MERGE CHAIN Version 1.0.4 !!/7+E9O+N4T1
Merges are worlds composed of elements, tropes, themes, tones, etc. of the constituent jumps’ canonical settings, blended together in a way that hopefully creates an interesting, original world to explore. Stable Worlds are a sequence of merges that take place in the same world. This means that, while a jumper has been there before, and has a history in a world, subsequent visits may explore different themes. Refraction Clusters are groups of merges with similar themes or ideas. Unlike stable worlds, return visits to the cluster will be to completely different – but familiar – settings. TableTable ofof ContentsContents Merges 9. It’s the End of the World pg 12 17. Space Opera...... pg 20 Vigor Mortis Across the Sands, Thunder 1. Anachronisms...... pg 4 Wastrels Ad Vance Stray Future Zoned Suited to the Task Eon’s End Space Fantasy Red in Tooth and Claw 10. The Long War...... pg 13 Winds of Change Amid the Tumult 18. Treasure Hunter...... pg 21 Long After The End An Evolution of Conflict Yo-Ho Adventure Bitter Means High-Stakes Archaeology 2. Badasses, Inc...... pg 5 Titanomachy Sailing the Black Sea Operation Operate Bitter Ends Rule of Cool 19. Veils & Masquerades....pg 22 Deniable Assets 11. Magical Realms...... pg 14 Hidden Things Secret Agent License No Man’s Land Bump in the Night Borderline Adventurous Carpe Noctem 3. Caster Supremacy...... pg 6 Dragon’s Gate Unearthly Threats Towers of Magic Idyll Skies Occult Arcanum Stranger Wakes 20. Xenocide...... pg 23 The Third Magic Open Season Walking a Path 12. Military Fantasy...... pg 15 They Walk Among Us Inheritors of Steel & Fire Invaders Must Die 4. Chemicals & Circuitry...... pg 7 Draco Atlantis Extinction Wars Ethics Waivers Show of Fantastic Force Dreams in Digital Pro Forma Ars Magica Bellum Hands of Steel Grand Chorus Bootstrapped 13. Ochasen...... pg 16 5. Dark Fantasy...... pg 8 Honor’s Edge Ashes, Blood, & Iron Theatre of War Warden’s Road Religious Racket The Swiftly Rising Night Telos 14. Political Extremes...... pg 17 Kingdom of Lost Souls A Softer World Grim Remnants Monument to Ruin Leviathan Manifest 6. Eldritch Enemies...... pg 9 A Madder World 15. Refuge in the Mundanepg 18 Flat Circles Comfy Modern Fantasy Life Cast in Shadow The Ostian Empire Knocks Another Day At The Office 7. Final Frontier...... pg 10 Fairy Punk Free Space Star Kingdoms 16. Silver Bullets...... pg 19 A Bold Peace Mordant Dust and Nightmares 8. Heroes and Villains...... pg 11 Extranormal Forces Battle of Wits To War With Hell Appropriate Measures Tarnished Age Capes & Spandex Notes More Worlds Under Consideration Coming Soon Knights’ Code Duello Changelog As Above, So Below...... pg 25 Ready? Fight! Remnants Ecumenical Lesbian Gems from Beyond Heaven or Hell, Let’s Rock Terra Eschaton De-Immenatized Higher Learning Inner Limits...... pg 26 Animal Kingdoms Meals on Wheels Liminal Fantasy Quest Trump Arcana Dungeons & Delvers Mahou no Mazoku Quest for Deliverance Endgame...... pg 27 Fabled Coronation Soft Exit Godbound Maintenance Engineer Climb The Tower Stranded, But Not Alone Jagannath’s Door Restless Spirits Questant Regalia Genetic Algorithm Machine Life C⊕ Si Abyss Beneath ??? MergesMerges
1. Anachronisms Strange combinations of magical, technologies, and societal qualities. Refractions. Stray Future The precursors left clues to their existence in the lost and hidden caves of shining mysteries. They left us the wandering islands, the fish, the birds, the factories on the bottom, and their last wish for us: “be happy”. Aquaria Splatoon CATastrophe Cave Story Endless Ocean (CYOA) Eon’s End The age of adventure is dead. Maybe it’s the new gods, or the advances in magitech, or the more peaceful philosophies being adopted, but things are certainly changing. For the better, perhaps. Perhaps not. Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magic Obscura Bloodstained Ritual of the Night Red in Tooth and Claw Outside the small villages and walled cities, monsters rule. Some slay the creatures: hunters. Others train them: tamers. Scouts, Merchants, and Gatherers mostly try to avoid the various deadly flora and fauna. Monster Hunter Monster Trainer Nausicaa Pokemon Winds of Change Raw magic can have some strange effects on living things. Unpredictable effects. So when the aetherwinds blow, you’d best get yourself inside a shelter. Or you could end up like those things that stalk the wilds. Elona Endless Legend Stormlight Archives Long After The End In this post-history world, civilization has come and gone. The world is now the domain of barbarians, wizards, mutants, and stranger. Remnants of the old world can still be found, proof of a forgotten age. Adventure Time Samurai Jack Generic Post-Apocalypse 2. Badasses, Inc. This world looks very normal, all things considered. But that is not coincidence. The sweat, blood, and lives of many individuals dedicated to keeping the world running are responsible. Stable. Operation Operate When peace is threatened (as it often is), governments turn to small teams of discrete operatives to solve problems, promote the status quo, or remove obstacles. The work is dangerous, secretive, and very lucrative. Call of Duty Rainbow Six Splinter Cell PMC (WIP) Rule of Cool Everything is at least 20% more awesome, badass, and/or likely to explode. You might expect to come across gun-runners, drug-dealing gangs, terrorists, and police firing two guns whilst jumping through windows. 