[Unaffiliated, just excited to share!]

Looks like it was released on the 20th October.

I had to search Audible under "The Feral Daoist" to find it initially, I dunno why that was but for those that have been waiting or looking for it.

I've been waiting on the audio for this series since I was seeing such good reviews as I dig Slumrat Rising a tonne (you rock, Warby Picus). Looking forward to getting into this one and wanted to share it is out as I came across it this morning!

I'm currently in a rut, don't have the motivation to read PF/litrpg books at the moment but I need a good recommendation to pull me back in.

Before the rut I was reading HWFWM and it was quite enjoyable at first but around book 7 and 8 I just couldn't find the will to care or be interested in what Jason was lamenting about this time, or how many 80s references he could spout out in unrelated conversations. Dropped it.

Went to try another couple of series, but couldn't really get into them. Dead Tired was interesting I guess, but I don't really like stories with OP MCs at the beginning.

It seems right now I can only muster interest in reading the new chapters of the series that I'm already following on Royal Road (Bog standard isekai, Elydes, chaotic craftsman, Gifted, William oh, chrysalis, and a few others), but that means waiting for chapters to come out.

I just want a recommendation of a good series I could pick up and get right into.

No recommendations that require me to 'read 3 books before it gets good' please.

No murder hobo MCs please. Or EdgeLord MCs either.

No MCs whose whole personality is making pop culture references please ( looking at you Jason and Ryan)

No romance or harem ( I can handle a little romance but no harem)

Preferably I would like an isekai kind of story where the MC isn't the only one to get summoned like chaotic craftsman.

If you can look at my tier list and recommend something you think I would like then I would appreciate it. Thank you!

And how many of you all can recommend some to me? I'm talking your witch hat ateliers, guild mage with the grammar rules, runic artist (somewhat) with the tapping into concepts for magic and skills and the like, Tori transmigrated and the crystals. I want the ones that make your brain hurt but in a good way. Mostly for inspiration because I'm finally starting my own story and while I've got a rather good idea of where I'll take things (to the point of starting a functional ish ttrpg system around it) I want more.

So, amidst all of this nonsense about books getting stolen off of Royal Road, I decided to go ahead and do a Google search to see if maybe my book was lucky enough or important enough to get pirated.

Alas, it was not.

However, because of a genius, yet cheeky, Reddit post I made about Chris Kluwe, former NFL Minnesota Viking, google now thinks he is the author of my got-danged book. You see, it all happened when he decided to release his book on the same day I released my book. So, I thought I’d be cute and make a silly little post about it… but now Google is punishing me for it.

So it looks like Chris Kluwe, former punter for the NFL Minnesota Vikings, got the last laugh after all. Damn you Kluwe, damn you.

Ummm, read my book. Fireballs, isekai, progression. No anime titties. Steve, the Last Pyromancer… BY TOBIAS WARD currently only available on Royal Road unless someone thinks it’s really good and wants to pirate it.

Peace

Hi all, I'm nearly finished reading Godforge Alchemist, and I'm kind of worn down by the incessant sociopathy displayed by all the characters.

ANY disrespect, grievance, inconvenience, or challenge is met with an instantaneous fight to the death. Anyone more powerful than you is a peerless master who requires your obeisance while you try to curry favour not to be trampled, while anyone less powerful than you is an ant who should be honoured to be crippled and destroyed by your merest whim. How can a realm built on these rules survive? Thousands die every time enemies cross paths, and the collateral damage is irrelevant.

I'd like to read something with a bit more nuance, a Xianxia type novel where, of course, there are people like that, but the majority are well-balanced people seeking power. I'm reading Unintended Cultivator, which I think does this fairly well, I've read Cradle, Beware of Chicken, and Undying Immortal System, too.

Does anyone have any recommendations? I'm not necessarily looking for a slice of life, though I don't mind it. Something with stakes would be good, but I'm just tired of the unrelenting narcissism and unrestrained violence at the slightest provocation.

Thanks in advance.

A book that has quite a lot of humor at the beginning, getting more serious as things go on.

A fleshed out skill system where the abilities and spells really affect the plot in significant ways.

A main character who goes from clueless and weak to quite a powerful druid that learns to approach situations with strategy and intellect.

A world with a lot of mystery and lore that slowly reveals itself over the course of a long story.

Well-crafted, 100% human generated prose. (this my 27th novel. If I can't write well by now, God help me!)

A light dusting of literary themes and motifs while dopamine number go up.

Badass doggo sidekicks.

Then I think you will really enjoy Archdruid Alchemist.

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/193299/archdruid-alchemist-litrpgisekai

Book one is done and two more are in the pipeline. Hope you'll join us!

Why ask for recommendations when you still have a TBR list?

Not everyone reads paperback, and that's ok. It's an ebook too.

Books 1-3 of Nexus Runner are ebook, audiobook, and paperback.

If you love DCC, Primal Hunter, and Discount Dan, you need to try Nexus Runner.

This is an action-packed Isekai LitRPG where 1,000 people from Earth are dropped into a death battle game that will determine Earth's integration path.

