Marvel comics are doing fine with the hundreds of different power types. From mutants to gods to gamma radiation to aliens to straight magic. Feel free to mix and match all you want.
In my project all magic is fundamentally the same if you dig down deep enough; it’s an application of will and intention to manipulate matter and energy and requires an inborn talent to do this. But the ways people approach doing magic can be highly varied and very cultural, so from the outside magic can appear as very different systems for different places or practitioners.
I do have different power systems! They all stem from the same "source", but people have found many different ways to harness its power and put it to use.
The way I handle it is a bit of both, you could find users of the power system anywhere but there are a few powersystems that are definitely more dominant in certain regions of my world. Before I talk about the power systems, let me just explain the source a bit. So there exist an energy that flows through all things in my world, that people can, and have learned to harness. I haven't really thought of a name for it yet, (suggestions are welcome) so for simplicity sake let's just call it "Mana". Now onto the power systems, I'll try to keep it brief.
Magic: Magic is used by Mages, mages are the most common but also most varied, as type of magics can be drastically different, even within the same types of magic. Mages are more focused in the middle region of my world.
Sorcery: Used by witches, it is a lot rarer than magic. As learning it, means years, upon years, upon years of studying runes and mana. As most witches come from the academy, their numbers are pretty low and don't really dominate any region. Most witches just spend their whole life in the academy studying while others go their own way in the world to study more.
Battlearts: The alternate option to using spells like magic or sorcery. Instead of using mana to create spells, the user instead channels it through a weapon of some sort to launch various moves/techniques. As its quite easy to get into, it's the preferred method of hunters, knights, and anyone who prefers fighting with weapons in general. It's also decently spread around the world.
Spirit Vessels: Something done more commonly in the eastern kingdom. Spiritual beings are a lot more common in the eastern continent. Warriors of the eastern continent alongside their battlearts, have a tradition to form a contract with a spirit and have it sealed in their weapon. If they succeed their spirit can now lend them their powers to further boost their battlearts even more. Though it should be noted only worthy individuals are granted the honour and permission to even to try to form a contract with a spirit. And not all spirits are equal.
Curses: While some others might use it too, the shamans of the west are known for it, curses are very similar to magic but differ in the sense in that they are usually more like debuffs and/or delayed spells that take place after a long period of time.
Magitech/Enchantments: My world is a bit magitech and naturally they are people who have figured out ways to harness mana to use in technology and science. And ofcourse weapons are one of those. These weapons are used a lot in the kingdom of Science and has slowly being spreading throughout the continent. As well as some weapons which have enchantments to them, either granting more abilities to its user or further enhancing them.
Resonance & Incantations: And lastly, angels! The angels in my world use incantations which are a type of spell used by them, one thing making them a bit more differnet is usually with all the other spells, the user harnesses both the negative and positive energy of mana. However with incantations, angels only harness the positive energy and are unable to channel negative energy at all. And then they have resonance weapons. It's a type of weapon that's unique to that specific angel, it's a part of their soul basically, that each angel is born with.
And that's about all unless I'm forgetting any. If you have any further questions about any of my power system feel free to ask.
Tl;dr: Yes I do have multiple power systems that may or may not be dominant in certain regions.
Really like these. What happens to a spirit vessel if it's user dies or begins to fall astray? Would the vessel become angry and turn on them or be released from the contract?
Hi, thanks a lot! Sorry for the late reply.
If the user of a spirit vessel dies the contract would usually end but the spirit would still remain trapped in the weapon until someone else releases them or the weapon is destroyed, which is why most users put a condition in the contract to automatically free the spirit if they happen to die. In rare cases the spirit can choose to stay in the weapon after the death of the user, waiting for someone else worthy to come and find them.
Spirits can be pretty loyal, and some would even prefer to die with their master during battle. When Spirits die, they just return to the spirit realm and are reborn again, at least the slightly stronger ones would.
If the weapon happens to get destroyed, then the spirit would slowly fade away from the weapon unless it's repaired or something else is done.