80s Action Movies Modern Action Movies Black Lagoon Jormungand Deniable Assets Much like the real world, intelligence agencies get involved in shady business they probably shouldn’t. And when agents get caught assassinating a dictator or buying drugs, they become retroactively rogue agents. True Lies Burn Notice Matthew Reilly Universe Bourne Trilogy (DNE) Secret Agent License When all else fails. When the enemy is extraordinary. When the stakes are too high. That’s when certain individuals, surprisingly well-known names to those who matter, come to set things right. 007 Archer Kingsmen 3. Caster Supremacy It’s all about the magic, baby! Gotta dig those pointed hats! Have you seen this season’s robes, and the new broomstick designs? Anyway, if you can’t do magic, you probably don’t matter. Refractions. Towers of Magic From all over the realm, children with the gift come to a Tower to learn the magic of the four elements. Spoiled noble brats and awe-stuck country bumpkins alike come to master the fundamental natural forces. Circle of Magic Avatar The Last Airbender / LoK Familiar of Zero Codex Alera Occult Arcanum There are lots of rules in magic. Some of them cannot be broken. Some of them can, but really shouldn’t be. Mostly, they’re suggestions: with enough cleverness and desire, they can be bent to one’s own advantage. Dresden Files Harry Potter Pact The Third Magic There are two kinds of magic commonly practiced: Mystic Arts and Summoning. The first grants abilities to the magus. The second magic summons servants compelled by a seal. The third magic is not discussed. Bartimaeus Dishonored Type Moon Walking a Path In this world, there are two kinds of people. The first are mortals. The second are those on the Sublime Path. More than mortal, the Sublime defend life and take it, living above the common man, seeking more than life. Xianxia Wuxia Anima: Beyond Fantasy 4. Chemicals & Circuitry Moving forward will always mean some people get left behind, stepped on, or lost. Nobody thinks they’ll be the unfortunate sacrifice ground beneath the ever-turning wheel of progress. Refractions. Ethics Waivers If a person is Augmented, that means they’ve agreed to the terms and conditions. If they’d read the fine print, they’d know that means their asses belong to the corporations. Nobody ever reads the fine print. Katawa Shoujo Repo: The Genetic Opera Deus Ex: Human Revolution Dreams in Digital The overcast sky is lit from below by flickering hologram ads. You stink of pollution, greasy thai noodles, and vape juice. You’re jobless, your augs are malfunctioning, and your premium apartment subscription is due. Va11 HALL-A Blade Runner+2049 Deus Ex Ghost in the Shell Cyber Punk (WIP, Worm) Hands of Steel We don’t know why the robots turned on us. There are theories, but anyone who knows for sure was probably killed in the alpha strike. We’re lucky not all of them went nuts. But it’s hard to tell, you know? Robocop Terminator Megaman Classic (Protomen Drawback) Bootstrapped Looking too deeply into the mind has lead to the birth of new threats to humanity: digital intelligences. Already, one colony is gone, and more are soon to follow, regardless of ideology or politics. Battlestar Galactica Eclipse Phase Eve Online Starsector (DNE) 5. Dark Fantasy No, the local star works fine, it’s just that things generally suck in these worlds. Refractions. Ashes, Blood, & Iron Immortal wizard-kings rule over walled cities, ancient civilizations’ ruins dot the land, danger lurks behind every sun-blasted rock, and remnants of the displaced cannibal elf empire still practice their dark sorceries. Dark Sun Sword & Sorcery Elric (WIP, Stormbringer) Bronze-Age Collapse? (WIP) Warden’s Road Monsters, both human and other, often seek to prey on the weak and vulnerable. To keep safe the roads, to mete out justice, to slay monsters, to protect the innocent – such is a Warden of the Old Kingdom’s duty. Lone Wolf Old Kingdom Witcher The Swiftly Rising Night The monsters have come out from their lairs, madness in the back of mankind’s mind comes to the fore, and dark forces make monsters of men, to combat against the things emerging more eldritch than monsters. Bloodbourne Innistrad Ravenloft Darkest Dungeon Telos Anyone, at any time, can be thrust into violence, faced with corruption, or tempted by a promise