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Bhodi posted:I admit I used to read http://peldor.com/ while bored at work If you're gonna do that you might as well https://www.projectaon.org/en/Main/Books
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Dec 18, 2017 17:10
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What in the world is this? A choose your own adventure style adaption of a D&D campaign?!
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Dec 18, 2017 18:21
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Bhodi posted:What in the world is this? A choose your own adventure style adaption of a D&D campaign?! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lone_Wolf_(gamebooks) quote:Dever developed the world of Magnamund from 1975 to 1983 as a setting for his Dungeons and Dragons campaigns. Originally called "Chinaraux", the world consisted of only northern Magnamund.[14] The Kai lords are like "psionic rangers with special powers bestowed upon them by their gods".[15] An individual book took 9 weeks to write, with three for mapping and plotting, and then 6 weeks of writing the story, creating an average of 12 entries per day.[16] Primo 1980's right there. I love posting that link because I know every time I do so, a few goons lose an entire workday Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 18:25 on Dec 18, 2017 |
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Dec 18, 2017 18:22
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Somehow I missed this entire idea and have never heard of it. I'm likely going to lose some time to it, definitely
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Dec 18, 2017 18:50
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If you prefer open world sandboxes, the Fabled Lands books are worth a look. Only half the series was published, but that's still quite a lot of content, and there's a Java version if you want to play them on a computer. If you prefer SF,
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Dec 18, 2017 18:57
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^^^^ The seventh book of FL is in the process of coming out. The pdf is out to backers and they're working on shipping the physical version. I'd say unless you're really into "There is a corridor to the left and the right" - "Ok you went right you DIE, start over", just play some Choice Of games. They're a lot more about the narrative and character relationships. If you like Max Gladstone's Craft series, he wrote two gamebooks in that universe for them. Megazver fucked around with this message at 20:00 on Dec 18, 2017 |
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Dec 18, 2017 19:56
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90s Cringe Rock posted:Putting the 10 remaining points into Intellect and increasing it to 18 at the base and 82 with items, I opened up the group interface and examined the stats of the rest of the group. Speaking of litRPGs Awaken Online's side book, opened up with the side book protagonist getting a giant level-up notification with stat round-up and blah blah then going ohh yeah the main line protagonist plays told me to turn these off because they are distracting. It then proceeded to not have any stat/loot/level-up/notification stuff until a post-epilogue character page round-up. It felt just like a huge slap to the genre and I loved it.
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Dec 18, 2017 21:23
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General Battuta posted:Baru Cormorant is just a novelization of a Dominion game, you can tell by the Duke spam and focus on card trashing let me throw money at you for book two already goddammit
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Dec 18, 2017 23:25
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Bhodi posted:Somehow I missed this entire idea and have never heard of it. I'm likely going to lose some time to it, definitely There's a Let's Play of Lone Wolf going on over here now (currently most of the way through book 6): https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3830605
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Dec 18, 2017 23:27
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Honestly people novelizing their game stuff has been ludicrously common since like the 80s and I think is only going to get moreso. Some writers are just better at filing the serial numbers off than others and it pops up in some weird places.
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Dec 18, 2017 23:42
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General Battuta posted:Baru Cormorant is just a novelization of a Dominion game, you can tell by the Duke spam and focus on card trashing Also, Gold is bad in a Duke game.
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Dec 19, 2017 01:16
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ShinsoBEAM! posted:Speaking of litRPGs Awaken Online's side book, opened up with the side book protagonist getting a giant level-up notification with stat round-up and blah blah then going ohh yeah the main line protagonist plays told me to turn these off because they are distracting. It then proceeded to not have any stat/loot/level-up/notification stuff until a post-epilogue character page round-up. It felt just like a huge slap to the genre and I loved it. I don't know what any of this means.
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Dec 19, 2017 02:42
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ShutteredIn posted:I don't know what any of this means. You're better off.
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Dec 19, 2017 02:49
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:You're better off. Eh, the Awaken Online books have been pretty decent so far. I haven't read the side-book yet but they focus a lot on the ramifications of bullying and class differences in both the real world and the virtual one.
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Dec 19, 2017 15:08
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Victorkm posted:Eh, the Awaken Online books have been pretty decent so far. I haven't read the side-book yet but they focus a lot on the ramifications of bullying and class differences in both the real world and the virtual one. Jesus Christ stop loving posting about this garbage
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Dec 19, 2017 18:09
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Okay, thread. I want opinions before I do any ill-advised book shopping this holiday season. I'm looking for opinions on: - Code of Conduct by Kristine Smith - All you need is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka - Imperial Spain by JH Elliott - Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams - Shadow & Claw by Gene Wolfe - The Great Book of Amber by Roger Zelazny Any books I should prioritize or save for later? Any I should buy right now, what am I waiting for?