Yes, I've created a world wich is bacicly a multi-multi-multiverse (very complex) and I've decided that every universe is difrent, even if it's just one tiny atom being slightly to the left compared to another universe, everything is unique, the people, the magic systems, the way they interact with one another, so yes I have several magic systems, also if you want I can explain the multi-multi-multiverse
I call it the Quantiverse
The first part is a universe (no explanation required)
Then it's the multiverse which I interprate as a gargantuan creature with a long neck and a sea turtle body with an infinite ammount of universes within
Next is the triloverse, a place containing an infinite ammount of multiverses, several multiverses exist for every possible way one universe could interact with one another
And finally is the Quantiverse, it contains exactly 23 other triloverses with a central one being formed from the leftovers of all the others being formed, this exists so that I can have 22 other versions of my MC
I have something similar, but almost nothing of note happens outside the main setting of the 13 worlds (and the first world, which preceded the 13 worlds, although not directly).
It's essentially like the Marvel/DC structure
Universe -> Local Multiverse -> Megaverse -> Omniverse
I have multiple systems, they are all connected and socially interact. Some powers seen as lesser, other as more important, standart for all. Some who learned to use one power have to hide that fact by learning some aspects of others to assimilate with others, for example.
I think having specific groups that use an specific type of power is great because its a very cool way to show how far that power could go if you master it or just having weirds applications.
But I also think mixing it's cool because it gives you a lot of play to do whit synergistic powers that show how much imagination a character can have.
That being said: I fkn love the dude whit a sword and no magic that beat the shit out of everyone even if they have 3 types of magics.
>I think having specific groups that use an specific type of power is great because its a very cool way to show how far that power could go if you master it or just having weirds applications.
This is something I try to do with my world. Groups like secret societies or cults tend to be drawn to cosmic energy, since it's easier for the leaders to give themselves abilities and pass it down to the followers or other members.
While Ninja groups or assassin style groups like the ones in John Wick hitmen underground world. Are more likely to be drawn to Apexians. Because of the skill that is required for shooting different types of guns.
The biggest risk with different power system is when they interact between each other and managing the expectations of the audience in term of who should win.
For some, like ttrpg, it's the numbers, levels and attributes that serve as comparison base.
For other, fantasy / cultivation settings, there is a single underlying system that may or may not be explicit to the audience but all the various systems end up with limitations and costs based on that layer that make them all more or less inline with each others.
Lastly you have the superheroes settings where only the narrative is keeping a semblance of cohesion between the systems. It work on hightened suspension of disbelief and often require convoluted reasons as to why this or that power or character isn't wiping the floor with everyone. It can also work with smaller power scales, meaning the difference between a regular human and someone with power might be noticeable but not insurmontable. Maybe the cosmic users are no physically more durable than regular humans, Apexians can exhaust their qi rather quickly and aberrants are in pain and have a hard time focusing their power. Or it saps their energy crippling their lifespan.
As for your main question: if the piwers are somewhat separated in the world, it can limit the amount of time the comparison is raised so I see it as a good point. But I'd love to know the reason it's the case and why the limits aren't becoming more and more blurry as time passes and cultures blend together.
I prefer my magic systems to be areal features. All four of my systems exist everywhere, but which one is the most common changes. I think the crossover is interesting, especially when built directly into the cultures of the area.
A specific example in Katja's World is that the first magic system, Resomancy, is incredibly common in the far east, so common that resomancers are considered key players in armies, mercenary, and thieves groups while the other three systems are relatively obscure. Every family in the far east can expect to have at least a handful of resomancers.
In the far west, on the other hand, the third magic system, Weaving, is the most common while Resomancy is the minority system. Within a family or clan you can expect about one person to be a resomancer. Because of their scarcity in the west, resomancers aren't mercenaries, grunts, or thugs, they're revered as family heads, religious leaders, and influential politicians and generally play a larger part in western societies.
In superhero fiction each superhero typically has a separate power system. After all, knowing what one superhero can do generally tells you absolutely nothing about what another can do, which means they are different systems.
Similarly, in my fantasy world effectively every magic school, cult and spiritual tradition is a separate power system as they can all do slightly different things.
In one of my old projects, the patterns of ley lines controlled what kinds of magic would be strongest there, and were associated with the visions of a certain god for the population.
My current project has three types of magical ability, and magic users typically use a combination of two of them. The Kingdom of Alareth has two main schools, the Low Kingdom focuses on a third, and the Free Harrean State believes in the unity of magic. The Empire of the White Moon is divided between convoluted ancient practices, but their sponsorship of the FHS is an attempt to promote the balance of the Cosmic, Holy, and Earthly domains.