of power. For many faced with evil, the only way to survive the darkness is to accept it. But all are lost regardless. Berserk Drakengard Path of Exile Diablo Kingdom of Lost Souls The Necropolis is the last legacy of a once great kingdom that outshone the sun. Now, it sinks below dusk into death, and damnation. Dead souls linger upon this land, and they are no longer friendly or peaceful. Dark Souls+2+3 Demon Souls Grim Remnants What remains of humanity huddles within their last bastions, sending out teams to struggle against the dark, and the strange, enticing, utterly wrong powers – great and small – that live within it. RWBY Neir God Eater (WIP) The Night Land (DNE) Kingdom Death Monster (DNE) 6. Eldritch Enemies Mankind faces foes from the mists of prehistory. Servants of forgotten gods, malformed things, powers beyond mortal ken that seek to guide us from the darkness to unpleasant ends. Stable. A Madder World In the first quarter of the 17th century, ‘The King in Yellow’ was published – the first of many events that would come to define the 1800s, along with the rise of Old Ones, and a steep increase in lunacy. Generic Yandere Lovecraft A Study in Emerald Cosmic Horror (CYOA) The Sun Never Set (DNE) Flat Circles There’s a history to this sort of thing. It draws people in. It’s in the government, the wealthy, institutions. And it’s been happening for a long, long time. There’s a history you can see traces of, if you look deeper. Deadly Premonition Great Detective (True Detective Drawback) Night in the Woods Cast in Shadow Sometimes the most important things in life are small. But rampaging eldritch kaiju need to be stopped. And conventional artillery doesn’t cut it. So in this world, the most important things are creepy giant robots. Godzilla Pacific Rim Evangelion CthulhuTech (DNE) 7. Final Frontier Mankind never did fully throw off the shackles of factionalism, even after expanding to the stars. Perhaps if they survive themselves long enough, they will learn to live in peace. Stable. Free Space Life isn’t so tidy, out here on the rim. The central government only steps in to tell you what to do, or when they want something. Food and meds are scarce. Getting shot makes for a good day, long as you don’t die. Firefly RimWorld Cowboy Bebop Star Kingdoms Hard sci-fi, harder realpolitik. Two great powers, and a multitude of smaller independent systems form an ever-growing web of influence, power, and wealth that stretches between humanity’s distant systems. Elite Dangerous Generic Space Opera Honorverse Legend of the Galactic Heroes A Bold Peace Diverse species banded together to form the Alliance Council to expel an external threat, and promote peace between themselves. But all great works are opposed, and do not come to pass without difficulty. FTL Star Trek Mass Effect Stellaris Andromeda (DNE) 8. Heroes and Villains Exceptional men and women tend to fall or rise to their capabilities. Inevitably, those who pursue selfish ends at the expense of others are opposed by the defenders of the innocent. Refractions. Battle of Wits The game is afoot, the prize is pride, the rules are subject to interpretation, and the players are two of the most brilliant minds the world has ever seen. In the end, there can only be one victor, lamenting his success. Arsene Lupin Sherlock Holmes Investigation Appropriate Measures In early 19XX, a man walked into a diner and exploded. He continued to explode, and was unable to stop. Perhaps with a gentler introduction to those with special abilities, things would be different. Perhaps not. Aberrant Infamous Push Shadow Ops Tarnished Age When the novelty of caped crusaders wears off, what remains is a jaded and cynical reminder of how dreams cannot survive the light of day. Even when they have powers, people are people – fallible, flawed, and fickle. Worm Soon I Will Be Invincible Venture Brothers The Boys (DNE) Capes & Spandex Anyone can be a hero, but it turns out more people want to be villains. Either way, most just play cops and robbers, with pranks and minor heists. But there are rules, and crises can prompt even nemeses to team up. DC Marvel The Free Universe Incredibles Dire (DNE) 9. It’s the End of the World There are lots of ways it could go. Explore worlds where civilization has collapsed. Refractions. Vigor Mortis A bacterium that behaves like a rapidly mutating virus, seemingly capable of communicating with itself. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out, you get a zombie apocalypse in a world unprepared for one. Dead Rising/Left4Dead Resident Evil Generic Zombie Apocalypse Highschool of the Dead Wastrels Where the hell did the leather-club-cannibals get cars? I mean, who keeps them running? Where are they getting fuel, ammo, and materials? I wasn’t aware a bloodsport-based society could support engineers. Crossout Fallout Mad Max Zoned Around the globe, there are areas where the laws of physics and biology have started to go a bit wonky. A quarantine was established, the people there are cut off from the world, and left to fend for themselves. Metro 2033 STALKER The Division 10. The Long War Man is the facilitator of the ultimate expression of violence: war. Only one species wages war. Certainly, we seem to have made the killing of our own species something of a goal. Stable. Amid the Tumult Artillery pounds the trenches, infantry slogs through corpse-strewn mud, planes roar overhead, and rear command wants another useless charge at enemy lines, through the blood-soaked hell of the battlefield. Generation Kill Inglourius Basterds Platoon WW2 (WIP) An Evolution of Conflict Not content with the methods of dealing death at their disposal, the powers of the world have reached beyond their grasp to create new ways of waging war against one another. New machines. New humans. G.I. Joe Ace Combat Red Alert Wolfenstein Bitter Means It can be said mankind is uniquely suited to war. Abandoned, exploited, and oppressed, colonies have struggled to achieve independence, and now have the strength to bring war against their former overlords – and each other. Killzone Red Faction Armored Core Titanfall Titanomachy Mankind has finally colonized the solar system, and expanded beyond it, to the nearest star systems. Long ago, colony ships traveled there, and now tensions rise about just who controls these distant planets. Battletech Infinity Star Sector (DNE) Bitter Ends The squabbles that tore systems apart have come to a close, and not through peace. Humanity’s disparate factions are cut off, but the violence they inspired continues in the ruins of a prize nobody could claim. Gone With The Blastwave Generic Post Apocalypse 11. Magical Realms A variety of fantastic worlds. No Man’s Land A world where nine women are born for every man. Families flourish or die based on the choice of husband shared among a generation of sisters. Men without family are often stolen, or sold to disease-rife brothels. A Brother’s Price Otoyomegatari Borderline Adventurous On the outskirts of civilization, when ancient ruins are discovered, the undead rise, or forgotten beasts roused, only adventurers experienced with dealing with the unexpected dangers of the frontier will suffice. Goblin Slayer Pathfinder (WIP) D&D Dwarf Fortress Dragon’s Gate The world in the aftermath of the legendary Dragon War is not as nice as it once was. Bandits wander the countryside, clerics fly on pegasi, dark mages study ancient evils, corrupt kings plot, and twisted fiends rise. Slayers Dragon Half Elibe, Tellius, Archanea, Valentia Idyll Skies Above a ruined wasteland, the living world drifts among endless clouds. Nations vie for crystallized power, monsters and spirits swoop between flying ships, and growing storms threaten the peaceful calm. Skies of Arcadia Storm Hawks Bastion Granblue Fantasy (WIP) Stranger Wakes The Beyond impinges on the realm of mortal beings, fate is fraying as nightmares slip across. Some exploit the Caul’s weakening, while others seek to mitigate the effects, prevent further damage, or repair the world. Divinity Original Sin Dragon Age Kingdoms of Amalur The Elder Scrolls 12. Military Fantasy Conflict on a massive scale is the main attraction in these worlds. Not your average medieval bloodbath, the supernatural elements liven up otherwise drab and boring warscapes. Refractions. Inheritors of Steel & Fire Mankind has always waged war, and some say that war has never changed. One could certainly make the argument that war can be very different. For example, should magic be introduced to the battlefield... A Song of Ice and Fire Mount and Blade Black Company (DNE) Draco Atlantis The American continents look quite different: five large landmasses, only three of which are home to indigenous tribes. Four of these large islands, however, are home to flying, intelligent dragons. Turtledove Atlantis Europa Universalis Temeraire Dinotopia Show of Fantastic Force The cold war has been going on so long, no one is sure how it started. But these new designs for airships, mechanized infantry and cavalry, artillery, and submersibles promise an end to intermittent skirmishes. Last Exile Valkyria Chronicles Ring of Red 1920+/Scythe/Iron Harvest (DNE) Pro Forma Ars Magica Bellum The general who can most effectively make use of alchemy, scrying, illusion, and curses can make irrelevant all mortal forces an enemy fields against him. This is why mages are a nation’s most precious war resource. Full Metal Alchemist Youjo Senki Strike Witches (War Scenario) Witches and Inquisition (CYOA) Izetta: The Last Witch (DNE) A River of Commerce (DNE) Winged Fusiliers (DNE) Grand Chorus In the Weaving, renegades sang a dissonance into being – the misfortune of the world. Repeating motifs and refrains can sometimes be expressed or taken advantage of, by those