Editing Might and Magic (section)

==Plot==
Although most of the gameplay reflects a distinctly fantasy genre, the overarching plot of the first nine games has a science fiction background. The series is set in a fictional galaxy as part of an alternative universe, where planets are overseen by a powerful race of space travelers known as Ancients who seeded them with humans, elves, dwarves, goblins and others. In each of the games, a party of characters fights monsters and completes quests on one of these planets, until they eventually become involved in the affairs of the Ancients. As such, ''Might and Magic'' is an example of [[science fantasy]].

The [[Video game producer|producer]] of the series was [[Jon Van Caneghem]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=9&cId=3139081#83|title=CGW's Hall of Fame|publisher=Computer Gaming World|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614071402/http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=9&cId=3139081|archive-date=14 June 2016|url-status=dead|access-date=12 April 2019}}</ref> Van Caneghem has stated in interview<ref>{{cite web |title=RPG Codex Retrospective Interview: Jon Van Caneghem on Might and Magic |date=18 August 2012 |url=https://rpgcodex.net/content.php?id=8379 |publisher=RPGCodex |access-date=12 April 2019}}</ref> that the ''Might and Magic'' setting is inspired by his love for both science fiction and fantasy. He cites ''[[The Twilight Zone]]'' and the ''[[Star Trek]]'' episode ''[[For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky]]'' as having inspired ''Might and Magic'' lore.

The first five games in the series concern the renegade android Sheltem created by the Ancients to be the Guardian of the planet Terra, who becomes irrevocably corrupted, developing a penchant for throwing worlds into suns to sabotage the Ancients' Great Experiment, as his faulty programming views them as a threat to Terra. Sheltem establishes himself on a series of flat worlds known as nacelles (which are carried inside giant spaceships) and Corak, a second Guardian and creation of the Ancients, pursues him across the Void with the assistance of the player characters. Eventually both Corak and Sheltem are destroyed in a climactic battle on the nacelle world of Xeen.

The sixth, seventh and eighth games take place on Enroth, a single planet where a large continent also named Enroth is ruled by the Ironfist dynasty, and chronicle the events and aftermath of an invasion by the Kreegan (colloquially referred to as "devils"), the demon-like archenemies of the Ancients. It is also revealed that the destruction wrought by the Ancients' wars with the Kreegan is the reason why the worlds of ''Might and Magic'' exist as medieval fantasy settings despite once being seeded with futuristic technology – the worlds have been 'cut off' from the Ancients and descended into barbarism. The first through third games in the ''[[Heroes of Might and Magic]]'' series trace the fortunes of the Ironfists in more detail. None of the science fiction elements appear in the ''Heroes'' series besides the appearance of Kreegan characters in ''Heroes of Might and Magic III'' and ''IV''. ''Might and Magic IX'' and ''Heroes IV'' take place on Axeoth, another planet which the survivors of Enroth were brought to through portals after it was destroyed in an event called the Reckoning.

The Ubisoft release ''[[Might & Magic X: Legacy]]'' departs from this continuity and is set in the world of Ashan, a separate setting established by Ubisoft in ''[[Heroes of Might and Magic V]]'' and subsequent ''Heroes'' games after New World Computing went out of business.<ref>{{cite web |title=RPG Codex Interview: Might and Magic X – Legacy |date=5 April 2013 |url=https://rpgcodex.net/content.php?id=8895 |publisher=RPGCodex |access-date=12 April 2019}}</ref> Ashan is a [[high fantasy]] setting with no science fiction elements in its lore.<ref>{{cite web |title=Discover World of Ashan |url=https://mmh7.ubi.com/en/blog/post/view/discover-ashan |publisher=Ubisoft |access-date=12 April 2019}}</ref> The original setting remained abandoned until the 2025 game ''[[Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era]]'', a prequel taking place on Enroth's continent Jadame, which was first featured in ''[[Might and Magic VIII: Day of the Destroyer]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zerbinatto |first=Murillo |date=August 23, 2024 |title=New Heroes of Might and Magic Game Announced |url=https://gamerant.com/new-heroes-of-might-and-magic-game-olden-era/ |website=GameRant}}</ref>