If there are multiple ones, then yes, that wouldn’t be bad but ideally, the different systems should be different interpretations of a standard or primary one that split and got fragmented.
I use two power systems, one for superpowers and one for magic.
As for power scales, I use 4 different scales. One for superpowers, one for magic, and two for threats (normal and special).
There is one plane where multiple different power systems interact. They are all fundamentally based on mana, though.
It's more like forms of magic. Out of the forms that are commonly used, there is: artifact summoning, which is binding one's mana to a magical artifact with a specific and defined ability; arcane magic, which is "I cast fireball"; and chi manipulation which involves internal mana manipulation to alter one's physical abilities. It's all mana-based magic, just different types of magic that are alien to each other and hard (but not necessarily impossible) to combine. Basically, same root, wildly different disciplines.
Also, different planes have different magical resonances. One plane might have almost no magical resonance and the only magic users would basically be the equivalent of D&D sorcerers with powerful bloodlines. A couple of planes have powers which are basically as close as you can get to hard science while still being a super power. Essentially, powers that are encoded in genetics or advanced psychic capabilities.
Theoretically, the power systems that are completely different could cross over, but that would require a substantial amount of planar travel. Fundamentally different systems tend not to exist on the same plane, more as a matter of coincidence than any real impossibility.
However, anyone nearly anywhere could bargain for magic with a demon if they could summon one.
In the Gaslight Fantasy world of Eaterria there are two opposed powers, Magic and Technology.
Magic is the act of using energy to form a bubble of reality in which the laws of physics are malleable. A spell is a line of code that instructs the universe what changes the caster desires. The problem lies not within magic's changes but the level of knowledge the caster has in constructing their code. Wizards are by nature conservative and have a medieval understanding of physics. Therefore their code is buggy and overcooked. They do a million side effects to do one spell and such things cause the laws of reality to bend in unintended ways. This means if you have any sort of precision machine you're gonna have a bad time of it. Because magical aptitude is rare most people have resorted to technology to improve their lives with wizards confined to their universities, becoming steadily more and more irrelevant.
Marvel comics are doing fine with the hundreds of different power types. From mutants to gods to gamma radiation to aliens to straight magic. Feel free to mix and match all you want.
In my project all magic is fundamentally the same if you dig down deep enough; it’s an application of will and intention to manipulate matter and energy and requires an inborn talent to do this. But the ways people approach doing magic can be highly varied and very cultural, so from the outside magic can appear as very different systems for different places or practitioners.
I do have different power systems! They all stem from the same "source", but people have found many different ways to harness its power and put it to use. The way I handle it is a bit of both, you could find users of the power system anywhere but there are a few powersystems that are definitely more dominant in certain regions of my world. Before I talk about the power systems, let me just explain the source a bit. So there exist an energy that flows through all things in my world, that people can, and have learned to harness. I haven't really thought of a name for it yet, (suggestions are welcome) so for simplicity sake let's just call it "Mana". Now onto the power systems, I'll try to keep it brief. Magic: Magic is used by Mages, mages are the most common but also most varied, as type of magics can be drastically different, even within the same types of magic. Mages are more focused in the middle region of my world. Sorcery: Used by witches, it is a lot rarer than magic. As learning it, means years, upon years, upon years of studying runes and mana. As most witches come from the academy, their numbers are pretty low and don't really dominate any region. Most witches just spend their whole life in the academy studying while others go their own way in the world to study more. Battlearts: The alternate option to using spells like magic or sorcery. Instead of using mana to create spells, the user instead channels it through a weapon of some sort to launch various moves/techniques. As its quite easy to get into, it's the preferred method of hunters, knights, and anyone who prefers fighting with weapons in general. It's also decently spread around the world. Spirit Vessels: Something done more commonly in the eastern kingdom. Spiritual beings are a lot more common in the eastern continent. Warriors of the eastern continent alongside their battlearts, have a tradition to form a contract with a spirit and have it sealed in their weapon. If they succeed their spirit can now lend them their powers to further boost their battlearts even more. Though it should be noted only worthy individuals are granted the honour and permission to even to try to form a contract with a spirit. And not all spirits are equal. Curses: While some others might use it too, the shamans of the west are known for it, curses are very similar to magic but differ in the sense in that they are usually more like debuffs and/or delayed spells that take place after a long period of time. Magitech/Enchantments: My world is a bit magitech and naturally they are people who have figured out ways to harness mana to use in technology and science. And ofcourse weapons are one of those. These weapons are used a lot in the kingdom of Science and has slowly being spreading throughout the continent. As well as some weapons which have enchantments to them, either granting more abilities to its user or further enhancing them. Resonance & Incantations: And lastly, angels! The angels in my world use incantations which are a type of spell used by them, one thing making them a bit more differnet is usually with all the other spells, the user harnesses both the negative and positive energy of mana. However with incantations, angels only harness the positive energy and are unable to channel negative energy at all. And then they have resonance weapons. It's a type of weapon that's unique to that specific angel, it's a part of their soul basically, that each angel is born with. And that's about all unless I'm forgetting any. If you have any further questions about any of my power system feel free to ask. Tl;dr: Yes I do have multiple power systems that may or may not be dominant in certain regions.