The challenge is simple - fight through four stages of monster-infested wilderness and defeat the final boss in time.

Fail, and Earth will be destroyed.

As people struggle to figure out how to survive, Lucas the MC is plunged into insane monster battles and finds he had a knack for surviving when he really shouldn't. With an AI that loves to quote Earth entertainment, unique monsters, and epic loot, this is a binge-worthy story.

"It reminds me why I love LitRPG!" ~review from a fan.

https://link.amazon/B0cQErsSj

I'm halfway through book 1 of titan hoppers. Does anyone else who's read this book find most of the characters just super annoying? It's like reading a book where apart from a few people every other character is just bakugo from my hero academia.

I fucking love the setting, and honestly the book is quite good so far, I just find the characters all infuriating.

Does exist a good fantasy story where the mc is a pirate?

Western cultivation recs are welcome too but no slice of life focused ones please.

What I've already read

Reverend Insanity, LOTM, Mirror Legacy, Immortality Through Array Formations

I've read quarter to half of some Er Gen novels but the MCs become too OP too fast for me to enjoy.

I've read Regressor's Tale of Cultivation but the MC has to be one of the dumbest people with a time loop ability.

I dropped Cradle after book 4 because I didn't like the MC and his name. I still plan on reading it someday.

I also stopped reading A Record of Mortal's Journey to Immortality because too OP too fast again. It started out perfect but a bit after he found that pouch (I think) I stopped reading.

I couldn't get into Ave Xia I read maybe 10 chapters. It didn't draw me in for some reason.

I didn't like The Undying Immortal System. MC just runs away from his problems and spends too much time doing charity for others. Also didn't like the focus on Alchemy.

I haven't read Sky Pride but it's next on my list if I don't find anything else.

I got bored with My Longevity Simulation. I stopped around a couple lifetimes after ocean boiling.That story seemed to have some nice mystery elements but I just couldn't keep reading because I got bored.

I liked Myst Might Mayhem even though it's not really cultivation and there isn't much focus on cultivation.

I'm fine with anything as long as the translation is decent, story doesn't waste chapter after chapter on slice of life/helping random people endlessly/trying to boost mediocre companions, there's steady progression throughout the story and the MC has a functional brain.

So I’ve been reading the first book, and I’ve been very interested in the novel idea of a goat based set of abilities, especially with some of the tall tales of him eating a bolt of lightning and such. Unfortunately the mc Seems to not share that sentiment with this search for an immortal serpent to side evolve his goat ability.

So my question is, does he end up dropping the goat stuff as he progresses? it’s by far the most interesting and cohesive part of his build, and if he removes it that’s probably where I drop the series

Edit: well I guess there’s my answer, the goat theme does just go away, which honestly still surprises me a bit based on how much hostile terrain and lack of food was stressed to be the biggest problem on the highest floors. I thought for sure that was set up for how OP goat abilities would be since they specifically counter that. I can see that it’s a pretty good story with great audiobook quality, just not for me I guess.

Generally speaking, this question arose because I write more realistic dark progression fantasy. In my world, people rarely give their techniques any names at all (with the exception of a few exceptionally powerful ones, whose names are recorded in chronicles and named by the witnesses), let alone shout out their names during the fight.

Nevertheless, I do keep them in mind, and the techniques themselves are consistent throughout the text; however, I don’t know how much my readers like this (I haven’t received any specific criticism on this point yet).

So I’m interested in your opinion regarding magic that the reader experiences through actions and their consequences rather than through names.

Mods if this isn't allowed on days of the week other than Thursday I'm sorry, I'm just really desperate for my next read

Put together a tier list of everything I've rated so far. Looking for something to read next based on my top tiers, either something new or one of the books already on my TBR.

Just because I dnf'd a book doesn't mean it's bad, I might have stopped for a variety of reasons and I really appreciate all the hard work these authors have put into their works.

DNFs (not in the picture):

A (Not So) Simple Fetch Quest, A Journey of Black and Red, A Practical Guide to Evil, A Regressor's Tale of Cultivation, Accidental Champion, Amor, Ar'Kendrithyst, Becoming the Dark Lord, Beneath the Dragoneye Moons, Beware of Chicken, Cultivation Nerd, Cultivator System, Death, Loot & Vampires, Depthless Hunger, Ends of Magic, Esper Labyrinth, Everybody Loves Large Chests, Exemplary, Explorer of Edregon, Godclads, Gunsoul, He Who Fights with Monsters, Ideworld Chronicles, Immovable Mage, Life and Death Cycle, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, Penance of Blood, Reforged from Ruin, Rend, Reverend Insanity, Sky Pride, Sublife Crisis, The Bad Guys, The Enchanter, The Hedge Wizard, The Last Horizon, The Mine Lord, The Runic Artist, The Wandering Inn.

