Welcome to Gaia! ::

Basic premise: Total War* gameplay mixed with zOMG!
Plot idea: Issues about whether Animated can coexist with Gaians splitting the world into multiple factions, but not only is Labtech X preparing to strike again, but considering how much is unknown about the Null Chamber, some other force might be waiting to emerge.

*I myself haven't played the games, and the only one in the series I'm familiar with thanks to watching videos is Total War: Attila so unless others more knowledgeable about the series chip in, that game is likely the one I'd draw ideas from on the Total War side of this mix.

Gameplay ideas:
- players can choose one of a variety of factions. All factions have their own pros and cons. In this idea, players are allowed to make a customizable avatar, but all factions have their own default "leader", so it's not essential to make an avatar in order to play the game.
- At the start of the game, all factions (both playable (major) and non-playable (minor)) have some amount of "regions" or areas under their control.
- The basic objective is to try and control the map.
- All factions have various units that can be brought to battles. Some of these units are Animated; others are Gaian. What units are available depends on the faction.
- Just like in the Total War games, the overall game is set in a turn-based fashion, but individual battles are more real-time based.
* One major difference I was thinking of would be the ability to switch between a "tactical" stance (basically the way battles work in Total War) and a more "action" stance (where players can get into the action themselves in a way more like zOMG! at the cost of not being able to control the entire action in the way the tactical stance would). If it's possible to kind of merge the two "stances" together in a way that works out, please bring it up.
* Alternatively, it could be that larger scale battles are done in ways closer to that of Total War battles, but things with smaller groups might be done in ways more akin to zOMG! gameplay.
* Okay, I confess, I don't really know how the individual battles should work out. If anyone has ideas, please bring them up!

- Perhaps the characters that players can directly control are the ones that would be considered generals in Total War terminology. Just like the units, some generals are Gaian, while others are Animated. Both have advantages and disadvantages.
-> Gaians for example can equip zOMG! rings to grant them various abilities. However, they are more vulnerable to suffering attrition and/or fatigue without being prepared for such things.
-> Animated on the other hand can't equip zOMG! rings, but are better able to handle attrition and/or fatigue. On the other hand, Animated suffer attrition when they are too close to Null Crystals, with one group of exceptions.
-> Null-Beings/Animated (basically beings closely linked with the Null Chamber and Animated such as Crystal Fluffs and Null Fluffs) actually replenish when inside Null chambers and/or close to Null Crystals. However, the farther away from such places they are, the more likely they are to suffer attrition.
* These ideas are just ideas. If there are better ones, let me know.

- Perhaps there could be some scripted events, especially considering the whole idea of using rings bringing in MORE animated.
- Perhaps these following could be considered cultures/religions/whatever the equivalent term in Total War terminology is:
*1. Gaian - factions with this affiliation are mostly against the Animated (with the Kindred exception) and also against Labtech X and world domination
*2. Labtech X - Only one major faction with this affiliation and the faction leader is naturally Labtech X. He's out to dominate the world, hoping to use Animated as puppet states.
*3. Animated - factions with this affiliation are out to secure a place for Animated, even if it means clearing away all opposition. Some of these factions are allied with Labtech X. Others are against Labtech X at the start. And then there are some factions who start out allied with Labtech X but can choose to break their ties with him to form their own allegiance.
*4. Gaianimated (a mix of Gaian and Animated) - factions with this affiliation are seeking to find an equal balance between Gaians and Animated (Kindred or not). They are also against Labtech X for the most part. Unlike the previous affiliations, some of these particular factions are at the start aware of the Null Beings...
*5. Null Beings - Entities from dimensions tied intimately with the Null Chamber along with those loyal to them, the Null Beings see the recent leak of Ghi energy into the world of Gaia as their chance to establish their presence after various gods (Nyx and Gaia among them) sealed them away so long ago. Those gods had hoped that nothing would let them out, but the defeat of Sealab X and later Kamila sent ripples of Ghi energy that exposed weak points in the seals, and at least two major factions of Null Beings took this as a chance to escape their prison. One seeks to take revenge against the gods by conquering enough of an empire to prove that the gods were not as potent as they were seen as. The other wishes instead to establish a balance of power between themselves, the Gaians, and the Animated, seeing this balance and establishment of diplomacy as the key to ensuring that their kind can fully escape the Null Dimensions that were once their home but now their prison.