Author Topic: Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.  (Read 2328 times)

OkashiiKisei

  • Still working on the Grimoire
  • It's all about devotion
Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.
« on: October 04, 2010, 06:00:26 PM »
Welp, since the abandoned outlines thread is too old I figured I should make a new thread for this story/text adventure concept here. I've been fiddling around with this idea for a long time, but I'm just not capable of executing it properly. It is too big and tough for a beginner like me. Still, I would like this idea to get off the ground and become a good story. Thus, I hope someone with true skill and talent will use this concept and create a wonderful fic with it. Of course, you are all free to adjust the outline. I would be happy to just see it completed in some shape or form.

This is once again a MotK story. However, it has a special setting...

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The story is set far into the future. Humanity, despite many hardships in the past, has developed into a quite nice civilization. Infinite energy, clean environment, not much conflict, high-tech stuff galore, all ethnic races have become one single race etc. In short: the world isn't that much of a shit hole anymore.
However, that doesn't mean humans aren't prone to mistakes anymore.
Cue the invention of magic. With this mysterious force humanity seeks to achieve new states of development and evolution far beyond man's dreams. Unfortunately, humans aren't that good with using magic.  Sure, they can implement it into machinery to some degree (Magi-Tech), but the human body itself can't properly wield magic. A simple healing spell is already a chore for humans. Any attempts at forcing the human body to use magic to a greater extent have ended in rather gruesome results. Therefore humans have sought a vessel that can use magic properly on its own without the aid of machinery.
After many failed attempts humans finally managed to create beings that can use magic to a great degree: homunculi. With these artificial beings humans hoped they could finally access the true potential of magic.

But that didn't turn out as well as they hoped.

Humans started to treat homunculi too much as slaves and tools, abusing the poor sods. The homunculi, being fully sentient and humanoid, couldn't take this abuse anymore and rebelled against humanity, sparking a war. The conflict eventually caused the two species to live apart from each other, still planning the destruction of the other species. Humans still resided in their semi-utopias with magi-tech at hand, while homunculi formed their own sanctuaries to hide in, or just hid themselves deep underneath the human cities. During the conflict another problem arose: due to magical warfare a large amount of Consum (artificial livestock developed to end world hunger) have mutated into destructive beasts, their attacks spreading the infection more and more over other organisms. These beasts (I have no official name for them yet) prove to be great threats to both humans and homunculi. The once peaceful planet seems to heading for dark ages yet again.

Humans, while having the upper-hand at first, are slowly but surely having more trouble with dealing with the homunculi and monsters. They can't keep up with the power and fast reproduction of the other two species. Therefore, humans began to develop a successor to the homunculi. A superior version that does stay loyal and have enough power to subdue the homunculi and monsters. Eventually humans managed to create this new species, formed from a hybrid material with organic, mechanic and magical characteristics.

These biological androids are called Magical Artificial Intelligence Devices. M.A.I.D. for short (TITLE DROP).

The MAIDs are far superior in magical power than the homunculi, being capable of truly reaching the full potential of magic, and their bodies are very strong and durable, despite the fact they all look like lolis and teen-girls, with a few young adult women too. They battle and operate in a way similar to Nanoha Strikers, with a heavy dose of Touhou mixed into it. However, their sheer power comes at the price of their mental capabilities. To make sure the MAIDs will stay loyal to humans and won't rebel like the homuculi they have been given limited sentience. Sure, they can think, dream and are intelligent, but they do absolutely everything their creators say and wouldn't dare disobey them. Because they follow orders as strictly as possible they won't do anything beyond what is told to them. Example: if they are told to eradicate all the homunculi in a given area, they do just that, but they won't pay attention to how much damage they do to the area and won't bother saving any humans that happened to be kidnapped or got in trouble along the way, just because they only do what they are exactly told. Thus the MAIDs need strict surveillance in battle via radio-contact and their missions need to be described very carefully to them. They don't think about whether or not their objectives and actions are morally correct or not. They just do what they are told, like loyal servants.
However, it seems like certain MAIDs are starting to go through mental development, and may very well build an actual conscience. The possibility of the MAIDs growing complete sentience and going maverick is becoming more and more likely...

Just what are MAIDs: (wo)man or machine? Will the MAIDs go down the same path as homunculi, or will they find a way to bring an end to this war?

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Welp, that is the setting. As you probably guessed: our Ijis and other Touhou personae are the titular MAIDs. The story would follow a particular MAID that obtained complete sentience via a glitch in her creation, and will thus start to question the actions of humans and her fellow MAIDs. I couldn't really decide who the main character and the members of her squadron would be, and how I can properly show the difference between the sentient MAIDs and the 'robotic' MAIDs without potentially insulting the person on whom the character is based off of. One possible main character could be
Spoiler:
Fate
Spoiler:
, the reason for her creation being an attempt to create an artificial goddess. However, during her creation the data transfer glitched, causing her to not get a limiter on her sentience. However, it also causes her to miss out on vital information about her world and her powers. Now she doesn't know how to access her vast powers, so she is put in a MAID squadron in hopes that battle experience and magic practice will unlock her might. In the end it would be up to her to end this war.
However, you are all free to decide who the main cast will be.

I truly hope you all like the concept, and that someone will try and do something with this idea. If you all end up not liking the idea at all then I'll excuse myself for the stupid concept.
« Last Edit: October 04, 2010, 09:14:16 PM by OkashiiKisei »

Esifex

  • Though the sun may set
  • *
  • It shall rise again
Re: Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.
« Reply #1 on: October 04, 2010, 06:10:34 PM »
That's actually pretty cool.

Unfortunately, the concept requires that someone has a lot of inside info on just who and what all the Iji/MotK personalities are like.

Sure, I can write up a Librarian piece, but once Iji gets factored in, I'm a fish out of water.

OkashiiKisei

  • Still working on the Grimoire
  • It's all about devotion
Re: Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.
« Reply #2 on: October 04, 2010, 09:13:09 PM »
That's actually pretty cool.

Unfortunately, the concept requires that someone has a lot of inside info on just who and what all the Iji/MotK personalities are like.

Sure, I can write up a Librarian piece, but once Iji gets factored in, I'm a fish out of water.

Glad you like the concept~

Well, you could, in theory, use only the Librarians as main characters and let the rest be self-made MAIDs, but it'd be more fun if many MotK'ers could be implemented into it. Still, I appreciate your initiative. :3

Esifex

  • Though the sun may set
  • *
  • It shall rise again
Re: Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.
« Reply #3 on: October 08, 2010, 10:59:26 AM »
I think I can do something with this, now that I've let the idea simmer in my head for a while.

:3

OkashiiKisei

  • Still working on the Grimoire
  • It's all about devotion
Re: Abandoned concept: M.A.I.D.
« Reply #4 on: October 10, 2010, 12:44:01 PM »
Goody goody gumdrops~ :3