I see the role of the ability hierarchy as primarily social: the ascended represent a class of beings that are given higher regard and prestige than the common mortal. In that vein I will define ascended based primarily on social consensus: if one is widely considered to have the qualifications to ascend the heavens, or is equal in prestige to those in heaven, then they are called ascended. As such there is no fundamental difference between mortal and ascended, only that most agree on the degree of ability being qualitatively different. Even the greatest mortal archmage only represents a great attainment in a prestigious profession, but an ascended mage is fully regarded as a divine being, this is fated. One can ascend to the heavens simply by being brought there by those with the ability to do so, or via mechanisms described later in the structure of reality.

  Transcendence is creating the reality of the setting. Truly transcendent beings are those with the ability to create their own reality with laws at (least partially) of their design. They have the ability to change aspects of their reality at will. Reality (especially time and space) is required for one to exist in the first place, and so one can only leave reality by creating more of it, something only true transcendents might accomplish.

  However, one need not create their own reality to wield some degree of transcendent ability. Transcendent abilities can also ‘create’ one’s current reality in the same way time travel creates history. These abilities aren’t bound by causality and supersede all other abilities, limited only by their user: regardless of the specific transcendent ability, if the user can exert it to the extreme they can truly accomplish anything. According to details described later (soul, structure of reality): the fantastical source defines the setting, and everything in the setting is connected to it, hence everything possesses some perhaps negligible but non-zero aspects of transcendence.

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  In the same way that a , the ability to perfectly create one aspect of reality implies the creation of all of reality:

  Let’s say my transcendent ability is to make X occur. Taken to the extreme, it means I can create a reality where X definitely occurs, even if I can’t control anything else.

  

  
• If I want Y to occur, I can make X occur in a manner that requires Y.


  
• Since I created a reality where X occurs, then Y occurs as well.


  

  Therefore, transcendence is limited by its user, as it might not be easy to find a situation where X occurs if and only if Y occurs. Furthermore, if the ability is not perfect (i.e. doesn’t create a perfect reality), we might end up with a flawed or paradoxical state of reality where X occurs but Y doesn’t.

  Note that transcendence has nothing to do with combat, a transcendent might easily be killed by a mortal stabbing them, even in their own reality. If the transcendent is imperfect and limited to concepts irrelevant to such a situation, they can suffer mundane deaths just like any mortal, possibly collapsing the reality they’ve created.