ‘cards’ instead of weapons.