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Dec 19, 2017 18:15
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The standard recommendation I make about the Amber series is that it's good pulp but bad Zelazny -- it's better than most other pulp out there, but you're better off reading something like Lord of Light if you want quality Zelazny.
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Dec 19, 2017 18:16
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:The standard recommendation I make about the Amber series is that it's good pulp but bad Zelazny -- it's better than most other pulp out there, but you're better off reading something like Lord of Light if you want quality Zelazny. My very vague memories of Lord of Light's first few chapters was that I didn't like it.  I'll give it a few more years and try again, probably.
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Dec 19, 2017 18:17
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StrixNebulosa posted:- Shadow & Claw by Gene Wolfe
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Dec 19, 2017 18:50
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DACK FAYDEN posted:Love/hate. I'm a big fan (there's a Gene Wolfe thread here somewhere) but I know other people who think he's opaque and unreadable. I would say give it a shot. I've thought Wolfe is super easy to read since I got into him a few years ago the story can be dense and opaque but it's really easy to read and have a heck of a fun time(get Shadow & Claw it's good)
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Dec 19, 2017 20:02
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my bony fealty posted:I've thought Wolfe is super easy to read since I got into him a few years ago And Hardwired is classic early cyberpunk, also read that.
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Dec 19, 2017 20:06
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StrixNebulosa posted:My very vague memories of Lord of Light's first few chapters was that I didn't like it. Please do. It starts a bit slowly so that you get to know the main character but it becomes amazingly fun.
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Dec 20, 2017 02:12
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my bony fealty posted:I've thought Wolfe is super easy to read since I got into him a few years ago His books set in interesting worlds are easy to read on the strength of the prose and the imagery, even where what's happening narratively is opaque. The Latro books, Solar Cycle, and Wizard Knight fall here. The ones in more conventional settings can be slogs.
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Dec 20, 2017 02:14
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90s Cringe Rock posted:If you prefer open world sandboxes, the Fabled Lands books are worth a look. Only half the series was published, but that's still quite a lot of content, and there's a Java version if you want to play them on a computer. Man, I loved Fabled Lands as a kid. I remember getting them from the library and they came as big picture-book-sized books with like 600 entries and heaps of illustrations. And there were all these neat little succinct adventures - I have a real distinct memory of one where you pull up your ship to an island and fall asleep while the crew are gathering food, and some warriors ask you to help defend their queen and their palace from a dragon, and then later you're sort of waking up again and one of the sailors is talking about how he saw a snake trying to get into a bee's nest. It was full of low-key little magical fairytale stories like that.
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Dec 20, 2017 03:48
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I've only read Home Fires by Gene Wolfe (since it was all the library had) but I liked it. The plot was always racing to the get to the next dialogue as opposed to concentrating on the action or setting, but I didn't find any of the plot unclear. It was a little funny how sparse the setting is. You have no idea what kind of world it takes place in except that interstellar travel exists yet electricity and petroleum are exceedingly rare. And most people are unemployed but becoming a lawyer is a ticket to riches.
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Dec 20, 2017 04:41
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andrew smash posted:Jesus Christ stop loving posting about this garbage For a thread about genre trash, you sure are mad when I post about genre trash.
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Dec 20, 2017 06:05
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Victorkm posted:For a thread about genre trash, you sure are mad when I post about genre trash. The solution is simple: gas the whole thread.
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Dec 20, 2017 09:09
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A human heart posted:The solution is simple: gas the whole thread. The way in which the relative positions of the three "brothers" mimicked the old hierarchy of Trazior became ruefully evident to Yeremi as they pressed their way upward. Compression of the guts caused inevitable farting. D'Arquebus vented through his tunic and his silks virtually into Yeremi's face. Nor did Yeremi have much option but to gas Tundrish in turn. Yeremi at least gasped out an apology to the body below him. "Pardon me, brother." "S'all right," panted Tundrish. "Reminds me of home in the underhive…" "Did you just stand on his face?" piped a nonchalant voice from above. Was d'Arquebus oblivious to the reason for Yeremi's courtesy? Ah, d'Arquebus was the bold trailblazer, was he not? Right in the lead, where the air was stale but not otherwise malodorous.
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Dec 20, 2017 09:23
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ulmont posted:There's a Let's Play of Lone Wolf going on over here now (currently most of the way through book 6): gently caress Book 6 to death with a Sommerswerd. Most of the Lone Wolf books are available in a free app, if you're a curious Android user.