who are a part of reality’s melody. Narnia Lord Of The Rings/Silmarillion In Nomine A Practical Guide to Evil 13. Ochasen Generations ago, the Emperor’s Jade Tea fields were turned to ash, and the fire consumed his court as well. Strange myths and legends were drawn to the land, drawn by the bloodletting. Stable. Honor’s Edge A people soaked in blood tries to remember peace, to recover, and forget the ravages of war. However, swords that shed blood are not so easily sheathed, and the end of an era is rarely without difficulties. Katanagatari Rurouni Kenshin Samurai Deeper Kyo Legend of the Five Rings (DNE) Theatre of War Legends appear as war resumes: hidden villages, superhuman ronin, nature kami, youkai trickery, and the ever-shifting political landscape of scented silks and carefully-applied cosmetics mirrors battlefield’s state. Basilisk Kamigawa Mononokehime Renjou Desperado (DNE) Religious Racket In something resembling the modern world, the supernatural has lost importance in daily life. Starved for belief, many less savory yokai must rely on underhanded methods to make ends meet, or meet their end. Mob Touhou Godfather (DNE) Yakuza (DNE) 14. Political Extremes Man is a political animal, but that doesn’t mean politics always benefits mankind. Refractions. A Softer World Mankind remains in enclaves of hyper-advanced technology, small oasis of paradise in an otherwise intensely inhospitable ecological disaster zone. Peace is enforced through the ever-present algorithm. Demolition Man Wall-E Idiocracy (DNE) Monument to Ruin When sophomoric socio-political armchair philosophy, made possible by a collapse of the status quo, and established through advanced technology, meets base urges of mankind, the result is a fragile dystopia. Generic Dystopia Hunger Games Leviathan Manifest As strong as the desire for freedom, there’s something in the human psyche that cries out for an unassailable authority, cold, cruel, demanding obedience. Bureaucracy at it’s best – and worst. The State. 1984 V for Vendetta Equilibrium 15. Refuge in the Mundane Sometimes, two worlds are close enough that a bridge, or tunnel, can form between them – naturally, or with a little help. Stranded, stray, or desperate refugees are the result. Stable. Comfy Modern Fantasy Life There is another, more fantastical world, that sits adjacent to our own. Sometimes, beings can slip from one to another, where they face challenges they are not prepared for. Like trans-fats, sales days, and a 9-to-5. Koboyashi’s Dragon Maid Senko-San Elf-San Wa Yaserarenai The Ostian Empire Knocks In Yurivka, Ukraine, a magical legion established a foothold. Hours later, Ffawyddog, Wales was occupied. Dozens of portals formed. Few held against Earth’s military, most collapsed, and a handful were captured. Gate: Thus the JSDF was Wanked Rome Stargate Another Day At The Office Mana spontaneously spawns monsters, warps spaces, and alters items in unpredictable ways. People start getting powers, and adventurer groups arise. Politics and overtime ensue. Business as usual. It's Always Sunny+Sitcom/Comedy Nine to Five Tokyo Souls /k/ Fantasy (DNE) The Daily Grind (DNE) Fairy Punk A fantastic techno-dystopia awaits within a rainy, neon-lit jungle of concrete and corporate backstabbing. There’s just more to watch out for. Like troll hacker-wizards, mohawked goblins, and pixie street samurai. Artemis Fowl Shadowrun GURPS Technomancer 16. Silver Bullets Mankind has long faced monsters from the darkness. They hunt, and kill, and slip away again. Remind us of our mortality. But sometimes we remind them that they too, can bleed. Stable. Mordant In tiny hamlets off the major roads, in the twisting alleys of crowded cities, in the ruins of ancient castles – they lie in wait, twisted and deadly reminders of how close humanity dwells to the shadow of damnation. Van Hellsing Penny Dreadful Dust and Nightmares West of the Mississippi is a land of tall-tales and possibility. Maybe it’s the curse laid down during the Indian Wars, but things are a bit queer. You might see goat-suckers, jackalopes, or undead cowboys. Generic Western Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare WeirdWildWest Extranormal Forces When there’s a ghost in your graveyard, a witch in your woods, vampires in your abandoned mine, you call the government. They have people – not all of the exactly human, mind – who deal with this sort of thing. F.E.A.R. GURPS Monster Hunter Hellboy To War With Hell The afterlife, or something very like it, is real. And it’s not the good place. Perhaps the collective unconscious of the human race, the source or result of all human suffering, now infringes upon the material world. Doom Hellgate: London 17. Space Opera Countless worlds, intricately connected, filled with mysticism and technology. There may be a lasting peace, or a universe embroiled in war, but it’s a great and overwhelming