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So, basing this off of an idea that I was linked to, I figured I should make a thread about this setting, to be developed and shaped for possible use in the future. Be aware, this is a barebones concept and heavily under construction, and criticism in the form of PM's or in the Shoutbox is always welcome.
The basic principle is, modern day, on the surface, everything is normal. There's fast food chains, cars, everything as it is today, with one difference.
Behind the scenes, a secret, hidden war is being waged, for control of what are known as Leylines of Flavor. Each leyline has its own "Flavor" that it can imbue upon food if tapped while cooking, resulting in an amazingly flavored food with that leyline's element. There are multiple types of flavors, from sweet, to spicy, to bitter, to sour, and the rarest and most coveted of them all, savory. There are also areas known to the participants of this shadow war as a "Nexus," where multiple leylines meet with one another.
Working in a restaurant that "Channels" the power of a leyline or Nexus is not only beneficial to the chef's dishes, but also to the chef himself. As the chef works, and channels the power of the leylines, his own body begins to adapt, granting him supernatural powers, to improve his technique. These can be anything from improved dexterity due to working with knives and sharp objects, or resistance to fire from working in a hot kitchen all the time. Many master chefs have numerous abilities they have developed as they work the magic that is the Leyline.
Restaurants built on or within range of a Nexus are rated by stars, the number meaning how many leylines interconnect. It is for that reason that 5-star restaurants are both rare and prized for their amazing food, as a 5-star restaurant can only be deemed so for being on a nexus with all 5 of the prime leylines.
Restaurants built on what is known as a Corrupted Leyline, however, are soon twisted and formed into that of a Chain, depending on which of the 4 leylines it is built upon. These leylines have been corrupted by the 4 evil fast-food chefs that run the chains, The Colonel, The Clown, The Redhead, and The King, each who were once officers serving under a grand chef who controlled a 4-star nexus. When the grand chef lost his life in an accident, his four officers disputed over who should have control of the nexus. Eventually, each claimed a leyline of their own, and corrupted it to suit their own purpose, to create an army of dark cooks to serve them, and claim victory from the other officers, and, in doing so, corrupt the average citizen, and turn them into a sleeper, an unknowing soldier in the coming war between the Four Chains.
The True Chefs, those who build their restaurants on leylines, or on a Nexus, are the only thing preventing the looming War of Four Chains. By consuming food infused with the power of a non-corrupted leyline, a citizen is cleared of the hidden corruption that consuming Chain food infects them with. In doing so, they thin the potential armies of the Four Chains, and prevent their army from growing stronger. But, the True Chefs do not know this, so they continue to vie for control of the leylines for their own personal advancement.
To the average person, none of this is actually known, for if the world ever found out about the raw magic of the Leylines and the truth about the food they eat, chaos would ensue. So the mage-chefs and spell-cooks keep their war for the Leylines hidden. The Chains subtly entice and seduce citizens to lie in wait for the coming war.
One tool that is used by all sides in the War of the Chefs are Food Critics. In another time or age, they might be known as Paladins. Critics are worshipers of the very essence of flavor, the very Leylines themselves. They possess an innate ability to divine where a Leyline is, and approximately how close the nearest Nexus is. A Critic can divine if a location for a restaurant is good or not by merely consuming bread on the spot. It is for this reason that almost every large or popular restaurant has a Critic that they know personally, to divine the fate of the restaurant in the coming months, or to tell them if the leyline has begun to deteriorate.
Actual chefs do not possess this ability, only the power to draw on the leyline through cooking. It is for this reason Critics are highly valued. If a Leyline were to deteriorate while a restaurant was drawing upon it, the food would become befouled, and would begin to attract the minions of the Chains, who would seek to corrupt the leyline for whichever of the four Masters they served.
The basic principle is, modern day, on the surface, everything is normal. There's fast food chains, cars, everything as it is today, with one difference.
Behind the scenes, a secret, hidden war is being waged, for control of what are known as Leylines of Flavor. Each leyline has its own "Flavor" that it can imbue upon food if tapped while cooking, resulting in an amazingly flavored food with that leyline's element. There are multiple types of flavors, from sweet, to spicy, to bitter, to sour, and the rarest and most coveted of them all, savory. There are also areas known to the participants of this shadow war as a "Nexus," where multiple leylines meet with one another.
Working in a restaurant that "Channels" the power of a leyline or Nexus is not only beneficial to the chef's dishes, but also to the chef himself. As the chef works, and channels the power of the leylines, his own body begins to adapt, granting him supernatural powers, to improve his technique. These can be anything from improved dexterity due to working with knives and sharp objects, or resistance to fire from working in a hot kitchen all the time. Many master chefs have numerous abilities they have developed as they work the magic that is the Leyline.
Restaurants built on or within range of a Nexus are rated by stars, the number meaning how many leylines interconnect. It is for that reason that 5-star restaurants are both rare and prized for their amazing food, as a 5-star restaurant can only be deemed so for being on a nexus with all 5 of the prime leylines.
Restaurants built on what is known as a Corrupted Leyline, however, are soon twisted and formed into that of a Chain, depending on which of the 4 leylines it is built upon. These leylines have been corrupted by the 4 evil fast-food chefs that run the chains, The Colonel, The Clown, The Redhead, and The King, each who were once officers serving under a grand chef who controlled a 4-star nexus. When the grand chef lost his life in an accident, his four officers disputed over who should have control of the nexus. Eventually, each claimed a leyline of their own, and corrupted it to suit their own purpose, to create an army of dark cooks to serve them, and claim victory from the other officers, and, in doing so, corrupt the average citizen, and turn them into a sleeper, an unknowing soldier in the coming war between the Four Chains.
The True Chefs, those who build their restaurants on leylines, or on a Nexus, are the only thing preventing the looming War of Four Chains. By consuming food infused with the power of a non-corrupted leyline, a citizen is cleared of the hidden corruption that consuming Chain food infects them with. In doing so, they thin the potential armies of the Four Chains, and prevent their army from growing stronger. But, the True Chefs do not know this, so they continue to vie for control of the leylines for their own personal advancement.
To the average person, none of this is actually known, for if the world ever found out about the raw magic of the Leylines and the truth about the food they eat, chaos would ensue. So the mage-chefs and spell-cooks keep their war for the Leylines hidden. The Chains subtly entice and seduce citizens to lie in wait for the coming war.
One tool that is used by all sides in the War of the Chefs are Food Critics. In another time or age, they might be known as Paladins. Critics are worshipers of the very essence of flavor, the very Leylines themselves. They possess an innate ability to divine where a Leyline is, and approximately how close the nearest Nexus is. A Critic can divine if a location for a restaurant is good or not by merely consuming bread on the spot. It is for this reason that almost every large or popular restaurant has a Critic that they know personally, to divine the fate of the restaurant in the coming months, or to tell them if the leyline has begun to deteriorate.
Actual chefs do not possess this ability, only the power to draw on the leyline through cooking. It is for this reason Critics are highly valued. If a Leyline were to deteriorate while a restaurant was drawing upon it, the food would become befouled, and would begin to attract the minions of the Chains, who would seek to corrupt the leyline for whichever of the four Masters they served.