Worth the Candle

One of the best I've read on RR so far.

Has an interesting/innovative premise for the setting and characters feel very well fleshed out.  Some subtle character progression for side characters and more thorough/in depth progression so far for the main protagonist.

Action doesn't draw out unnecessarily long, overall having a good pace to it in my opinion.  World building also feels ※right※ with not too much extrapolation or meandering fed to the reader like in some other novels. Basically, the story flows naturally where nearly everything introduced has context as for why it's being brought out to bare.

I would say that the writer probably has quite a fair amount of experience sitting in the GM chair and it shows.  Flavor text is abundant throughout giving vivid imagry for what is going on and the game systems don't feel wonky at all (for me at least) as it's something of a conglomeration of pathfinder, d&d, and a hell of a lot of homebrew thrown in.

Story-wise, I also feel inclined to applaud the author.  There's a fair amount of an undercurrent of intrigue and mystery thrown into the mix as the reader is left wondering along with the protagonist as to what exactly is going on as well as why/how and will he find what he's looking for or does he even want to?

(Read up to the end of "Book II" as of this review)

Having read ahead from Alexander's website (up to chapter 165), i would say that the experience starts to wane later on. 

This comes from the introduction of certain relevations that start to cause nearly all the main characters to ponder upon the meta aspect of the story.  It quickly snowballs in such a way that the pacing suffers quite a lot in my opinion.  Said relevations also snuff the mystery/intrigue atmosphere much earlier than expected since the reveal was pretty much unnecessary to plot developments, serving only to paralyze the progression of the story at many junctures.

Characters meander to and fro at every crossroad before deciding to do what they were going to do anyway.  The weight of all of the succeses that June and friends achieve is also rendered nigh meaningless in the face of what they and the audience know.  Furthermore, I believe the story starts to suffer from the protagonist becoming increasingly introspective as time goes on.  He noticeably thinks in circles, often repeating and rehatching old thoughts.  While realistic, it can (and does in my case) begin to chip away at the audience's patience, distancing us from viewing June in a favorable light.  It also serves to exacerbate the pacing problem.

I would say overall, despite these later setbacks this story is still a good read, just not as magical as in the beginning.

Started reading this on Ao3 a few years ago. Can't believe it is finally finished.

The conceit allows for a lot of interesting world building. Exclusions mean that the hero can't win the same way every time. Started off as a bit of LitRPG but dropped that when it no longer served it purpose. Very introspective.

Author uses the story as a sort of sounding board for moral reasoning and ethics and I am guessing to work through there issues depending on how far or how close the DM is supposed to be to the author. The ending was satisfying and well forshadowed and very META.

I don't really have words to effectively describe my chemical soup at this time. There is so much about this story that appeals directly or indirectly to myriad aspects of who I am, at such a deep level that I quite literally can't describe it. I guess that would explain the rating I've given.

This story is introspective by nature. Read it if that's your interest.

heavy on introspection and theorycrafting, in a good way

Depression, suicide, relationships, insecurities, group dynamics, grudges, delusions, teenage issues, moral dilemma... this novel got it all. Man this made me reflect on things i encountered in my life more than i expected.

I like this novel because it focuses a lot on what is going on in the head of our MC and that dude is thinking a lot and what he is thinking of what other people could be thinking what he might thinking because the GM might be thinking... and we get to hear all about it. 

Sometimes the ruminations gets a bit much, but later on in the novel it gets better. 

The interpersonal stuff here is what i am missing in many other novels and this novel jumps right into the thick of it.

The worldbuilding is complex, manifold, hexagonal, interesting and sometimes literal xD big plus indeed

i can recommend this if you like convoluted thinking present in all decisions made at any point^^

This might contain some spoilers. Please read at your own risk.

This would be my first ever review on a story so it may be sloppy for the standard of regular readers.

First of all, before I delve into my review, I want to thank the Author A.W for this incredible and mind-opening story, for me. 

The premise is the adventure of isekai'd Juniper Smith to a hexal plane called Aerb, consisting of eclectic elemental planes, species, and entads that Joon's D&D group campaigns have ever been played and some concepts of his that never come to the tabletop in a quest to find his deceased friend from Earth, which caused him depression and guilt, that is deemed to also appear in Aerb.

What I like the most in WtC is the characters, they are not perfect, they make mistakes when in time-pressured situation, they have problems of their own, and I can see that I might have done the same without hindsight.

So, the meta-analysis type of writing is new to me, and in the earlier chapters can be seem a bit taxing but I think that is part of the worldbuilding because it creates an incredible detailed explanation for a clearer view of what Aerb is, I find enjoyable to visualize, and it shows the author's attention in details and planning.

The story is reflective in a lot of conflicts and helped me to understand some of my circumstances in a better light that are just ineffable for me. Also it introduces me to a glimpse, maybe, in some social problem that a human would naturally encounter in life like romantic relationship, fornication, and some that makes me question my upbringing. One of it is Joon's view on women like how they are viewed as more sympathetic when abused compared to men, there's a history ofc, and how unfair that is for the both sexes IMO. Also how Fenn's glum backstory but it made me admire her more,

 though others are not happy for her playful attitude. But I believe it comes with a reason.

This is basically the best LitRPG that I've ever read. The writing and editing is professionally tight, the characters are well-fleshed, and for the most part, the story is engaging, the MC is both likeable and relatable, and (of course) the world-building is very good.
Everybody loves an OP MC, but there's a twist to being OP in Aerb that keeps the tension high that I appreciate 

Review as of chapter 161:

Worth the Candle is a portal fantasy tabletop litRPG by a well known rational fiction author.  The story subverts as many tropes as it adheres to with expert execution of the plot.  You won't find a story on Royal Road with more comprehensive world building.  Even the bizarreness of the world starts to make so much sense as it continually intersects with the narrative and the wide variety of magic systems.

The world’s mystery is derived around the MC noticing many of people, creatures, and items that appear are directly related to RPG lore he invented himself in his own pen and paper games back on Earth. Unraveling this mystery keeps the narrative flowing. There are many flashback scenes to his games he played with friends in his old life and they tie into the plot of the story.

The world happens to be single player; only the MC has a character sheet.  So to put it in video game terms that many may be more familiar with than tabletop RPGs, it is like Skyrim with a mod to allow 5+ followers.  As he levels up, so do his followers and the difficulty of challenges thrown at them.  

The followers are NPCs in the loosest sense of the word, but in actuality they are highly complex real people with their own specializations.  His party works together as a team, each bringing their own skills to make a sum greater than its parts.  But their relationships with the MC and with each other are deeply explored and character growth happens to all of them, some for the better and some for the worse.  Even as we learn more about the MC's past, it changes our perspective of how we view other characters.  And they are so well written!  Character writing is probably one of the author's greatest strengths.

The author is also writing this story for the rational fiction genre and it really shows. The main character is highly logical and introspective as he questions the world he is transported to and the reasons he was brought there. He is a min-maxer and he studies his character sheet in depth, going so far to even do the in-depth math to min-max his build. The litRPG elements have more of a tabletop RPG influence as opposed to the genre’s more common video game RPG inspiration which is quite refreshing for the genre.

This is a meta story where the "narrative" of the story itself is part of the narrative which really is intriguing and lends a lot of credibility to the world and the character's actions and reactions. This isn't litRPG written just because stats are cool, the worldbuilding is logical from the ground up and the stats make sense in a narrative way that many other litRPG stories completely lack.

While the story is brilliant, it isn't for everyone though.  The readers who might not enjoy this story are those who don’t like stories with flashback scenes or just can’t get into the deep philosophical discussions.  There is a lot of subtext that is easy to miss and subtle foreshadowing that some may not pick up on.  If you are looking for a pulpy read without thought, then this is not the place to start.

But for those who want to read a litRPG story that actually strives to be rational, this is the closest you will likely get. 

I am definitely going to regret reading this as it has probably cost me tens of thousands of dollars. More about that later; into the review.

I knew about this fiction since a very long time, especially since I was subscribed to the subreddit that it was posted on . Hpwever, the name didn't ring a bell, neither did the author seem familiar, so I gave it a pass. It was a mistake.

Fast forward to when the story was posted on royal road. It didn't have the author as cthuluraejepson, but Alexander Wales. The name seemed familiar, and I went on his website. He had made another nickname for himself, and was the same author that had written Shadows and Metropolitan Man, the same stories that I raved about to my friends. As I went through the list, it seemed that all his written stories were the ones that I had liked and stuck with me such as the Randi Prize. Oh, what a revelation.

I started binging through the novel and stormed through till the last chapter (161).  And what a ride it has been. Somehow, the story touches upon and coagulates widely dissimilar topics into a meta narrative. The "meta" aspect is something that is dealt with so regularly, that I felt that this story should have been the one named "Meta World" (Could we swap the titles?). It includes a range of topics spanning from economics to world building and therapy. 

It is one of the very few "system" litrpgs, where the character actually discloses everything about the mechanisms to his companions. Here, the world that he is transported to is one that highly mimics the ones that he created on Earth as a Dungeon Master. It meshes well into the story as the character and his companions figure how they all fit in to the "narrative" (a word that you will hear often).

The characters are actually what sets this story as the best charterizations I have ever read. The way the characters deal with situations is very realistic. The MC is not the smartest person, he is great in some aspects, poor at others, just how a normal guy would be. The others are not dumbed down either, and not everyone is overjoyed to throw themselves at the MC, with the females ready for a harem, unlike common webnovel tropes. The MC, other characters face a variety of issues from relationship issues, procrastination to depression.