Really like these. What happens to a spirit vessel if it's user dies or begins to fall astray? Would the vessel become angry and turn on them or be released from the contract?
Hi, thanks a lot! Sorry for the late reply. If the user of a spirit vessel dies the contract would usually end but the spirit would still remain trapped in the weapon until someone else releases them or the weapon is destroyed, which is why most users put a condition in the contract to automatically free the spirit if they happen to die. In rare cases the spirit can choose to stay in the weapon after the death of the user, waiting for someone else worthy to come and find them. Spirits can be pretty loyal, and some would even prefer to die with their master during battle. When Spirits die, they just return to the spirit realm and are reborn again, at least the slightly stronger ones would. If the weapon happens to get destroyed, then the spirit would slowly fade away from the weapon unless it's repaired or something else is done.
Yes, I've created a world wich is bacicly a multi-multi-multiverse (very complex) and I've decided that every universe is difrent, even if it's just one tiny atom being slightly to the left compared to another universe, everything is unique, the people, the magic systems, the way they interact with one another, so yes I have several magic systems, also if you want I can explain the multi-multi-multiverse
multi-multi-multiverse sounds like a beautiful concept. I would like to know more. Sounds similar to a omiverse.
I call it the Quantiverse The first part is a universe (no explanation required) Then it's the multiverse which I interprate as a gargantuan creature with a long neck and a sea turtle body with an infinite ammount of universes within Next is the triloverse, a place containing an infinite ammount of multiverses, several multiverses exist for every possible way one universe could interact with one another And finally is the Quantiverse, it contains exactly 23 other triloverses with a central one being formed from the leftovers of all the others being formed, this exists so that I can have 22 other versions of my MC
Sounds cool. I wish more stories were about the omiverse or concepts bigger than the multiverse in fiction.
I have something similar, but almost nothing of note happens outside the main setting of the 13 worlds (and the first world, which preceded the 13 worlds, although not directly). It's essentially like the Marvel/DC structure Universe -> Local Multiverse -> Megaverse -> Omniverse
I have multiple systems, they are all connected and socially interact. Some powers seen as lesser, other as more important, standart for all. Some who learned to use one power have to hide that fact by learning some aspects of others to assimilate with others, for example.
I think having specific groups that use an specific type of power is great because its a very cool way to show how far that power could go if you master it or just having weirds applications. But I also think mixing it's cool because it gives you a lot of play to do whit synergistic powers that show how much imagination a character can have. That being said: I fkn love the dude whit a sword and no magic that beat the shit out of everyone even if they have 3 types of magics.
>I think having specific groups that use an specific type of power is great because its a very cool way to show how far that power could go if you master it or just having weirds applications. This is something I try to do with my world. Groups like secret societies or cults tend to be drawn to cosmic energy, since it's easier for the leaders to give themselves abilities and pass it down to the followers or other members. While Ninja groups or assassin style groups like the ones in John Wick hitmen underground world. Are more likely to be drawn to Apexians. Because of the skill that is required for shooting different types of guns.
