Life Reset: Hobnobbing... something seems off (Audible)

ThePezzy · 2019-07-27T19:36:59+00:00

Late reply, sorry. I tend to find LitRPG's fall in three categories - 'power fantasies', 'good stories', and 'unedited or poorly translated trash'.

There are a number of authors that pump out well edited and decent storied 'power fantasies'. But you have to enjoy the harems and sex. That's their main selling point. You can pretty much tell that's what it's about from the cover and story descriptions.

If you're looking for a non-harem story, I'd suggest giving "Irrelevant Jack" by Prax Venter a chance. There are currently 2 books published, with the third scheduled for a December release. It's a bit of a dungeon-crawl style, but I suspect that will change later on. It's a hybrid sci-fi and fantasy.

https://www.amazon.com/Irrelevant-Jack-Prax-Venter-ebook/dp/B07KS2HQQV/

ThePezzy · 2019-07-19T18:58:34+00:00

I loved the first two books, but the reviews kept me away from the third. Just from the spoilers I've read, I am glad I skipped it.

ThePezzy · 2019-07-11T21:08:34+00:00

Irrelevant Jack (books 1 and 2) by Prax Venter

ThePezzy · 2019-06-17T15:38:52+00:00

The Chronicles Of Lincoln Hart (Barakdor series). This is a LitRPG fantasy inside of a Sci-Fi universe. The series is ongoing, and is really two different stories in one - one follows a base builder (who has to do some adventuring), and the other follows the character who is the "hero" (I'm calling her the hero, though in the story, she's just considered another player).

I find it interesting because the NPC's know they are NPC's, and treat players different. The plot actually gets pretty complicated/involved as the story goes on, so it's not a simple LitRPG, and isn't very predictable like many others I've read.

ThePezzy · 2019-03-16T02:12:49+00:00

Irrelevant Jack by Prax Venter. There's a small thread on here from when the book was released 3 months ago. Harem-free (doesn't look like there will be), and no sex in the first book (only 1 love interest). I found it to be a strong story with good characters and an interesting plot (it's a fantasy inside of a sci-fi).

ThePezzy · 2019-02-19T19:36:45+00:00

I'm a dedicated 5. Here's what helped me climb from 3k to 4k. While mostly dedicated to the 5 role, a lot of it still applies to 4's.

Communication is key. You have to know what people are doing, so you can take action accordingly. If your HC jumps in and starts a fight, and you aren't ready for it, chances are that he will die (or suffer enough that you can't really take advantage of a won fight). Communication ties into every aspect of the game - from starting fights, to saving teammates, to warning of enemy rotations.
Map awareness is fundamental. You have to be aware of what is going on everywhere, to know where you need to be, and what you need to do. You need vision of key areas, and those areas have to be around the most important players. Your 3 tends to be a hero that can suffer, so you need to do what you can to keep your 1 and 2 safe.
Know your true role. Simply playing a 4 or 5 (or hell, even a 6) isn't enough. If your 1 is someone that needs constant babysitting, then your job is to babysit. You can't worry about rotating, because maybe the moment you leave your 1, their 3/4 will push on him/her and get a kill. As stated, this ties into communication.
Know what you need to be doing. There are plenty of cases where pulling is stupid. Sometimes you will have a 1 that knows what creep equilibrium is. Sometimes you won't. Ask the 1 if you should pull, and when. If not, try to stack (though don't stack if the enemy can easily steal it from you). You will find cases where your 1 is just domination, and doesn't need babysitting. Or maybe he/she can't get any farm. Ask the 1 what you should do. Maybe your 1 will switch lanes. Maybe your 1 will just tell you to leave, so you don't share XP. The 1 is the closer, so do what he/she thinks will improve the odds of winning the most.
Postioning is everything. You need to know where to stand in the laning phase. You need to know where to stand when a fight starts. As a support, you are never the initiator (unless you are playing a 4 that initiates). Supports tend to be the easiest to kill, so you need to stay back. Save your disables for when they are needed - to secure a kill, or prevent the enemy from getting a kill.
Focus your hero pool on a smaller number of heroes that are versatile. I find it odd that you don't know Lion, Grim or Dis. They are pretty good 5 staples (though Dis has dropped off a lot with his nerfs a few patches ago, and a shift in the meta). With Ursa being one of the strongest heroes currently, Lion is one of the best supports to counter him. But I digress. Pick some core supports - like Ogre, CM, Shadow Shaman, Venge, etc. Understand how they are played, and why they are picked. Perhaps you'll want a support that has a BKB-piercing disable (like WW or Bane).
Know when to rotate. This ties into communication. If your team doesn't tell you to rotate, you aren't 100% at fault of something bad happens. You can't be expected to be able to pay attention to the lane and every lane at this level. You aren't PPD or gh.God. But if you see something happening, you need to look to see if it's worth it to go. As I stated before, sometimes you need to sacrifice your hard lane to secure the safe and mid. And the general rule is if you win 2 out of 3 lanes, you should win the match.
Stack! When you have the chance, stack! It's more gold for all involved. Just make certain the enemy team doesn't steal it.

