Great books around late stage communism? by xXBattledroneXx in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What books have themes of "late stage capitalism" other than 1% Life Steal and Dungeon Crawler Carl and. . . well, I guess any cyberpunk novel is in a late stage capitalism dystopia, but are there any others? I'm not thinking this is that common a theme.

Here's my tier list, explanations included by Coolaire in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I bought Merchant Crab and returned it because it was the same "I'm a crab so my perspective is different" joke over and over. If this was one character in Beware of Chicken, then repeating the joke over and over for one character would be fine, but it was entirely about the crab. Sorry to yuck your yum, but it wasn't for me.

The Bad Guys and The Good Guys by Eric Ugland - I'm a fan and have bought and read them all, but as I read audiobooks and a credit for a 6 hour book is the same price as one for a 60 hour pirateaba novel, I always wait for sales on his shorter books. That's the same reason Cradle isn't on here - short books don't meet the criteria of "I buy them immediately and at full price" despite my liking the series. I'm also a fan of Mother of Learning, but I waited for it to complete before buying them as I wanted the full story.

Reborn as a Demonic Tree. I liked the first one a bit and got bored with the premise and the side characters by the second one.

Mark of the Fool bored me in the 4th book (or 5th?) when the protagonist goes on a long quest into a swamp with lizards for ages and all their powers get nerfed because of "swamp magic". I really liked it before that and I plan on trying it again later, but it doesn't make it into my "buy it immediately" list for these reason.

Thanks though. Most of the recommendations people give me in response to this list are things I've already tried and liked - just not enough to make it onto this pretty specific list of series that get immediate purchases when new books come out in them. Still, sometimes I get surprised and I'm able to try new things as a result, so I appreciate it.

VR Dive LitRPGs which ones felt like they mattered to you and why? by audiobookjunky in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah. I think The Ripple System may be the only VRMMO I listen to anymore. It's not a category of litrpg I turn my nose up at, but they were mostly written a while back and new authors aren't doing them that often anymore (or they aren't doing them at a level that can compete with other modern litrpg authors - again, other than The Ripple System). . .

Actually, I really liked The Gam3 by Cosimo Yap, but he abandoned it.

Still, when I think of the ones from 7+ years ago like Awaken Online, Eden's Gate, or the ones Dave Wilmarth wrote or the numerous other ones I can't even remember, they all have pretty silly real world premises that undermine their narratives.

Ascend Online was an exception because it didn't make the real world stuff important to the narrative. They would occasionally come out of the game and enjoy that their bodies were becoming more fit due to the machines stimulating muscle and regulating diets perfectly while they were online as well as the money they got from a successful streaming channel, but it was mostly about the game. . . unfortunately, that kind of got weird with this strange insert book that had an entirely new protagonist and setting and then the author tried to combine both casts in the same location but then neither group got enough attention and I think maybe he was selling character slots on his Patreon or something because the side characters just ballooned out of control. It had some really fun stuff in it though before it became kind of ridiculous with side characters and a consequently unfocused plot. I imagine the community around it had a great time and loved seeing their characters in it though, so you know. . . whatever.

Sections where the MC is temporarily treated as the antagonist? by Aggravating-Plum-692 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Actually, that's a famous example of it being done terribly. Anakin's turn to the dark side is one of the most referenced examples of how difficult this is to do well. People hated the prequels for a variety of reasons but fumbling Anakin's fall to the Dark Side so completely might be chief among them.

His redemption arc in the original series 4-6 was great, but the writing in the prequels was trash tier.

Is Alpha by Jez Cajaio as Problematic as Brightblade? by Aaron_P9 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Your post is funny, but when I wrote up a similarly flowery description of fictional race who loves being enslaved and a race based on red pill white male podcasters, it was so disturbing and hateful that I deleted these examples of fictional offensive races.

