Then I would say Nevercast is "Romance of the Three Kingdoms 2065". Now, I've never read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", but I like the idea of masterful scholar-warriors intertwined with complex political intrigues. However, I didn't want the advanced martial arts / meditational practices presented to give the impression of magical ability, or seem hokey like in the Matrix. I want it to seem mundane - like these feats can actually be attained by humans in the future, who have greater mental capacity, augmentive biological technology, exponentially better training methodologies, and (in this alternate reality) have institutionalized these arts for millenia. It's sort of a hypothetical question like, "What if Shaolin Temple never burned?"
If I could describe the genre or feel of the setting...
Then I would say Nevercast is "Romance of the Three Kingdoms 2065". Now, I've never read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", but I like the idea of masterful scholar-warriors intertwined with complex political intrigues. However, I didn't want the advanced martial arts / meditational practices presented to give the impression of magical ability, or seem hokey like in the Matrix. I want it to seem mundane - like these feats can actually be attained by humans in the future, who have greater mental capacity, augmentive biological technology, exponentially better training methodologies, and (in this alternate reality) have institutionalized these arts for millenia. It's sort of a hypothetical question like, "What if Shaolin Temple never burned?"