01-14-2023, 03:12 PM
Ah yes, thank you for that, Poly. Your caveats are appreciated.
Following up to Poly's statements, I'll explain about two different ideals: isekais and crossovers.
Isekais
The isekai approach is generally the simplest approach regardless of if you're using an OC or a pre-existing character. I primarily say that due to the freedom provided by simply being in a different world. The details are best explained in a more generalized guide like Polyedit2000's Roleplaying Guide in this forum, but in the case of pre-existing characters...
1. Generally death applies to everyone. Given the isekai popularized by Konosuba involves someone dying and being revived elsewhere, it is possible to stick a pre-existing character provided the background is sufficient like Poly said.
2. Immersive isekais like with Okaa-san Online (better known as "Do You Love Your Mom and her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks) and BOFURI generally have characters going IN a world through technology rather than characters leaving their worlds through technology and would likely still apply.
3. In the Super Smash Bros series, the appearances of pre-existing characters are explained through various phenomenon like a toybox, trophies, and spirits. In cases like this, it's likely that one decided to just use their imagination.
Beyond that, the general rules applied to an isekai plus Poly's examples would be viable.
Crossovers
Crossovers are personally the most finicky thing out there even when TV shows and video games made them look cool. However, while they may seem like a good idea to more casual audiences like children playing with action figures and people using dA templates like "Who would you have on your zombie apocalypse survival group", crossovers will get weird af. In the case of crossovers, it is advised that the GM readies some caveats and limitations BEFORE going for a crossover deal. As such, here's what I would recommend.
Series Limitations: Generally the best way to handle crossovers is to limit what entities to use by series. In Super Smash Bros, for example, generally only video game characters would be allowed in. Size limitations are also made use of, with Ridley having been shrunken down in order for him to be safely made into a playable character.
Power Limitations: While not as recommended as series limitations, one may force limitations and ban certain OP hax from a setting. For example, while Dormammu is in Marvel vs Capcom, his powers were greatly limited as otherwise, Dormammu will likely have a serious toll on the multiverse, and given the sheer scale and dimensionality of the Marvel multiverse, I see no way in hell Yr'Gnuh (Polyedit2000's eldritch creation) or any other OC or canon character can stop Dormammu, never mind weaker characters like Mike Haggar.
Setting Limitations: As Poly stated before, existing characters can simply be used as set-pieces or props by the GM. While it's hard to tell if this limits anything beyond who could use certain characters, I think it's mainly based around the setting.
I prefer the first idea for limiting crossovers as it keeps the universes used at a manageable level. That being said, crossovers are generally inadvisable even with such "he said, she said" examples like templates, crossover fighting games, and Death Battle videos. But yeah, there ya have it.
Following up to Poly's statements, I'll explain about two different ideals: isekais and crossovers.
Isekais
The isekai approach is generally the simplest approach regardless of if you're using an OC or a pre-existing character. I primarily say that due to the freedom provided by simply being in a different world. The details are best explained in a more generalized guide like Polyedit2000's Roleplaying Guide in this forum, but in the case of pre-existing characters...
1. Generally death applies to everyone. Given the isekai popularized by Konosuba involves someone dying and being revived elsewhere, it is possible to stick a pre-existing character provided the background is sufficient like Poly said.
2. Immersive isekais like with Okaa-san Online (better known as "Do You Love Your Mom and her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks) and BOFURI generally have characters going IN a world through technology rather than characters leaving their worlds through technology and would likely still apply.
3. In the Super Smash Bros series, the appearances of pre-existing characters are explained through various phenomenon like a toybox, trophies, and spirits. In cases like this, it's likely that one decided to just use their imagination.
Beyond that, the general rules applied to an isekai plus Poly's examples would be viable.
Crossovers
Crossovers are personally the most finicky thing out there even when TV shows and video games made them look cool. However, while they may seem like a good idea to more casual audiences like children playing with action figures and people using dA templates like "Who would you have on your zombie apocalypse survival group", crossovers will get weird af. In the case of crossovers, it is advised that the GM readies some caveats and limitations BEFORE going for a crossover deal. As such, here's what I would recommend.
Series Limitations: Generally the best way to handle crossovers is to limit what entities to use by series. In Super Smash Bros, for example, generally only video game characters would be allowed in. Size limitations are also made use of, with Ridley having been shrunken down in order for him to be safely made into a playable character.
Power Limitations: While not as recommended as series limitations, one may force limitations and ban certain OP hax from a setting. For example, while Dormammu is in Marvel vs Capcom, his powers were greatly limited as otherwise, Dormammu will likely have a serious toll on the multiverse, and given the sheer scale and dimensionality of the Marvel multiverse, I see no way in hell Yr'Gnuh (Polyedit2000's eldritch creation) or any other OC or canon character can stop Dormammu, never mind weaker characters like Mike Haggar.
Setting Limitations: As Poly stated before, existing characters can simply be used as set-pieces or props by the GM. While it's hard to tell if this limits anything beyond who could use certain characters, I think it's mainly based around the setting.
I prefer the first idea for limiting crossovers as it keeps the universes used at a manageable level. That being said, crossovers are generally inadvisable even with such "he said, she said" examples like templates, crossover fighting games, and Death Battle videos. But yeah, there ya have it.