General Fan Fiction Thread

[ekrolo2]

A classically effective example of redeeming someone is to takeaway something that they think defines them. For example, Jaime Lannister, he's reviled for killing Mad King Aerys but in spite of this, he's respected and feared as one of the best swordsmen in Westeros with a lot of his potential competitors dead or too old and fat to put up a fight. Then he loses his primary sword hand, which causes him to break down and he's a fairly changed man afterward.

Dragon Ball hasn't really done this before. Usually the big event is a culmination of something that's been churning for a while like Piccolo dying for Gohan or Vegeta committing suicide to kill Boo. Robbing Freeza of all his power and making him only as strong as a regular human would be a good example of applying Jaime's situation on a DB character if you choose to make him the redeemed one. Alternatively, you can use this to make Freeza a glorious bastard who, with his raw power gone, has to learn how to become a master manipulator, resorting to his wits and machinations to destroy his enemies

[Doctor.]

A classically effective example of redeeming someone is to takeaway something that they think defines them. For example, Jaime Lannister, he's reviled for killing Mad King Aerys but in spite of this, he's respected and feared as one of the best swordsmen in Westeros with a lot of his potential competitors dead or too old and fat to put up a fight. Then he loses his primary sword hand, which causes him to break down and he's a fairly changed man afterward.

Dragon Ball hasn't really done this before. Usually the big event is a culmination of something that's been churning for a while like Piccolo dying for Gohan or Vegeta committing suicide to kill Boo. Robbing Freeza of all his power and making him only as strong as a regular human would be a good example of applying Jaime's situation on a DB character if you choose to make him the redeemed one. Alternatively, you can use this to make Freeza a glorious bastard who, with his raw power gone, has to learn how to become a master manipulator, resorting to his wits and machinations to destroy his enemies

You're really on that Game of Thrones hype recently, huh? Would expect you to be shitting on the series at every chance, like you do with Star Wars, considering how bad everything post-S4 is.

In regards to Freeza being redeemed, I don't like to claim that an idea can't be done, but seeing as how he has been portrayed in the series, especially in Super, I struggle to see ANY author redeeming him without severely rewriting or retconning his entire character.

[Gog]

In regards to Freeza being redeemed, I don't like to claim that an idea can't be done, but seeing as how he has been portrayed in the series, especially in Super, I struggle to see ANY author redeeming him without severely rewriting or retconning his entire character.

Freeza can be redeemed without severely rewriting his character. The idea has been done and was executed flawlessly in Savior of Demons.

[ekrolo2]

A classically effective example of redeeming someone is to takeaway something that they think defines them. For example, Jaime Lannister, he's reviled for killing Mad King Aerys but in spite of this, he's respected and feared as one of the best swordsmen in Westeros with a lot of his potential competitors dead or too old and fat to put up a fight. Then he loses his primary sword hand, which causes him to break down and he's a fairly changed man afterward.

Dragon Ball hasn't really done this before. Usually the big event is a culmination of something that's been churning for a while like Piccolo dying for Gohan or Vegeta committing suicide to kill Boo. Robbing Freeza of all his power and making him only as strong as a regular human would be a good example of applying Jaime's situation on a DB character if you choose to make him the redeemed one. Alternatively, you can use this to make Freeza a glorious bastard who, with his raw power gone, has to learn how to become a master manipulator, resorting to his wits and machinations to destroy his enemies

You're really on that Game of Thrones hype recently, huh? Would expect you to be shitting on the series at every chance, like you do with Star Wars, considering how bad everything post-S4 is.

In regards to Freeza being redeemed, I don't like to claim that an idea can't be done, but seeing as how he has been portrayed in the series, especially in Super, I struggle to see ANY author redeeming him without severely rewriting or retconning his entire character.

You are very right about GoT S6 and 6 being mediocre but 7s been pretty damn enjoyable so far.

And I agree on Freeza, he's physically incapable of grasping anything close to empathy that redeeming him can't work. I'd say Cell could work out fine in this kind of "break him down then build him back up" type story since he really prides himself on his power and perfection.

[Gog]

How would you go about writing a subversive Dragon Ball Fan Fiction?

[Doctor.]

How would you write a subversive Dragon Ball Fan Fiction?

