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Difficulty: Legendary #2
Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf: Difficulty: Legendary, Book 2
After a small fortune was spent on getting him into a fantasy game, Eric Templeton expected to last longer than 30 minutes. Instead of being spawned into a newbie village, he was accidentally sent to the darkest regions of the map, where creatures beyond his level roamed.
Eric stumbled upon a conspiracy among some high-level players where they planned to break the only treaty that guaranteed peace in the land and find the shards that would allow them to summon Necrolor, the most feared player in the game.
Together with a giant called Brian and a dwarf named Smoglar, Eric is on a quest to get revenge on Herelius Rouge, the powerful warrior who killed him in his first playthrough. If he's successful he will also stop Herelius from bringing Necrolor back to life, but saving the world is just an added bonus. This is all about revenge.
Janus has a long journey ahead of him if he is ever to become powerful enough to kill Herelius.
A fantasy series with an epic world, filled with quests, battles and adventures.
Eric stumbled upon a conspiracy among some high-level players where they planned to break the only treaty that guaranteed peace in the land and find the shards that would allow them to summon Necrolor, the most feared player in the game.
Together with a giant called Brian and a dwarf named Smoglar, Eric is on a quest to get revenge on Herelius Rouge, the powerful warrior who killed him in his first playthrough. If he's successful he will also stop Herelius from bringing Necrolor back to life, but saving the world is just an added bonus. This is all about revenge.
Janus has a long journey ahead of him if he is ever to become powerful enough to kill Herelius.
A fantasy series with an epic world, filled with quests, battles and adventures.
- GenresFantasyAmazonUnfinished
Audible Audio
Published May 17, 2017
104 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 9, 2018
I didn't review the first book of the series because it isn't even really a complete book; more an intro to this one. Maybe you read that and for some reason or another started in on this one. Why would I imply it's a little weird you started this book?
1) The writing in book 1 is weak. It desperately needs an editor. Even more than my reviews do.
Thankfully, the second book contains better writing. It's still not great, but it's fine. In the tiny LitRPG genre, you take what you can get.
2) It's the standard LitRPG plot of gamer goes into hyper-realistic VR world to gain glory. But there are some interesting bits here. There's a secret benefactor that doesn't get nearly enough focus. There is a kind of morality system where you get chaos points for being evil and good guy points (not called that) for doing the right thing. It's a neat idea for an impartial system to just tell you that you're doing something evil, despite your best intentions. But it doesn't work. Our protagonist should have a ton of chaos points for the things he does. He straight up murders a dude. He actually considers leaving some poisoned guy to die because our 'hero' is lazy. And he doesn't get chaos points for any of it. I forget the circumstance, but at one point he got the good Guardian points for lying for his own benefit. Wtf? If this is supposed to be a game world, it is incredibly broken.
3) Our MC is kind of a jerk. And an idiot. He's still a jerk and an idiot, and in fact gets worse in book 2... which is where most of my criticism of the book lies. Our hero isn't a hero. He's a murderhobo who goes full on "the ends justify the means" every chance he gets. But the book presents him as a hero. There is even a scene where someone calls him out for being a murderer and our hero spouts some inanity to justify why he's not evil... and the other character is just like "yeah, I knew you were good." The hell? No he's not. He is evil. Neutral at absolute best. Trying to do the right thing does not make up for any of the other illegal/immoral stuff.
Let's not get it twisted though. I am not against evil characters. Jorg from Prince of Thorns is incredible, as is the brothel madam in The Gods of Gotham. But they are not presented as heroes. Their acts are presented as villainous, despite being likeable characters. I'm against characters doing things that are obviously wrong, and then having those actions be defended by the book without anyone doing any real critique. At least have a couple of other characters get mad about it and stay mad. Have some consequences. As is, there are no real negative consequences to our MC's actions. He just makes poor decisions and learns the wrong lessons and yet somehow not only wins, but gains a following of close allies?
