Did you know that there is a free online version of photoshop? Me neither. When I discovered there is, I decided it is better to procrastinate than to work, so here we are.
I am no artist but I tried not to harm our Void Sage too much, given there is a limited amount of free assets. Hope you like it.
We have frustratingly little insight into how soulfire works from Uncrowned. I think that (perhaps barring the missing archlord vault scene) it's my biggest disappointment with the book. Lindon never once mentions how it's used, how it feels, how he plans to get more, whether he's running low...Soulfire is weirdly absent from every scene.
What we do know from Underlord is that overlords use gigantic techniques, presumably fueled by their superior soulfire. We also know that at each step in the lord stage, the body is "reforged" again in the more powerful soulfire. Just speculating here: maybe the quality of natural treasures consumed needs to be higher? Or it could be a matter of enlarging soulspace to make room for more and more soulfire until some critical mass has been achieved, and it can be "crunched" down akin to Lindon's transition from foundation > copper.
Edit: In Heroes Wanted, the short story anthology where Will has a short story about Ziel, there's this line: "He had been bathed in soulfire, reborn thrice, emerging an Archlord."
Also it's free. Here's the link
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0825H8H5T/
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The chapter in question is The savior of Garden's gate. And it's the best. Ziel is the best.
I actually just started this one yesterday. I'm enjoying it, mostly, but I really can't stand how the MC will walk into a room, and then we get three pages of him explaining how the world works and/or reminiscing about how things happened his first go around, then turning towards the person in the room and going "Hey". Then we get 4 more pages of exposition before the person in the room says "Hey" back.
Though as far as wuxia/LitRPG hybrids go where a powerful makes a wish to mental time travel back to the start of his journey in hopes of preventing the eradication of humanity, I have to give my rec to Towers of Heaven. Similar book, obviously, but leans more towards the LitRPG elements of a LitRPG/wuxia hybrid
I've actually recently been reading through the Super Powereds series. It's about a college program preparing hopeful Supers to be Heroes. One of the main character's ability is to control luck. He can cause good or bad luck and can somewhat direct the target of it though.
Ohhhhh.. sorry. It's in the "Heroes Wanted" anthology!
As mentioned by TaxemeEvasion Skippy from the Expeditionary Force books. Skippy is an Elder AI. The Elders being a race of aliens who inhabited the galaxy millions of years ago before ascending. Skippy and his brethren were left to look after the place. Main character Joe finds Skippy about half way through the first book in the form of a very shiny beer can size and shaped object. Skippy demonstrates fantastic reality bending power like punching holes in stars and warping spacetime as a hobby. Skippy is however and he'll cheerfully admit it, an asshole. His other hobbies include messing with the "monkeys" and making Joe's life more entertaining by embarrassing him and helping him out when he needs it. Skippy has rules of things he cannot do. No firing weapons, no controlling ships or robots to move himself. So he needs Joe and his troop of monkeys to carry him around while he does his very important business of finding out what happened that caused him to be damaged and lose parts of his memory. Skippy is creative but can't seem to come up with 'monkey brained" solutions to problems so Joe and the crew are helpful to Skippy
It's military sci-fi set in the present day so it's a very different genre to Cradle but it's 12 books and I enjoyed reading them. Book 12 comes out next week.
Oh, and just so you don't miss it: https://www.amazon.com/Arcanum-Unbounded-Collection-Brandon-Sanderson/dp/0765391163
It's a collection of short stories and each tells you when it's recommended to be read. There's a novella from the same planet as Elantris in it called the The Emperor's Soul that doesn't tie in directly to Elantris but does show other parts of that world.
Progression fantasy, very good, very addicting, fast paced, although first two books are little bit slower.
I recently discovered Kyle Kirrin, it's a LITRPG genre series that has three books so far, the series is called The Ripple System.
I'd love an anthology, though some of the things here (like how the bloodline Vow works) I hope we see before the series ends.