Depends on what you consider "subversive" for Dragon Ball standards. Toriyama's writing style thrives on subverting expectations, so I'm not sure you can write something like that for Dragon Ball. Most fanfictions already subvert Dragon Ball's tropes and themes by giving a bigger focus to the supporting characters, giving more in-depth explanations and making teamwork and tactics a bigger part of battles. So there's hardly anything you can do that Toriyama wouldn't do himself or that isn't a staple of well-written fanfiction.

[Kanassa]

Is it okay to write a character in a purposely awkward manner? Or should it be something toned down due to possibly annoying the audience?

[Alruneia]

Is it okay to write a character in a purposely awkward manner? Or should it be something toned down due to possibly annoying the audience?

If it annoys you as the writer or it's reasonable to believe that the readers will be annoyed, you've gone overboard. Otherwise I don't see why it shouldn't be.

[ekrolo2]

How would you write a subversive Dragon Ball Fan Fiction?

Depends on what you consider "subversive" for Dragon Ball standards. Toriyama's writing style thrives on subverting expectations, so I'm not sure you can write something like that for Dragon Ball. Most fanfictions already subvert Dragon Ball's tropes and themes by giving a bigger focus to the supporting characters, giving more in-depth explanations and making teamwork and tactics a bigger part of battles. So there's hardly anything you can do that Toriyama wouldn't do himself or that isn't a staple of well-written fanfiction.

It can be done, just write a standard DB tale. PLs rule all else drools, non-Goku & Vegrta people are fodder, the plot line sould barely make sense, easy solutions should get ignored,...

As you said, if everyone's giving bigger focus to things the standard series doesn't the writing THE standard is the subversive thing in this case.

[Gog]

If given the chance how would you go ahead, and rewrite the Universal Survival Arc?

[Kanassa]

If given the chance how would you go ahead, and rewrite the Universal Survival Arc?

Future Trunks would have stayed for both the drama he would have in basically taking part in erasing other universes like his timeline was erased, and because he's one of the people who killed Frieza. Then you'd have three people on he team who ahve been killed by Frieza and three who have killed Frieza (Goku counts as two!). Be a funny coincidence. Maybe to make up for the fact he can't use his sword he teaches himself to use ki blades from his fights with Black and Zamasu.

In the moment before Baba revives Frieza (You know, when Goku is remembering his fight with Grandpa Gohan), somehow Grandpa Gohan comes out one last time to sit down and talk with Goku (Baba told him Goku needed some guidance or something). Goku reflects on what responsibility he could take in their current situation and laments that he never wanted to get mixed up in these big dangerous events, he just wants to fight strong guys. G!Gohan maybe talks about Goku training someone who could surpass him in strength and take up the mantel of Earth's actual protector, someone who could also sate Goku's lust for battle. Hinting at Goku training Uub later in life.

One of the opponents in the tournament (Maybe Kale) fight Goku, and through their fight the two bond a little, with Goku treating the opponent like a student (Again, think to when Goku fights Uub for the first time). It gets to the point where the opponent admits how scared they are, because they like Goku, they don't want him or themselves to be erased. Just before getting eliminated, leaving Goku to think back to what Grandpa Gohan said in the other hypothetical scene. It wouldn't be obvious, Goku would be yelling or anything. Just a moment of Goku standing there, contemplating for a moment.

Piccolo would use his stretchy arms to save a few people from getting knocked out.

Tien, Roshi and Piccolo would have a three-way mafuuba attack just for the nostalgia factor.

Universe 11 would be responsible for at least one of Universe 7's team being out before any of them are eliminated.

Gohan wears his Great Saiyaman outfit, because Toppo needs to see it!

I'd also have it so that the families of team members could spectate the tournament. Seriously, this is the one type of tournament that could benefit from personal spectators. Imagine Gohan knocking that last Uni 10 member off while knowing his wife and daughter are watching him do it.

One of Universe 6's team should be from Earth, and incredibly evil or something. Just so Beerus can have a moment of bad consequence for a good deed

[FoolsGil]

If given the chance how would you go ahead, and rewrite the Universal Survival Arc?

Biggest thing I change is for the Zenos to remember the tournament on their own, to absolve Goku's stupid ass, the prick.

Next, Then, because we know U7 is going to get everyone they need, I would dedicate each chapter to one of the other universes and their recruiting with small snippets of Goku convincing the members of U7 to join. And Buu isn't going to fall asleep again.