stage. Refractions. Across the Sands, Thunder An emergency stop for religious colonists on a colony ship results in the terraforming of an unlikely desert planet, interrupted by the interacting magnetic fields of the binary star system and the planet. Dune Trigun Red Dead Redemption Generic Western Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Ad Vance The Vance Ring can be seen from anywhere. It stretches across the sky, and elevators spring upwards towards the sky, and to abandoned miracles. To ascend the ring is to seek: for power, answers, or hope. Destiny Phantasy Star Online Xenoblade Suited to the Task Dimensional pirates, slavers, self-replicating killbots, mutated alien beasties – unique situations are always cropping up that the federation isn’t equipped to handle. So they outsource the job to someone with a suit. Warframe Mass Effect Metroid Cryptark Space Fantasy If there is no greater force at work, why do the galaxies turn? How can anyone believe in nothing, when the universe bursts with life? It is both tragic and glorious that violence and peace are necessary and inevitable. Farscape Star Wars Riddick 18. Treasure Hunter Treasure maps, adventure in exotic locations, legendary struggles in forgotten places. Stable. Yo-Ho Adventure Before the universe was mapped, in the age of sail and compass, the world was bigger than it is today. In the corners where civilization hadn’t yet reached, anything could be found. If one looked hard enough. Road to El Dorado Pirates of the Caribbean Uncharted Waters The Mysterious Cities of Gold High-Stakes Archaeology There’s always an adventure, if you’re willing to look for one. Treasure, monsters, even magic – out there, waiting for the right kind of person, one who scoffs at ordinary life, and seeks grandeur over the horizon. Indiana Jones Mummy Trilogy Tomb Raider Sailing the Black Sea Weigh the grav-anchor and raise the solar sail! If you’re on this space ship, you’re seeking booty of one kind or another, and won’t stop ‘till you’ve found it, or you’re dead! I hope you know how to fire a laser canon! Outlaw Star Space Pirate Captain Harlock Treasure Planet Space Patrol FLCL 19. Veils & Masquerades At first glance, these worlds look like the average 20th Century Earth, but hidden behind the curtain of normalcy is something stranger. Slipping the veil can change or destroy a person. Refractions. Hidden Things It’s not that the government is out to get you, specifically, man, it’s just part of a machine, you know? There’s all this stuff happening that’s bigger than you or me, and if we get in the way, we go splat. Conspiracy Theorist Stranger Things SCP Cabin in the Woods Bump in the Night There is Good, and there is Evil, and long have they been at war. Every man chooses, every day, with every action, which side he’s fighting for. It’s unfortunate that Evil has so many more champions than Good. Evil Dead Dead By Daylight Horror Movies Carpe Noctem Beneath the world we know, if you scratch the surface, you’ll find blood. Blood on teeth, flashing in the strobe of the club, shining in a neon pool. They fight over us, over the right to rule from the shadows. Blade Twilight Underworld Vampire: The Masquerade/Bloodlines Unearthly Threats Behind the veil, monsters wait in lonely corners of the world. They crawl from civilization’s cracks, and strike from the shadows. Most survivors misremember events. But not all. Some recall. A rare few hunt. Buffy Supernatural World of Darkness (Mortal) 20. Xenocide The Uncanny Valley is an instinctual response humans have to things that are not quite right. What evolutionary pressures could possibly promote such a trait? Stable. Open Season Most alien abductees don’t get to go home. They go to the park – one of many worlds the hunters stock with life forms from across the galaxy, for the purpose of creating training challenges or vacation getaways. Aliens vs Predator Carnivores Jurassic Park Predator They Walk Among Us Sneaky gray fucks think they’re going to subvert thousands of years of humans being absolute fucking units? They’re in for a rude awaking… or they would be, if they weren’t so fucking great at what they do. Shit. They Live Animorphs Generic Alien Invasion Invaders Must Die We are not alone, but the stars are not as peaceful as we’d hoped. Humanity is going to be dragged into a war they are horrifically unprepared for, one way or another. One with the species’ survival at stake. X-Com Legacy of the Aldenata Generic Alien Invasion Extinction Wars Apparently, the most successful strategy for a species is one of preemptive annihilation. We must be as ugly to them as they are to us, because nearly every single goddamn alien out there wants to kill us dead. Halo Starship Troopers Starcraft: Terran Warhammer 40K Guardsmen? NotesNotes
Coming Soon Working through each world, writing up complete descriptions, listing Challenges, Themes, and Motifs.