TBR:

Arcane Ascension

Iron Prince

Stargazers War

Book of the Dead

Divine Apostasy

Stray Cat Strut

Weapons and Wielders

Salvos

Unbound

Mage of Shimmer Mountain

Frith Chronicles

Soldiers Life

Apocalypse Generic System

Blood and Fur

Changeling

Villains Code

This basically has everything that I'm aware of yet haven't tried, except for books like coiling dragon etc that I'm not too into. Which of these would you pick up first? And what am I missing from the list?

Something I've noticed in progression fantasy is that the characters tend to become increasingly stupid as they gain power.

When the MC is an initiate, they don't have the ability to just bulldoze their way through obstacles, so they use their brain to solve problems. They rely on strategy and planning to make the most of their limited toolkit, and negate their various weaknesses.

As the character progresses, strategy and planning fall to the wayside, and the character starts to just hit things really hard when they need to solve a problem; it feels like they got body-snatched somewhere along the line by someone who's more powerful and less interesting.

If gaining power means that characters are going to forego the meticulous approach that makes them interesting, I'd rather they stayed weak.

We took out kids to a local trunk or treat and dressed as our current favorites

Title: Looking for feedback on my time-loop LitRPG premise

I'm writing my first book and trying to figure out how to frame and edit the novel before releasing it. I loved Mother of Learning and The Perfect Run, along with more popular LitRPGs, and I'm hoping to capture some of what makes those stories compelling while developing my own premise.

The book follows someone with a broken system who can't participate in most of the standard class-progression components. However, they can time loop and access several unique paths that other characters can't. Their growth comes less from following the intended system and more from learning how to exploit its gaps, survive repeated attempts, and deal with the consequences of changing each loop.

I'd love some help validating the premise, especially:

What progression milestones would make the protagonist's unconventional growth feel clear and earned?

How do you like to see each loop alter the MCs goals, available options, or understanding of the system so the structure keeps moving forward?

Which loop mechanics, escalating obstacles, or irreversible consequences are still satisfying to read repeat attempts at?

How can the protagonist's relationships develop through repeated interactions when the other characters do not remember previous loops?

What kinds of costs or limitations would make the protagonist's unique paths feel earned rather than arbitrary? I was using a meta type currency (inspired after playing too much hades).

Where might the premise risk becoming repetitive, overpowered, or difficult to follow, and what could address those problems?

Any and all feedback on the premise, potential pitfalls, or approaches that have worked well in other time-loop progression stories would be greatly appreciated.

Hello all! I’ve been working on a passion project for the better part of the last four years, and it’s around launch time that I realize I don’t have a cover! I’ve been working with an artist friend to come up with cover designs and now have a few sketches for the first four volumes.

These are my cover candidates for volume 1! I would love to know which of these you prefer, if any, as well as any complaints/likes or dislikes you may have. If you have any questions I’ll be sure to answer them as fast as I can :>

Please do keep in mind that these are just thumbnails, so the fine details aren’t ironed out (like the fire in the background of options 1 and 3) but if anything is unclear I’ll try to explain the imagery later on in the comments.

And also thank you to the wonderful @catallarii for the thumbnails. Glory to the Ri empire o7

I am currently close to the end of vol 2 and I enjoyed the books so far. But i read recently in a thread that ling qi is still in the third realm and there wasn't any time skip and it is rather long and the story doesn't really have goal so far. So my question is if the story is able to retain its quality across the second series?

We see it pop up essentially whenever there is any sort of institution meant to train some form of super special soldiers of some kind.

The common argument is "the setting/war/profession is cruel and very lethal, the training reflects that, enemy won't pull their punches so we won't either".

My brother in Buddha, you are TRAINING someone. The entire point of training and education is to pull your punches and then allow people to grow into valuable members of the organization. You think that during WW2 people were trained by being under machinegun fire? Or by being thrown at an actual minefield? No you moron, they were trained with proper controlled and save environment to make sure they are ready for the real deal.

And no, just because the threat of death is not present doesn't mean the training is less effective. If anything, making people prepare for dangerous stuff while they are not in danger, can lead to them being much more level headed and calm when the real deal comes up as subconsciously they may just see it as another training routine.

And in a setting where the academies are meant to train people who are by nature hard to come by? Cultivators, sorcerers, nepo babies of gene lottery? Why the fuck would you risk loosing such a valueable rare find by just sending them to fight real monster when they barely have enough training? Why not have supervisors who can come in and save their asses if they are about to be severely harmed?

You are not cold and efficient, you are a dumbass. You are throwing your manpower to the meatgrinder before they can accomplish anything of value. You are supposed to send them to a meatgrinder at a field proper so they can still potentially accomplish something. Just as how humanity has been doing. And if anybody says "But muh Spartans..." please do your research on Spartans beyond watching 300 and playing GoW.

Whenever I see a story that makes highly lethal academy/training as part of the premise, I never bother reading cause I can never see it as anything other than self consumimg disaster that would take ONE SEMESTER for even the most dumb people tl realize "hey, this doesn't work".

Rant over.

I'm looking for a story where the mc just outright says hey I took over this body and just leaves his body's old life behind without trying to trick or insert themselves in their old body's life.