When it's time for the tournament to start, I would pull a page from Yu Yu Hakusho's Demon Tournament, and have universe vs universe, but still keep it as a free for all and for U7, dedicate multiple chapters to their rounds, making each round an arc

Round One U7 v U9 (U9 loses, Krillin and Buu are knocked off the ring)
Round Two U2 v U10 (U10 loses)
Round Three U11 v U4 (U4 loses)
Round Four U6 v U3 (U3 loses)

Before the next rounds start its revealed anyone that fell off previously is out for the rest of the tournament

Round Five U7 v U2 (U2 loses, Master Roshi, Seventeen, Piccolo are knocked off ring)
Round Six U11 v U6 (U6 loses, Everyone from U11 by this point is defeated except for Jiren, Toppo, and Dispo)

Round Seven U7 v U11 -Eighteen, Tien are made quick work of. Dispo v Gohan, Toppo v Vegeta, Jiren v Goku. Eventually it's just Jiren v Goku. Goku loses. The Zenos "accidentally" destroy U11 by mistake.

Goku gets the Super Dragonballs and tries to wish all the lives and universes back. The Giant Dragon can't bring back every life and subsequently put them all in 8 separate universes. The Grand Priest appears and tries to intervene. Before he can beat Goku within an inch of his life, Goku wishes for all the planets and lives to be resurrected into U7. The Giant Dragon can do this, and does so. The Grand Priest finds this so funny, 8 universes constrained in 1 universe (The Milky Way Galaxy now has 30 planets and 4 suns, for example) and decides to let Goku live, for now, and will even not tell Zeno. Goku has now made things a lot harder for everyone, but now there can be more adventures now that there are more than 28 sentient species in Universe 7.

[Alruneia]

If given the chance how would you go ahead, and rewrite the Universal Survival Arc?

It'd involve a lot of notes, that's for sure. The first thing I'd do would be to arrange tons of various teams, and I'd probably base at least some of them on what fans have wanted to see. After that I'd set up a list of all 80 fighters by order of elimination backwards (1. Goku, 2. Jiren, etc.) with the ones who don't get eliminated being at the top. I'd keep the teams in mind when making the list and try to make logical sense of what teams would last the longest. These two lists would be combined to create a schematic of every elimination in order and of who eliminates who. Finally, there'd be a loooong bullet point list of events, detailing when fights begin, when people team up, when teams split up, when fights end, when fighters are eliminated, and so on.
After all of that, I could start writing the arc properly.
The first thing I'd change in the arc proper is the fighters' remarkable ability to just stop fighting people and randomly move on to someone else. Most people wouldn't act like that, instead choosing one target and focusing on it. Next up is Goku's personality, unsurprisingly. He's holding back to the point where he's crippling himself. He mastered Super Saiyan 1 before the Cell Games; let's bring that back and have him consistently transformed. Finally, other universes would be fighting each other independently of Universe 7 (and 6). Some of the recruitment arc introduced fighters from the other universes, and using them as the "heroes" in some minor fights would serve to hype them up and give the eventual battles between them and the main characters more impact.

[ekrolo2]

I've been thinking about a possible ToP arc AU. Basically, the ending of the Black arc is way darker for Trunks who, upon realizing everything he ever did was for nothing, suffers a total breakdown and is wasting away. But when Goku arrives with news of the ToP and the possibility of winning the Super Dragon Balls to wish for anything they want, FT gets back in the game and does whatever it takes to win so he can restore the future timeline.

Obviously, when Trunks learns of the whole "the losers get erased" thing, that puts him in a real awkward position.

[Kanassa]

So, I was thinking about making up an explanation about that whole 'Tingly Back for Super Saiyan Hair!' thing for my fic

Warning, this might be complete and utter bullshit and doesn't have much basis in fact:

It ties in with a Saiyan's ability to become a Giant Ape, an ability which is instantly taken away with the cutting of their tail. This is explained in the show (Don't know if it's in the manga) that Saiyans channle energy into their tail which causes the changes in their body, since they can channel energy, they can channel the bultswaves that the moon sends.

So, I'm thinking that maybe Saiyans who still have their tail are unable to actually ascend to Super Saiyan, which is why Universe 6 seems rather proficient at transformations after being told they could do that. A Saiyan's energy is channelled through their tails (Which is why it's such a weak point, you're essentially cutting off the flow of a Saiyan's energy), so when that tail is cut off, the body naturally seeks another way to store and use it's energy, specifically the energy begins to build up in a spot between their tail bone and their upper back. Naturally, this energy has a sort of wall blocking it off, a wall that can only be broken with a combination of two things: A build up of a pressure that comes from a Saiyan raising their power level, and an emotional trigger to provide that last push for the build up, breaking through the wall.