Incidentally, there has been at least one Cradle short story added to an anthology. Heroes Wanted: A Fantasy Anthology features a short story from Will that explains some of Ziel's background.
Kindle is having problems in which they have moved a lot of books, including Dreadgod, from their correct categories.
Which is why Dreadgod is currently #1 in Erotica.
Next 3 in the series ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0891YTJYR/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i11 )
Next 3 after that ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09JRSQGGR/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i10 )
maybe try buying them from amazon itself instead of the kindle store?
Jeremy Bai aka Deathblade (the translator of many famed chinese webnovels, including I Shall See The Heavens) has published an RPG manual specifically for the Wuxia setting which inspired Cradle. It is called Righteous Blood, Ruthless Blades. https://www.amazon.com/Righteous-Blood-Ruthless-Blades-Roleplaying/dp/1472839366
As I read Underlord I would literally burst out laughing imagining how Travis Baldree would have Dross and Eithan say various things. They have some really great lines and the quality of his voice acting will only amplify that imo.
Electrical Menagerie is the one that went out today- it was just ahead of Underlord on approvals.
https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Electrical-Menagerie-Audiobook/B07PH3HZ4P
I fell in love with audiobooks due to a boring job that allowed me to listen to my ipod/phone while working. I had a bit of hesitation because I was expecting the boring type of voice actors that were common in my grandmas books on tape when I was a kid. I had no idea how much the quality has improved over the years. I don't care for graphic audio type ones where they add a bunch of sound effects, I found those to be very unpleasant. But with just a narrator who can do accents and emotion telling the story is a great experience.
You asked for recommendations.. I have a ton so I am trying to just think of a few of my favorites.
-James Marsters (Spike from Buffy) does an amazing job reading the Dresden files series. Some recommend starting at book 3 as books one and two aren't super important to the main story and the quality is at the level of his earliest work.
-Dawn of Wonder. The wakening series. Fantastic story and voice actor.
-The Demon Accords.
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You can search by voice actor on audible and get a few minutes sample of various stories to see if you like the voice. I recommend doing this, it can help you find new stories. I will also leave the name of some of my favorite voice actors for you to search:
Nick Podehl, Rupert Degas, Jeff Hays, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Tess Irondale , Tim Pabon, Michael Kramer and Kate Redding (husband and wife voice actors, some stories they do together, some stories they solo).
Those are just a few of many quality voice actors. Hope you enjoy.
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I know, I had no idea Will wrote short stories in-universe!
A bit of googling found a thread here from a couple years ago, which linked: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0825H8H5T/
The best bit, it is free on kindle right now! Now I know what I'm doing in my spare time tomorrow.
Came here to say that. Here's a link.
One of the authors is quite active on Reddit. They also have a Patreon, and are releasing chapters from Book 2 now.
I was just saying in another comment that this is a progression fantasy series by a fairly popular author that's set in literal fantasy China and it has gay and probably transgender people existing without it ever becoming part of the story: https://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Li-First-Cultivation-Novel-ebook/dp/B07PKGSDDQ
Thank you this nice.
Not sure why but I always think about the King’s Dark Tidings when discussing Cradle, both are fantasy but very different sub genres. For whatever reason it just sparks. Kinda like I think of Alex Verus when anybody mentions the Dresden files.
Just started reading Forge of Destiny from someone else’s recommendation.
Schools of magic is a fairly common trope. Strictness varies a lot. I quite enjoyed the magic system in Lightbringer. If you want to stick to Wills work his Travelers gate series does it quite well.
Good Xiaxia and progression fantasy is much harder to come by unfortunately. There’s a sub for r/progressionfantasy which may have some more recommendations
If it's not really necessary to carry the plot forward, it's filler. Although technically it should be "if it does not contribute to a story arc," it's filler. You can have multiple story arcs. Also, filler isn't necessarily bad. One takes care not too use to much, lest the reader become bored, but introducing some can add some value. Are you concerned with a negative connotation here? It's not really, unless it is used excessively.
