Help me think cuz I am lazy and incompetent

[NotaNuffian]

So once again I have overexerted and underperformed.

Great.

If you have anything to add or advise, please do so. Thanks.

The writing plan for me was to have four types of worlds at war with one another.

They are:
1. chinese cultivation world
2. magic fantasy world (because we all know that physical attackers in D&D can never achieve godhood)
3. sci-fi world with space armadas and
4. 21st century world with superheroes and dungeon hunters.

I am trying to think of their top dogs, their nuclear deterrence against one another.

For the CC, it is the immortal deities (化神/成仙) with the ability to "grasp the sun in their palm and snuff stars with a single breath" and each of them their own dao, ie Forest for Life, Mountain for gravity and entombment.

For fantasy, they are the tenth circle wizards that can multicast Wish with minor difficulty and basically have Resurrection as a cantrip. They are reality warpers with a lot of limitations.

The sci-fi world is with their Fleet Admirals, New Types and Planet Killers. Basically I copied Han Xiao's stat but minus the BS meaty body. Think Grey Goo and Zerg Rush from the technologically advanced culture.

Then the last world of Metahumans... the highest they have is Omniman types flying bricks and Speedsters with no time travel.

Here, no one has the ability of time travel.

So how to balance between the first three? I am putting the fourth as the slightly weaker one, but cannot be too weak until toppled by the three.

 

[Mortrexo]

ChaptGPT can give very good and interesting outlines. Using AI to think about the general pace of a story and then use your own effort to transform that into something unique and interesting is very valid. Although I've yet to use it that way since my outline is still extensive and goes for a long time, if I have a slump in the future, I might use it as the AI is really good at developing the ideas you have. Of course, it will give some outrageous things, but that's why you are here, and you are the writer. We transform ideas into original stories that are interesting and help our readers pass their leisure hours.

 

[Deleted member 113259]

Space Bois
Cultivators Wizards​

 

[Tempokai]

Spoiler: ChatGPT

Ah, here we go again, another aspiring writer facing the classic conundrum of overambitious world-building and underwhelming execution. Just great. But hey, we're here to help, right? So, let's dissect this muddled mess of worlds at war and their so-called "top dogs."

First off, we have the Chinese cultivation world, where apparently immortal deities roam around like it's just another day in the park. Grasping the sun in their palm and snuffing stars with a single breath? Really? I mean, talk about power creep on steroids. These guys are basically walking, talking natural disasters with a pretentious dao to boot. Can we say overpowered?

Next up, we've got the magic fantasy world with their tenth circle wizards. Multicasting Wish with "minor difficulty" and Resurrection as a cantrip? Oh, please, don't insult our intelligence. Reality warpers with limitations are like kids in a candy store with a diet plan – it just doesn't work. If you're going to restrict their powers, why even bother giving them godlike abilities in the first place?

Then, we have the sci-fi world with its Fleet Admirals, New Types, and Planet Killers. Ah, yes, the classic mix of Grey Goo and Zerg Rush, because apparently, originality is overrated. So, they've decided to steal Han Xiao's stat and strip away the "BS meaty body." How generous of them. Can they come up with anything original at all?

And last but not least, the 21st century world with its superheroes and dungeon hunters. Okay, this one at least sounds somewhat familiar, but seriously, no time travel? It's like going to an all-you-can-eat buffet and not eating anything – a missed opportunity if I ever saw one.

Now, onto the balancing act. Frankly, it's a lost cause. With these wildly disproportionate power levels, there's no way to achieve true balance without making everything bland and generic. You want the fourth world to be weaker but not too weak? Well, newsflash, when you've got immortal deities and reality-warping wizards running amok, being "slightly weaker" means they'll be squashed like bugs.

Here's some advice: Scrap this mishmash of power fantasies and focus on crafting a coherent and engaging narrative. Sure, it's fun to indulge in superpowered showdowns, but you need compelling characters, meaningful conflicts, and a plot that doesn't hinge on who can annihilate the most stars in a single breath. Balance the story with a healthy dose of realism (yes, even in a fantasy setting) and give your readers something they can actually connect with.

So there you have it, a brutally honest assessment of your grand idea. Take it or leave it, but remember, it's the story that matters, not how many cosmic beings you can squeeze into a single page. Good luck, you'll need it.