Changelog 0.9.1 1/4/19 Can’t believe I forgot Vigor Mortis. Added a changelog. 0.9.2 1/10/19 Moved some merges to unlisted. Added some jumps to existing merges. Got the list down to 55. 0.9.3 1/14/19 Realized I don’t have to worry about power levels since I’m going to be filtering everything through GURPS pts conversion anyway. 1.0.1 3/12/19 99 Merges and 1 Free Choice. Swapped out a few merges, split Capes and Spandex, added a few DNEs. Alphabetized. 1.0.2 3/31/19 Removed, renamed, replaced some merges. Made some sequences out of related refraction merges. Reshuffled space jumps too many times. Changed “Anachronism” to “Other”, “Refraction” to “Altered”. Full Roster! 1.0.3 6/27/19 Massive rearrangement. 1.0.4 8/1/19 Another round of pruning, re-arranging, re-naming, aaand down to 20. MoreMore WorldsWorlds As sets of worlds are completed, they may be cycled out for stranger, higher powered options.
As Above, So Below Refractions where good and evil fight in high-powered crazy badass grudge matches held on earth.
Remnants Ecumenical The old gods have largely left the mortal realm to their ignorant by-blows and the descendants of their chosen. Scions of power, inheritors of their forebears’ portfolios, and demigods adrift in a world of mortals. Percy Jackson American Gods Saint Young Men Constantine Heaven or Hell, Let’s Rock The gates are creaking open to the sound of breaking seals. The realms above and below the mortal plane are beginning to converge – to the detriment of the world caught in between. God Hand Devil May Cry Shin Megami Tensei Bayonetta Disgaea? Eschaton De-Immenatized God is missing from His throne, and His agents seem to be working at cross-purposes. Angels and Daemons, and the Devil Himself stalk these worlds, and it’s impossible to know who to trust with your soul. Unsong We Know The Devil His Dark Materials Chick Tracts Inner Limits Stable series where collective subconscious leaks through into the real world. Liminal There are cracks between life and death, dream and reality, that people – or even places – can fall through. On the other side is danger, but also the promise of closure, or maybe something like enlightenment. American McGee’s Alice Limbo Silent Hill DRYH (DNE) Trump Arcana The world is getting more bizarre every passing day, ideas and dreams dripping through cracks in reality. Concepts become tangible things, can be interacted with, and influence the world directly… for some. Persona Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures Cardcaptor Sakura Mahou no Mazoku From the darkness of the human heart crawl dreadful monsters that seek only to create suffering. But to oppose these vile embodiments of evil, one force will never waver in protecting the innocent! Transform~! Madoka Magical Girl Noir Sailor Moon Generic Magical Girl Endgame Refractions of worlds where going full deity is an option. Godbound A Shaman connects a People to the Gods. Through the Gods, a People flourish. When a People go to war, so do their Gods. When their Gods are pleased, life is good. When Gods are angered, the People suffer. So it is. Greek Myth Is It Wrong To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon Primal Rage Spice and Wolf Climb The Tower The tower is the world. Within each floor, a guardian resides – watching, ruling, and testing those who would ascend. Those who rise are blessed with power in accordance to the heights they have scaled. Aion Exalted Tower of God Jagannath’s Door Countless worlds, tethered to one another by marvelous gates, each teeming with human chattel, and ruled by gods reborn in an apotheosis of miraculous technology indistinguishable from dream or magic. New Gods/Fourth World Stargate Questant Regalia The Throne of Heaven is empty. God is dead, the Angelic Host is splintered, the Demonic Forces scattered. But the Gates remain, connecting over a thousand worlds under the dominion of the Demiurges. K6BD SBURB Traveler’s Gate Godbound (DNE)? UnderUnder ConsiderationConsideration
