Makai Gambit - Blog Posts
Sorry to bother but what is the makai gambit project?
Not a bother!
just a fun little project, pretty much! possibly gonna become a game or vn, possibly just going to be a massive fic with accompanying art, but whatever it ends up being, so much love is going into it that it's a blast.
Currently it's in its very early stages, but I can give a full teaser and summary here:
Juusandom. A Netherworld cluster that exists beyond time, beyond space, beyond the reach of any regular demon. Split into thirteen territories, two in particular often come into conflict…
Absidion. The country of black. A wild and ruinous place, a Netherworld built for a real demon's demon. Its Emperor is beyond a tyrant, instead boasting his status as something far more unpredictable. Much of its territory is filled with the ruined homes of former inhabitants, as the bulk of Absidion's land was snatched from the control of its neighbour. There is beauty in the untamed, even with the obvious dangers posed to the weak. Survival of the fittest reigns supreme here.
Elebestar. The country of white. A peaceful and well-cultivated theocracy, at the very peak of which rules a benevolent Emperor. Tensions flare at borders, where land is claimed and made ashen by the brutes of the neighbouring country. Even so, people's needs rarely go unfulfilled here, and those who live in Elebestar are happy in their captivity. For make no mistake, they are captive as they come. Those who live within Elebestar know their lives will end when their rulers call for it. A gilded cage for a willing livestock. Is that any way to live?
Absidion and Elebestar, political rivals and tactical nemeses. Emperor Fornelius, the Primordial Chaos that seeks desolation, and Emperor Benetrectus, the Sublime Archdevil that seeks eternity. One knows nothing beyond lust for power and destruction. One knows nothing but a craving for control. At odds with one another, their conflict has spanned millennia. Territory claimed under the banner of Fornelius is tainted in black, and this stain cannot be removed.
For the time being, there is stalemate. After reaching the limits of his siege's power, Fornelius has ceased his advance for now. And after losing three of his four "children" to the Black Emperor's sealing power, Benetrectus has pivoted to doting on his youngest "daughter" while she remains with him.
Fortebracciiio, the Third Child, stands at her "father's" side as Empress. And beside Fornelius? Discordia, Primordial Temptation. It is by her hand that the advance was orchestrated, and it is by her hand that it is paused. One could perhaps name her "Mastermind" in this tale… if that title didn't fall to another.
...Sooooo, that out of the way. Set in a pair of warring Netherworlds in the Netherworld Cluster of Juusandom, Makai Gambit is an in-universe spectacle, advertised as a sort of battle royale created by a third party to end the conflict once and for all. Through a strange power, figures from throughout the Makaiverse's history are summoned to play the role of 'Piece Incarnations' to help settle the score.
'Piece Incarnations' is a term created by the capricious, mysterious organiser of Makai Gambit. A Piece Incarnation is a being summoned in place of an official for the territory rulers, taking up the 'role' of a chess piece.
Piece Incarnations cannot kill other Piece Incarnations of the same legion, nor can they land a finishing blow on the Emperors / Empresses. Piece Incarnations, however, can kill any normal inhabitants of Juusandom. The only option they have is to unite with those on the same side as them, and aim for the win condition...
Kill the opposing King Piece.
(portrait art by Shuga)
The pieces do not choose to be here. They do not really want to be here. Mostly, they just want to go home and get back to their loved ones. Some are willing to go to more extreme lengths than others to get back home.
also we have a middle evolution Christo-Lamington!