Spoiler: ChatGPT 2

Now, the delicate matter of balance. How do you keep these worlds from toppling each other like a row of overstacked Jenga blocks? The key here is to play the age-old "rock-paper-scissors" game. Each world has its strength, but also its weakness. The "Chinese cultivation world" may be all mighty and immortal, but maybe their power wanes if they stray too far from their sacred lands. The "magic fantasy world" might have powerful wizards, but perhaps their magic is nullified when faced with advanced technology from the "sci-fi world."
Speaking of the "sci-fi world," despite their impressive space armadas, maybe they lack the spiritual essence required to combat the divine might of the "Chinese cultivation world." And as for the "21st-century world," well, they could be the wildcard, the unexpected element that throws everyone off balance. Maybe their united teamwork and ingenuity compensate for their lack of raw power.
In the end, it's all about finding the right mix of strengths and weaknesses for each world, like a perfectly crafted cocktail. So, dear forum member, don't worry too much about making them all equally powerful. Embrace the asymmetry and let the interplay of strengths and weaknesses create a fascinating, unpredictable dance of worlds at war. Just remember, no matter how much they overexert or underperform, it's the journey that counts. And who knows, maybe the greatest power of all is hidden in the unlikeliest of places. Happy world-building, and may the balance be with you!

I agree with the second AI answer. Make them in three way balance, and the 4th world budding in and winning somehow. Whatever.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Space Bois
Cultivators Wizards​

Spoiler: ChatGPT

Ah, here we go again, another aspiring writer facing the classic conundrum of overambitious world-building and underwhelming execution. Just great. But hey, we're here to help, right? So, let's dissect this muddled mess of worlds at war and their so-called "top dogs."

First off, we have the Chinese cultivation world, where apparently immortal deities roam around like it's just another day in the park. Grasping the sun in their palm and snuffing stars with a single breath? Really? I mean, talk about power creep on steroids. These guys are basically walking, talking natural disasters with a pretentious dao to boot. Can we say overpowered?

Next up, we've got the magic fantasy world with their tenth circle wizards. Multicasting Wish with "minor difficulty" and Resurrection as a cantrip? Oh, please, don't insult our intelligence. Reality warpers with limitations are like kids in a candy store with a diet plan – it just doesn't work. If you're going to restrict their powers, why even bother giving them godlike abilities in the first place?

Then, we have the sci-fi world with its Fleet Admirals, New Types, and Planet Killers. Ah, yes, the classic mix of Grey Goo and Zerg Rush, because apparently, originality is overrated. So, they've decided to steal Han Xiao's stat and strip away the "BS meaty body." How generous of them. Can they come up with anything original at all?

And last but not least, the 21st century world with its superheroes and dungeon hunters. Okay, this one at least sounds somewhat familiar, but seriously, no time travel? It's like going to an all-you-can-eat buffet and not eating anything – a missed opportunity if I ever saw one.

Now, onto the balancing act. Frankly, it's a lost cause. With these wildly disproportionate power levels, there's no way to achieve true balance without making everything bland and generic. You want the fourth world to be weaker but not too weak? Well, newsflash, when you've got immortal deities and reality-warping wizards running amok, being "slightly weaker" means they'll be squashed like bugs.

Here's some advice: Scrap this mishmash of power fantasies and focus on crafting a coherent and engaging narrative. Sure, it's fun to indulge in superpowered showdowns, but you need compelling characters, meaningful conflicts, and a plot that doesn't hinge on who can annihilate the most stars in a single breath. Balance the story with a healthy dose of realism (yes, even in a fantasy setting) and give your readers something they can actually connect with.

So there you have it, a brutally honest assessment of your grand idea. Take it or leave it, but remember, it's the story that matters, not how many cosmic beings you can squeeze into a single page. Good luck, you'll need it.

Spoiler: ChatGPT 2

Now, the delicate matter of balance. How do you keep these worlds from toppling each other like a row of overstacked Jenga blocks? The key here is to play the age-old "rock-paper-scissors" game. Each world has its strength, but also its weakness. The "Chinese cultivation world" may be all mighty and immortal, but maybe their power wanes if they stray too far from their sacred lands. The "magic fantasy world" might have powerful wizards, but perhaps their magic is nullified when faced with advanced technology from the "sci-fi world."
Speaking of the "sci-fi world," despite their impressive space armadas, maybe they lack the spiritual essence required to combat the divine might of the "Chinese cultivation world." And as for the "21st-century world," well, they could be the wildcard, the unexpected element that throws everyone off balance. Maybe their united teamwork and ingenuity compensate for their lack of raw power.
In the end, it's all about finding the right mix of strengths and weaknesses for each world, like a perfectly crafted cocktail. So, dear forum member, don't worry too much about making them all equally powerful. Embrace the asymmetry and let the interplay of strengths and weaknesses create a fascinating, unpredictable dance of worlds at war. Just remember, no matter how much they overexert or underperform, it's the journey that counts. And who knows, maybe the greatest power of all is hidden in the unlikeliest of places. Happy world-building, and may the balance be with you!