I don't think that's a series I can get behind.
1) The writing in book 1 is weak. It desperately needs an editor. Even more than my reviews do.
Thankfully, the second book contains better writing. It's still not great, but it's fine. In the tiny LitRPG genre, you take what you can get.
2) It's the standard LitRPG plot of gamer goes into hyper-realistic VR world to gain glory. But there are some interesting bits here. There's a secret benefactor that doesn't get nearly enough focus. There is a kind of morality system where you get chaos points for being evil and good guy points (not called that) for doing the right thing. It's a neat idea for an impartial system to just tell you that you're doing something evil, despite your best intentions. But it doesn't work. Our protagonist should have a ton of chaos points for the things he does. He straight up murders a dude. He actually considers leaving some poisoned guy to die because our 'hero' is lazy. And he doesn't get chaos points for any of it. I forget the circumstance, but at one point he got the good Guardian points for lying for his own benefit. Wtf? If this is supposed to be a game world, it is incredibly broken.
3) Our MC is kind of a jerk. And an idiot. He's still a jerk and an idiot, and in fact gets worse in book 2... which is where most of my criticism of the book lies. Our hero isn't a hero. He's a murderhobo who goes full on "the ends justify the means" every chance he gets. But the book presents him as a hero. There is even a scene where someone calls him out for being a murderer and our hero spouts some inanity to justify why he's not evil... and the other character is just like "yeah, I knew you were good." The hell? No he's not. He is evil. Neutral at absolute best. Trying to do the right thing does not make up for any of the other illegal/immoral stuff.
Let's not get it twisted though. I am not against evil characters. Jorg from Prince of Thorns is incredible, as is the brothel madam in The Gods of Gotham. But they are not presented as heroes. Their acts are presented as villainous, despite being likeable characters. I'm against characters doing things that are obviously wrong, and then having those actions be defended by the book without anyone doing any real critique. At least have a couple of other characters get mad about it and stay mad. Have some consequences. As is, there are no real negative consequences to our MC's actions. He just makes poor decisions and learns the wrong lessons and yet somehow not only wins, but gains a following of close allies?
I don't think that's a series I can get behind.
August 20, 2017
I enjoyed the book.
This is a good clean book. There is not any swearing nor is there any sex in the book. That being the case it received an extra star.
The only author does need to work on the game macanics. At time he seems to forget that the store is taking place in a game. He will go a long time with out giving the players any skill, morale, or experience points for what they have done.
That being said I liked this book a lot. I like the story and it is clean.
This is a good clean book. There is not any swearing nor is there any sex in the book. That being the case it received an extra star.
The only author does need to work on the game macanics. At time he seems to forget that the store is taking place in a game. He will go a long time with out giving the players any skill, morale, or experience points for what they have done.
That being said I liked this book a lot. I like the story and it is clean.
February 24, 2018
Same review as book 1, though I found myself losing attention here and there in this one. There are a lot of different story lines going on and it kind of weakens the main plot. Still entertaining enough distraction, though, when it ended, I don't find myself on edge for the next book, whenever it comes out. If I happen to notice when the next one is released, I will probably finish it, though it's more likely I will forget to keep watch for it, as I'm not really invested in how it ends.
January 9, 2017
A lot better
OK book 2 was a lot better. Where the first book was really short and only gave a vague since of the universe and what was going on, this one actually gave you the basic fundamentals of a good story. It was a lot longer and a lot you to see the growth and basic direction of where the story will take you. The first book might have been a into but it was more a teaserless teaser but it had potential. And that potential led to this book and hopefully keeps getting bigger in the books to come.
OK book 2 was a lot better. Where the first book was really short and only gave a vague since of the universe and what was going on, this one actually gave you the basic fundamentals of a good story. It was a lot longer and a lot you to see the growth and basic direction of where the story will take you. The first book might have been a into but it was more a teaserless teaser but it had potential. And that potential led to this book and hopefully keeps getting bigger in the books to come.
