If I had to explain, during the First Italo-Ethiopian War, the Empire of Italy had hoped Ethiopia was just a simple band of tribes.

Ethiopia was one of the few African states that wasn't colonized by Europeans, and it had a very long history, they even partook in the Crusades. However, the only country that recognized Ethiopia was the Russian Empire because both groups were Orthodox Christians.

Emperor Menelik II called for aid from Russia, and the Empire funded them with weapons far more advanced than the Italian military was using.

That, plus superior numbers and incompetence from the Italian military, allowed Menelik to lead a major victory against the Italians. Ethiopia was the only African country to repel colonial forces during the Scramble for Africa.

Fascist Italy colonized Ethiopia, but this occupation didn't last long as WW2 led to the Axis defeat.

This is part of my setting, Latoria, which was discovered by the US, which attempted to colonize it.

I like to think that after the Avalonian Wars, which were a series of conflicts between the US and multiple indigenous factions in Latoria, other countries would try to develop their own portals to try and colonize "Avalon" for themselves. This was the Portal Wars era, where the Earth nations would try to carve out territories across the moon world and establish communications with the indigenous people. This is one of those conflicts that emerged.

The Sino-Elf War (2039 - 2041)

The years following the Avalonian Wars marked the beginning of a new geopolitical era on Earth. The destruction unleashed by the United States in Latoria had horrified the global public, but among governments and military planners, the reaction was far more complicated. While newspapers condemned the atrocities and international courts debated the legality of interdimensional warfare, military analysts around the world focused on a different lesson entirely: the existence of Latoria had changed the balance of civilization forever.

As the United States descended into political scandal following the exposure of the Avalonian Genocide, other nations accelerated portal research programs in secret. China became one of the most aggressive participants in this new race.

To the Chinese state, the discovery of Latoria represented a once-in-history opportunity. The Communist Party viewed dimensional expansion not only as a scientific achievement but as a chance to secure strategic resources, economic supremacy, and global prestige. Chinese officials repeatedly insisted they would not repeat the mistakes of the Americans... they were lying.

The Sino-Elf War was a conflict between the People's Republic of China and the Empire of Valindor. When trade negotiations led to border disputes, which then led to outright war, the Chinese hoped they could either annex the Empire as a protectorate or install a Chinese-friendly monarch for better trade agreements. Meanwhile, the Valinese High Elves found themselves once again at the opposite end of conquest/colonialism.

Tankies and apologists of China will claim that the Chinese could use total war tactics, but chose instead to accept defeat out of mercy and kindness, but the truth was... not even close to that.

GATE-14A

In February of 2038, after years of classified experimentation, Chinese scientists successfully stabilized GATE-14A beneath a military-industrial facility in Qinghai Province. The project combined reverse-engineered American portal research with independent advances in quantum resonance and thaumic field stabilization. The original portal that led to the discovery of Latoria was created by pure accident; as such, it was crude and unstable. Later designs would modify it for better transport. Similarly, GATE-14A was designed for permanence. Entire convoys could move through it continuously. Troops, vehicles, industrial equipment, and prefabricated infrastructure flowed into Latoria within weeks of activation.

The portal opened in western Illora, a continent radically different from Autonomia in both geography and political organization. Rather than fractured resistance groups or isolated tribal territories, the Chinese encountered fortified borders, organized patrols, taxation stations, and state-controlled infrastructure. Western Illora was firmly under the influence of the Empire of Valindor, one of Latoria’s most powerful and centralized nations.

Valindor

The continent of Illora was the original homeland of the Elves; here, many Elven races developed all with distinctive tribes, nations, and empires. The most populous being the Dwarves and High Elves, who ruled as the majority populations in various kingdoms. The most prominent of the High Elf states was Valindor.

The Empire of Valindor was one of the great powers of Latoria. It was ancient, bureaucratic, militaristic, and highly organized. Its society combined imperial aristocracy with magical industrialization, maintaining standing armies, formal academies of magic, complex taxation systems, and heavily fortified frontier territories.

The Empire had directly participated in the Avalonian Wars against the United States. High Elves in the thousands fought and gave their lives to protect their land from the demon incursion. But, pay no respects, Valindor fought not out of altruism but self-preservation and the promise of increased territory. Valinese battlemages, strategists, and officers had studied American military doctrine for years. The Valinese already understood what Earth militaries were capable of..

The Chinese did not fully understand what the Valinese were capable of.

Year of the Glass Tables

For nearly a year after first contact, relations between China and Valindor remained tense but peaceful. Diplomats on both sides genuinely attempted cooperation. Chinese envoys brought:

• medical technology,
• communications equipment,
• engineering expertise,
• industrial manufacturing techniques.

The Valinese offered:

• enchanted alloys,
• thaumic agricultural systems,
• magical healing practices,
• arcane scholarship.

Both civilizations quickly became fascinated by one another.

Chinese researchers became obsessed with the scientific implications of magic. Many within the CCP believed thaumaturgy could revolutionize industry, energy production, and military technology. Some planners claimed magic represented “the next industrial revolution.” Meanwhile, many Valinese intellectuals admired Chinese discipline, engineering, and bureaucratic organization.