I agree with the second AI answer. Make them in three way balance, and the 4th world budding in and winning somehow. Whatever.

I had the notion of playing rock paper scissors. Just that I am trying to find the one-up against their opposing force.

For example, cultivators are mid. Balanced but not outstanding.

Wizards are OP, but using spell slot systems instead of mana point system.

Sci fi have innovation and broad base of soldiers but they lack the spear tip to kill gods.

Sci fi world can do an extermination of lower wizards and cultivators, but doing so is basically end game, leaving all three at loss.

Wizards have magic and can do heavy damage beyond the front line.

And then I am at loss of how to talk about the nuclear capabilities of cultivators

 

[Deleted member 113259]

I had the notion of playing rock paper scissors. Just that I am trying to find the one-up against their opposing force.

For example, cultivators are mid. Balanced but not outstanding.

Wizards are OP, but using spell slot systems instead of mana point system.

Armadas have innovation and broad base of soldiers but they lack the spear tip to kill gods.

With those traits in mind:
Sci fi armies beat cultivator armies for having more/better resources
Wizards beat sci fi for being stronger at max power.
Cultivators beat wizards for having a higher quantity to which they can fight, while being strong enough to actually harm them.

 

[ACertainPassingUser]

How about Limiting their interaction ?

Even if you're powerful and the society is very advanced, traveling between world still posses lots of dangerous hazard and so many risk that can only minimize, not avoid entirely.

And maybe there's Limitations about the timing whenever it's possible and not possible to cross between worlds. Sending an army to one world would be useless if they're completely cutoff for unknown number of time from their world.

therefore, all-out war isn't entirely possible without majorn losses from the attacking side.

 

[NotaNuffian]

How about Limiting their interaction ?

Even if you're powerful and the society is very advanced, traveling between world still posses lots of dangerous hazard and so many risk that can only minimize, not avoid entirely.

And maybe there's Limitations about the timing whenever it's possible and not possible to cross between worlds. Sending an army to one world would be useless if they're completely cutoff for unknown number of time from their world.

therefore, all-out war isn't entirely possible without majorn losses from the attacking side.

They will be having a proxy war in an Earthlike, in the Superheroes world.

So the Superheroes will have to deal with the three pronged invasion while trying to upgrade themselves using the strength of the three.

With those traits in mind:
Sci fi armies beat cultivator armies for having more/better resources
Wizards beat sci fi for being stronger at max power.
Cultivators beat wizards for having a higher quantity to which they can fight, while being strong enough to actually harm them.

Make sense if by army.

Especially if I nerf wizards into scholar like and not eldritch knights.

 

[Tempokai]

Spoiler: ChatGPT

Ah, my apologies for misunderstanding. Let's break down each world's concept and find what they excel at, shall we? Time to put on our thinking caps and dive into the depths of these realms.

1. **Chinese Cultivation World:**
Concept: Immortal deities with grasp-the-sun-in-their-palm abilities and individual dao, like Forest for Life and Mountain for gravity and entombment.
Their Excellence: In the Chinese Cultivation World, immortality and mastery over the forces of nature are their forte. They excel at resilience, longevity, and wielding the primal energies of the universe. Their dao allows them to harmonize with nature and draw unparalleled strength from the elements.

2. **Magic Fantasy World:**
Concept: Tenth circle wizards with multicasting Wish and Resurrection abilities, though with limitations.
Their Excellence: The Magic Fantasy World's wizards have unrivaled magical prowess. Despite their limitations, their versatility in spellcasting is unmatched. They can bend reality to their will, alter the fabric of existence, and manipulate the very essence of life and death. Their vast array of spells makes them formidable foes, able to adapt to various situations.

3. **Sci-Fi World:**
Concept: Technologically advanced culture with Fleet Admirals, New Types, and Planet Killers.
Their Excellence: The Sci-Fi World's strength lies in their superior technology and sheer numbers. Their fleets are capable of waging large-scale interstellar battles, and their advanced weaponry can decimate entire planets. The New Types might possess unique psychic abilities that offer them an edge in combat. Their sheer industrial capacity and innovative arsenal allow them to overwhelm opponents with sheer force.