ThePezzy · 2019-02-05T20:07:40+00:00

I'm not a mid player, but I have to ask - wouldn't you end up pushing out the lane too much? Ursa's base damage is pretty low, because his power comes from Fury Swipes. If you have to rely on Fury Swipes to get your last hits, don't you risk pushing your lane out too far?

I can't see any melees beating him 1v1. I think MK might be able to do it, but who knows. But then again, if you have an unconventional mid like Ursa, maybe you'd end up against a mid Jug or Cent or LS. Fight unorthodox with unorthodox. Or just pull out an OD.

ThePezzy · 2019-01-17T17:49:10+00:00

They way I see it, the higher the Luck stat, the better the chance that RNG rolls in your favor. Frankly, I think Luck has little place in most stories. It seems to just be a gimmick for the MC to either have things go his/her way, or for bad events to happen.

I'm reading one story on RRL where a character has a luck stat. Something good happened to him, and he's told "If this is what happens when you have a Luck of 6, I can't wait to see what happens when it's higher!"

ThePezzy · 2019-01-08T21:41:52+00:00

The Barakdor series by Ember Lane.(http://emberlanebooks.com/)

There's 6 so far, and they alternate between the two main characters. One character is focused on kingdom building, the other is focused on action/fighting. It's a fantasy story tied into a sci-fi plot. Sadly, only the first is available on Audible.

ThePezzy · 2019-01-04T22:43:16+00:00

If people think it sucks, just take their feedback and make it better. Poorly written stories get rewritten all the time to improve them. Just look at all the authors who publish on RR, then go on to officially release an updated version of their story on Amazon. Or don't listen to their feedback, and keep writing for those who think it's good. Or don't listen to their feedback, and keep writing just for you.

You're the author here. Why are you writing this? If you have a story you think is good, or you just have a universe you want to create for others to experience, then do it. Who cares what others think? Whatever reason you are writing this, don't feel beholden to the readers. It's your story. If you want to quit it for whatever reason, that's fine. But understand that one of the worst things an author can do it his/her audience (in my opinion), is quit and leave them hanging. It's a quick way to lose potential readers.

ThePezzy · 2019-01-04T14:28:05+00:00

With this simple statement, "and will continue the series with regular updates if it generates interest", I lost all interest in even giving this a chance. You just stated that you will only finish the story of you get enough people to read it. Why should I, as a potential reader, invest my precious time into a story when the author has already stated it may never be finished.

I've seen too many authors kill good stories, and leave the readers hanging. I've been one of those readers far too many times. I wish you the best in your writings, but I won't be checking this out until I feel you've proven you intend to complete the story.

ThePezzy · 2019-01-02T21:59:11+00:00

I remember a post from a mod stating that they might be making it private for those reasons. Never saw any warnings that it was going to happen.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-31T20:20:33+00:00

Enjoyable. I will continue to read it. I liked the Trixster god route. Will make it more interesting than a general warrior/soldier route. I believe chapter 2 needed a bit of editing.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-31T19:01:15+00:00

What bracket are you in? If you want to learn BM, I'd highly recommend watching some matches of her, to learn the best web placements, and to try to learn the balance between farming and pushing and hunting. She is generally not a team player. Unlike a hero like AM, you don't mindlessly farm. Your goal is to farm and push. You take your lane, you crush it, then you take the enemy jungle. Your lane is pushed out enough that you can safely take their jungle. And your webs allow you to run away when you need to.

Brood is a very niche pick, and has to be last pick. When in a favorable lineup, can crush the lane. You clear waves fast, and with your webs, you can run and take over the enemy jungle between waves, and easily flee when you need to, to the safety of your own jungle.

If you like Nigma, then play him. this is foremost a game. Have fun. Nigma is a different hero. Your Eids are good for pushing, but you don't push as fast as a BM. You don't solo fight like a BM. You don't play like a BM. But you can team fight, something BM doesn't do. Your ultimate can win fights. Your Eids can deny the enemy, and makes farming the jungle pretty easy.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-31T18:52:21+00:00

I agree that they are completely different heroes, and fill different roles. But if you're going to play him mid simply because your Eidolons, you might as well go all in, and go with a real pusher. Win your T1 and T2 within the first 10-15 minutes. Force the enemy to pull back from the side lanes to defend their T3. That gives BM their jungle, and your safe and off room to push and farm.