The effects of the Avalonian Wars didn't just change Earth, but Latoria herself. The US's campaigns had left entire regions destabilized, killed millions, and left massive power vacuums that many kingdoms and states jumped to grab.

Valindor was now stuck in a Cold War with their former allies, the United Sovereigns of Autonomia, both sides stuck in an arms race due to ideological differences. The Valinese hoped this alliance with China would give them a push to help outcompete against the Sovereigns, who had a headstart when confiscating as many guns and machinary as possible.

But Valindor's courts and feudal houses were divided on two sides. One side claimed they needed to open trade with the Chinese to advance their technology, but others still haven't forgotten old wounds.

The Avalonian Genocide brought war and death on a scale no nation in Latoria had ever seen. Memorials were made in honor of the death with so many names that they've covered the floor. Many in Valindor, and in various parts of Latoria, saw Earth people as nothing more than demons who wanted to kill everything they saw.

Even those who favored diplomacy feared that China might eventually attempt to dominate Illora economically before moving toward military annexation. Ironically, many people back on Earth all feared the Latorians would try the same thing.

Increased tensions

As negotiations continued, China quietly expanded relations with anti-Valinese Dwarf kingdoms throughout western Illora. These kingdoms had long resented Imperial dominance over regional trade and mining rights. Chinese diplomats exploited these tensions carefully, offering:

• industrial equipment,
• firearms,
• mining machinery,
• infrastructure support,
• modern medicine

From the Chinese perspective, these alliances were practical and defensive. If relations with Valindor deteriorated, local allies would be necessary.

To the Valinese Court, however, the alliances looked increasingly threatening. Many Regents interpreted Chinese diplomacy as a slow encirclement strategy designed to isolate the Empire economically and politically before eventual subjugation.

This growing distrust poisoned negotiations even while both sides continued publicly advocating peace.

Controlled Escalation

The Empire decided to sign a treaty that gave the Chinese extraction and settlement rights in specific zones, with the main rule being that they couldn't go beyond the border. They had hoped that by doing this, they would quell tensions with the Chinese and give them access to the technology... This failed.

Chinese corporations had begun expanding beyond agreed extraction zones, particularly near the sacred forests of Silvergrove. Local Valinese populations became furious. Imperial authorities demanded immediate withdrawal from unauthorized territories.

Chinese corporations refused, often delaying compliance while claiming bureaucratic misunderstandings or logistical necessity. Soon, Imperial soldiers were dispatched directly to dismantle illegal extraction facilities and evict personnel.

At the same time, PLA troops were ordered to defend those facilities. Neither side, however, was allowed to start a war. This led to some of the most absurd military confrontations in modern history.

Imperial troops were ordered to get the Chinese off their land by any means necessary, but they were forbidden from outright fighting or hurting them. Chinese soldiers were ordered to protect the sites to the best of their ability, but not to do anything that could be a diplomatic nightmare (ex, shooting, stabbing, punching, literally anything involving self-defense).

Valinese troops would physically attempt to remove workers from extraction sites while PLA soldiers formed barricades around them. Imperial officers ordered settlers expelled, while Chinese personnel refused to comply. At several facilities, Valinese soldiers literally dismantled pipelines by hand while Chinese engineers attempted to rebuild them simultaneously.

Silvergrove Incident

Imperial authorities dispatched a heavily reinforced detachment into Silvergrove Woods to dismantle several unauthorized Chinese extraction sites permanently. PLA forces established defensive positions around the facilities and refused entry.

For hours, soldiers on both sides attempted to avoid violence while physically confronting one another. Then someone fired. No one ever determined who shot first.

Some accounts blamed a nervous Chinese conscript during a struggle. Others claimed a Valinese archer released an arrow prematurely after mistaking a movement for hostile intent. The result was immediate catastrophe.

Within seconds, Silvergrove Woods erupted into total warfare. Chinese automatic weapons tore through Imperial formations, chasing the High Elves out of the woods. Within a week, both governments formally declared war.

The Chinese Offensive

The opening phase of the war strongly favored China. PLA doctrine emphasized overwhelming industrial superiority.

Initial campaigns devastated Valinese frontier defenses. Entire cavalry formations were annihilated by machine gun fire. Fortresses fell under coordinated artillery bombardment. Chinese commanders initially believed the Empire might collapse within months.

Many Chinese officers quietly assumed the Valinese would eventually suffer the same fate as countless technologically inferior forces throughout Earth's history.

But unlike those historical enemies, the Valinese adapted rapidly because they already understood modern warfare from the Avalonian Wars. They knew exactly what they were fighting.

The Valinese Counteroffensive

Valinese battlemages developed large-scale anti-technological warfare methods specifically designed to cripple Chinese military systems. Electromagnetic disruption spells destabilized communications and caused drones to malfunction unpredictably. Targeting systems failed during major offensives. Entire command structures collapsed because units could no longer coordinate effectively.