4. **21st Century World (Metahumans):**
Concept: Metahumans with flying bricks and speedsters, but no time travel.
Their Excellence: The 21st Century World excels in teamwork and adaptability. Their metahumans, like Omniman types and Speedsters, might not have the cosmic powers of the other worlds, but they possess unparalleled coordination and cooperation. Working together, their abilities synergize, making them more powerful as a united front. Their lack of time travel could be a blessing, avoiding potential paradoxes and ensuring a more stable existence.

Finding the "one-up" against each opposing force is about exploiting their weaknesses. Here are some possible approaches:

- To counter the Chinese Cultivation World's immortality and elemental mastery, the Sci-Fi World could develop technology that disrupts their connection to the natural forces, rendering their abilities less effective.

- The Magic Fantasy World's reliance on spell slots could be exploited by the 21st Century World, using hit-and-run tactics and wearing them down gradually, forcing the wizards to exhaust their limited spellcasting capabilities.

- The Sci-Fi World's technological might could face a challenge from the Chinese Cultivation World, who, with their deep understanding of dao, might find ways to sabotage or neutralize the advanced technology.

- The 21st Century World's lack of cosmic powers could be balanced by their adaptability and teamwork. They could devise ingenious strategies to outmaneuver the other worlds, using their united efforts to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.

Remember, there's no perfect answer, and the beauty of such a conflict lies in the interplay of strengths and weaknesses. It's up to you to weave a tale of epic battles and cunning strategies, where each world seeks to outsmart the others and claim supremacy in this multidimensional clash. Happy storytelling!

The best AI can answer. I think that this is extremely similar to the Starcraft's balance, but with no true Zergs that can damage the two Protoss factions (Magic and Cultivation). Whatever anyway, my mind stopped working.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Spoiler: ChatGPT

Ah, my apologies for misunderstanding. Let's break down each world's concept and find what they excel at, shall we? Time to put on our thinking caps and dive into the depths of these realms.

1. **Chinese Cultivation World:**
Concept: Immortal deities with grasp-the-sun-in-their-palm abilities and individual dao, like Forest for Life and Mountain for gravity and entombment.
Their Excellence: In the Chinese Cultivation World, immortality and mastery over the forces of nature are their forte. They excel at resilience, longevity, and wielding the primal energies of the universe. Their dao allows them to harmonize with nature and draw unparalleled strength from the elements.

2. **Magic Fantasy World:**
Concept: Tenth circle wizards with multicasting Wish and Resurrection abilities, though with limitations.
Their Excellence: The Magic Fantasy World's wizards have unrivaled magical prowess. Despite their limitations, their versatility in spellcasting is unmatched. They can bend reality to their will, alter the fabric of existence, and manipulate the very essence of life and death. Their vast array of spells makes them formidable foes, able to adapt to various situations.

3. **Sci-Fi World:**
Concept: Technologically advanced culture with Fleet Admirals, New Types, and Planet Killers.
Their Excellence: The Sci-Fi World's strength lies in their superior technology and sheer numbers. Their fleets are capable of waging large-scale interstellar battles, and their advanced weaponry can decimate entire planets. The New Types might possess unique psychic abilities that offer them an edge in combat. Their sheer industrial capacity and innovative arsenal allow them to overwhelm opponents with sheer force.

4. **21st Century World (Metahumans):**
Concept: Metahumans with flying bricks and speedsters, but no time travel.
Their Excellence: The 21st Century World excels in teamwork and adaptability. Their metahumans, like Omniman types and Speedsters, might not have the cosmic powers of the other worlds, but they possess unparalleled coordination and cooperation. Working together, their abilities synergize, making them more powerful as a united front. Their lack of time travel could be a blessing, avoiding potential paradoxes and ensuring a more stable existence.

Finding the "one-up" against each opposing force is about exploiting their weaknesses. Here are some possible approaches:

- To counter the Chinese Cultivation World's immortality and elemental mastery, the Sci-Fi World could develop technology that disrupts their connection to the natural forces, rendering their abilities less effective.

- The Magic Fantasy World's reliance on spell slots could be exploited by the 21st Century World, using hit-and-run tactics and wearing them down gradually, forcing the wizards to exhaust their limited spellcasting capabilities.