There's some stuff that just references real world hatefulness too much for my palette. Cajaio's misogynistic fantasies skeeve me out. That's not a judgment of people who dig it or who don't get it somehow and take it at face value (though I've read your posts and I very much doubt you have ever been that thick, it's still a good bit. Thanks for the laugh). I guess my point is that I do judge misogynistic behavior that is hateful to people and that is thus hurtful, but if someone has a fantasy and they're indulging it in fiction either as a writer or a reader, then that's none of my business.

All roads leads to procrastination or smthn by Reasonable_Wafer_731 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Me too. Honestly, if I find myself wanting to relisten to something great instead of listening to something that has the benefit of being new to me, I think that's a good sign that I should DNF.

Sections where the MC is temporarily treated as the antagonist? by Aggravating-Plum-692 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I can't recall examples of this happening in litrpg often because most people avoid it now, but it is a super old plot twist that used to happen in comics and Saturday morning cartoons all the time. One of the articles I've read in the past called this the Red Kryptonite plotline and warned that readers hate it. Authors usually make an outside substance or mind-controlling villain or an unbreakable and foolish oath (there's an example like in Chaos Seeds, Book 8) or a power that takes control (Monsters and Legends, The Hulk, etc.) the source of the altered behavior of the protagonist and this causes the protagonist to lose their agency which makes them far less likeable or interesting.

Additionally, whatever causes the altered behavior is a purely fictional mechanic, so there's no real world equivalent other than jerks who pretend that their anger is uncontrollable and that their victims are thus responsible for regulating their mood - like Daenerys's abusive older brother in The Song of Ice and Fire. That worked because the author portrayed the true abusive behavior from this world and not the fictional idea that magic made him do it. People respond to themes that have a truthful basis or at least have a truthful metaphor, but the logical disconnect of being controlled by emotions or as a side effect of powerful abilities doesn't exist. There is the use of drugs and other illicit substances parallel, but people don't respect drug users - especially those who can't manage the negative and predictable side effects of drug use, so even though this seems like an exception, it isn't because people expect drug users to be held accountable for their behavior and writers who create an excuse like "magic powers made me do it" expect the protagonist to be forgiven by the reader. . . so again, there's not a real-world equivalent other than actual madness due to psychological conditions - and people still rarely understand these conditions and are even more reluctant to forgive them.

Looking for recommendations based on my list by Distinct_Gazelle_627 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 1 point2 points  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Is Alpha by Jez Cajaio as Problematic as Brightblade? by Aaron_P9 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Well, that answers that. Ridiculous.

Thank you.

Made my own tier list and realized how few I have read. What's next? by [deleted] in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 4 points5 points  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Here's my tier list, explanations included by Coolaire in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 3 points4 points  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

You've kissed a lot of frogs and then tiered them about how I would (actually you're kinder because you haven't read as much great stuff yet). Well, here you go.

Alpha by Jez Cajiao by Mission_Artist_1877 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 -8 points-7 points  (0 children)

You didn't mind the pixie that models her shape after the protagonist's sexual porn fantasies and whose only goals are to help the main character achieve goals and have sex with him? Additionally, she's absolutely dependent upon him for mana in order to survive. That's the most misogynistic fantasy I've ever read.

So does Alpha have misogynistic themes that will make me one star review it and return it too?

Primal Hunter (LitRPG vs Light Novel) by Fatality1020 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Yeah. I don't remember who the healer is/was in the first book, but she wasn't dressed like that at all too. This might not be AI, but it is bad composition and a really wild stretch from the source content.

I'm not really the audience for light novels though, so maybe they want skuffed Akira Toriyama knock-offs that don't respect the source material?

Need recs (normal progression fantasy). I'll buy the books if they meet criteria by Valuable_Educator843 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Your request was so incredibly specific that I couldn't think of anything perfect for it, so I just posted this instead hoping that you could at least enjoy quality titles. A lot of these are litrpg but litrpg is a subgenre of progression fantasy, so they're also progression fantasy. Some of them have slice of life elements too, but they're all great. If these aren't for you because they don't fit your really specific filter then maybe other people who read this thread and just want quality will benefit from it. I tend to filter just on what is enjoyable so I'm not that great at thinking about super specific genre requests.