At the same time, Woodland Elf mages from Valindor's South Illoran and East Autonomian colonies transformed Illora itself into a weapon. Forests were physically shifted around by invading armies. Roads vanished overnight. Rivers changed course. Supply convoys disappeared inside, magically reshaping terrain.

Meanwhile, Valinese special operations units adopted many tactics first pioneered against the Americans during the Avalonian Wars.

Chinese casualties rose sharply. More importantly, the war stopped looking winnable.

Why the Chinese lost

China did not seek peace because it morally rejected genocide or imperial conquest as propaganda states. In fact, they were 100% willing to go that direction. In the occupied territories, they had interned many Elves and were planning scorched-earth or even genocidal tactics.

The Chinese chose peace because the Valinese were winning. Not necessarily through overwhelming battlefield victories, but through attrition, adaptation, and environmental warfare. The Empire had successfully leveled the technological playing field by destabilizing Chinese systems and forcing the PLA into prolonged asymmetrical conflict.

The PLA was heavily outnumbered, even with their Dwarven allies. Even if they attempted harsher methods, it would've led to more PLA casualties, increased budget spending, and they still would've lost.

Peace of Yishen

In June 2041, China and Valindor signed the Peace of Yishan.

The treaty established:

• regulated trade corridors,
• military withdrawal zones,
• scientific exchange agreements,
• and formal diplomatic recognition between the two powers.

China retained economic access to Illora.

Valindor retained sovereignty.

The war ended not because either side abandoned imperial ambition, but because both recognized that total victory had become more dangerous than compromise. Valindor was crowned the de facto winner.

That's all I have to say because I want to sleep now.

Overview

The Nether was not found by armies, but by curiosity. Around the year 600 AE, Redstonia philosophers and alchemists experimented with obsidian and energetic harmonics, trying to fold space itself. When a scholar named Aldren Vess ignited the obsidian, he tore open the first stable Nether Portal.

The world he glimpsed was alien yet familiar: gravity and air, yes, but bathed in crimson light. The ground shimmered with black basalt and dusts of gold. Streams of lava replaced rivers. Vess’s expedition returned basalt, glowing fungus, and ores that defied smelting.

News spread across the Overworld faster than ever before. By 610 AE, every major nation sought to light its own portal.
Exploration replaced warfare for a brief, golden moment. Many nations saw the Nether as a hotbed of exploration and wealth, but they didn't see the people who lived there.

The Nether was not empty: it was home to Piglin Kingdoms, Wither Lord fortresses, nomadic Lava-Ocean riders, and untold numbers of tribes. Each ruled their share of fire and gold long before the Overworld ever dreamed of portals.

Overworld Colonialism

Within twenty years, the Nether became the hottest location, a world within a world. Every nation wanted its slice. The Nether was rich in resources and prized trinkets; however, its greatest prize was travel. Traveling a few blocks in the Nether equated to many blocks in the Overworld, which made it key to travel, as now they could cross entire oceans in half a day's ride. Every nation wanted to map out the best portal routes for trade and power.

The Nether tribes and kingdoms wanted to exploit this by having toll booths and taxes in the form of a share of exports or opening trade with the Overworlders to access the portal routes.

Empire of Diamondia

Diamondia approached with military precision. Legions constructed fortified colonies near their portals, then pushed outward through the Basalt Wastes. When Piglin rulers demanded tolls on trade routes, the Empire answered by storming their legions forward. Entire bastions fell. From these ruins grew the Shogunate of the Nether, where Natives were forced into serfdom; however, they knew that the Nether Mobs outnumbered humans in their colony by 20:1, so they decided to be more lenient, giving Nether mobs more rights and even appointing Bathur Bay'ur, a Piglin Warlord, as Shogun of the Nether. The Shogunate became both colony and shield—a frontier forged in blood, controlling key highways of obsidian roads known as the Crimson Veins.

The Union of Minecraft

The Union began as traders. Their merchant houses—Forgefront, Sunspire, Amberline—built warehouses around stable portals and promised fair exchange: Redstone machines for Netherite and gold. But profit breeds empire. When rival Piglin clans quarreled, Union companies funded one against the other, then “protected” their new allies with private troops. They often would also have trade agreements with lots of Wither Skeletons, sometimes even making sneaky treaties to convert their fortresses into company towns and a base of operations for their interests. Mines followed, and with them, exploitation. Though the Union’s flag rarely flew in the Nether, its corporations carved out invisible provinces bound by contracts instead of crowns.

Veinheim

The Venish saw the Nether as a new world to plunder and live in, and they moved settlers over to create colonies across the Nether's highlands and ocean shores, learned how to ride Striders thanks to the help of Lava tribes, and started plundering various tribes and fortresses.

One of their many tactics involved storming a Wither Fortress and killing all the Blazes before taking their rods, then harvesting all the Nether wart with lightning speed.

Wither Skeletons, who relied on blaze powder and warts to trade with Overworlders (and using Blazes like war dogs in battle), soon suffered.