March 2, 2017
Kindle Unlimited Overall was a very interesting book, except...took a bit too long to actually get into the actual game part of the story,which maybe could have been handled in a more condensed form or something, but overall as always say, look to the stars {ratings}, but went faster in this second installment.
Press X to Loot (LitRPG Series): The Scout of Artemis
Difficulty: Legendary (LitRPG Series Book 1) (Difficulty:Legendary)
Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf ( LitRPG Series): Difficulty:Legendary
Difficulty: Legendary 3 out soon
Press X to Loot (LitRPG Series): The Scout of Artemis
Difficulty: Legendary (LitRPG Series Book 1) (Difficulty:Legendary)
Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf ( LitRPG Series): Difficulty:Legendary
Difficulty: Legendary 3 out soon
December 20, 2016
What a great read!
I honestly didn't expect to love the tinker class,definitely won me over. I can't wait to see what it can truly do, your character development is truly a thing of beauty as well, I know it can't be easy to pull that off with the size of the books ! Fan for life brother!
I honestly didn't expect to love the tinker class,definitely won me over. I can't wait to see what it can truly do, your character development is truly a thing of beauty as well, I know it can't be easy to pull that off with the size of the books ! Fan for life brother!
May 28, 2017
Didn't expect much and was not disappointed.
April 14, 2018
Despite a decent premise this book simply couldn't deliver. Yes, it's much longer than the first installment but sadly that didn't mean it was any better.
The problem for me, as a reader and a gamer, was that the whole game-world didn't seem believable even a little bit. We are somehow to believe that despite being very low level the main character is supposedly going to be the savior of the world, and why? no one knows. It can't be because of his intelligence because it is sorely lacking in his decision making. But even this wasn't what irked me so much that I started disliking the book.
No, what really set me off was the sheer inconsistency of the world building. Killing a mouse at level 1? 25 exp! killing a lvl 45 demon while being level 12? 30 exp! Killing 4 rats at lvl 3? 60 exp! killing a whole horde of undead way above your level? 25 exp!... And then abilities, the main character has appraiser ability which apparently lets him know everything about everything and then there is the snake tongue ability which at level 2 morphes into mind control. Oh! and sure a level 1 tinker can build a zeppelin, the recipe for which just happened to lie around in the library. I get that the MC needed some powers to somehow seem stronger than his level would suggest but the way the author went about doing so seemed utterly unbelievable and completely unbalanced.
On top of all this the story itself was lacking. The whole idea is that the main character 'hates' this (very one-dimensional) evil player for killing him in the game? Never mind that everyone in this game apparently is out for themselves or the fact that the MC was eavesdropping on a secret meeting and got caught. Clearly this is enough to motivate our 'hero' to go through amazing lengths to accomplish his goal. You'll forgive me for not finding that too believable either, especially because it seemed that really all the main character wanted was to make money to help out his poor parents? (that plot got about half a page of attention this book...).
The storytelling is what really killed it for me though. The author is simply trying to get too much done and none of it is very good. The worldbuilding is sorely lacking, the main characters are shallow at best and the story is way too linear. I don't know if the author had an editor but he surely needs one and probably some better beta-readers also. I will not be picking up any further installments.
The problem for me, as a reader and a gamer, was that the whole game-world didn't seem believable even a little bit. We are somehow to believe that despite being very low level the main character is supposedly going to be the savior of the world, and why? no one knows. It can't be because of his intelligence because it is sorely lacking in his decision making. But even this wasn't what irked me so much that I started disliking the book.