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Dec 20, 2017 12:09
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i confess to getting a kick out of the Magelord series of books. "The Awakening" by Thomas K. Martin delves into some pretty interesting topics for such a short book
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Dec 20, 2017 14:25
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So speaking of the depths of genre trash. I got like 1/2 way through Morning Wood: Everybody loves huge chests(it's about a mimic get it), which advertised itself as a parody book of the genre. But that's the problem it's kinda not, it sorta is but it's played too straight and doesn't have enough jokes any jokes it does have fall flat. Like I have read a lot of this trash genre in webnovels and with the good reviews on GR and Amazon I was like huh maybe this is a very good one or something? Because there have been a few that I really liked but this one manages to not only be dry and kinda boring but somehow delves into fetish land harder than pretty much any I have read except one WB who's name I'm blanking on at the moment. I guess it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that they should avoid the book, but if you were thinking well...maybe it's actually pretty good for laughs, it's not. In other genre trash news Amazon and Goodreads have been pushing Star Justice at me so hard I'm almost tempted to read it despite the below just to get it over with  Star Justice posted:Imprisoned and subjected to brutal genetic experiments, space marine Adam has been changed into a perfect predator. A super soldier that is part man, part tiger, and all killing machine. It's that disclaimer that always tells me I'm about to receive some "quality" bro-otica.
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Dec 20, 2017 15:44
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ShinsoBEAM! posted:It's that disclaimer that always tells me I'm about to receive some "quality" bro-otica. That's about the gist of it. Read the first and found it terribly non-compelling despite being nominally in the same realm of slightly over-the-top action that I dig in S. Andrew Swann's stuff. If there was just a biiit more effort put into it (and perhaps minus the loving space vampire deus-ex-machina) they could be interesting, but dude is apparently more interested in just churning these out something like one book every two months. Edit: It almost feels like it's transcribing someone's Totally Rad Sci-Fi RPG where the protagonist characters are all super awesome at what they do and the challenges they encounter are all just slightly trivial enough. darnon fucked around with this message at 17:17 on Dec 20, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 17:13
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LET THE TIGER OUT
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Dec 20, 2017 17:13
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ShinsoBEAM! posted:So speaking of the depths of genre trash. I got like 1/2 way through Morning Wood: Everybody loves huge chests(it's about a mimic get it), which advertised itself as a parody book of the genre. But that's the problem it's kinda not, it sorta is but it's played too straight and doesn't have enough jokes any jokes it does have fall flat. Like I have read a lot of this trash genre in webnovels and with the good reviews on GR and Amazon I was like huh maybe this is a very good one or something? Because there have been a few that I really liked but this one manages to not only be dry and kinda boring but somehow delves into fetish land harder than pretty much any I have read except one WB who's name I'm blanking on at the moment. oh yeah I rememer when that showed up in ADTRW. Synthbuttrange posted:A few chapters in and there's a necromancer that's into bestiality fiddling with herself. gimme the GOD drat candy posted:noooooope Synthbuttrange posted:Oh looks like she's permanently out of the picture. Synthbuttrange posted:It's pretty much I'm a spider so what except with occasional edgy bits like swearing, masturbation and genital destruction.
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Dec 20, 2017 20:21
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Neurosis posted:His books set in interesting worlds are easy to read on the strength of the prose and the imagery, even where what's happening narratively is opaque. The Latro books, Solar Cycle, and Wizard Knight fall here. The ones in more conventional settings can be slogs. True enough, I've only read two of his "real world" novels; found The Sorcerer's House to be thrilling but Castleview was pretty hard to get through. Might try to re-read it now that I've read a lot more Arthurian stuff and might be able to discern wtf is going on (hah). ShinsoBEAM! posted:In other genre trash news Amazon and Goodreads have been pushing Star Justice at me so hard I'm almost tempted to read it despite the below just to get it over with I used to see ads for this guy's books on Facebook all the time, usually with dopey taglines like "BETTER THAN HEINLEIN?" I really get the "self-published author who is independently wealthy and can pay to advertise his weird tiger book everywhere" vibe. The perspective in that cover is messing with my head too. Is tiger bro like 12 feet tall, or sexy blonde lady real small? Who can tell.
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Dec 20, 2017 20:52
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Serious question: do we need to split the self published crap off into a separate thread It's making my soul hurt
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Dec 20, 2017 21:04
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Serious question: do we need to split the self published crap off into a separate thread Yes. and then ban everyone posting in it Someone got that link from a sci-fi editor about the quality of the stuff she had to review?
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Dec 20, 2017 21:07
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my bony fealty posted:I used to see ads for this guy's books on Facebook all the time, usually with dopey taglines like "BETTER THAN HEINLEIN?" I really get the "self-published author who is independently wealthy and can pay to advertise his weird tiger book everywhere" vibe. Judging by the amount of reviews on Amazon, the series seems to be doing well. Hieronymous Alloy posted:Serious question: do we need to split the self published crap off into a separate thread Nah.
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Dec 20, 2017 21:14
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Serious question: do we need to split the self published crap off into a separate thread God yes.
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Dec 20, 2017 21:15
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Proteus Jones posted:God yes.
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Dec 20, 2017 21:21
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