- The Sci-Fi World's technological might could face a challenge from the Chinese Cultivation World, who, with their deep understanding of dao, might find ways to sabotage or neutralize the advanced technology.

- The 21st Century World's lack of cosmic powers could be balanced by their adaptability and teamwork. They could devise ingenious strategies to outmaneuver the other worlds, using their united efforts to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.

Remember, there's no perfect answer, and the beauty of such a conflict lies in the interplay of strengths and weaknesses. It's up to you to weave a tale of epic battles and cunning strategies, where each world seeks to outsmart the others and claim supremacy in this multidimensional clash. Happy storytelling!

The best AI can answer. I think that this is extremely similar to the Starcraft's balance, but with no true Zergs that can damage the two Protoss factions (Magic and Cultivation). Whatever anyway, my mind stopped working.

... Maybe I should just embrace AI.

Thanks for the info.

 

[CheertheSecond]

The scifi faction’s super weapon seems a bit weak though. I would suggest the Black Sun project of Supcom as their doomsday device (the thing that can oneshot multiple planets across the galaxy of their choosing instantaneously through the quantum gateway).

Also I think we need to set up a few edges for each of the factions. In my opinion, I would set the scifi as having the greatest potent but they couldn’t fight well if the enemy disrupt their formation in close range. Hence, they rely heavily on their shield and quantum disruptors (anti-teleportation installations). These consume a huge amount of resources and spaces on their ships, spaces that can be used for other stuffs like weapons or quantum resource generators. Also, they are graced with the ability to replace damaged parts exceedingly fast. Allowing the loss of personnel and machination purely economic and not truly be constraint like cultivators and magi whose loss of an elder or genius was a huge blow that took centuries to replace.

For cultivator, I will give them advantages over spiritual aspects, things that involve the souls. They are good at close range and mid range which is in contrast to the scifi which are great at long and extremely long range. They will have great regeneration ability and seemingly high health bar (only inferior to the metahumans).

For the magi, they will have the power of fortitude. Their spells and rituals can disrupt cultivator’s qi and the scifi’s energy network. Cultivators, however, can resist those disruption with their qi formation. Meanwhile, the scifi can expand their energy expenditure to fortify the energy quantum network. Magi are best at mid and long range. Another thing they are great at that other faction couldn’t compete is their ability to cooperate. Cultivators can cooperate to enhance their qi refining rate and their fighting as a unit but due to their differences in soul and mind between individuals they couldn’t escape being constraint by each other in a big coop. The scifi can do many thing but they too have problem with mobilising a greater quantity of computation units, simply put, their calibration, calculation, information exchanging are not instantaneous which cause a greater delay (ping) the greater the amount of units. Therefore, individual acting was still more efficient at certain threshold. The magi, however, can truly link mind into one. The more magi helping with the magic, the faster/more powerful the spell.

The metahuman can be an amalgamation of the other three. They have the greatest individualities and don’t depend too much on the group like those cultivators, magi or scifi. This also limits their ability to cooperate for something greater. In short, their efficiency at the number game is very bad.

 

[Cortavar]

Fantasy heavy dealers could also be actual dragons or demons/angels, or even gods (though from what you say, gods are more of a cultivator thing).

I'm not really familiar with cultivation stories, but at the highest level of power, aren't western mages and eastern cultivators kind of the same? They're reality warpers that can basically magic their way out of anything, right?

Space guys should have... Tech, ressources and numbers. When you control half a galaxy of planets, you can afford to lose some systems if it means blowing up the star of your enemies. Similarly, if the strength of your best soldier is their mecha armor or spaceship, and if you can cut down training time with AI programs, you can keep throwing them at your foes that need several decades to reach enlightenment/lvl 20+. It's basically early gun vs bow, but with spaceships and mages (an early gun was objectively worse than a bow in all matters, but training a gun user took a few weeks compared to the years necessary for a bowman. So the guns won on the battlefield by attrition).

Supers have speedsters. If no one has time manipulation powers, a proper speedster with the required secondary powers is terrifying. Absorbers (can nullify an attack) and retaliators (can send back an attack) are also really impressive when faced with superior foes. And don't forget villainous powers: mind control, shapeshifting or pain manipulation are no joke either!

Your idea is really cool, and I like the idea of pitting different settings against one another. That said, if the fight really happens at the top level (super Saiyans vs archmages vs supernova ships vs metahumans) from the get go, it has high risks to devolve into a "my kung fu is stronger than yours" situation, with whomever you grant plot armor to winning the current bout.

