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[Avis-Mergulus]

The portals should connect directly to one other world, or several?

I think the voidgoblins thing can be GM'd by the GM of the world the character is attempting to leave. Less coordination required that way.

[~Neri]

Portalwise, a world could have one big portal that goes to a sort of hub of lil portals that go to other worlds, or it could have multiple portals that go to different worlds. That's what I mean.

[Avis-Mergulus]

Portalwise, a world could have one big portal that goes to a sort of hub of lil portals that go to other worlds, or it could have multiple portals that go to different worlds. That's what I mean.

Ah. I see how that could work.
So, a GM has control over the outbound portals of his world, but no control over the inbound portals?

I see it working this way:
GM1 of W1 declares that his world has three portals to W2. GM2 of W2 then decides where those portals emerge, whether they are two-way or one-way, and he can have several of them have exits in the same place. For example, GM2 answers that his world has one two-way portal with W1. Therefore, when a character uses any of the portals from W1 to W2, he ends up in the same place in W2. When a character crosses back, he ends up in one of the three locations in W1 at GM1's discretion.

I think GMs should have absolute control over portals outbound from their world (corollary:there must be at least one outbound portal on every world), and control over the location of inbound portals on their world. Outbound and inbound portals are the same thing in the case of two-way portals.

[WillowLuman]

I'm thinking connectionwise, the portals could either directly connect to another world or connect to a "hub" that has portals to others (or a single one that connects to others), how specific portals function should be up to GM discretion.

Voidgoblins is an interesting idea, although someone needs to GM it. Maybe make it a pseudocolab that can just rotate between GM's as needed, and probs shouldn't have it be too lethal. Maybe make it puzzlebased?

Language, probs universal with accent, although other world specific languages should exist according to GM discretion, although the primary language should be the universal one.

What do we do about psionics? Technically it isn't magic, they're fueled by the body rather then mana- Wait. Idea: In native world, mana and energy can be absorbed rapidly from environment. In other worlds, gotta either adapt to local energy or just slowly generate your own mana from nomming foodnsuch. Thoughts?

Psionics though. Perhaps as a balance, energy can only come from self or specific sources defined by GM when thry make the psionic system. Psionics don't get the limitation that Magic gets from being in a different world. However they don't have the option of absorbing energy from the surroundings of their homeuniverse like magic can outside of specific circumstances. Thought?

Psionics behaves a lot like magic, though. Thing that lets you do other things by applying energy but without doing physical work with your body.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

I see it working this way:
GM1 of W1 declares that his world has three portals to W2. GM2 of W2 then decides where those portals emerge, whether they are two-way or one-way, and he can have several of them have exits in the same place. For example, GM2 answers that his world has one two-way portal with W1. Therefore, when a character uses any of the portals from W1 to W2, he ends up in the same place in W2. When a character crosses back, he ends up in one of the three locations in W1 at GM1's discretion.

If we do this without a hub, could open a google doc to represent the planets and their connections visually, with the portals orbiting the 'planet' a game is placed upon.

A possible result of your example represented visually:


Colored are to represent that while those cross a line somewhere, they aren't connected with that line.

[~Neri]

I'm thinking connectionwise, the portals could either directly connect to another world or connect to a "hub" that has portals to others (or a single one that connects to others), how specific portals function should be up to GM discretion.

Voidgoblins is an interesting idea, although someone needs to GM it. Maybe make it a pseudocolab that can just rotate between GM's as needed, and probs shouldn't have it be too lethal. Maybe make it puzzlebased?

Language, probs universal with accent, although other world specific languages should exist according to GM discretion, although the primary language should be the universal one.

What do we do about psionics? Technically it isn't magic, they're fueled by the body rather then mana- Wait. Idea: In native world, mana and energy can be absorbed rapidly from environment. In other worlds, gotta either adapt to local energy or just slowly generate your own mana from nomming foodnsuch. Thoughts?

Psionics though. Perhaps as a balance, energy can only come from self or specific sources defined by GM when thry make the psionic system. Psionics don't get the limitation that Magic gets from being in a different world. However they don't have the option of absorbing energy from the surroundings of their homeuniverse like magic can outside of specific circumstances. Thought?

Psionics behaves a lot like magic, though. Thing that lets you do other things by applying energy but without doing physical work with your body.

Depending on the setting though, Psionics are powered purely by the body rather then an external source like most Magic. Probably should sort out how that kind of thing works.

[Avis-Mergulus]

I see it working this way:
GM1 of W1 declares that his world has three portals to W2. GM2 of W2 then decides where those portals emerge, whether they are two-way or one-way, and he can have several of them have exits in the same place. For example, GM2 answers that his world has one two-way portal with W1. Therefore, when a character uses any of the portals from W1 to W2, he ends up in the same place in W2. When a character crosses back, he ends up in one of the three locations in W1 at GM1's discretion.

If we do this without a hub, could open a google doc to represent the planets and their connections visually, with the portals orbiting the 'planet' a game is placed upon.

A possible result of your example represented visually:


Colored are to represent that while those cross a line somewhere, they aren't connected with that line.

Yes, that is what I meant. It seems to me that the more control a GM retains over their own game, the easier this will be to manage. This way the only thing the GM has no control of is whether and when players are going to enter his world. Where will they enter and leave remains for the GM to decide.

