CONCEPT: Radioelf

[Shurikane]

I can't draw worth shit. T_T

So the next best thing: describe this "picture" I have in my mind. Or more of a universe, perhaps.


SETTING
A near future metropolis, that borrows elements from both cyberpunk and classic Anime high sci-fi fantasy. The result is a universe that has a very clean-cut and square appearance, with nothing but beautiful men and women, much like the depictions of the future in books from the 70s and 80s, while incorporating elements such as hacking and cyberdeckers, implants, and biological augmentations. The current era is built upon the history of classic and well-known fantastic creatures: elves, dragons, spirits and limial beings, all of whom have evolved over tens of thousands of millenia into people far more than what common definition dictates.

Despite the rather peaceful state of the world in general, pockets of conflict still remain, and corruption leads to conspiracies within the government, adding spice to the day-to-day events. However, rather than the open war we are used to in our modern world, this of Radioelf is in a state of cold war, where the bulk of the battles are done through covert operations, hacking and counterhacking, and political maneuvers - in a manner not unlike Ghost in The Shell, but with an even more "hidden" flair.


HUMANS
In an effort to remove the "catch-all" race, humans do not exist here! There are no mentions of humans anywhere in the world of Radioelf - there has never been any humans and there never will be.

RADIOELVES
The primary focus of the concept and the driving force behind it, radioelves are the cyber exaggeration of the classic high elf: beautiful, well-versed, well-dressed and healthy, with a lifespan of up to three hundred and fifty years. They are the natural evolution of a subrace that attempted to master electronics and engineering at the cost of their natural abilities at magic. The end result is a being who is partly fused with the world of electronics at a cellular level: what distinguishes the radioelf is that its futuristic capabilities are all built-in at birth. The race's natural telepathy has evolved into the ability to communicate on the Ethernet at will, and their magical spells have changed into accessory organs that are able to interface with computer systems. A radioelf is easily recognizable by the fact that he can extend cables from his body to connect to computers - notably USB, Firewire, VGA, DVI, Gameport and others. Another notable trait is that those "outlets" evolve and devolve very quickly: legacy ports that no longer exist vanish from generation to generation, while newer and more performant ports and protocols appear in their place - the species is so well-connected to the electronic world that it is able to evolve new ports simply via the existence of said port, and not out of necessity. Finally, the radioelf's name stems from its ears: elongated as we know them, the radioelf has them exceptionally slender, and twice longer than the norm. Embedded in their ears is a natural electromagnetic rod, which allows them to listen to radio signals with their mind, and transmit on channels dictated by convention. Needless to say, there is nothing more beautiful to the modern decker than a female radioelf clad in the latest high-tech looking outfit.

MANAELVES
They are the traditional elves in the truest sense of the word, and they have kept on improving since their meager capabilities of fireballs and magic missiles. Now, the most amazing feats can be accomplished by students with great latent power - the best of whom are able to effortlessly hover above the ground from birth 'till death. The manaelves are also the race with the highest physical differences from one person to the next: most manaelves are moderated in their practices of magic; they operate basic electronic equipment while having a good pool of magic to work from. The most extreme manaelves have literally forgone physical abilities and replaced them by magical versions, leading into sub-evolutions without arms or legs, or both, each of them relying on nothing but magic to accomplish even the most menial task. The race's mental capabilities are stunning to say the least: with each manaelf being a natural telepath, the entire race is interlinked much like the radioelves, albeit on a psychic network called Astralnet, named to distinguish from the Ethernet used by radioelves. The manaelves have the advantage here, as their telepathy allows them to transmit entire blocks of thoughts, images or concepts in a matter of seconds, while the radioelves are limited by the world's laws of physics and electromagnetism.

DRAGONS
The legendary air mounts have cyberized themselves over time, amazingly enough through natural evolution. The modern dragon is now a master of the skies, with several variants that serve all sorts of uses to the earthbound elves: some dragons are born with a hollow carapace that can be easily converted into a passengers cabin. Other, more streamlined dragons are hired for military jobs and are gifted with thrusters and other high-speed equipment. The species has reached such a state that organic parts are but vestigial now, with the latest generation being completely mechanized. Even the reproductive cells of both genders have turned into nanobot versions that perform the same task as before. It's common for poachers to hunt dragons, in order to recover and reprocess the metal and circuitry that composes their bodies.

LIMINALS
Liminal beings are those who combine two states into one person - centaurs, lamias, nagas and mermaids being examples. Here, they have become much more modern, and have been reduced to instinctive tribes that are not much higher than animals, and plague the fields outside cities, attacking unsuspecting travelers and posing problems to law and order in general. Most noteworthy are the Ricers: humanlike creatures with the body of an automobile below the waist. Second to them are the Marines: once mermaids, they have evolved into fearsome seductresses with a propeller for a tail. Those sea creatures regularly hypnotize and seduce men and women alike with their amazing beauty and mind-bending chants, leading the hapless victims into a horrific death: shredded by the propeller of the Marines, then eaten up by the pack for dinner.

SPACE?
Recent developments have allowed regular travel to three space stations orbiting the planet: Epica, Integra, and Celica, with three more stations (Yota, Tiac, and Cedes) currently in the works. They pose new challenges to both radioelves and manaelves, the former of which get to learn to cope with a radically different set of physical limitations, and the latter having to come up with new spells in order to survive the rigors of outer space. What's to come for them as they colonize the orbit of their planet? Who knows...

[ScrumYummy]

WHOA! Cool concept. I really like the radioelves and your version of dragons. This would make an awesome video game.

[SirGunslinger]

It sort of reminds me of Arcanum, only in with Cyberpunk instead of Steampunk.

Interesting concept though, is it for a story, game, art series, or something of that nature?

[Shurikane]

I honestly have no idea. It's one of those ideas that's been simmering in my head, that looks amazing on a framed piece of paper but serves little use otherwise. It's a difficulty for me as I'm used to designing personas first, RPG-style, then placing them into a universe best fit for them. This time, I'm working the other way around: I've built a universe but have no clue as to who to create to populate it and create a good story.

It sure as hell can't be a game, as I do not find it would have any groundbreaking stuff in it gameplay or concept wise - the form is new, but the meat and potatoes, decking and gunfighting in streets and alleys, has been seen more than enough times before.

Not sure if it can be an art series either, unless I take serious courses in basic human anatomy, and that's not a thing that'll happen anytime soon...

[SirGunslinger]

You can always do a "top down" method, and come up with more detailed stuff like city geography, culture, etc. Once that is done, then characters will be banging on your head begging for life =).

[Shurikane]

[SirGunslinger]

You can bring Eholem to the mountain, but you cannot bring the mountain to Eholem.