Knights’ Code Duello “Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history than has any other factor [...]” In this world, duels (rarely lethal) are the de-facto way of ending disputes, deciding business deals and questions of honor. Dodgeball Kengan Asura Girls Und Panzer (Girls und Blade) Sports Jump (Fencing, Kendo, and HEMA) Ready? Fight! Ritualized combat goes beyond entertainment, sport, or ways of settling disputes. Spilling blood, some say, is intrinsic to human nature. And it makes sense that humans have turned it into an art, worthy in itself. Dead or Alive Generic Fighting Game Mortal Kombat Street Fighter Lesbian Gems from Beyond Terra Dinosaurs, martial artists, animal-people, flying cars, androids, and omnicidal fascist alien rocks with a new, if initially distasteful, source of power in the form of one pathetic little planet’s inhabitants. DBZ Stephen Universe Higher Learning The Lyceum has many factions, some of which work at cross-purposes. But rarely fully against one another. For should they fall, none could stop the ever-waiting wilds beyond the Divide from overtaking the world. Gunnerkrigg Court A Certain Scientific Railgun? A Certain Magical Index? Animal Kingdoms In the great woods, there are many animals – some are peaceable creatures, who tend their farms, and fill their days with merriment and frivolty. Others are opportunistic omnivores, or obligate carnivores. Redwall Zootopia Root Guardians of Gahoole? The Warriors? Mouseguard (DNE) Meals on Wheels A long time ago, a sickness spread across the land, which became full of terrible creatures. Now, humanity carefully expands, carving out safe areas. Between enclaves, a system of tracks ensures safe travel... Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress SSSS (DNE) Fantasy Quest Dragons, elves, dwarves, wizards, and a host of other generic fantasy tropes and cliches wandering around. There aren’t “adventurers”, but many are convinced they’re on a mission from god to stop some terrible evil. Dragonlance Forgotten Realms Neverwinter Nights Baldur’s Gate Dungeons & Delvers Within the mountain caves, floating high in the sky, and beneath the waves, hide mysterious places where monsters, traps, and magic accumulate in shifting walls. There are riches to be found, but danger also. Generic Dungeon Crawl Etrian Odyssey GURPS Dungeon Fantasy Zendikar Racettear? Dungeon Meshi (DNE) Quest for Deliverance One ancient evil, one destined hero, McGuffins to taste. Mix well, stirring in obstacles and puzzles until properly challenged. Garnish with comedic relief and love interest, serve over threat of eternal darkness. Bravely Default Dark Cloud Deltora Quest Legend of Zelda Fabled Coronation Not all princes are charming, dragons evil, witches cackly, and princesses beautiful. Some, sure. But most? This world will surprise, fulfill and subvert expectations. Just remember, the older fairytales aren’t so nice. Disney Princess Princess Bride Shrek Legend of Neil Love is a Battlefield Soft Exit Humanity is in slow but evident decline, the world is increasingly dreamlike, and strange things (both events and beings) that defy explanation are increasingly common. But it’s okay, the golden sunset’s glow is comfy. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita Golden Sky Stories Maintenance Engineer You have a goddamn engineering degree, but you’re a glorified space janitor. You should be r- what’s that? Is that the quarantine alarm? Shit! “Exciting opportunities aboard an experimental science station” my ass! Alien Dead Space Prey Space Station 13 Viscera Cleanup (Space) Stranded, But Not Alone Experimental ship crash-lands on an alien biosphere. What’s the worst that could happen? Well, for starters, you could get pregnant with alien symbiotes that can’t quite into human psychology or physiology. James Cameron’s Avatar Lost Planet Venom/Spider Man Ultimate Symbiote Restless Spirits When people die, their souls usually depart to the afterlife. But some need help moving on: those trapped by something left unfinished, powerful spirits who choose to stay, and evil spirits that torment the living. Bleach Danny Phantom Shaman King Soul Eater Genetic Algorithm The robots have won. Most human beings are now born and die in vast neural networks, living in fugue states, submerged in syrupy dream pods. Most humans. Rogue AI shepherd and protect a few free humans. Neir: Automata The Matrix Cryogenic Cyborg CYOA Machine Life It came from outer space. The nanoplague infected machines, changed them, and brought them to life. Some are friendly to humans, but many are not. They could be anything, anywhere, and we’d never know until it- Transformers Horizon Zero Dawn (DNE) Machine Apotheosis (DNE) C⊕ Si Two forms of life are mathematically incapable of sustained coexistence. No steady-state solution exists for the differential equation describing the relationship between Silicon and Carbon life. I’m sorry. Goodbye. BLAME Biomega Bio Apocalypse Abyss Beneath Deep, deep within the bedrock bones of the world, there is more to be found than darkness and claustrophobic terror. There is wonder, and conflict, and monsters, and even civilization of a sort. Avernum Distant Sky Underdark (WIP, ?) Catacombs CYOA ??? ??? How Not To Summon a Demon Lord Demons of Astlan