"MegaMagic" orginally began as some sketches done at school of an alternate Megaman that practiced magic (basically). The idea sat for a long time, until I flipped through some old Amiga/C64 magazines and was inspired to work on it again.
The story isn't very well-formed, but here's the gist: There is a planet with one super-continent, Tier, and one the size of Australia, Benzin. (guess the earth's crust doesn't move around too much). Likewise, there are two kinds of people: those who practice magic and those who either don't or condemn it. The former live on Benzin, the latter on Tier (and perhaps tellingly, many of Benzin's inhabitants were banished from Tier's).
While those who condemn magic are relatively few, they exercise a great deal of power and keep everyone else in check (and Benzinites out). Their excuse is that magic would only be used to harm people, though it falls flat when one notes that there are few kinds of offensive magic, and they are difficult to master.
The landscape of Tier is extraordinary, with many looping rock formations, dreamlike mountain ranges, and the like, while Benzin is mostly forest. Both continents are home to deadly creatures, with Tier's being reptilian and Benzin's mammalian. Unfortunately for Tier's people, Benzin's monsters are content to leave the people alone unless provoked.
While Tier has its scaly monsters, Benzin has the dark wizard Wily, whose atrocities have been well-documented--but not his location. It seems that Wily's castle is never in one place for long, leaving the Benzinites at a loss at how to deal with him. For now, he seems to have vanished, and the people have more or less returned to their daily lives, but always filled with dread that he or one of his minions could suddenly appear.
Tier merely has the King, a staunch opponent of magic. While competent with certain domestic affairs, the Tierites agree that he has no idea how to deal with the aggressive monsters.
One Benzinite, a wizard named Thomas X. Light, lives deep in a village located in a secluded region of Benzin with a few other people and his two students, Rock and Tenor. While Rock is fairly enthusiastic about learning proper magic, Tenor simply wants to use it to make her work at home easier. Their styles are separate--Rock uses a rather poorly-constructed staff to channel magic, while Tenor simply uses her hands. She's already skilled in levitation, while Rock lags behind in that area and fears that he isn't up to the task (levitation is the easiest type of magic and the first that students are taught).
Back on Tier there is exactly one magic user, and he is Zero, a knight serving under one of the King's bishops. He pretends not to practice it so that the King doesn't banish him or worse, but primarily do that he can go about his other duties separate from those given to him by the bishop. Zero's preferred tactic is to transform into a swan and spy on targets, then report back or attack.
It's safe to say that Benzin was far readier for Wily's return than Tier...
If this ever got made, I'd imagine it'd be an Amiga game that played like classic Megaman, with the robotic themes replaced with woodland/Roger Dean painting themes (because his works are the [parasitic bomb]), and the RMs with Wily's various lesser dark wizards. Four of the bosses would be posted in Benzin, the other four in Tier.
*Tier and Benzin mean "monster/beast" and "gasoline" in German, respectively (I think. I used Babelfish to translate them way back when). I know it doesn't make any sense. >.>
*If you laughed at the "Zero turns into a swan" bit, keep in mind that swans are aggressive little pricks that you have to grab by the neck and throw many yards away if you don't want any bill-shaped scars on your body (or so Cracked.com tells me).
By the way, I don't think all reptiles are evil; Tierites just make easier prey.
/[tornado fang]ing earache
BONUS slightly older picture of
Classic Ophiuchus Queen made for Mr. Damaged (webmaster of Damaged Games).
Ophiuchus Queen is Dr. Wily's third Robot Mistress, and unlike Jumpgirl, she takes the title in stride. (Note: Cantata and Monitor are more along the line of Fortress Bosses, which is a step up from Robot Master/Mistress, but unfortunately most FBs are mindless Mechaniloids.) She was vaguely based off of Snakeman's designs; OQ's body is more snakelike and suitable for crushing the air out of her victims. Due to the similarities between them, OQ fell for Snake, who wants nothing to do with her (paranoia does that to you y'know).
OQ wields a variant of the Search Snake weapon that is fired out of a pot rather than a Buster, and functions almost exactly like Snake's weapon. They explode after a set amount of time, but can be shot and destroyed. The problem is, some of them get "confused" and try to go back into the pot, which is when OQ better get hopping. That pot is her only weapon, but as previously stated, she can wrap her tail around her opponent and squeeze him until he suffocates or shuts down (in MM9, robots without oxygen burn up more energy, so it's critical that they be able to breathe). Luckily, poking her with a sharp object or zapping her is enough to make her let go: as she's based on Snakeman, she also shares his weaknesses. At least her hair doesn't resemble a toilet brush. :rofl:
Ophiuchus fights in HH4 to gain recognition, and maybe Snakeman's respect (which he won't do).