The High Blades

The High Blades alone sought partnership. Their mystics believed the Nether was a holy reflection of the Overworld’s soul. They traded words instead of wars, merging with several Piglin monarchies. Yet even idealists have ambitions; the High Blades secured exclusive rights to major Netherite veins, which supplied entire armies with Netherite and built temples that doubled as forts.

By 650 AE, the Nether was a chessboard of competing outposts, each nation laying claim to tunnel systems and fortress routes. Control of portals meant control of travel itself; whoever mastered the Nether would shorten journeys between Overworld continents from months to hours.

The Crossbows

One of the things that changed Nether warfare and politics forever was the introduction of crossbows.

Union traders introduced the crossbow to Piglin as part of a trade deal. Within months, Piglin Smiths had replicated and improved it. This was revolutionary, as before, warfare in the Nether was often bow with often upclose conflict, plus some bows, but crossbows provided extra range and combat. For the first time, the Piglins could strike across the vast lava seas.

The Wither Lords often had an advantage over the Piglins due to their skeleton archers; however, now the Piglins had better range, which made it harder to fight. This led to Wither Skeletons opening trade with Overworlders for better armor and enchantments for their bows and swords.

This sparked an entire arms race between competing sects in the Nether, fueled by Overworld greed.

Gold Wars

The Gold Wars are a series of proxy conflicts between native factions in the Nether, stoked by the Overworld. The Nether Mobs couldn't go to outright war with the colonizers, as the Overworlds had diamond, iron, and other weapons, while many Nether tribes and kingdoms only had gold and stone tools with occasional netherite and mages.

The Piglin Kingdom of Ashfang ended up gathering lots of power due to immense trade with Diamondia. The kingdom had mixed views on the Overworlders, but they knew better than to get on the bad side of the Empire of Diamondia, so they stuck with having lots of commercial trade and toll booths, which gave the kingdom lots of commerce, resources, and weapons, which they used on other Overworld nations, plus other native groups.

One of the many groups that suffered during the Cold War was the Lava-Ocean tribes. These were nomadic groups of Piglins that rode on Striders across the Lava Oceans of the Nether. They'd often stop at the shores of various kingdoms and take what they could before fleeing. Before, this was a problem as they would effectively flee capture when any local troops tried to chase them since they couldn't be pursued across lava, but the introduction of crossbows made it so that other Piglins could hunt the nomads like animals and shoot them down from great distances.

Union mining companies also pushed many Piglins off their land, which also included chasing Lava-Ocean Piglins away from their usual migration routes. Meaning the nomads would have to travel into other territories, including those of larger, more fortified kingdoms.

In 671 AE, refugees chased out by the Sunspire Company crossed into the territory of the Ashfang Kingdom. Mistaking the caravan for raiders, or not caring about the difference, the captain ordered his crossbowmen to line up and open fire, shooting the Piglins off their Striders or shooting the Striders and causing them to fall in the lava... Mostly women and children were in that caravan.

The captain justified the massacre as “border defense,” blaming human expansion for driving the refugees there. Overworld nations being the root cause of many of these conflicts doesn't mitigate their brutality.

The Wither Lords fared no better. Union companies would convert their fortresses into company towns, subjugating them and forcing them to do labor; the Union did nothing to actually control these gross abuses of native rights. Others had to face attacks by Piglins, who now had better weapons and even medicinal properties from trade to prevent their wither swords from hurting them.

The Betrayal of Dustfort was another incident in the Gold Wars, where a Diamondian Officer convinced a Chieftain to help the Diamondians lay siege to a nether fortress called Dustfort. The Chieftain rallied a warband from 30 Piglin tribes, around 2,000 warriors, and charged at Dustfort, but the Diamondians weren't there, leaving the warband to face the Wither Skeletons on their own. It was a tight and brutal battle, which led to the entire warband being killed off and most of the Wither Skeletons plus their Blazes being killed. Diamondian legions then stormed the region and annexed the undefended tribes and the fortress.

The Race for Netherite

At the heart of the Cold War was not ideology, but metal.

Netherite, the rarest and most durable substance known, became the strategic resource of the age.

Every block of Netherite changed the balance of power. But extraction was dangerous. The Piglins controlled most of the richest deposits — ancient fortresses built directly atop veins of ancient debris.

To access them, Overworld powers armed rebellions, sponsored Piglin uprisings, or simply bombarded the fortresses with TNT and enchanted arrows until they fell.

The Union-High Blade Alliance struck a silent bargain to divide the Netherite trade and deny Diamondia supremacy. But even within the Union, corruption spread. Mining companies kept most of the Netherite for their private militias, giving them netherite swords. The Union's inability to hold them accountable for this would lead to the UCM Crisis.

Modern Day

Today, the Nether is divided across both foreign lines, with Overworld nations claiming territory, but also between native lines, while conflicts between Nether Mobs and Overworlders persist, the Nether Kingdoms have focused more on each other and their politics.

Today, thousands of Overworlders live in various colonies. There has been a global exchange of culture and design across entire continents, and architecture and industry have changed in Minecraft forever.