Consider this writing concept here, for example.
Would you settle for a super intelligent kind of a dick AI? If so you might check out the Expeditionary Force series. 12 books so far, 13 comes out in a week or so. Military sci-fi rather than fantasy though.
If you haven’t yet, Brandon Sanderson should be your go-to. Will is a big fan from what I’ve heard, he even got some tips from the man himself
About six months ago I made a push for reorganizing the current Wiki and restructured it under a bubble map I think I linked somewhere. The general split was via series, then characters, locations, factions, magic systems, and theories. I think these are probably the most useful main categories for each series I can think of.
https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_kxpflKM=/
I posted this on Discord as well, I don't know which place more of the discussion is happening so y'all get double.
ZooBoo Summer Buddhist Shaolin Monk Robe Cotton Long Robes Gown Kung Fu Uniforms Martial Arts Clothing https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B073WPHMN8/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_95XWHPCJ97WQ47AV77DY?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
> Besides forge of destiny
Is this the one?
> I am suspicious of that as an "official" view of Yerin
I mean, it's literally the official cover of Cradle: Path of Gold: https://www.amazon.com/Cradle-Path-Gold-Collection-Book-ebook/dp/B0891YTJYR/ref=sr_1_1
There is a Valin Prequel short story. I'm not sure which collection it's in, it might be in https://www.amazon.com/Heroes-Wanted-Anthology-Ben-Galley-ebook/dp/B0825H8H5T, though I haven't read that yet so not sure.
Dave Duncan's 'A Man of His Word' series from about 1990. It has one of the most interesting magic systems I'm ever seen and a really fun read. There's also a follow-up series 'A Handful of Men'. Somewhat whimsical and humorous in a kind of Princess Bride way but with some darker and more serious themes about the price of power.
This is progression fantasy with a unique magical progression system. It's very cool and both series are ones I still enjoy rereading. I remember getting this when it came out like it was yesterday but I guess 1990 is now long enough ago that you may not have read this one.
https://www.amazon.com/Man-His-Word-Complete-ebook/dp/B0732J6PN5
The first Amazon review sums it up pretty damn well:
"Of all that I've read by Dave Duncan, A Man of His Word is my favorite. There is so much going on, that it's hard to write a review. A Man of His Word is a fantasy series with awesome characterization and world-building. There's suspense, danger, unrequited love, multifaceted good guys and bad guys, sword fights, brawling, trolls, goblins, elves, hardships, danger, swordfighting ... There's almost no kissing, though. I had to say that because thoughts of the Princess Bride popped in there somewhere..."
Try A Thousand Li and Painting the Mists.
If you liked Iron Prince, you'd probably also like Seeds of Chaos, for similar reasons. It's light litRPG, with a non-silly reason for existence of the progression system (somewhat like Iron Prince), with a lot of progression. Also, my personal opinion: the writing is slightly better here than in Iron Prince, although ofc nothing near as good as Cradle.
Thread of Fate series, is actually pretty high octane action, not really a cradle vibe per say, but very well done.
I was going to recommend this series myself. I'd say they're the best books I've read this year.
Their about a group of young adults going through the Hero Certification Program at a college in order to become super heroes. They're incredible books.
> I've been waiting for ages for Doc Brown to cultivate time madra
What?!? Don't be ridiculous. There's no such thing as "time madra". Well... ok, there's some speculation there is such a thing as "spatial madra", and if there is then maybe "time madra" could exist too. But that's not my point...
My point is you don't need time madra. You only need a flux capacitor, electricity, and to go 88mph. The flux capacitor part is easy - you can buy them at O'Reilly auto parts or even Amazon. You also need 1.21 gigawatts of electrical power, which you can get from lightning-path techniques or your plutonium if you're lazy.
