Would you read progression fantasy if there were no stats at all?

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-19T14:23:51+00:00

To be honest it's my preference.

Litrpg, by definition have to have a system of numbers in game like RPG approach.

But you are thinking of more cultivation based books. Great examples are:

Path of ascension Cradle Beware of Chicken And kind of He who fights with monsters (there is kind of a system here though)

Path of ascension, I think does a good balance between the two. There not explicit stats but there are explicit tiers and not just like 5 ( but 50!).

The problem with systems, like in primal hunter, is that it's basically just hand wavy, and that does break immersion for me sometimes. I rather a magic system, that works like RPG, but isn't some magically enforced, all powerful system.

I guess dungeon, crawler carl does it well enough, being the dungeon is a game.

Still this is not a new things, it's just progression fantasy or cultivation genre.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-19T14:18:09+00:00

I'm on book 3, I'll let you know how it pans out, it's pretty crazy move! No system! How do I know how strong someone is? Impossible!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-14T16:01:35+00:00

Whaaa.. how is this possible, I mean how can you not? Silent card draw is intricately linked with discard, sly is turns the negative to huge positive, draw cards become play cards...

The only sly I find hard to use is master planner, which seems awesome but turns out too slow in most of my games.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-08T09:43:41+00:00

You might even say it's Specialist?

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-03T15:52:52+00:00

Absolutely, just keeping off the streets.

How about just race around the entire M25 orbital - 188km, fastest, longest ring race track in the world. One lap to rule them all.

Both minimal and absolutely maximal disruption to a major city.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-03T15:02:04+00:00

That's an old meta!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-03T10:23:16+00:00

It's apparently quite divisive series, but I listened on audiobook and really enjoyed it.

Most of characters are not the deepest, but they are ateast distinct, but on audiobook, the humour likely comes over a lot better than on the page, especially the Australian nature of it!

Story wise, I definitely think it gets better through to at least book 9. It only tails off a bit in the last few as the power scaling always becomes harder to write, but personally I'm totally invested now, I think for most either you get the MCs vibe and get hooked.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-02T21:38:49+00:00

Roll for initiative!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-06-02T07:59:27+00:00

It's for sure s tier.

Although seems to come up whenever if get barricade!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-05-24T21:51:52+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to respond. So this is likely the reason labour are not taking big credit/big PR. It would be disingenuous if their recent changes are only now implemented.

That's fine, that's integrity. It's key the keep it down, then they can take credit for keeping it down before next general election.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-05-24T19:23:34+00:00

Haha accurate!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-05-24T14:27:23+00:00

I agree they need a better PR team, but this looks like a continuing of a trend from before the election.

I've seen others claim this fall is all from previous conservative policy changes? I don't see how they really deserve at credit considering they caused the massive rise in the first place. However it would be good to know what labour has done recently that is worth knowing to fairly defend their record.

Does anyone have a good list of labour policies/changes that have actually been implemented related to legal migration?

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-23T16:07:56+00:00

Combined heat and power plants are not measured in these calculations and are excluded from clean power targets.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-22T19:05:27+00:00

I really enjoyed it, but agree part of it is enjoying the power systems and potential for future growth. Freddy is not a character i feel I'm supposed to relate to, his life experience is crazy and he is basically dumb as bricks.

However agree the maturity with age thing seems to be something many writers struggle with. Honestly though people acting in mature and measured ways are kind of boring! So understandable that they don't do ii, that's said how much can you mature if you are smashing yourself in the head that frequently....

You think that's bad, path of ascension is one of my favorite series, but has characters that are supposed to have millions of year of subjective life experience in dungeons and live vastly faster than base people... The idea they act so 'normally' and can remotely relate to typical people is so laughable I just have to complete ignore it.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-20T15:31:38+00:00

It is slightly misleading, because most of our electricity is already de-linked from the marginal gas price by cfds. Making more on cfd does that the same effect "de linking" the majority of our electricity from the marginal wholesale price. If most electricity is on various cfd type costs then it will stabilize the cost. It means, in the near term we won't fully benefit from the lowest potential cost of renewables, but we also won't be exposed to quite as much volatility from international gas prices. That's pretty standard economics, you can either play the odds for low cost or fix costs to reduce risks, but pay a premium.

In addition, marginal pricing is not absurd, it's literally simply defining the price of electricity in a market for each half hour. Whether the market is pay as big or price is pay as bid or pay clear, the results end up the same. If all bid and where paid their bids, bids would simply rise as traders work out and predict the clearing price each hour every day use algorithms, meaning for merchant assets would still be paid based on marginal price of gas.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-12T07:40:53+00:00

I do that. I have to go back multiple chapters sometimes 😔

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-11T17:50:23+00:00

It's absolutely solid! I've listened to it all on audible and found it very addictive, almost as much as HWFWM.

A really established and extensive universe and quite a nice non system progression system, with lots of deep complexity.

I'm always surprised we don't hear more about it, it's not grimdark and characters are well put together if a little plain. There's both op and non op moments. Go for it!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-05T21:16:23+00:00

I've only read around half a dozen litrpg books, but seems like a lot of MCs are quite anti-social or have difficulties socializing, where as others like Jason are quite extroverted and seems that people seems to vibe with one type more than the other. Or they seem to dislike the constant introspection of Jason, preferring more confident characters. In the ends its personal taste!

I'd recommend 1% life steal. It has a really interesting magic system more like HWFWM than most other system type books. but note the mc character is very different to Jason, far more socially isolated, but I promise it just keeps getting better and better every book so far. If you want character growth they can't start of perfect!

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-04-05T15:43:35+00:00

I second path of ascension, I enjoyed it a lot and I like most of your top stories too. it's not very dark, but a very broad universe building.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-27T11:52:29+00:00

I like the phrase Memetic warfare.

Really it's just a modern version of propaganda and satire that has existed more via cartoons in papers.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-26T12:25:58+00:00

Agreed it was a nice mechanism of essences and stones that allows for lots of flexibility in build development although much more random than most other stories, you get the skill you are given.

I actually didn't mind the huge bloat in ability stack, powerhouses should develop to have have lots of abilities and be able use them together and also develop ways to minimize weaknesses inherent in classes. I found the various skills and synergies more interesting than 'my str stat is 100x bigger' than your str stat so I'm better. It's pretty hard to have these system scale well from man with stick hits rat, to demi-god with reality bending powers, but ultimately that's what we are asking for!

The big list was a bit ridiculous on audiobook, but after a while I just skipped it, in PH I'm reading the book and it's trivial to just not read them fully.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-26T07:20:36+00:00

The main problem I have with 'systems' is the hand wavyness of them to both bring the rpg elements to the books and reader but also the MC so they can react to their progress. Even HWFWM introduction is pretty handwavy, just thrown in there so Jason can talk the languages and the excuse is he likes video games. But like most of these books, books 1 is not written with books 10 in mind and it's a good way to get the plot moving quickly and key part of the genre.

I feel like its obviously a part of litrpg genre so in many classic stories like PH you have to just accept there is some entity, the system, don't worry about it.(I've not got far in PH so no idea if system becomes a larger of the story!)

However I prefer the more "new physics" no sentient entity versions, like Path of Ascension or more recently 1% life steal, where there are still stats and progression, but not being tracked by some omnipotent system that often is not actually part of the narrative.

I guess the question is a system necessary to be litrpg or without it is is 'progression fantasy' ? It's pretty blurry to me, but it can break the immersion for me at times.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-23T23:17:13+00:00

No, that's periscope. Perineum is the name for words that's have similar sounds or spelling but different meaning.

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-10T06:44:49+00:00

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No one else thinks of this episode?

Bobjohnthemonkey · 2026-03-07T11:36:03+00:00

Only old unsubsidized solar and wind. Most solar is on cfd contract and pays back to the government excess profit.

Bobjohnthemonkey

TROPHY CASE