In the Shogunate of the Nether, most of the mobs there identify as Diamondian, mixing Diamondian culture with native culture, and their language, Netheric Creole, is a combination of native Nether language and Diamondian language.

Latoria - A medieval fantasy world with various creatures, factions, and different magic systems. The main storyline focuses on the US military from Earth trying to colonize the land, and the natives fighting back.

Inspirations:

1. Attack on Titan
2. GATE: Thus the JSDF Fought There
3. Avatar
4. Dune
5. Lord of the Rings
6. Song of Ice and Fire
7. Ghost of Tsushima
8. Elden Ring
9. The Witcher
10. Star Wars
11. Book of Enoch
12. David and Goliath
13. Hindu Mythology
14. Rising of the Shield Hero
15. Doki Doki Literature Club
16. Songs of War
17. Minecraft
18. Worldbox
19. Shadow of War
20. Dark Crystal
21. Dialogue Between the Author and Adario
22. Norse Mythology
23. Trump Administration
24. Indian Wars
25. British colonization of India

Mythica Earth - My fantasy alt-history world where fantasy races and magic played major parts in world history

Inspirations:

1. Bright
2. Onward
3. Nimona
4. Delicious in Dungeon
5. The Witcher
6. The History Dose youtube channel
7. My Hero Academia
8. Better Call Saul
9. Shrek
10. Lord of the Rings

Frameworld - A fantasy sci-fi world where cartoon characters called Animates have coexisted with humans for three centuries, and they have built their own cultures, gods, and societies. The main storyline focuses on a band of rebels fighting a fascist empire.

Inspirations:

1. Bendy and the Ink Machine
2. The Amazing Digital Circus
3. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
4. Cool World
5. Bojack Horseman
6. My Hero Academia
7. Star Wars
8. Nietchez's teachings
9. East Asian history
10. Death Note
11. Vinland Saga
12. Attack on Titan
13. K-Pop Demon Hunters
14. The Trump administration
15. Invincible
16. Hazbin Hotel + Helluva Boss

This is some lore for my fantasy RPG, Devil of Avalon, where the US military tries to colonize the fantasy world of Latoria, and it deals with the politics and tactics of that.

One aspect I wanted to explore was the missionaries who would want to convert the indigenous people of another world. The Vatican stated that if Martians were discovered, they'd want to convert them. Which was something I wanted to explore here.

In Latoria, there are hundreds of religions and cultures, the most common one is Starism, which is a polytheistic religion based on the Cosmos. They worship many Gods and revere Atlas as King of the Gods. Atlas is the name of the gas giant that Latoria orbits. Many Starist sects claim this Gas Giant is literally Atlas; others say it's just where he lives or merely his Avatar.

In Starist mythology, there is a dark God called Yesha, the God of Hate. Also known as the Pale King. Surprisingly, the concept of Yesha exists across almost all of Latoria's cultures. Beastkins speak of an "evil spirit" who was fueled by rage and anger, and Goblins claim he is the metaphysical embodiment of disharmony.

Yesha is often described as a pale, frail figure, with hair that covers his eyes. It is said that looking into the eyes of Yesha will drive you insane. Yesha often stands on a pedestal that is in the shape of a crucifix.

Across Latoria, the crucifix is a symbol of fear. Just like in the Ancient Mediterranean, crucifixion was a brutal form of execution, and unlike on Earth, Latorians never had a martyr to make the cross holy; any religious leader who died on the cross only fueled people's beliefs that it was the embodiment of hate.

Which is why when Christian missionaries entered Latoria, they faced heavy hate and violence due to being called "Demon-Worshipper." The US military's actions towards the native people also didn't help, with indigenous populations faced internment, mass killings, and denial of basic rights. People assumed the Earthlings were just Demons from the Netherworld.

I had this one idea for a sidequest where David can befriend a missionary who was being harassed by a refugee village, one man even stamped on the priest's cross. Causing David to intervene and stop the unrest. He talks with the priest and eventually realizes he just wants to speak his Word, so he decides to help a little bit. He teaches the priest everything about Starism, Beastkin folklore, and Hano theology so that he can rewrite and redesign certain aspects to at the very least stop people from trying to kill him.

He would go on to even help build a church for the priest to invite other natives to join the congregation.

However, later, if David goes back to the area after some time, he finds out the priest was lynched, and the church was sacked. It's unknown if it was by vengeful natives or Americans who saw him as a traitor. Evidence pointed to both ideas, because indigenous insurgents often targeted civilian settlers, and religious ones often were the first to face violence. Meanwhile, there had been a long record of the colonies killing dissenters, and it's likely they would've seen the priest as one of these dissenters.

