How to do a Mega-Crossover Fic?

I had an idea for a mega-crossover fanfic that involves nearly anything you can imagine from many mediums, using the relatively modern city of Midgar as the backdrop. However, I am extremely inexperienced with writing and want to know the best way to do this.

The fic is titled "Gangs of Midgar" and is about the various factions vying for control of Midgar from the decaying city government. The factions are comprised of various characters from various universes.

The tone of the fic is generally tongue-in-cheek. It relies on Cast Herd and has an ensemble cast, where each faction and gang has a central protagonist as part of the Ensemble.

Some of the noted gangs include....

• The Wiseguys: A Mafia gang that deals in gambling, prostitution, jewelry, counterfeiting, and extortion. Their leader is Vito Corleone, and other noted members include Tony Soprano, Mello, Toni Cipirani, Vito Scaletta, Henry Hill, and Chucky Pancamo.

• The Law: A catch-all term for police and military forces in Midgar. The police are led by Chief Wiggum, which is why they are so woefully incompetent, while the small military of Midgar is led by Nick Fury. Members of The Law include Chun-Li, Officer Jenny, Chris Redfield, John Mc Clane, Sherlock Holmes, and Soap Mc Tavish.

• The Roman Brotherhood: A heroic gang that dons the mantle of the old Pagan-era Roman Empire with a few samurai trappings. They are less of a gang, more of a vigilante group with a mission, to conquer Midgar and make it a better place. They view Midgar as a dystopia awash with Judeo-Christian ignorance and Celtic savagery (Note: That is only their opinion). The Roman Brotherhood wishes to save the city and make a new Roman Empire that will not make the mistakes of the old. Their leader is Neo-Queen Serenity and noted members include Legate Lanius, Maximus from Gladiator, Claire Redfield, Tifa Lockheart, the Sailor Senshi, and a few other heroic characters.

• The Ninjas: A clan of shinobi allied with the Roman Brotherhood, their leader is Ryu Hayabusa. Other noted members include Ayane, Kasumi, Hayate, Benikage, Naruto Uzumaki, Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha, Hayate Gekko, Hinata Hyuga, and the Ninja Turtles. Their sworn enemies are the Pirates.

• The Pirates: A pirate crew that controls the flow of illegal drugs in the city. Their leader is Jack Sparrow, and other members include Luffy, Blackbeard, Gan Ning, Nami, and a few others.

• Ghostwood Chapel: A religious group that is an amalgation of various Judeo-Christian traditions, the Ghostwood Chapel are a mix of Church Militants and Well-Intentioned Extremists, who, much like the Roman Brotherhood, want to clean up the town. Their leader is Sephiroth, an Archbishop and maniacal leader of the church, and other noted members include Alexander Anderson, Bridget from Guilty Gear, Ned Flanders, Aerith Gainsborough (Ironic, isn't it?), Nicholas D. Wolfwood, Timmy Kirk, and a few others.

• The Gents: A wealthy gang of aristocrats and corrupt corporate executives, their leader is a dying Monty Burns, who has named Seto Kaiba as his successor in the likely event Mr. Burns should die. Other noted members include Albert Wesker, Waylon Smithers, and Count Olaf.

• The Third Street Saints: A typical street gang that acts as mercenaries and hired muscle for other gangs and factions. their leader is The Boss, and other noted members include Johnny Gat, Shaundi, Pierce, Dex, and Lin.

• The Greasers: A gang of 1950's greaser delinquents who work on cars, do street races and like the Third Street Saints, act as muscle for other gangs. Their leader is The Fonz, and other noted members include Richard Miller, Butch De Loria, Matt from Death Note, and a few others, including OC's.

• The Undead Scourge: A gang of Undead monsters willing to take over Midgar and create a Necropolis. Their leader is Count Dracula, and other noted members include Arthas Menethil, Jsson Voorhees, Koschei the Deathless, Lady Death, and a few others.

• The Fourth Reich: Those Wacky Nazis mixed with Ghostapo and Stupid Jetpack Hitler, their leader is the Major from Hellsing Ultimate and other members include Rip Van Winkle, Edward Richtofen, Hans Grosse, Karl Ruprect Kroenen, Vern Schillinger, Ernest Darby, and Derek from American History X. They are the initial villains of the fic, alongside the Undead Scourge.

How do I make the mega-crossover work?

edited 1st Jul '12 5:40:34 AM by PaulieRomanov

Not that I'm an expert with the art of the Mega Crossover (track down Over Master or Shadow Crystal Mage for that), my advice is... Just go crazy with it.

Also, I suggest that the ninja group have Volfogg as a secret weapon/trump card. He's a Ninja Robot who transforms into a police car and can combine with his helicopter and motorcycle comrades GunGlue and GunDober (both The Voiceless) to become Big Volfogg, who basically has a minigun on one arm and uses GunGlue's top rotor as a blade. In terms of personality, Volfogg somehow manages to be both Hot-Blooded and The Stoic at the same time.

I might consider that

I've found if there's an overlaying "theme" to the crossover, like "all Cartoon Network series or "all giant robot series, the crossover has a better chance.

And another thing; don't try and mess with canon too much. Don't make a character from one series related to a character from another series, or stuff like that. Pairings between two unrelated [[Metroid series]] are fine, though.

Beware of occasional bad attitude. I do Fanfics on deviantART. Witness me make a mockery out of myself there, too.

Is there any MCF that is actually finished?

I'm a (socialist) professional writer serializing a WWII alternate history webnovel.

Hybrid Theory is a finished mega-crossover which combined around a dozen different anime*

. Then there's Undocumented Features which, though unfinished, is still being written 21 years after it started.

That’s the epitome of privilege right there, not considering armed nazis a threat to your life. - Silasw

As the writer of Super Network Wars, always keep a roadmap of the characters that will be involved as well as the overall flow of the storyline. Sometimes, you might get lost in the overwhelming number of different works that will be involved in the crossover.

edited 14th Sep '12 6:23:30 PM by MoonlightBomber

How far will your 20 pesos go?

The best I can say is that you look over all of or at least the main section of each story and find a good way to connect them. Something that may be found appealing, too.

That's how I'm doing it with my project.