Interesting question. I want to start by saying you are free to create whatever you like. Some people will like it, others will look at you like you are crazy. That is a simple fact of life. You should create whatever it is that you enjoy, and enjoy it. There is the caveat of "within limits" that others have mentioned here already. Where is the limit? It is different for each individual. Where is the collective limit for a large group or community? Lord only knows where it is exactly, but it is there. Taking a peek at lore is the best way to have a rough idea of the limits, so let us examine what we do know.
Being involved in the Imperial Military is a losing proposition for the disloyal. It is mentioned in several places that Imperial Military are brainwashed, mind controlled, and otherwise conditioned to be loyal to the Empire. This is also seen to be more than just normal indoctrination, it is supernatural in nature. They condition several Ala Mihgan children in seconds to be completely loyal to the Empire (watch the last CS of the old main scenario). The kids look at a bright light for a bit, and then they are not them anymore. They accept the Imperial religion, and march off merrily to be trained to kill in the name of the Empire. In fact, on of the most tragic parts about conflict with the Empire (at least until Van Darnus shows up) is that we are more than likely not fighting true Imperials, but magically brainwashed Ala Mihgans. Hell, they may have even known us, been good friends with us, or even closer than that. They don't care, they still try to kill us. One of the prime examples of the effectiveness of Imperial conditioning is seen after Van Darnus is killed. His men hide the fact that he is dead, and continue to follow what they believe would have been his orders. Some of them even go so far as to pose as Van Darnus. All of it out of fanatical loyalty to the Empire and their commanding officer. Jeebus rice, that is crazy. The only cannon example we have of an Imperial traitor is Cid, and Cid was not military. Cid was the son of a Legatus (if my memory serves me right), a brilliant Magitek Researcher, but he was not a member of the Imperial Military. Thus, he probably was never conditioned and maintained his free will. That is probably what allowed him to betray the Empire and form the Ironworks.
Swinging back around to your story and your question. Given that Imperial rank and file are conditioned to be fanatical drones, you have to consider what further measures they would use to have failsafes in place for their "special forces." We get right into a realm of things we probably don't want to contemplate being done to an individual's mind and body. Still, the first thing to consider is story. What does the scenario add to the collective narrative? In short, what is the point? You have to answer that for yourself as a writer/creator. I would put forward some questions? Mind you, I am not putting these forward to blow holes in your concept, just throwing something out there for you to consider and use to refine it. You have asked for feedback, not judgement. So that is what I am giving you. Feedback, not judgement.
The first question that comes to mind is; why would an organization ruthless enough to mystically brainwash children into fighting theirparents and loved ones, simply put a bug that drives you mad in the brain of one of their elite agents? Why not just something that triggers, detonates, or otherwise kills them in an instant? Ruthless efficiency is still efficient.
Second, is your purpose and concept served by applying your ideas to an organization other than the Empire? There is precious little lore out there about the internal workings of the Imperial Military. Applying your ideas to a different organization (or even one you create yourself) will probably restrict you less farther down the road and allow you to be more creative.
Third, what about this concept will make it unique from other ex-imperial concepts? In my time, I have heard of (and seen) a lot of them. When there are a bunch of similar snowflakes running around, they tend to lose their dramatic impact. This can be a vast disservice to any creator's work, as it is instantly compared (fairly or unfairly) to all the other similar snowflakes running around. An even better route to proceed with (if you decide you want to keep the ex-imperial stuff) would be to contact or find the other people playing ex-imperials and coordinate. It is a small sub-group of the world's population, you probably shouldn't all be living in a vacuum where you haven't heard of one another. This has the side effect of giving you a built in base to RP with, which is generally considered to be awesome.
Just some food for thought. Mull it over, refine, and create as you see fit. I look forward to RPing with you in the future.
- Yssen
Being involved in the Imperial Military is a losing proposition for the disloyal. It is mentioned in several places that Imperial Military are brainwashed, mind controlled, and otherwise conditioned to be loyal to the Empire. This is also seen to be more than just normal indoctrination, it is supernatural in nature. They condition several Ala Mihgan children in seconds to be completely loyal to the Empire (watch the last CS of the old main scenario). The kids look at a bright light for a bit, and then they are not them anymore. They accept the Imperial religion, and march off merrily to be trained to kill in the name of the Empire. In fact, on of the most tragic parts about conflict with the Empire (at least until Van Darnus shows up) is that we are more than likely not fighting true Imperials, but magically brainwashed Ala Mihgans. Hell, they may have even known us, been good friends with us, or even closer than that. They don't care, they still try to kill us. One of the prime examples of the effectiveness of Imperial conditioning is seen after Van Darnus is killed. His men hide the fact that he is dead, and continue to follow what they believe would have been his orders. Some of them even go so far as to pose as Van Darnus. All of it out of fanatical loyalty to the Empire and their commanding officer. Jeebus rice, that is crazy. The only cannon example we have of an Imperial traitor is Cid, and Cid was not military. Cid was the son of a Legatus (if my memory serves me right), a brilliant Magitek Researcher, but he was not a member of the Imperial Military. Thus, he probably was never conditioned and maintained his free will. That is probably what allowed him to betray the Empire and form the Ironworks.
Swinging back around to your story and your question. Given that Imperial rank and file are conditioned to be fanatical drones, you have to consider what further measures they would use to have failsafes in place for their "special forces." We get right into a realm of things we probably don't want to contemplate being done to an individual's mind and body. Still, the first thing to consider is story. What does the scenario add to the collective narrative? In short, what is the point? You have to answer that for yourself as a writer/creator. I would put forward some questions? Mind you, I am not putting these forward to blow holes in your concept, just throwing something out there for you to consider and use to refine it. You have asked for feedback, not judgement. So that is what I am giving you. Feedback, not judgement.
The first question that comes to mind is; why would an organization ruthless enough to mystically brainwash children into fighting theirparents and loved ones, simply put a bug that drives you mad in the brain of one of their elite agents? Why not just something that triggers, detonates, or otherwise kills them in an instant? Ruthless efficiency is still efficient.
Second, is your purpose and concept served by applying your ideas to an organization other than the Empire? There is precious little lore out there about the internal workings of the Imperial Military. Applying your ideas to a different organization (or even one you create yourself) will probably restrict you less farther down the road and allow you to be more creative.
Third, what about this concept will make it unique from other ex-imperial concepts? In my time, I have heard of (and seen) a lot of them. When there are a bunch of similar snowflakes running around, they tend to lose their dramatic impact. This can be a vast disservice to any creator's work, as it is instantly compared (fairly or unfairly) to all the other similar snowflakes running around. An even better route to proceed with (if you decide you want to keep the ex-imperial stuff) would be to contact or find the other people playing ex-imperials and coordinate. It is a small sub-group of the world's population, you probably shouldn't all be living in a vacuum where you haven't heard of one another. This has the side effect of giving you a built in base to RP with, which is generally considered to be awesome.
Just some food for thought. Mull it over, refine, and create as you see fit. I look forward to RPing with you in the future.
- Yssen