Now the hard part is going 88mph. That's extremely difficult because (1) the highest legal speed limit is 75mph, at least in the US, and (2) it's hard to get up to that speed while reading and writing reddit comments on your phone. Furthermore, I've checked and there is no "speed madra", due to a glaring oversight by Will Wight.
But I have a solution! The answer lies in light madra. Why? Because think about it: light is used to see the screen and reddit comments, and light is coming from your headlights or the sun and is already breaking the legal speed limits. And furthermore it will definitely get us to 88pmh, because it's moving at the speed of light!
So there you have it. A clear path to travel time, worthy of someone like Makiel the Judge (or "Makiel J." for short).
Which is why I like to call it: the Path of the Makiel J. Fox.
This book has a short story about Ziel. It's very good.
The flamboyancy isn't really indicative of anything I suppose but a relationship would really help Ziel.
Heroes Wanted has a short story about Ziel almost immediately after his defeat and it has some great insights to his character and path. It's a free ebook.
No worries! I write in LitRPG and Cultivation/progression fantasy. You may like my series Pilgrim - it's been really well-received.
Here's the US link -if that's where you are!
My favorite Romance writing resource is Gwen Hays Romancing the Beat. It's a very quick read. I'd give even odds that you've already read it, but if you haven't it might be worth flipping through on your vacation. I know you enjoy writing craft books.
Another great cultivation series (that has about the worst title imaginable) is Silver Fox and the Western Hero. https://www.amazon.com/Silver-Fox-Western-Hero-Warrior-ebook/dp/B08261T1YF
They call it a lit rpg but it is by far worth the read. I honestly think the title is very appropriate but I think the author has lost a bunch of readers because of it.
Seriously give it a shot, I do not think you will regret it.
It was actually available BEFORE the ebook. We’ve sold several. But unfortunately, Amazon hasn’t linked the two formats together yet, so you have to search for it separately.
Here you go:
https://www.amazon.com/Underlord-Cradle-Will-Wight/dp/0999851128/
Try Vainqueur the Dragon. It's an almost satirical take of the litRPG/Isekai genre. I've copied the blurb below:
>Vainqueur Knightsbane is your average dragon: a giant, fire-breathing lizard who loves to take naps on his golden hoard, kidnap princesses for fun, and make the life of adventurers miserable. Vainqueur's only pleasure in life is to watch his treasure get bigger, one coin at a time.
>
>So when a would-be thief turned unwilling minion tells him about "classes," "levels," and "quests," Vainqueur wonders if maybe, just maybe, he should consider a career change.
>
>After all, why bother hunting monsters for free when you can get paid for it?
It is HILARIOUS! The 'would-be thief turned unwilling minion' eventually starts liking the dragon then goes, "OMG, I have Stalkholmes Syndrom!" Read it, and find out why the rich always win!
https://www.amazon.com/Vainqueur-Dragon-Maxime-J-Durand-ebook/dp/B081VRFXBM
Someone similar here recommended Iron Prince and I've been enjoying it so far. It's not at the same quality, especially with typos, but still good.
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>I like being hard on Lindon
Poor Lindon. "You're too weak!"-His clan. "You're too Blackflamy!" -The Skysworn."You're too hungry for the souls of your enemies!" -His enemies. He just can't seem to escape judgement.
>Also trying to work in one of your suggested books into the schedule soon!
Glad to hear it! I think I recommended Codex Alera 1: Furies of Calderon (just to be absolutely clear, that's furies, not furries.) and Art of the Adept 1: The Choice of Magic, right? Or was there another one?
Which did you guys think you were more interested in?
There are apps that lets you level up as you exercise or set missions for yourself and then complete them and so on. Here's one example.
This series. Only three book so far but I enjoyed it.
I also really enjoyed Awaken Online.
You might want to try this series. Fairly similar in the progress rate and there's not a ton of fluff but there is fairly decent world building given that the main character is foreign to the world.