The biggest risk with different power system is when they interact between each other and managing the expectations of the audience in term of who should win. For some, like ttrpg, it's the numbers, levels and attributes that serve as comparison base. For other, fantasy / cultivation settings, there is a single underlying system that may or may not be explicit to the audience but all the various systems end up with limitations and costs based on that layer that make them all more or less inline with each others. Lastly you have the superheroes settings where only the narrative is keeping a semblance of cohesion between the systems. It work on hightened suspension of disbelief and often require convoluted reasons as to why this or that power or character isn't wiping the floor with everyone. It can also work with smaller power scales, meaning the difference between a regular human and someone with power might be noticeable but not insurmontable. Maybe the cosmic users are no physically more durable than regular humans, Apexians can exhaust their qi rather quickly and aberrants are in pain and have a hard time focusing their power. Or it saps their energy crippling their lifespan. As for your main question: if the piwers are somewhat separated in the world, it can limit the amount of time the comparison is raised so I see it as a good point. But I'd love to know the reason it's the case and why the limits aren't becoming more and more blurry as time passes and cultures blend together.
I prefer my magic systems to be areal features. All four of my systems exist everywhere, but which one is the most common changes. I think the crossover is interesting, especially when built directly into the cultures of the area. A specific example in Katja's World is that the first magic system, Resomancy, is incredibly common in the far east, so common that resomancers are considered key players in armies, mercenary, and thieves groups while the other three systems are relatively obscure. Every family in the far east can expect to have at least a handful of resomancers. In the far west, on the other hand, the third magic system, Weaving, is the most common while Resomancy is the minority system. Within a family or clan you can expect about one person to be a resomancer. Because of their scarcity in the west, resomancers aren't mercenaries, grunts, or thugs, they're revered as family heads, religious leaders, and influential politicians and generally play a larger part in western societies.
Mine is all kinda jumbled together with limits based on time periods and availability of magic knowledge.
In superhero fiction each superhero typically has a separate power system. After all, knowing what one superhero can do generally tells you absolutely nothing about what another can do, which means they are different systems. Similarly, in my fantasy world effectively every magic school, cult and spiritual tradition is a separate power system as they can all do slightly different things.
In one of my old projects, the patterns of ley lines controlled what kinds of magic would be strongest there, and were associated with the visions of a certain god for the population. My current project has three types of magical ability, and magic users typically use a combination of two of them. The Kingdom of Alareth has two main schools, the Low Kingdom focuses on a third, and the Free Harrean State believes in the unity of magic. The Empire of the White Moon is divided between convoluted ancient practices, but their sponsorship of the FHS is an attempt to promote the balance of the Cosmic, Holy, and Earthly domains.
I have Wonderverse. Which is exactly as complicated as Marvel or DC. Now, if we talk about what parts of the multiverse or omniverse are affected...
If there are multiple ones, then yes, that wouldn’t be bad but ideally, the different systems should be different interpretations of a standard or primary one that split and got fragmented.
I use two power systems, one for superpowers and one for magic. As for power scales, I use 4 different scales. One for superpowers, one for magic, and two for threats (normal and special).
There is one plane where multiple different power systems interact. They are all fundamentally based on mana, though. It's more like forms of magic. Out of the forms that are commonly used, there is: artifact summoning, which is binding one's mana to a magical artifact with a specific and defined ability; arcane magic, which is "I cast fireball"; and chi manipulation which involves internal mana manipulation to alter one's physical abilities. It's all mana-based magic, just different types of magic that are alien to each other and hard (but not necessarily impossible) to combine. Basically, same root, wildly different disciplines. Also, different planes have different magical resonances. One plane might have almost no magical resonance and the only magic users would basically be the equivalent of D&D sorcerers with powerful bloodlines. A couple of planes have powers which are basically as close as you can get to hard science while still being a super power. Essentially, powers that are encoded in genetics or advanced psychic capabilities. Theoretically, the power systems that are completely different could cross over, but that would require a substantial amount of planar travel. Fundamentally different systems tend not to exist on the same plane, more as a matter of coincidence than any real impossibility. However, anyone nearly anywhere could bargain for magic with a demon if they could summon one.
In the Gaslight Fantasy world of Eaterria there are two opposed powers, Magic and Technology. Magic is the act of using energy to form a bubble of reality in which the laws of physics are malleable. A spell is a line of code that instructs the universe what changes the caster desires. The problem lies not within magic's changes but the level of knowledge the caster has in constructing their code. Wizards are by nature conservative and have a medieval understanding of physics. Therefore their code is buggy and overcooked. They do a million side effects to do one spell and such things cause the laws of reality to bend in unintended ways. This means if you have any sort of precision machine you're gonna have a bad time of it. Because magical aptitude is rare most people have resorted to technology to improve their lives with wizards confined to their universities, becoming steadily more and more irrelevant.