On the subject of psionics: I think every world has its own set of physical/metaphysical principles. Most worlds are going to have basic physics similar to those observed in real life, plus some others regarding magic/psionics/divine intervention/what have you. If an ability that crosses worlds ends up lacking something to support it, it gets nerfed. However, a character who is a denizen of a certain world is themselves a bit of that world. Therefore, if a mage gets transported into a world with no mana, they can still use the mana within them. A psion, however, is more complicated. I see two possible solutions.

1. Objects in the psion's home world have some sort of inherent property that allows the psion to control them with their mind. That means objects in another world won't have that property/will have it to a much lesser degree. So a psion will have to exert much more energy to affect otherworldly objects (including those brought to their own world - interesting possibilities) or be straight out unable to affect them (this way a psionic telekinesis user will only be able to move objects from his home world around when in another world. Also interesting).

2. A psion affects stuff using some sort of mental energy thingy. Then it's the same as mana, and their abilities get treated the same as magic.

[~Neri]

Third option could make it subjective depending on the psionic system used and the rules ironed out on creation. I have an idea for one that doesn't fit that well with options one and two.

[Avis-Mergulus]

Third option could make it subjective depending on the psionic system used and the rules ironed out on creation. I have an idea for one that doesn't fit that well with options one and two.

Okay. But I suppose it's always possible to settle any exceptional case by having the two GMs in question reach an agreement. That doesn't mean we don't want to have some sort of standard operating procedure.

But maybe we really don't need one cause psionics are such a vague term. Look:

Suppose psionics are powered by some sort of special organ the psion has. That organ emits some waves or what have you, by means of which the psion manipulates stuff. Then the universe in which the psion is has some medium through which those waves (or other thingamajigs) propagate. Or maybe they propagate through ordinary media. Big difference.

Suppose psionics is something a baseline human can learn. Then why do baseline humans on one world know psionics when humans on another don't? Does the other world lack something for psionics to work? Maybe they're just primitive?

What the heck is psionics anyway?

[~Neri]

Psionics are probably similar to magic, I guess we could do a case by case basis depending on the system used.

If we took Mistborn's magic systems for example, specific alloys produce the most power for the normal type, the second type is balanced on its own due to equal or lesser returns, and the third type just wouldn't be performable since it requires a specific type of soul  to transfer, already embedded bits of the third type would function as the first and second most likely, with the same restrictions.

[Avis-Mergulus]

Psionics are probably similar to magic, I guess we could do a case by case basis depending on the system used.

If we took Mistborn's magic systems for example, specific alloys produce the most power for the normal type, the second type is balanced on its own due to equal or lesser returns, and the third type just wouldn't be performable since it requires a specific type of soul  to transfer, already embedded bits of the third type would function as the first and second most likely, with the same restrictions.

Yeah. But the Mistborn/Mistlings are not regular humans either. Allomancy is powered by the inherent nature of the allomancer as well as the nature of the metal he burns. Also, suppose I'm a mistling who can burn pewter (for example) and I travel to another world, consume some pewter there, and suddenly find out that it's not the same pewter we have back home. Something about it is just wrong. Yeah, a case by case basis is preferrable. So, we have mana-based magic, which is handled as previously described, and all other types are handled separately.

Just for interest's sake, do you think if two allomancers traveled to another world, then one of them grabbed some random guy from that world and performed a hemalurgic ritual using that guy and the other allomancer, would the random guy recieve the benefits of the ritual?

[~Neri]

The ritual probably wouldn't benefit. If anything, I think the allomancer would possess the guy due to having a stronger soul. Although probs would just kill the guy in reality.

[Avis-Mergulus]

Although probs would just kill the guy in reality.

So basically the same thing that happens when you drive a metal spike through somebody's organs. How uninspiring.

I forgot, are Inqusitors made of Mistlings or regular dudes? Been long since I read that book.

[~Neri]

Spoiler: Mistborn Spoilers. (click to show/hide)

Inquisitors are made of Seeker Mistings or Mistborn normally. They can in theory be made from your average joe or another type of misting, but the hemalurgic ritual adds a bonus to already existing power outputs, Inquisitors use Mistings to reproduce so a base Seeker Inquisitor having a bonus to their Seeker abilities lets them sense further and pierce copperclouds, it's the same reason why Zane was so powerful and so precise with his iron, why Vin was such a powerful Seeker and could pierce copperclouds (although she naturally was powerful with all metals since her bloodline was rather pure and because Preservation had been using her as a channel since birth, although the Seeker Earing bolstered her seeker powers to stronger then Inquisitor.), and why Spook was able to access Pewter at one point..

[Digital Hellhound]

The Voidgoblins idea seems good, but it shouldn't be just a distraction - having a threat or enemy that spans each world and exists in the 'space between worlds', perhaps trying to get in, would unify these settings in a good way.

I think it'd work best if this threat took a different, suitable form in each world. It could be a Corruption or Chaos or Void or Death of All Things sort of universal threat. In a fantasy setting, it might manifest in a Dark Overlord trying to take over the world or such, in a scifi it could be a ravenous alien swarm, in a espionage setting a shadowy conspiracy manufacturing a war - as small or big in scale as needs to be. If your world should focus on a bunch of sentient toys in the bounds of one house, the threat could still be as dangerous as the world-ending dark god in another; fluff-wise, this'd be because all worlds are equal in the eyes of the universe or such.