Please also bear in mind that the vast majority of the population in any setting are normal civilians. They're just peasants, traders, adventurers or craftsmen, and even those that have a modicum of power aren't the top dogs.

So, yeah, elven archmage Milvullin Lonthesriel and Wu-Tao of the Secret Golden Fist Sect could possibly survive a thorough planetary bombardment or their sun turning nova, but their home and most of their loved ones wouldn't.

If you want to give a little egde to supers, that edge could be that it is a super society, where everyone has a power, with varying degrees of them. That way they'll be a lot less easy to outright conquer.

Then you need to think about how the different powers interact with one another. Does magic do screwy things to technology that cultivation doesn't? Is it the reverse? Can you put a mage inside a mecha? Do supers naturally resist magic? Are they more vulnerable to it? Can a mage/super/dragon/space marine cultivate themselves? Can magic be learned? Can robots/AI/Von Neumann swarms learn magic or cultivate?

Penultimately, what kind of transportation is available, and can it be countered? If any archmage can pop into the space emperor's throne room and meteor strike him to oblivion, that feels a bit cheaty. Conversely, if the only means of transportation from planet "cultivation" to planet "magic" is the Space Fleet, it does restrict things a lot. Range, time, ressources consumed, all can be an interesting plot point.

You can for exemple have the space opera guys travel at several times the speed of light (galaxy-wise, that's slow), with a huge cargo capacity, while the mages can create instantaneous transportation anywhere but carry very little (a small group), and super sayans can just personally hop from planet to planet by attuning with the specific Ki of the place from afar.

Finally, my advice would be to start small-ish, with only two or three factions, and keep the last one as a surprise. Maybe the supers can be the hidden ace, or discovering cultivation could lead mages to overcome their physical limitations (or vice-versa, learning magic leading to superior enlightenment), or the space navy just pops out of nowhere and forces the other factions to stop their war and unite...

You've got a lot on your plate, but I really hope to read your awesome story!

 

[NotaNuffian]

Fantasy heavy dealers could also be actual dragons or demons/angels, or even gods (though from what you say, gods are more of a cultivator thing).

I'm not really familiar with cultivation stories, but at the highest level of power, aren't western mages and eastern cultivators kind of the same? They're reality warpers that can basically magic their way out of anything, right?

Space guys should have... Tech, ressources and numbers. When you control half a galaxy of planets, you can afford to lose some systems if it means blowing up the star of your enemies. Similarly, if the strength of your best soldier is their mecha armor or spaceship, and if you can cut down training time with AI programs, you can keep throwing them at your foes that need several decades to reach enlightenment/lvl 20+. It's basically early gun vs bow, but with spaceships and mages (an early gun was objectively worse than a bow in all matters, but training a gun user took a few weeks compared to the years necessary for a bowman. So the guns won on the battlefield by attrition).

Supers have speedsters. If no one has time manipulation powers, a proper speedster with the required secondary powers is terrifying. Absorbers (can nullify an attack) and retaliators (can send back an attack) are also really impressive when faced with superior foes. And don't forget villainous powers: mind control, shapeshifting or pain manipulation are no joke either!

Your idea is really cool, and I like the idea of pitting different settings against one another. That said, if the fight really happens at the top level (super Saiyans vs archmages vs supernova ships vs metahumans) from the get go, it has high risks to devolve into a "my kung fu is stronger than yours" situation, with whomever you grant plot armor to winning the current bout.

Please also bear in mind that the vast majority of the population in any setting are normal civilians. They're just peasants, traders, adventurers or craftsmen, and even those that have a modicum of power aren't the top dogs.

So, yeah, elven archmage Milvullin Lonthesriel and Wu-Tao of the Secret Golden Fist Sect could possibly survive a thorough planetary bombardment or their sun turning nova, but their home and most of their loved ones wouldn't.

If you want to give a little egde to supers, that edge could be that it is a super society, where everyone has a power, with varying degrees of them. That way they'll be a lot less easy to outright conquer.

Then you need to think about how the different powers interact with one another. Does magic do screwy things to technology that cultivation doesn't? Is it the reverse? Can you put a mage inside a mecha? Do supers naturally resist magic? Are they more vulnerable to it? Can a mage/super/dragon/space marine cultivate themselves? Can magic be learned? Can robots/AI/Von Neumann swarms learn magic or cultivate?

