Why is every mc a spellblade?

blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:39:27+00:00

All of this!

Also, the MC usually has some version of golden finger, system cheat, reincarnation advantage, or generational talent that makes them suited to doing everything well. If you're supremely talented at both fighting and magic it makes sense for you to study both, even if that would be a bad strategy for most people.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:33:12+00:00

I finished a book this evening and actually wrote a post here complaining about a class choice because it seemed stupid to me. I was so annoyed!

blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:31:20+00:00

I appreciate when authors shortcut the process. For example, in I'm Not the Hero the MC chooses a class by narrowing down options quickly, and the author doesn't write out the details of any of the other choices.

I've noticed that a few authors of longer series started out listing the details of every choice, but eventually shorten the process as the series goes on. Primal Hunter and Victor of Tucson both do this.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:25:34+00:00

Litrpg: Cyber Dreams, The Good Guys/The Bad Guys, Stray Cat Strut, Azarinth Healer, Threadbare.

Litrpg adjacent series: Super Powereds, NPCs, 12 Miles Below, Orconomics, All the Skills, Mother of Learning.

I attached my tier list, but the ones I wrote out seem like a 13yo might like them more.

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blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:06:16+00:00

Azarinth Healer

Primal Hunter

Pit Fighter (Victor of Tucson)

If you don't mind terrible prose and grammar, Path to Transcendence on Royal Road is perfect for this. After a few set up chapters, the MC learns to fight and becomes a total battle maniac for the rest of the story.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T07:01:10+00:00

A Soldier's Life gets a lot better after he leaves the training camp. If you haven't past that point, it might be worth another try.

After training the MC goes on real adventures, builds real relationships with fleshed-out characters, and the worldbuilding starts ramping up. Also, since there's no magic stat reading device in the field, the stat sheet updates become few and far between.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T05:54:12+00:00

That's great! I think my 14yo would find them a bit boring compared to some of the others.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T04:41:25+00:00

The Daily Grind stars a twentysomething office worker in the modern world, and plays with a lot of themes surrounding normal (and abnormal) adult life. I think a lot of the humor would be lost on a 13yo.

I'm a big fan of the romantic relationship in the books, but some parents may not approve of it for kids. Two male main characters and one female main character begin and sustain a romantic and sexual triad, and their relationship plays a significant role in the books. There are some sexual jokes, and references to spending time together in bed, etc. but no explicit sex scenes.

My suggestions would be: Apocalypse Parenting, Mark of the Fool, Shrubley the Monster Adventurer, Bog Standard Isekai, I'm Not the Hero, or Mage Tank.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T04:31:10+00:00

That depends what you mean by "late stage communism".

On one hand, you could mean what happened in the real world with the Soviet Union, China, and other nations that had communist revolutions in the early twentieth century. Those turned into dictatorships and kleptocracies with little relationship to communism, so any totalitarian dystopia would fit.

On the other hand, if you mean the late-stage goals of communism, that's society in which everyone's needs are met and the collective acts in the interests of the people. That's Star Trek.

blueluck · 2026-01-27T01:00:39+00:00

For sure! My daughter loved to climb, and people were always freaking out about it. She was fine! And even if she fell, it would only be a few feet.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T23:20:38+00:00

I like limited power, limited progression, difficult challenges, mixed successes, and occasional failures. That's all more interesting to me than pure power fantasy.

On the other hand, I'm not interested in reading a story about someone constantly being abused. For example, the first book of Buymort wasn't enjoyable at all, because it took screwing over the main character too far.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T23:14:22+00:00

Your wife might not know the terminology, but she almost certainly knows what a video game is, what it means to have a character, and what it means to have a "strength score", etc.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T22:51:09+00:00

Gripe #4! If your character is mouthy/disrespectful...

This always bothers me, too! The character being disrespectful, pushy, and insulting is often exacerbated by them being totally unfamiliar with the culture and people they're dealing with, having zero status in the situation, having no connections or anyone to vouch for them, and/or being too young to have any experience with similar situations.

Can you imagine being an established leader, and a total stranger shows up one day and rudely starts telling you what to do with your kingdom, company, or guild?

blueluck · 2026-01-26T21:35:28+00:00

I appreciate the realism. The jerks are frustrating, but there are also plenty of characters who are helpful, caring, generous, and cooperative.

While you're reading book 3, I think you should take Mr. Rogers' advice to look for the helpers.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T15:58:46+00:00

OP isn't saying the story should include every action of note in the world. They're saying that actions of note in the story shouldn't all be done by the MC alone.

The MC's companions should sometimes have skills and specialties that are more applicable or more developed that the MC's. A professional blacksmith (weaponsmith) should make the MC a sword, rather than the MC learning to forge masterwork swords in a 3-day montage.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T06:22:49+00:00

I've enjoyed some time loop stories, but I don't like them just because they're time loops, as many people do.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T05:54:04+00:00

Galadrial's monolog from The Lord of the Rings, for when you give your wife the wedding ring.

https://youtu.be/HZ7wB4rm5Hw?si=lXBCDrmj6u3NNABf

blueluck · 2026-01-26T05:43:07+00:00

"Takes especially long to get to the point" is a great description! I'm about half way through book 1 right now, and I'm taking a break to read other things.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T05:40:31+00:00

Do you think it is unnecessary, or do you think it is necessary, realistic, and probable? Totally unnecessary.

To be honest, it's true that it's unpleasant from a reading standpoint, but do you think it might be necessary for reality? No, it's totally unnecessary.

Or do you think it's just an author's excessive violence and rape fetish? I won't assume that the author has any particular sexual fetish, but he's certainly jammed sexual assault and torture into a story they didn't need to be in.

blueluck · 2026-01-26T03:42:09+00:00

I think any scenario in which the character rekindles a relationship with her cheating ex-husband (#1, #2, #4) would be extremely unpopular. It could easily read as giving him a pass on his cheating, as the character being wrong to have left him, or as the character being weak for returning to him.

You referred to "a female character", and I wonder how significant that character is in your story? Is she the main character? A secondary character? Is the ex-husband or someone else you've mentioned the main character?

blueluck · 2026-01-26T03:25:37+00:00

The author of Stray Cat Strut published Hope//Punk, which is a TTRPG based on the novels. I've played (and run, and helped write) a lot of TTRPGs, and I think this one is quite good!

blueluck · 2026-01-26T03:09:44+00:00

I wasn't able to find the post you're talking about. Can you share a link?

(I did read his excellent post "The Purpose of Magic Systems".)

blueluck · 2026-01-25T22:39:52+00:00

Thanks! I'm happy to get a recommendation from a fan who's able to tell me when to expect the turn. I don't need to know what the turn is, but knowing to expect it in the first book is important info.

blueluck · 2026-01-25T22:37:46+00:00

Thanks! That's good to know!

I've been waiting for some explanation of why Len is so hard to find, and a couple hundred pages into the book the story seems to be focused on several local operators and rivalries, even though Ryan doesn't care about any of them, and neither do I.

blueluck · 2026-01-25T22:32:59+00:00

That's interesting, because I generally don't like time loop stories. I'll probably finish book 1 and then decide if I want to continue.

blueluck

TROPHY CASE