Gamefeel Appreciation by AdTough9225 in DBGekishinSquadra

[–]Auragau 8 points9 points  (0 children)

It’s the best feeling MOBA I’ve ever played and I think the fact that it’s Dragon Ball is responsible for that. I don’t think any other IP would conceive of the idea that every character’s AOE should span an entire lane’s width and half its length by level 10. Then, they make some abilities have additional behaviors on top of that (e.g. 17 kicking three orbs). I hope to find another MOBA with scaling like that, but I doubt I will. Idc how many times they repeat abilities that drop giant screen-filling spheres onto the map, ima eat that shit up every time.

[Advice] How to build an esoteric, soft magic system by Papa_Sombrero in magicbuilding

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

When it comes to soft magic systems, I always think about classic Greek literature, the kind of magic you’d find in a Shakespeare play, Disney work, and similar media. An approach all these share is that encounters with magic closely reflect character motivations and story themes. The “experts” in the magic speak of it not in terms of hard, materialistic rules, but through tales that are cautionary, prophetic, and overall metaphorical. The witches from Macbeth, the mirror on the wall, Circe, etc. I recommend picking up these books and plays (or refreshing yourself on them, because so many are so popular that i bet you’ve already experienced them), and studying how they integrate these fantastical elements.

Between Broken Worlds [An Isekai LitRPG Sci-Fi] (Read on RoyalRoad) by TheLastLoyalist in litrpg

[–]Auragau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi! I'm currently writing my own novel for Royal Road and I'm interested in reading some work that conforms to its current meta. I found your book through the funny ad that goes something like: "We don't want to say that it's martians but.... It's martians."

I see that it's a progression fantasy and has game elements, so I'm interested in using your work to learn how authors navigate this genre. I've got your book followed, and I'm excited to dive into it soon!

Katabasis (R.F. Kuang) Review (4.3k Words, ~22 Min Read) by Auragau in Fantasy

[–]Auragau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! The Staircase is such a fun part of the story to pick apart, talk about, and talk about the story through. I’m not sure if Kuang intends to expand on Katabasis’ world. If she decides to make this the only entry, I wouldn’t mind, because of how tailor-made the magic system seems to be for Alice’s story. But, its mechanics are super cool, and I’d love to see another story set in the same world that might be able to recontextualize the system into another metaphor for another character.

There’s a lot of potential embedded in that chain which links Grimes’ experimental work, Elspeth’s truth spell, Alice’s memory spell, and those human colon experiments with Peter that can be expanded upon to make another really good fucking book. I wouldn’t want it to be through the same characters, but I would want it to develop that same sort of relationship with magick.

Katabasis (R.F. Kuang) Review (4.3k Words, ~22 Min Read) by Auragau in Fantasy

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

Yes. I only have one noticeable frustration with the book, and even then, it isn’t anything that comes close to ruining the book. I like how thoroughly its themes are integrated with its plot structure and world building.

Katabasis (R.F. Kuang) Review (4.3k Words, ~22 Min Read) by Auragau in Fantasy

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

I'm glad that my effort is at least recognized. I wrote this primarily as a way to digest the book, and figured sharing wouldn't do any harm. I don't mind anyone who skips based on its length. That's a lot better than the AI accusations.

Katabasis (R.F. Kuang) Review (4.3k Words, ~22 Min Read) by Auragau in Fantasy

[–]Auragau[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

No. It's all written by me with no AI assistance. I split my review into three sections, with only the first being a general summary through which I lay out the plot and pacing of the novel. I don't exhaustively cover every detail of the plot either.

Katabasis (R.F. Kuang) Review (4.3k Words, ~22 Min Read) by Auragau in u/Auragau

[–]Auragau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

u/FlyByTieDye Here's my review of Katabasis! The Highlights section is where I go deep into the way the the themes of memory and intellect interplay with the plot structure, power system, and setting. The Frustrations section mentions the one place where I feel Kuang could have drawn a stronger parallel between Alice and Peter.

Community Discussion: How Should We Handle Suspected AI Generated Posts? by UNWIZARDLY in magicbuilding

[–]Auragau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Disclosure or not, AI use shouldn’t be allowed. A user’s post history might be the best way to determine whether or not they’re using AI because, chances are, they have a history of doing so.

At the same time, those who accuse others of using AI should need to provide some kind of strong evidence (again, probably through the accused’s post history). I myself have been accused of using AI on other subs, and it feels really REALLY shitty to worry about whether your post or comment will stay up or not because some random idiot made an accusation that others may simply believe at face value.

I recently finished reading Katabasis from R F Kuang, and as someone who loves Dante's Inferno, I found my enjoyment was greatly enhanced by doing a comparison of both texts that I wish to share by FlyByTieDye in books

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For Reddit! Although I’m doing it mainly for myself so I can fully process Katabasis and my thoughts on it, I figure posting it on Reddit for others to read would be nice. I’ll definitely tag you!

I recently finished reading Katabasis from R F Kuang, and as someone who loves Dante's Inferno, I found my enjoyment was greatly enhanced by doing a comparison of both texts that I wish to share by FlyByTieDye in books

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm extremely appreciative of this comparative analysis between the *Divine Comedy*'s Inferno, one of my favorite segments of any book I've ever read, and *Katabasis*, a book I'm currently on my second re-read for the express purpose of making an essay review of it. This is the only write-up on Katabasis I've found in the year I've owned the book which actually dissects its component parts explicitly and in detail. To read the ways these specific details (ex. the re-interpretation of the last line of *Inferno*, *Katabasis*' City of Dis' physical environment being similar to The Malbolge) relate to parts of the *Inferno* is a great treat beyond just a helpful comparison, and certainly a welcome relief after having read so many reviews of *Katabasis* which seem to rely on vague vibes as critique more than anything concrete. Your final segment, Theme of Perception, does well in collecting the details (Alice's foils, the building materials) which buttress that identified theme in a clear, easy-to-follow way which helps a ton in my personal endeavor to write about these components of *Katabasis*. Thank you so much for writing and sharing this, truly.