Penultimately, what kind of transportation is available, and can it be countered? If any archmage can pop into the space emperor's throne room and meteor strike him to oblivion, that feels a bit cheaty. Conversely, if the only means of transportation from planet "cultivation" to planet "magic" is the Space Fleet, it does restrict things a lot. Range, time, ressources consumed, all can be an interesting plot point.

You can for exemple have the space opera guys travel at several times the speed of light (galaxy-wise, that's slow), with a huge cargo capacity, while the mages can create instantaneous transportation anywhere but carry very little (a small group), and super sayans can just personally hop from planet to planet by attuning with the specific Ki of the place from afar.

Finally, my advice would be to start small-ish, with only two or three factions, and keep the last one as a surprise. Maybe the supers can be the hidden ace, or discovering cultivation could lead mages to overcome their physical limitations (or vice-versa, learning magic leading to superior enlightenment), or the space navy just pops out of nowhere and forces the other factions to stop their war and unite...

You've got a lot on your plate, but I really hope to read your awesome story!

The thing is that I understand that in most of the written works I gone through, cultivators and wizards share the exact same end goal. What I am trying to do is sift out their differences and have them compete.

For example, with cultivators, they would alter their own body using the energy in air for enhancement while wizards merely use the energy for casting purposes. The whole mana core in human body felt like a shtick they took from cultivators/ ingame mana pool.

My idea is a bit more simple. The three different types of system (cultivation, magic and scifi) cannot be merged together by the locals. So there is the need of proxy war by using the Superheroes and metahumans as pawns who can use the three system interchangeably with a lot of caveats.

The theme is quite simple, four cultures mashed together with three alphas and one beta. Guess which one is getting rear-ended?

Yes there will be normal people, from all four cultures and each of them would have hatred over one another. So need to have a bit of talks in between.

 

[owotrucked]

In practice, factions rarely achieve complete harmony. Some parties might work with the enemy faction to keep their political opponents in check.

It is possible that the sci-fi civ achieve unity through oppressive technology, however it decreases the productivity and happiness of the population. When that happens, rebels might leak technological secrets, and possibly provide counters for the opposing factions.

For instance, when everyone learns about invisible stealth drone, and learn that they can be deactivated through some emp shock or signals, it becomes a lot less threatening.

Sci-fi machines are very vulnerable to altered physical laws. Even with redundancy, you can jam or explode an entire machine by changing the friction coefficient at specific spot.

Where Sci-fi is OP is interplanetary artillery. They might only consider using it when an existential threat approach, and populations might be against destroying habitable planets.

I think the most probable longterm outcome is the civilizations blending together. Like having an elder falling for a cute ai vtuber or some shit.

 

[NotaNuffian]

In practice, factions rarely achieve complete harmony. Some parties might work with the enemy faction to keep their political opponents in check.

It is possible that the sci-fi civ achieve unity through oppressive technology, however it decreases the productivity and happiness of the population. When that happens, rebels might leak technological secrets, and possibly provide counters for the opposing factions.

For instance, when everyone learns about invisible stealth drone, and learn that they can be deactivated through some emp shock or signals, it becomes a lot less threatening.

Sci-fi machines are very vulnerable to altered physical laws. Even with redundancy, you can jam or explode an entire machine by changing the friction coefficient at specific spot.

Where Sci-fi is OP is interplanetary artillery. They might only consider using it when an existential threat approach, and populations might be against destroying habitable planets.

I think the most probable longterm outcome is the civilizations blending together. Like having an elder falling for a cute ai vtuber or some shit.

Ehh... I try to have bitey bitey bitter feelings, not cutesy uwu thing.

By the power of hatred, let's see who shall build the first world ender?

 

[Cortavar]

The thing is that I understand that in most of the written works I gone through, cultivators and wizards share the exact same end goal. What I am trying to do is sift out their differences and have them compete.

For example, with cultivators, they would alter their own body using the energy in air for enhancement while wizards merely use the energy for casting purposes. The whole mana core in human body felt like a shtick they took from cultivators/ ingame mana pool.

My idea is a bit more simple. The three different types of system (cultivation, magic and scifi) cannot be merged together by the locals. So there is the need of proxy war by using the Superheroes and metahumans as pawns who can use the three system interchangeably with a lot of caveats.

The theme is quite simple, four cultures mashed together with three alphas and one beta. Guess which one is getting rear-ended?

Yes there will be normal people, from all four cultures and each of them would have hatred over one another. So need to have a bit of talks in between.