Examples:

• Mr. Big (Zootopia) - It's explained that Mr. Big and his grandmother were immigrants who arrived at Zootopia. He was heavily mistreated by others due to his size, but he also saw the mistreatment of other Arctic animals, like the Polar Bears. He would help the Polar Bears stand up for themselves, which gave him a large amount of respect in the community.
• Jaskirat Singh Rangi (Dhurandhar) - An Indian spy (and ethnic Baloch) sent undercover to Pakistan to destabilize insurgencies, he would go on to take over a Baloch mafia and tear apart various insurgent groups who terrorized India, but also ones who tormented the other ethnic groups in Pakistan, like Hazaras and Balochs. This led to him being seen as a hero to the Baloch community.
• Eren Jaeger (Attack on Titan) - To the rest of the world, Eren is a Satan-like figure who destroyed most of civilization and killed millions. Meanwhile, on the island of Paradis, Eren is their dark messiah who freed them from the Titans and colonial powers that sought to enslave them.
• John Brown (IRL) - When pro-slavery white supremacist paramilitaries started harassing communities in the North and kidnapping black people, John Brown would fight back, gathering weapons to defend others, brutally killing the slavers. To be clear, John wasn't just randomly attacking southerners; he specifically targeted men who had attacked sons or other anti-slavery individuals. To the South (at the time), he was a terrorist; today, everyone acknowledges him as a hero.

I guess you can consider him an Invincible variant?

Name: Eren Greyson

Species: Human-Viltrumite (Eldian Heritage)

Superhero name: The Devil Titan

Backstory:

His father was a Viltrumite, and his mother was an Eldian, but that's the best I could think up

I feel like that fits his character decently, that he doesn't consider any person (specifically women) to be unattractive or "ugly" in any way, and sees them all as beautiful, just that Mikasa is more beautiful than usual.

Like if he was ever asked by one of the guys what his " type" is, he'd probably go, "ugly women are a myth created by rejects."

The Moon world of Latoria is full of diverse races, including but not limited to:

• Humans
• Beastkin
• Elves
• Goblins (Hano)
• Orcs
• Taleki
• Rockana
• N'huri
• Vixens
• Ogres
• Cyclopses
• Saytrs
• Dwarves
• Thunderfolk (Humans from Earth)

Many of its religious dynamics closely resemble how belief functioned throughout much of human history on Earth, particularly during the Dark Ages and the Ancient Mediterranean.

The big difference is how belief works; magic openly exists in Latoria, spirits roam the land, and the world is full of weird plants and creatures. Meaning the idea of something existing in the sky is not beyond the realm of fiction for Latorians.

I wanted to avoid a "Planet of the Hats" situation where everyone follows the same religion. So I thought about possible different cultures that would emerge with such a diverse biosphere, and this is what I came up with so far:

Starism

Starism is the dominant religion in Latoria and the primary religion practiced by most Humans and High Elves. It is believed to have originated on the continent of Raywana. Starism is the worship of the Adana. Gods who live in the Cosmos and embody or were the creators of various aspects.

There are many sects of Starism, many of which are dedicated to singular or only a certain branch of Gods (Peace Gods, War Gods, etc). All sects of Starism share the worship of Atlas, the Alfather.

Atlas is the gas giant that Latoria orbits, and just like the sun for many Earth cultures, it's always there. So omnipresent and big that most logical conclusions were that it's God.

In mythology, Atlas is referred to as the "Alfather," the King of the Gods and creator of the universe... or at least Latoria. There are many visual depictions; some argue that Atlas straight up IS the gas giant, like that is his physical form, so he's usually just a giant blue ball with a big eye (the black dot of Atlas).

Others say that the gas giant is just his avatar, and his true form is a four-armed blue man.

Beastkin folklores

Beastkins were the original indigenous people of the continent of Autonomia. Before other races settled in the region, there were millions of Beastkins, each with their own tribes and cultures. But after centuries of war and displacement, they have been reduced to only a few million.

This is mostly centered on Northern Beastkins; other regions and tribes have much different ideas. The Lúina‑esúrathar, sometimes called Lúina Beastkins, were a tribe that worshipped the Little Sisters (Latoria's three submoons) as the home where many spirits reside. To them, Atlas isn't the King of Gods, but instead the Warden of the Afterlife.

While many Beastkins in southern regions do believe in one or more Gods, Northern Beastkins don't have Gods in the traditional sense, but guardian spirits. These are called Dévhals, in Ingarian, this means "Guardian," in Human languages it's pronounced, "Devil."

Beastkins believe everything has a spirit or soul, animate or inanimate. This means that to them, a tree would have a soul or a rock would have a soul. When something dies, its soul has two options:

1. Go live with the Little Sisters
2. Become a Dévhal

Because everything has a soul, there are cases of Dévhals emerging from objects or people. Such as Bent Cedar, the most famous Dévhal story, where a tree was struck by lightning and became a powerful spirit warrior.

The Endless Song

The Goblins, or as they call themselves, the Hano, love music and poetry. They live across three continents and have multiple different sects with different styles, customs, and language structures.

But many of them believe in the same thing: The Endless Song

The Song is understood as the rhythm of existence, the force maintaining balance, and the harmonic structure binding creation together.

The Goblins believe that everything sings in an endless song and reality exists cause the song is eternal.

Their idea of sin is "Disharmony," which includes: Harm, lust, greed, violence. This is also why they coined sexual harassment as Shamesong, as you are "shaming" the Endless Song by harming someone for your lustful desires.