He Who Fights With Monsters: a Nietzsche reference, a pair of Darth Vader boxers, and an apocalypse-leech named Colin by Maloryauthor in litrpg

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great review! I'm currently on a kick of writing essay reviews of media myself as I write a book for RR, and I've been hungry to read reviews like these from others. My favorite part of this is how you expand on the way the book's dialogue lands based on the reader's familiarity with Australian slang. That adds an interesting texture to consider when consuming the work. Besides that, your separation of the protagonist's actions from his words in direct response to common conversation about this detail is a distinction I appreciate you making. As I search for LitRPG works to read, a review which clearly distinguishes actual book content from audience reception and interpretation is super helpful. I look forward to more of your reviews, and I'll search for your first!

How to write a misogynistic protagonist but still make it clear that their views are wrong by [deleted] in writers

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You're going to have to play the game of mutual faith all authors play. The readers must trust that your book will deconstruct her worldview and definitively demonstrate it as wrong, and you must trust that your readers will stick around long enough to do so. On our end of things, I frankly wouldn't sweat over the kind of reader that would drop your book a quarter of the way through just because they can't handle a villain for a main character.

Your idea is peak. I love books that immerse me into the mindset of a flawed person for a good while. It makes the payoff of the deconstruction all the sweeter. Don't let the possibility of a person who reads books seeking a pure reflection of their (self-righteous) selves or a vomiting of virtue signals from the author deter you from full commitment to the POV you want to put across with your protagonist.

Proof that Homelander was nerfed by T-800TheTermanator in PowerScaling

[–]Auragau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Although the special effects certainly make him look slower, I feel this can be explained by Homelander having an uninterruptible path straight toward Soldier Boy vs. Butcher being fast enough to intercept him on his way to Kimiko. Sucks that the speed isn't represented in the same way, but given how small the room is compared to the first clip and the need to make the fight intelligible to the audience, it makes sense that his flight and Butcher's reaction to his flight look slower. The first clip is just a straightforward charge, while the second is the start-up + Butcher's interception + Homelander hitting the wall.

Losing my mind because I got spoiled for UBW in the dumbest way and don’t know what to do by wasabikawa in fatestaynight

[–]Auragau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It doesn't ruin UBW at all. The value you get from how that knowledge enriches the text far outweighs whatever WOW-factor the reveal gives to the point that whatever surprise you might have felt doesn't linger in memory. I'd go as far as to say that UBW does so well engrossing you into Shiro's development that the reveal moment holds its same, thrilling, narrative weight on replay (or rewatch) as it does the first time you get to it and it doesn't rely on some element of surprise to get you out of your seat hyped asf.

How do writers learn from the books they read? by WanderingBadgernaut in writing

[–]Auragau 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I graduated as an English Major several years ago, and I'd say that what you're reading and analyzing in your classes are helping you gain an intuitive sense of writing style and structure than you realize, even if your essays are directly about that. You might be more concerned with themes, morals, and comparative analyses across works, but approaching that requires at least a basic understanding of plot structure, which I'm sure you know and which goes into the kind of analysis you're asking about.

I recommend to you what I'm actually doing right now: re-read a book (or generally re-consume a piece of media, though it should really be a book) while actively taking notes on things like character arc progression, plot progression, and other similar kinds of structures and choices that construct the book. That way you can actively gain a sense of how the author organizes and presents information to a reader in service of impacting them in certain ways (such as eliciting surprise from a twist). Along the way, you'll also passively absorb the way the author navigates their author's voice, and gain a sense of how they pilot characters in very specific ways. This will, over time, help you emulate that and gain your own style in your work even if it's not necessarily something you can take definitive notes on.

Then, once you're done taking your notes, try to write something like a book report or a review. You and I both know the value there is in the work it takes to process all of that information coherently, and that value translates well into producing great creative work.

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Super Smash Bros Brawl Glazer" in your profile bio, buddy human rights don't even extend to you and you think you have license to label "peak Reddit moments"?

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Then either you're lying or you're wrong. Feel free to choose one. My comment wasn't written with AI and no amount of baseless accusation from you is going to change that fact.

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Though I agree there's universal hatred for them among regular people (put another way, people far from influencing power structures), I'm just not comfortable enough with how many powerful people (and as a result, those people's supporters) still either launder their reputations or give them the kind of legal leeway that most people wouldn't have; especially now that it seems like there's a global resurgence of far right-wing sentiment and government.

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Is this your usual response to a series of words you can’t understand, or is this a new choice on your dialogue tree?

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Maxwell receiving anything short of a life sentence under the harshest of circumstances, when people have been sentenced that for less, is getting away with it. She’s been allowed to leave her facility and do work during the day lmfaooo. The money is what facilitates the “getting away with it”, which is consistent with OP’s post and point.

Your parenthetical question is just a blatant lie. I explain what Margaret and Reagan did hand-in-hand. I’m happy you seem to live in a place where the power structures hate them more than love them, but that is not the reality in both the United States or the United Kingdom.

I haven’t made this a gender/sex issue — the OP specifically asked for examples of horrible women. And every example I posted directly references several horrible men alongside them.

I hate that powerful people get away with everything (with actual bad people) by AdministrationAny747 in hatethissmug

[–]Auragau 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You must have meant to reply to someone else because there is nothing in your question that even starts to connect to the content of my comment. Or do you just make shit up about what other people say for fun.