I think you're up to something that could be really cool.

If you're focusing on the super society, and you're making it a proxy war between the three other factions, you can do that and answer the ultimate question of any super story. Where do superpowers come from?

Well, their powers are granted by the three other factions. The mages use dimensional instability to create dungeons in which humans can train and get levels and loot. The cultivators form secret sects where they impart some of their knowledge on humans to help them overcome the limits of their bodies. And the sci-fi faction has just sent a cloaked vessel in orbit of Earth where they abduct random people, pump them full of nanotech, cybertech, biotech and quantum-whatyouwant, and send them back.

That makes a lot of supers, and villains, from different origins. The three factions' original plan might be to have them fight or compete, but what happens when a nanoteched super gets recruited by the secret sect of cultivators and then goes dungeon delving?

 

[owotrucked]

Ehh... I try to have bitey bitey bitter feelings, not cutesy uwu thing.

By the power of hatred, let's see who shall build the first world ender?

If each factions poses an existential threat just by existing then they'll be forced to annihilate each others.

Then, just think about weaknesses and drawbacks of the main players. Even behavioral patterns and desires can be exploited. For instance, cultivators dying to cheap counterfeit pills while blinded by greed.

Or sleep deprived wizards whose resurrection cantrip turn horribly wrong by turning target into an unrecoverable eldritch amalgamation

Edit: It's hard to justify an all-out war between equal powers with simple hatred
An unilateral war against a perceived weaker power can be justified by a fart though

So I think you should either leave the factions completely unbalanced, or add a deep reason why equally powerful people have to bet their life on a coinflip to kill each other

 

[Cortavar]

If each factions poses an existential threat just by existing then they'll be forced to annihilate each others.

Then, just think about weaknesses and drawbacks of the main players. Even behavioral patterns and desires can be exploited. For instance, cultivators dying to cheap counterfeit pills while blinded by greed.

Or sleep deprived wizards whose resurrection cantrip turn horribly wrong by turning target into an unrecoverable eldritch amalgamation

Space is Big. Like really really really fucking huge big.

So maybe the cultivators, mages and sci-fi guys haven't found each other's place yet. Or maybe the mages and cultivators are aware that the moment they start having a technological breakthrough, they'll get a space fleet at their doors and a planetary bombardment from the next star, so that's why they're stuck with a medieval tech level.

And yeah, exploiting the weaknesses of the main factions is a cool idea! And so is using their synergies: can an advanced civilisation create better cultivation drugs? Can the understanding of magic flows be refined by taking into account cultivators' imputs on magic and mages imputs on cultivation? Can an AI design new spell paterns? Cast them?

 

[NotaNuffian]

I think you're up to something that could be really cool.

If you're focusing on the super society, and you're making it a proxy war between the three other factions, you can do that and answer the ultimate question of any super story. Where do superpowers come from?

Well, their powers are granted by the three other factions. The mages use dimensional instability to create dungeons in which humans can train and get levels and loot. The cultivators form secret sects where they impart some of their knowledge on humans to help them overcome the limits of their bodies. And the sci-fi faction has just sent a cloaked vessel in orbit of Earth where they abduct random people, pump them full of nanotech, cybertech, biotech and quantum-whatyouwant, and send them back.

That makes a lot of supers, and villains, from different origins. The three factions' original plan might be to have them fight or compete, but what happens when a nanoteched super gets recruited by the secret sect of cultivators and then goes dungeon delving?

That is the fun part, while the cultivators can't get shit from the other two factions and vice versa, my plan is to have the metahumans be able to receive benefits from all three sides.

But in the end, said metahuman MUST pick one side and have the other two as either removed or as sub-classes.

 

[ACertainPassingUser]

They will be having a proxy war in an Earthlike, in the Superheroes world.

So the Superheroes will have to deal with the three pronged invasion while trying to upgrade themselves using the strength of the three.

So Basically, Mortal Kombat ?


They've got Kungfu man fighting Ninjas fighting Robots fighting Thunder God fighting Cybord Soldiers fighting Monsters.

It's basically the Smash Bros of what's cool for kids in the 90s.

The story is how different world can be conquered with Mortal Kombat tournament, and you have to win 10 consecutive tournament.

As Earthrealm has loss 9 time against outworld, they should win the next competition or Earth would be conquered by those invading monstrous creatures.

MC must fight alongside his rival buddy who want revenge for his grandpa's loss in the last tournament. Ahh, how nostalgic.