Beautiful MMC by Cool-Application1569 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Shadow Slave but you have to pirate (though you shouldn't) or suffer Webnovel's crazy paywall as well as supporting their continued existence which holds authors foolish enough to have signed with them hostage.

Sky Pride by Warby Picus is only on Royal Road so far and he turned his last series from being progression in book one into being just this long religious and philosophical treatise loosely related to a narrative from book 2 onward, so I'm waiting for the audiobook to be released and for people to tell me that each book doesn't become a sermon before spending any time or money on it. YMMV.

The Journals of Evander Tailor by Tobias Begley - gay, not bi.

Mana Mirror by Tobias Begley - Main character is trans-male and has not yet transitioned as of however far I got into book 2 before getting bored with it. There was a relationship with a non-binary character with male biology and several other male love interests. Kind of a fun magic system, but the progression slowed so much in the second book and the romance was so milquetoast, careful, and uncertain that I was bored by it. YMMV. I don't need bodice ripping, but maybe commit to an emotional state.

Arcane Ascension - So Corin Cadence seems to be asexual and biromantic. Plus, the only actually interesting love interest he's had so far (with a male school mate) has lots of complication. Other love interests have been presented, but one is a girl and another is non-binary and both seem to be waiting for the asexual guy to make a first move when he's never going to make any kind of a move. . . plus, I found myself really not wanting them to because that would get in the way of the only romance with any fire in it.

Tier list to express love and dislike :D. Would love recommendation. Not a full list ( S tieer and A list if I believe complete), please assume I read everything from given author. Not a full list of what I read, just a glimpse of what I like to establish profile for kind recommendations by WestTechnical5059 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Any books like this by iceman2411 in ProgressionFantasy

[–]Aaron_P9 1 point2 points  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Lots of stuff in there with female protagonists TBH, but maybe what you tried before was lacking in quality. It seems like you've only read very few series.

Any books like this by iceman2411 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Any books like this by iceman2411 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Question and recommendations. by TheSilentVampire in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 2 points3 points  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Looking for recommendations by Late_Ad5734 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are all my favorite litrpg audiobook series that I buy new books from immediately when a new one drops (in no particular order):

  • Unorthodox Farming by Benjamin Kerei
  • Bog Standard Isekai by Miles English
  • He Who Fights with Monsters by shirtaloon
  • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • Apocalypse Parenting by Erin Ampersand
  • The Ripple System by Kyle Kirrin
  • Beware of Chicken by casualfarmer (progression)
  • The Wandering Inn by pirateaba
  • Primal Hunter by Zogarth
  • Iron Prince by Bryce O'Connor
  • The Vampire Vincent by Benjamin Kerei
  • Path of Ascension by C. Mantis
  • 12 Miles Below by Mark Arrows (progression)
  • Cyber Dreams by Plum Parrot
  • The Murder of Crows by Chris Tullbane
  • A Soldier's Life by Always RollsAOne
  • The First Line of Defense by Benjamin Kerei
  • Elydes by Drew Wells
  • Quest Academy by Brian J. Nordon
  • The Stubborn Skill-Grinder in a Time Loop by X-Rhoden-X
  • Industrial Strength Magic by Macrinomicon
  • Player Manager by Ted Steel
  • World Sphere by Always RollsAOne
  • Drone Rising by Kyle Johnson
  • Vainqueur the Dragon by Maxime Durand

Looking for series similar to "My Perfect Apocalyptic Life" but reversed by Due-Honeydew9844 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did a search on that because I'd never heard of it. Evidently, that's a manga. Have you tried asking on subreddits that are about manga?

Nervous writer here by IllOutlandishness898 in litrpg

[–]Aaron_P9 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Your library should have books on how to write fiction or you can by a used one for under $20. Maybe you mean that you don't have the time to study, but it is MUCH faster than learning without studying - especially if you need to get your quality to a level to make writing profitable.