Cradle definitely has a unique taste to it that I havnt found anything similiar to. But i would recommend the Dragon Heart series if you enjoy the wuxia/xanxania style. It has a bit more of an epic style but still pretty good. https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Heart-Stone-Will-LitRPG-ebook/dp/B07NKGQ7RJ
Goldsteel tongs for the kitchen! Eithan-brand scissors! A halfsilver santoku! A nerf sword version of Yerin's blade! Action figure Little Blue! Headband with Ziel's horns! Gold dragon makeup! Dakimakuras of all the main cast! (especially best boy Orthos)
I'll have to go through my kindle unlimited history over the weekend. until then, one of my favorites is The Weaving Man. https://www.amazon.com/Weaving-Man-Book-One-Prophecy-ebook/dp/B01M7W5T34 It started out for the first hundred pages like it was going to be a ho-hum average book, by the 2nd hundred I was hooked. The first 2 books in the series are favorites now. I just downloaded the 3rd book last week and it is next on my TBR list.
Street Cultivation by Sarah Lin.
What if cultivation went corporate?
Very like able protagonist, very interesting alt-earth, fantastic story with no obnoxious power creep.
Ok i wouldnt comment on it right now. It might seem like all his Path has is swinging a hammer around, and that would be very close yet far far away from the truth. This is where you will find the Ziel short story. Read it and you will at least understand his level of power, and why i said he could take on the BFE alone.
Mage Errant: Publisher's Pack, Book 1-2 by John Bierce. One of the best high fantasy magic school stories I have read. It has a third book out already.
Enemy of the World - Book 1 of Main Character hides his Strength (A Dark Fantasy Litrpg Series) by Road Warrior (translated by Edward Ro, Minsoo Kang). This has the lightest of litRPG-ness to it, but it is an incredibly interesting take on the overpowered protagonist trope. It is translated from Korean, so there were be a lot of weird phrasings. Two books are out for this already.
Art of the Adept - Michael G Manning! Book 1 is called The Choice of Magic.
Amazon blurb: >The ancient magic of wizards was anything but dark. It was the enlightenment that lifted humanity from the squalor of superstition, and the worship of fell spirits and capricious gods, but those days are gone. The shining glory of the sorcerers burned away the subtlety of wisdom, replacing it with easy power, held only in the hands of the elite—a new age built upon the elemental supremacy of aristocrats and the ignorance of the masses.
>But this will change, for the greatest power comes with knowledge, and the deeper teachings of wizardry have not been utterly lost. The last wizard of the old tradition still survives in solitude, nursing tired grudges and waiting for death.
>His passing might have gone unnoticed, but for the imposition of a youth too stubborn to accept his refusal to take an apprentice. With a new student comes new hope, and that hope has caused old powers to stir again. That the world will change is inevitable, but the shape of the future is anything but certain.
Here is an amazon link
The story is called “The Savior of Garden’s Gate Will Wight”
From this very subreddit, I found A Thousand Li, by Tao Wong. There are only two books out so far, and the second one is a lot more expository than the first, but I enjoyed it.
I've also started Way of the Immortals, by Harmon Cooper but I literally just started it today and don't have an opinion yet.
If you haven't seen it already, <strong>Six Sacred Swords</strong> just came out a few days ago. That's a prequel, but if you like the Arcane Ascension stuff, you'll probably enjoy it. It's more adventure focused.
War of Broken Mirrors Book 3 is next, then Arcane Ascension Book 3 after that. I expect Arcane Ascension Book 3 will be out sometime next year.
Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire series rates a recommendation. High fantasy setting with good world building, dialogue, and a very well constructed main character. It can tend toward the macabre, and the humor often comes off color. However, it's a solid read.
Sebastien De Castell's The Greatcoats finishes this year with its fourth novel. Swashbuckling, adventure sort of book in a fantasy type Europe. Genuinely good character development, excellent action sequences, and hearty doses of comedy to alleviate serious passages.