No, what really set me off was the sheer inconsistency of the world building. Killing a mouse at level 1? 25 exp! killing a lvl 45 demon while being level 12? 30 exp! Killing 4 rats at lvl 3? 60 exp! killing a whole horde of undead way above your level? 25 exp!... And then abilities, the main character has appraiser ability which apparently lets him know everything about everything and then there is the snake tongue ability which at level 2 morphes into mind control. Oh! and sure a level 1 tinker can build a zeppelin, the recipe for which just happened to lie around in the library. I get that the MC needed some powers to somehow seem stronger than his level would suggest but the way the author went about doing so seemed utterly unbelievable and completely unbalanced.
On top of all this the story itself was lacking. The whole idea is that the main character 'hates' this (very one-dimensional) evil player for killing him in the game? Never mind that everyone in this game apparently is out for themselves or the fact that the MC was eavesdropping on a secret meeting and got caught. Clearly this is enough to motivate our 'hero' to go through amazing lengths to accomplish his goal. You'll forgive me for not finding that too believable either, especially because it seemed that really all the main character wanted was to make money to help out his poor parents? (that plot got about half a page of attention this book...).
The storytelling is what really killed it for me though. The author is simply trying to get too much done and none of it is very good. The worldbuilding is sorely lacking, the main characters are shallow at best and the story is way too linear. I don't know if the author had an editor but he surely needs one and probably some better beta-readers also. I will not be picking up any further installments.
December 24, 2016
The second book nails it
I enjoyed the first book in the series very much except for the length well no worries here the second book takes off and doesn't stop and leaves you wanting more.
Here's hoping for more sooner the better.
I enjoyed the first book in the series very much except for the length well no worries here the second book takes off and doesn't stop and leaves you wanting more.
Here's hoping for more sooner the better.
December 18, 2016
Leaves you wanting more ... That's GREAT!
What more can Or should I say then I can hardly wait for the next book. I like this world and these characters.
What more can Or should I say then I can hardly wait for the next book. I like this world and these characters.
May 2, 2018
This would have been as short as the first one, if not for the repetition of angsty monologue. The first one made me thing the story had potential even if it was a bit of a fumble, so I gave it a try. It wasn't exactly boring, but it wasn't very well thought out, either. Nobody does anything except for the MC who saves every situation. Perfectly. In the nick of time. He proclaims someone else the "leader" and then continues to make all the decisions anyway. The only female so far in either book is an antagonist. There's also mention of someone's daughter, who I would expect to pop up in a later book, but no other women at all except as scenery.
March 25, 2018
Very Satisfying Growth in Story Line
This series has a very dark view of human nature, which tends to be more freely expressed in a virtual, anonymous game environment. Unfortunately this underlying theme rings true to me.
Eric / Janus is a believable character and struggles with getting pulled by hidden puppet masters. The mystery observer and deus ex machina of gifts from them seems like a bit of a cop out. However, the mystery of what happened to his brother is intriguing enough to keep you engaged.
This series has a very dark view of human nature, which tends to be more freely expressed in a virtual, anonymous game environment. Unfortunately this underlying theme rings true to me.
Eric / Janus is a believable character and struggles with getting pulled by hidden puppet masters. The mystery observer and deus ex machina of gifts from them seems like a bit of a cop out. However, the mystery of what happened to his brother is intriguing enough to keep you engaged.
January 8, 2018
The "Difficulty: Legendary" Books just don't do much for me. The game rules and mechanics have a lot of issues, the characters are a bit flat, and the setup is the generic "make money for real life in the game" one. "Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf" does very little to advance the story and the characters aren't likable enough, nor the world interesting enough to carry it.
January 22, 2020
Some interesting game mechanics in this one. Can't say I liked them all, but then again, it does make for an interesting story, liking them isn't required.
The story itself is a good one, and it's well told, so I look forward to more in the series.
The story itself is a good one, and it's well told, so I look forward to more in the series.
April 21, 2018
Actually an enjoyable read.
January 4, 2020
Fun story
Light to low world building but decent characters and fun story. Would like to see more depth in development of places but decent start to a longer story.
Light to low world building but decent characters and fun story. Would like to see more depth in development of places but decent start to a longer story.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews