Dungeonopolis

Information

Status

Hiatus

Year

2022

Author

Theo G.

• 6 - Samara the Slayer
  Apr 5, 2022
• 5 - Pizza Date
  Apr 5, 2022
• 4 - Battle Report
  Apr 5, 2022
• 3 - On The Job Training
  Apr 5, 2022
• 2 - White Room Interview
  Apr 4, 2022
• 1 - A Beggar's Chance
  Apr 4, 2022

Reviews

Community Reviews(6)

• Chaos JesterRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I really didn't know what to expect going into this. Let's say I was pleasantly surprised to find a genuinely fun story with an amazing concept.
  The style itself mixes a humorous and detailed narrative mixed with litrpg mechanice. The mechanics aren't too much or in the way, and flow well within the confines of the story itself. The pacing is well done, especially since the concept draws you in and leaves you wanting more.
  I didn't see any grammar issues, typos, weird syntax errors, or structural problems. If they existed, then the story was so good that I easily overlooked them.
  The story itself is a fun concept. Lots of lrpgs and progression fantasies do a good job of mixing past events with future/present events, but this one shoves the concept in your face from the get go, making you intrigued on what will come next. The worldbuilding is solid, and makes for an interesting dungeon-centric story.
  The main character, Bazel the Beggar, is a smart yet relateable character. He adapts well (why not? It seems better than what he had going on) and does his best to understand the new system around him. The scene where he got sneakers was amazing for something so simple. He is a well rounded character right off the bat. Samara, when she comes in, is immediately interesting and fun to read about.
  Overall, I wasn't really expecting too much from this and am glad to say I was so incorrect. This story is brilliants and a true sleeper fiction that deserves way more attention.
• PierceGreyRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Probably the best overall litrpg I've read on RR thus far. If you're looking for a well-paced story with humor and action and distinct character, look no further.
  Style - Funny! Man, humor goes a long way for me in any kind of fiction, but especially in light-hearted genres. It's well-paced and smart, too, with the confidence of an experienced writer. All perfect for litrpg as far as I'm concerned. Has little tidbits of 'realism' (like the difficult life/circumstances of a beggar) to raise the stakes and emotion.
  Grammar - very clean, pro grade. Nothing interfered with my reading which is what you want.
  Character - It's pretty hard not to cheer for Bazel. He's ignorant and doesn't know what he's doing, but he's not incompetent or cowardly, which is pleasant. The minor characters feel distinct, too, which is much more difficult to do than most people think.
  Story - Great hook, well written challenges and straight into the action. Just overall very fun. I like the monsters and the items and the litrpg elements. Bazel suddenly picking up a gun and pewpewing giants was both unexpected and amusing. Really enjoying it and excited to see where it goes from here.
• IllthylianRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  Given this is the author's self-identified first foray into this genre, I am genuinely shocked and pleased by how well they've pulled it off thus far.  Even the setup is something different and original, and sending in loads of unqualified, low-powered people to this fantastical dungeon is the entire gameplan of the authority.  It lets us start at the very bottom of the world and work our way gradually up, which is wonderful, and also ensures there is no nonsense of overpowered, boring shenanigans at play for many, many chapters.
  The characters are a mixed bag.  On the one hand, I was absolutely loving that some things I thought were just hand-waves or unimportant details turned out to be very important notes later on.  On the other, the characters talk more like children or teenagers than 20-24 year olds.  On the one hand, our hero despite being a beggar is a classic 'low intelligence high wisdom' character who lacks many technical smarts, but is quick to pick up on intuitive information or examining and assembling details into something coherent, which is great.  On the other, both the main character and his supporting character tend into very stupid actions at times for the sake of plot and drama, deliberately making situations harder for themselves in ways I don't believe people as smart as them should.  Some of the supporting cast are interesting, some are one-dimensional and dull.  It's a mixed bag tending towards more positive than negative, but still mixed.
  There's also a few grammatical issues and I'd say almost younger-audience-focused writing?  Ways of communicating that feel juvenile in terms of style rather than content, which felt a bit at odds with the tone and purpose of the story, but never seriously distracted.  And the story itself, I will admit that despite my strong praise of it being something different and original, is more a praise of the concept than execution.  It still gets a full 4 stars from me because the concept is just THAT GOOD, and
• LsshinRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  I thought that I was tired of dungeon novels, but the first 4 chapters have surely drawn my interest. Very nice story telling and pacing so far. Will update as the story progresses. Btw it is also very wise to start a novel with a mass release. I see many authors only release one chapter a week, which is fine for later on, but at the start? Nah! So kudos
• KoboldPatrolRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 3.5

  (as of chapter 12)
  Bazel the Beggar enters the magical tower dungeon that nobody came back from because he has nothing to hold him back but suffering. There he teams up with another person and they will fight monsters and solve quests in order to get stronger. There might even be something shady going on in the background; after all, the people they meet while there... no, I won't spoil anything!
  This is a tower-type dungeon-climb story with a strong GameLit vibe. RPG-like mechanics are openly stated and there is a LitRPG system with levels, stats, skills, as well as a quest system.
  Style/Story/Grammar: There are two main POVs and a couple of short minor ones (all third-person internal style), often switching within a chapter. Word choice is good though nothing special, descriptions are okay, dialogue is too, but the whole prose is somehow unexciting. The pacing is rather quick, with many plot developments one after another; it's not very smooth, but still fine. Grammar is okay.
  Characters: This is the weakest part of the story IMO. The two main characters do not act in a smart way. They make decisions without much forethought and get distracted easily even during important tasks. Even worse, their background does not fit their behavior, from how they act you would not guess at what should be their history and defining life experiences. A beggar who survived on the streets will have that struggle deeply ingrained into all his actions, but that's not the case here. On the other hand, Bazel is really smart and using that successfully. There haven't been many details about the side characters yet, but at least there is variation between them and they have different goals.
• OnyavarRoyal Road

  ★★ 2.0

  So, I am generally pretty critical with stories, and my ranking goes from decent and enjoyable stories (2 stars) over good and great stories up to the best stories I can imagine (5 stars, and only for finished stories).
  So, this is another dungeoncrawl story with an "infinity dungeon" (not in name, but in concept)... but I don't buy it.
  An ultra-powerful corporation has crafted a dungeon in the general shape of the tower of Babylon except for it being a few dozen times larger. The corporation then teleports this marvel of technology onto a medieval world and allows the natives entry and access to its Startrek-level amenities, immediately shaking each individual's culture and uplifting them to the sociocultural standards of the 21st century. So, what is the motive behind that multi-trillion investment? The only motive I can think of, is reality-bloodsport entertainment. Yet for such a purpose, I can imagine immediately a dozen better and more creative story plots that are at the same time a thousand times cheaper to realize for the producers. But, this stuff happens because of plot. It is presented in a superficially logical narrative, but when you look deeper, it is a contiguous plothole the size of the dungeon: Why this particular receptionist, why the huge paradise safe space that comes fully staffed, why handing Bazel a gun, why this and why that.
  The characters are yet another thing. We're teaming up with a beggar. But not any beggar, he is a very intelligent man knowing how to read and do quick arithmetic in his head, which is above average education in his world. He was taught that stuff by his mom, who clearly was also a poor super-educated beggar, given how the MC has never had any shoes in his life. For a functional, clear-thinking educated man, Bazel is exceptionally stupid as he doesn't make advantage of his education. I do get how sometimes a person's social issues prevent them from ever getting better - but here we see none. He is a poor emaciated schol