The Ocean Gods

Orcs are a diverse group that originated from sea-faring tribes. Many live in coastal kingdoms, large empires, sporadic tribes, and small city-states.

Many of them have their own diverse culture and religions, but the one I want to focus on is one believed by many Sea Orc tribes. They follow the Serpent God, Mouri, who is their symbol of strength and the untamed tides. They view the Bølge, a species of giant sea serpents, as the disciples or descendants of Mouri.

They have other Ocean Gods, but Mouri is the most worshipped of them.

Crossovers

Because of how diverse Latoria is, maybe these religions and cultures kind of merge together; instead of people arguing which is true, they argue which is "stronger" or "better." Sometimes other cultures reinterpret each other to merge and make sense of things.

For example:

• A Starist Priest might say that Bent Cedar was the God of the Tree, Bejouni
• A Lúina Shaman would claim that Atlas is just the strongest Dévhal who tasked himself with guarding the Cosmos
• Starists could claim the Endless Song is the music sung by the Gods
• Mouri is often cited as just one of the Adana
• Dévhals are reinterepted to be the children of the Adana or at least their creations

This isn't super crazy of a stretch; it's something you see in history and in the modern age. In ancient times, other pantheons were accepted to exist alongside one another, like the Greek and Egyptian pantheons. Christianity was widespread by claiming that certain pagan gods were actually monarchs or, in some cases, demons. Hindu gods were adopted into Shintoism and Buddhism (that's why ignorant people claim Hindus worship Buddha), and Muslims believe that Allah is the same god that other Abrahamic religions worship.

Yesha

Despite some of the major differences and rewritings, one thing remains hauntingly consistent. Yesha, the God of Hate. Think of him like the opposite of Jesus, where instead of Jesus teaching others to love and respect one another and being killed for that, he instead becomes hateful to humanity and teaches them to be hateful.

Also known as:

• The Pale King
• Lord Beneath the Thorned Crowd
• Cross of the Damned
• Lord of Wrath
• The Cursed-Eyed
• The False Note

His story does often change from time to time; the most popular version of his story is the Starist legend that he once loved the mortals, but upon seeing their violence and hate, he suddenly believed that hatred was the only natural state of being.

He's sometimes viewed differently in some theologies. Goblins see him more as the metaphysical concept of Disharmony, while others might see him as a literal figure.

Despite vast geographic and cultural separation, nearly every civilization describes its design as:

• A thin pale figure,
• Hair long enough to just cover his eyes
• Wearing either long clothes or minimal garments
• A crown of spikes on his head
• Standing on a throne with a cross in the back.

The common belief of Yesha isn't that he creates hate, but that he reminds mortals of what lies within them all. Yesha is the physical embodiment of civilization's darkest aspects:

• Generational hate
• Domination
• War
• Moral nihilism
• Authoritarianism

He is often the go-to figurehead that many Human supremacist groups revere, as they believe Yesha "revealed" their hatred to cleanse the world of Nonhumans.

The common saying when it comes to Yesha is:

>Hate does not arrive as a monster from the dark.
It begins as grief left to rot.
As pain was worshipped instead of healed.
As the belief that cruelty is inevitable.
And when enough souls accept hatred as truth…
The Pale King no longer needs to rise.
For mortals will become him willingly.

I doubt the game will ever have Guest characters, but even otherwise, I think it would be interesting to imagine fun crossovers. My ideas:

1. Eren Jaeger (AOT) - I just think this would be funny, cause both Mark and Eren are deconstructions of teen superhero archetypes and have some fun similarities. The banter would be so good.
2. Charlie Morningstar (Hazbin Hotel) - This obviously makes no sense, but Charlie vs Mark is my MU so...
3. Deku or Shoto (MHA) - Because people like comparing MHA to Invincible
4. Anyone from the Boys - I personally think Butcher would be more fun, but Homelander is acceptable too.
5. ,

This is part of my RPG storyline, Devil of Avalon, where the US tries to colonize a medieval fantasy world called Latoria, or as Earth calls it, "Avalon."

The United Territories of Avalon are technically the main antagonists of this storyline; basically, this is the broad swath of Latoria under effective U.S. occupation or control. This includes part of Southern Autonomia, parts of Tul'Dan, nearby islands, and newly accessed lands adjacent to the portals. With influence across prosperous plains, coastal cities, and contested forests. They are the first Non-Earth based territories of any country and the largest territory in the US.

The US wanted to gain a firm holding in Avalon before Russia or China made their own portals. To do this, they passed laws denying indigenous people human rights and giving corporations free rein to do what they want.

The problem is that they didn't account for what the people in the UTA wanted.

The Harker Secession Plan was a set of documents revealing that Administrator Magnus Harker, the chief colonial authority overseeing much of occupied Latoria, had secretly intended to sever the UTA from the United States, establish an independent authoritarian police state, and crown himself the ruler of a new colonial empire built atop the ruins of Latoria.

The thing about Magnus is that while he was an ultrapatriotic American expansionist, he was also an absolute lunatic who craved a power fantasy and treated Latoria as his personal sandbox. Despite his nationalistic views, he felt the US was becoming weak and incapable of creating his ideal world, so he set out plans to turn the UTA into his own kingdom.

