Credits to Jest Education for the image.
Introduction
Conceptual Manipulation is the ability to manipulate, create, and/or destroy abstract concepts, ideas or archetypes. This ability has a variety of applications, ranging from not combat applicable to incredibly dominating. Conceptual Manipulation involves the manipulation of universal concepts, and not the universe directly. However, through this power, one can change the universe's fundamental principles on the highest level.
Each concept is linked with its respective "object". In this way, altering the concept will change every object in the same way the concept itself was changed, effectively altering all the reality where the object exists.
Possible Uses
- Concept Creation: The ability to create concepts. By using this ability, destroyed concepts can be restored or new ones created, giving the user the ability to create fundamental principles that govern reality and the world around them. With this power, one can create a concept that is unfathomable to the current mind, changing the world to match this new conceptual universal idea. It is the ultimate form of Law Manipulation.
- Concept Alteration: The ability to manipulate, alter, or change concepts. By using this ability, concepts themselves can be changed in a variety of ways. The concept can have have an object added to it, an object taken from it, or change the current principle of the concept. If a concept is changed, the world is altered in some way to fit this new conceptual definition, though the extent of this varies by the type of concept being manipulated.
- Concept Destruction: The ability to destroy or remove a concept. By using the ability concepts are removed from reality. This can be wide-spread or very targeted, either erasing the concept of an overarching fundamental principle, such as space, or an individual. Conventional kinds of Regeneration or Resurrection wouldn't be effective to restore an individual from such a degree of destruction, as without its concept, the being would have never been existed in the first place. Because of this, when destroyed at this level, nothing can be restored without using similarly powerful conceptual creation.
Types
1. Independent Concepts: These concepts and are completely independent by the reality they govern and shape, except maybe other concepts of this nature. Due to these concepts shaping everything in reality, the latter is merely "participating" in said concepts, thus, for example, a round object would have such shape only because it's "participating" in the concept of "round-ness". In this way, the alteration of these concepts would affect all the objects that participate in them, while the opposite wouldn't affect these concepts.
- Examples: Akashic Records (Vampire Hunter D), Ein Sof (Angelarium), Lavos (Chrono)
2. Dependent Concepts: These concepts shape everything in reality, and thus make up everything that exists within their area of influence. Changing these concepts would require either the alteration of every object that is related to said concept, or, if manipulated directly, change all the objects alongside the concept itself. Because of this, concepts of this nature are dependent from reality, thus destroying all the objects related to the concept would also end the concept itself, or, on the other hand, the concept would be re-created if the objects related to it are restored. This type of Conceptual Manipulation can be obtained only if the concept itself is directly altered without indirect side effects, meaning that, for example, while ending humanity through directly destroying the concept of humanity would qualify, ending its concept through destroying humanity in other ways wouldn't.
3. Lesser Fundamental Concepts: These concepts govern over objects on a far more limited way compared to the previous two types. Examples are personal concepts that shape the objects related to it in only a localized scale, or concepts that are purely dependent on the perception of sentient beings. However, it should be reminded that these concepts are still abstract in nature, thus, similairly to Type 2, only directly altering them and as a result changing the objects related to the concept would qualify for Conceptual Manipulation.
- Examples: Chibi-Chan (Endro~!), Chainsaw Devil (Chainsaw Man), Rushella Dahm Draculea (Silver Cross & Draculea)
Limitations
- All Conceptual Manipulators are bound by the object of the concepts they have been shown to manipulate. A character able to manipulate the concept of darkness is not able to manipulate the concept of matter or an individual unless otherwise shown.
- All Conceptual Manipulators are bound by the application of the object of the concepts they have been shown to manipulate. A character able to manipulate the concept of light cannot use this conceptual manipulation to increase the potency of their Mind Manipulation, for example. Similarly, concepts that have not shown weaponization of some sort cannot be used offensively.
- All Conceptual Manipulators are bound by the use of the power. A character who embodies a concept cannot create, manipulate, or destroy it unless otherwise shown. A character who can create a concept cannot destroy it unless otherwise shown, and vice versa.
- All Conceptual Manipulators are bound by the type of concept they have been shown to manipulate. A character able to manipulate a concept on a Type 3 level cannot manipulate any higher concept type.
Non-Qualifying Concepts
Concepts that are not abstract or universal, such as those outlined in Idealism and Nominalism, do not qualify for any kind of Conceptual Manipulation, due to them being merely non-abstract objects that do not hold power over anything in the physical world, making the alteration of these concepts more in line with Mind Manipulation. For a character to qualify for Conceptual Manipulation, they must be able to manipulate abstract and universal concepts.
Indirect manipulation of concepts, such as the universal changing of the object, does not qualify as conceptual manipulation. The use of Social Influencing or any non-supernatural power to achieve an alteration of a concept does not qualify as conceptual manipulation, as this is not a direct manipulation of the concept.
The ability to physically interact with Type 1 Abstract beings by its own isn't enough for Conceptual Manipulation, but just Non-Physical Interaction, due to these characters simply interacting with the concept as if it's a physical object, without being necessairly able to manipulate it in other ways.
Notes
- Concepts whose nature isn't elaborated in the verse would qualify for just Type 3 due to the lack of evidence of them shaping reality on the scale required for the other two types.
- How Type 3 concepts would interact with other abilities should be discussed on a case-by-case basis. Unlike the other two types, for example, Regeneration lesser than High-Godly is likely enough to counter it, or its applications can be resisted from those who resist similar powers, even if the mechanics are different.