The magic system is phenomenal and has a broad variety. Different species, different magics requiring different costs, just shows how much work has gone into creating it. While revealing too much would be a spoiler, it would not be and understatement to say that the world emerges as a land full of possibilities for the future. Truly makes me want to play D&D. And yeah, for all you flat earthers: rejoice!

Some of the critique would be some decisions taken by the characters that don't really seem optimal given the time they spend on decision making for even trivial stuff. Some world building or character interactions just seem to go on for much longer than what is needed. All of them being issues which can be solved with a bit of editing.

All in all, it is a work of fiction that is so addicting that you can't stop until you reach the last chapter. And this is a positive point unless you really don't have time (like me). As I write this review, I accept my fate that I am not going to clear my interview for Amazon as I have spent the last week just reading this novel instead of prepping for it and I am probably going to regret this for a long long time. Yes, addiction has an opportunity cost. (Interesting tidbit: the author is a former software engineer too.)

I've read up till chapter 64, and i have to say that it's a well written story, with likeable characters, and an interesting world setting, but...:

1. The story is incredibly rant-y in almost every chapter, there's way too much meaningless drivel, unneeded math and the MC staying inside his head for unrealistic amounts of time compared to the different situations he/they experience.

2. At first i liked the idea of the breaks from the present to the past, (to the D&D POV's) but it gets tiresome very fast, and completely breaks immersion all the time. Also most of the "breaks" are overly long, and feels like a poor tool for exposition and for the MC to remember something that is vital to a given situation.

3. For a story with such an interesting and different world filled with unconventional magic, there's no feeling of wonder, or "magic" in any of it. It's all framed inside a system, and feels even less mystical and magical than a video game would feel like. It all comes too effortlessly to the MC, and there's no mysticism in it. It's too clinical and too bound by rules of tabletop and math. Personally it has no impact for me whenever he "learns" something, it's just boring and contrived.

4.

5. The story is incredibly predictable, and there's too much "telling", and too little "showing"

6. For having a rational and logically thinking MC (who honestly has far too much knowledge, about way too many things for his young age, especially since he's not supposed to be a genius or anything like it), he keeps committing enourmous mistakes all the time, and for someone who've been playing as a DM for countless rpg sessions, he has no sense of wonder or adventure when it comes to the magical systems he learns to use, and the ones he learns that exist.

He doesn't experiment with ANY of his skills, he doesn't try to combine knowledge or abilities, he doesn't adapt a specific "style" of using what he has. He's flat and uninspired in his way of doing things, and completely bound by, and set in his knowledge of tabletop earth knowledge.

6a. And so is the narrative and the whole "level up" mechanic. There's too many boundaries set in place, fx: If he learns something to a specific degree or level, he has to progress further in specific stats to further improve them, meaning he would never be able to master all the skills he accrues throughout his journey/the story, because everything has limiters tied to his level, and level cap. Which means, he can never "train" or use the experiences/knowledge he accrues from different plots, and outcomes, to further or improve his abilities. UNLESS it's in the frame of a level up and adding points into something. 

So basically he can't grow or evolve.

This was a lot of negative i know that, but i feel this has unrealistic reviews and an undeserved rating. It's basically been "hyped" too much. I DO recommend it for people who play, or have played tabletop RPG's, and who like stories that puts everything into "boxes" and rules. This just isn't for me, i'm more into the "show" not "tell" kind of stories, like: a Practical Guide to Evil, or Mother of Learning.

I've been following this story for a good while on AO3, but have never taken the time to write a proper review - an oversight which I intend to correct here, because I'd hate for anyone on this site to be missing out on what I think is easily one of the best pieces of web fiction of all time (certainly one of my favourite stories, period).

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hooked pretty much from the word go, but - fair warning - most people will tell you to stick with the story until at least its fourteenth chapter before drawing any conclusions. If you're not fundamentally enjoying it by then, it probably just isn't for you - but if you are, then I feel confident saying that it will surpass your expectations at every turn.

This isn't a story where progress is about unlocking new levels and skills and perks. Well, okay, it technically is, but - more importantly - it's about trying to do the right thing and becoming a better person.

Alexander Wales manages to deftly weave an impressive amount of introspection into the events at hand, thanks to clever use of dialogue, observations, asides, and (most notably) flashbacks - none of which negatively impact the story's strong pacing. The romantic elements of the narrative are handled with a astonishing level of depth and nuance - somehow managing to be simultaneously sincere and deconstructive. Truthfully, the same could be said for pretty much every aspect of the story: its prose, worldbuilding, conflicts and characters. You'll find a lot of twists on classic tropes and setpieces, but there are a wealth of original and evocative ideas to be found here too.

At every level, Worth the Candle feels like a labour of love - and you'll probably end up loving it too.