Kale's beserker state is the result of her special state of insecurities. She has the power to go Super Saiyan, but due to her inferiority complex she (Until that moment with Cabba and Caulifla) has all this emotional built up all trapped within that's far past it's boiling point. Instead of having one emotional trigger, her emotions were subdued, left to stew until all at once they explode. Caulifla, due to her being a 'prodigy' (Then again, who the fuck isn't a prodigy in this franchise?) or maybe genes, was able to break through this wall by concentrating all her energy down to where her tail is supposed to be.

This presents a problem for Saiyans though, if Super Saiyan is due to the wall, then prehaps an enemy who knew this could possibly hit a Saiyan in a specific spot around their tail bone and momentarily disable that Saiyan's ability to go Super Saiyan. You know, those 'pressure Point' characters.

[Alruneia]

With the reveal of Limit Break Goku (name pending), I think it's a good time to ask this question again:
Have any of you created original transformations? For any race you want, not just saiyans. I'm more interested a description than a visualisation, but both are fine.

For example, I decided to have a Namekian God form. It's a form achieved by a Namekian reaching his meditative limit and coming in complete control of his power, making him able to turn it into divine energy. It's an awesome boost of power, but once the form is unlocked, meditation will not increase the user's strength any further. It's back to pushups and situps. Visually it's just the red-eyed form from Online and Heroes.
(My high-tier transformations all have various quirks and drawbacks.)

[Gog]

With the reveal of Limit Break Goku (name pending), I think it's a good time to ask this question again:
Have any of you created original transformations? For any race you want, not just saiyans. I'm more interested a description than a visualisation, but both are fine.

No. Not really. Never really felt the need to create new forms. There's already more than enough. I'd rather have the characters accomplish, and defeat the badguy's through means other than new transformations. At best all I've done is retcon how the True Form for Freeza's race works in a multitude of ways, and the biggest way it's different only really has an affect on one character.

[Doctor.]

With the reveal of Limit Break Goku (name pending), I think it's a good time to ask this question again:
Have any of you created original transformations? For any race you want, not just saiyans. I'm more interested a description than a visualisation, but both are fine.

Not sure it really counts, but remember Freeza's mecha form from Super DBZ?

[spoiler][/spoiler]

I don't remember much of how I planned it, but the idea was that Mecha Freeza couldn't access his full power in this robotic state (only about 50% of his true form), so the big cannon in his back was there to compensate. It limited his movement, but it had an extra supply of power he could use (which, if abused, could even go beyond his original 100%), which would increase his power level via a temporary power-up depending on how much 'fuel' he 'injected' into his body. Though, too much power use would start breaking his mechanical parts, they wouldn't hold out forever since they aren't durable enough to hold so much power in a battle situation. Think of it as a Kaioken reskin, only instead of breaking your bones, you'd literally break apart your (mechanical) limbs. Alternatively, he could just fire off beams with the cannon instead, utilizing how much of a percentage of the power in the 'tank' as he wants: could be 1% per blast or 100% in one big-ass beam.

[Kanassa]

Have any of you created original transformations? For any race you want, not just saiyans. I'm more interested a description than a visualisation, but both are fine.

Well, I made a new race up and gave them a transformation. Tukins, who are experts on FUCKING BUBBLES: They're a race who grow up with two at odd personalities, one tame and another extreme, as they age they gain so much control over the personalities and their own bodies that they're able to increase their size and split their personalities into two heads (One with an upside-down face), along with double of every other body part.

The Frieza Race get a new transformation, when they achieve true mastery of modifying their bodies, they morph into a slimmer, but still muscle form (Think a middle ground between Final Form Frieza and 100%). This control allows them to tap into their true nature as predators, morphing their skin coulor to blend in with their environment, make compartments in their exoskeleton for storage and even temporarily shape shift a tad; forming weapons out of their exoskeleton. Basically, think of it as them getting the Venom Symbiote... Except less liquidy and more solid!

I don't know if this one counts as a transformation or not, as well as it not being race specific, Basically, a character who learns how to manipulate electricity uses it to trick his brain into changing the way his body works through electric-influenced brain waves. He makes the body take away other abilities to give more parts of him better attributes. Tell the eyes to stop taking in colour and detail, put that energy into helping increase his speed.

[ekrolo2]

My stance on transformations when writing fan fics: figure out a way to include 4 somehow.