Harker’s secessionist ambitions began developing during the early colonial period, shortly after he was appointed Administrator of Avalon. He had gained favor with many corporate CEOs and military officials and had increased support across the colonial settlements. He was able to have increased autonomy over the course of years thanks to the powers granted to him by the US government.

Even before he could set his plans into motion, the UTA already resembled something akin to Nazi-occupied Poland rather than any US territory.

The full plan was that they would destabilize the United Sovereigns of Autonomia (their opposition), make the UTA economically independent from the US, stockpile weapons and armory, develop a way to produce their own weapons, block all of the US's attempts at statehood for the UTA, draft a declaration of secession, then destroy all the portals to Earth, forever cutting ties with America.

However, they didn't even make it past step one, as Magnus eventually was killed in battle and the documents were discovered months later. But it would be funny to imagine an alt-timeline where this happened.

Examples:

• Thorfinn (Vinland Saga)
• Thors (Vinland Saga)
• Vander (Arcane)
• Dr. Who (Doctor Who)
• Aang (ATLA)

So if I had to explain, the storyline is called Devil of Avalon, it's a fantasy vs modern military story where the US invades a medieval fantasy world and tries to colonize, much like GATE, but the big difference is that it is told from the fantasy army's perspective. The main protagonist is David, a Beastkin fighting to save his home.

I want it to be less of a power fantasy and more of an actually good story with likable characters. I don't want to explain much, but the main inspirations were: Attack on Titan, Avatar, GATE: Thus the JSDF Fought There, David and the Goliath, Planet of the Apes, Carnival Row, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Hindu mythology.

Examples:

• Carlquest (Invincible) - A famous fanfiction is an AU where Conquest would eventually settle down and marry an old woman, start a farm, raise a small family, and become a wholesome old man. Invincible's co-creator, Ryan Ottley, stated that he likes to think there is a universe in Invincible's multiverse where Conquest did redeem himself. For context, in canon, Conquest is one of the most dangerous and terrifying Viltrumites; he never got redeemed in the series because he died way before that happened.
• No Regrets (Attack on Titan) - When it came to why Levi joined the Scouts, it was originally going to be left a mystery. I don't remember the full story, but someone made a visual novel, and Isayama loved it so much that he approved it as canon.
• Marigold (Fortnite) - This speaks for most Fortnite skins, but basically, an artist named Kitsu made fan art of a genderbent Midas, a beloved character in Fortnite's lore. Epic Games paid the artist and made the skin official as Marigold. There are a lot of examples of Fortnite paying fan artists for their work to make official skins, but this one I like.

Examples:

• Mark + Debbie and Nolan (Invincible) - Nolan killed thousands of innocent people, beat Mark to a bloody pulp, and called his mother a "pet." This caused Mark to feel intense trauma and constant psychological anguish. While Mark still loves his father, he can't ever forgive him. Debbie also doesn't forgive him at all. This is a drastic change in the comics where Mark forgave Nolan when they reunited, and Debbie did too.
• Steven and the Diamonds (Steven Universe) - The Diamonds destroyed entire worlds and hunted Steven and his family like animals. He only needed them to cure all the corrupted Gems**;** after that, he was through with them and only tolerated them to stop them from going back to their old ways. In one case, he nearly shatters White Diamond as a form of payback.
• Endeavor and Shoto + Natsu (My Hero Academia) - Endeavor neglected Natsu and Fuyumi and drove Touya into near suicide; he also physically abused Shoto throughout his pre-teens. After seeing Shoto use his fire side for the first time, Endeavor realized the pain he caused his family and drove to not only atone for his sins but also to become someone Shoto can be proud to call "father," even if Shoto never forgives him. Natsu, on the other hand, refuses to forgive Endeavor, but Endeavor doesn't mind so long as he can make Natsu happy. The Todoroki family drama is a lot like the first example, which I really love.
• Eren and Reiner (Attack on Titan) - Ok, maybe this one is a little pushy, but Eren doesn't fully forgive Reiner. Regardless of >!Eren manipulating timelines to ensure his mother's death,!< everything that happens to Eren is still in part due to Reiner. While Eren can sympathize with Reiner, considering he just wanted to go back to his mother, something Eren of all people can 100% sympathize with, he doesn't forgive Reiner. It's just that by this point in the story, Eren is too depressed to care about revenge or personal vendettas, so he tolerates Reiner as an obstacle.
• Todd and Bojack (Bojack Horseman) - Todd was a high school dropout that Bojack let crash with him, not out of altruism, but because Todd made Bojack look good by comparison, and Bojack constantly demeaned Todd so that he wouldn't leave. However, eventually, Todd actually does start improving himself and making a name for himself, and Bojack tries to bring Todd down, each time he apologizes, but they're half-assed apologies. Bojack keeps making promises to be better, but each time he breaks that promise to the point where Todd no longer forgives Bojack, and the two keep their distance until the end of the series.