The Joy of Erudition’s Reviews > Niall of the Far Travels Collected > Status Update
The Joy of Erudition
is 64% done
"A thousand centuries ago, Yellixin dwelt here on this moor, in a castle the ruins of which have sunk into the soft ground over all the years. There is a tale told of how a man who worshiped Humalorr came to Yellixin and stole the cup. It was after the cup was stolen that Humalorr destroyed the castle Yellixin had built and all within it..."
If it was stolen first, why did they find the cup buried here in the ruins?
— Mar 08, 2025 04:29PM
If it was stolen first, why did they find the cup buried here in the ruins?
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The Joy of Erudition’s Previous Updates
The Joy of Erudition
is finished
"The Coming of the Sword" is the "best" story in the collection, if only because it ditches Niall's connection to the gods entirely, so he actually has agency, and maybe marginally less plot-armour (but not really). However, he's also very unlikable, callous, and unsympathetic, unable to comprehend others' grief. "Hey, why so sad, lady? Let's go loot the ruins of the hometown you're mourning." Not recommended.
— Jan 19, 2026 07:30PM
The Joy of Erudition
is 90% done
"The Lure of the Golden Godling" was more coherent than most of them, though it's still the same structure of "the gods are warring, and Niall is their pawn." No real agency for the character. In this one, he also grins a lot. The plot is that a god wants to trap another god by using a gold statue, so Niall has to keep the statue out of the bad god's servants' hands.
— Jan 11, 2026 06:27PM
The Joy of Erudition
is 80% done
"Only one thing may overcome him." She shuddered. "You must go to him, offer him your body! Go without weapons, naked. Let him enter you!"
Numbly, Niall said, "Give myself to him. Let him take control of me. That's what you mean, isn't it?"
"It's our only hope."
===
Why is this their only hope? Adonair ran away screaming when Niall hit him with his enchanted sword before, so why not just keep doing that?
— Aug 30, 2025 10:14PM
Numbly, Niall said, "Give myself to him. Let him take control of me. That's what you mean, isn't it?"
"It's our only hope."
===
Why is this their only hope? Adonair ran away screaming when Niall hit him with his enchanted sword before, so why not just keep doing that?
The Joy of Erudition
is 77% done
The green being lifted what was its head. Niall felt the impact of burning eyes. "So, then. You have followed me. That is good," it bellowed.
Simple tip. If you want me to read the character's lines as if he's bellowing them, don't wait until *after* three sentences of dialogue to tell me he's bellowing them! And maybe also try using some exclamation points. You don't generally bellow quietly.
— Aug 29, 2025 01:36PM
Simple tip. If you want me to read the character's lines as if he's bellowing them, don't wait until *after* three sentences of dialogue to tell me he's bellowing them! And maybe also try using some exclamation points. You don't generally bellow quietly.
The Joy of Erudition
is 74% done
"In a soft voice it whispered, 'Now, how can you know my name? Certainly there is no mention of me in any human records. Men would never remember me after all this time. How can you know my name?'"
This is the kind of sloppy writing I've come to expect here. Fox can't even keep straight that Adonair *told* Niall his name in the previous chapter:
"Ahh, it has been long—long!—since the race of men knelt to Adonair!"
— Aug 28, 2025 05:38PM
This is the kind of sloppy writing I've come to expect here. Fox can't even keep straight that Adonair *told* Niall his name in the previous chapter:
"Ahh, it has been long—long!—since the race of men knelt to Adonair!"
The Joy of Erudition
is 72% done
So he accidentally frees an evil god who the other gods had imprisoned behind a brick wall in Niall's basement, with nothing but an ordinary pickaxe (great divine protection there), when he was just trying to expand his wine cellar. Then his lover, the goddess Emelkartha, freaks out that he freed the god. And why didn't she ever mention there was an evil god in Niall's basement? "I had forgotten," she says.
— Aug 27, 2025 02:33AM