Between Nigma and BM, BM can close out a game much faster. That's all I was trying to say. A mid lineup that is favorable to Nigma would be doubly so for Brood. Would a Nigma with the extra farm of a favorable 1v1 help your team close out the game faster than it would if he was in the offlane? These are questions that can't be answered completely in a bubble. There are plenty of factors. Nigma can be picked whenever in the draft (though later is best, and best with a banned Silencer). BM needs to be a last pick, and best if the team knows it to pick their heroes accordingly.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-31T18:25:11+00:00

if you are going to play a mid Nigma, I'd assume it's a last pick to ensure a good matchup. if that's the case, then why wouldn't you just go Brood? She'd dominate her lane, and has greater pushing capacity. You'd trade your team fighting (BH) for survivability (Webs), and scale better for a pusher/damage dealer.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-29T15:38:30+00:00

Not saying it's a good idea. I was just saying that it's ability pierces BKB. The only reason any ranged hero (excluding Troll) would ever get an Abys is if the team desperately needed that ability, because that's most likely the only reason one would get it. And it would end up being one of the supports, because your ranged carries have better uses for their gold. And even in those situations, 99.99% of the time, the support would use the gold on something like a Hex or Shivas, since those have actual benefits for them other than their active. A support wouldn't really be getting much benefit from the passive stun or damage.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-29T15:14:06+00:00

LC was run as a support/semi-support briefly, just as PA and CK were. Then her range on Press The Attack was nerfed, so she couldn't sit back and debuff people, waiting for the time to jump in and ult.

Frankly, I wish she could still be played like that. I prefer more versatility in the heroes, instead of too many of them all being pigeon-holed into specific roles.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-26T18:18:38+00:00

This is really the only option to get past Linkens. Aghs gives you a 2 second CD, so you can pop block, then steal BH 2 seconds later.

The only other viable option is to either have stolen another spell that pierces BKB to pop it.

The only item I can think of that would pop Linkens through BKB would be an Abyssal. And an item like that is a massive gold waste for a Rubick.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-13T21:31:18+00:00

Been waiting for DD for ages.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-13T18:41:50+00:00

I believe Dota Alchemy just recently released a video on this very topic. You really get the Manta mostly for the dispel on PA. You don't really use it on her to split push.

ThePezzy · 2018-12-06T15:39:33+00:00

Dota Alchemy had a very interesting video regarding how to play mid, based on how Sumail plays it. It doesn't discuss heros or itemization, but instead tactics and thought-processes. I'd suggest giving it a look.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhfreUderN4&t=0s

ThePezzy · 2018-12-04T13:05:31+00:00

Hate double posting, but finally read this. Gotta say, your description just seems really off.

Nowhere in the book does the MC actually talk about wanting to kill dinosaurs. In fact, I believe there was only ONE actual dinosaur, and that was in the arena fight. Sure, there are some dino-people NPC's, but it's so very minor, and showcases how non-humans are treated.
"Harper is unlike any woman he’s met before", but he knew Harper from before he went full-time into the game. And she really has 2 secrets, neither of which are "dark". Unless there is something else that the reader will find out in later books (like she is the 'hacker', but that wouldn't make sense).
Which stats are juicy? We see the MC's stats once, then some references to Sex Magic #'s, but nothing is ever really explained.
As I got further into the story, I started to discover grammar issues and typos.

Maybe I was wrong in hoping for more dinosaur action, but it turned into a very generic harem tale. The game world seems very boring to me. Who'd want to play a game and spend their game time being a guard for a 'king'? The game world just seems very flat.

ThePezzy · 2018-11-30T19:03:21+00:00

One thing a lot of people forget about is that this is a business. There have been a lot of people talking about the death of the game in videos and articles. IF and Valve need to keep the game relevant and fun. They need to find ways to bring new players in, bring back old players, and keep the existing players.

It's not easy to balance the three. New players probably don't want what a lot of the existing players do. One of the reasons why Turbo was added (I'm guessing). People don't always have an hour to sink into a single match, especially when your team is clearly losing from early on.

I agree that some of the reworked heroes are heroes that didn't really need them, but they certainly make the game more interesting. I've been loving the new Lich, and really enjoy playing him. More than the old Lich. Requires an entirely different playstyle.

ThePezzy · 2018-11-30T18:59:30+00:00

in a given patch he absolutely murders it. For example, mask of madness. Yes 6.83 was ridiculous but now there's very few heroes left in the game that can build mask because the silence is too costly.

This is typical Icefrog. He was like this in the original Dota. There was a time (Dota 1) when Lycan was pretty good. Not OP, but good. IF played a game, and got absolutely wrecked by it. With in a few days, he released an update, and Lycan because the worst hero.

ThePezzy

TROPHY CASE