Escaping Valhalla: A litRPG, isekai, tower-climber

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

The ale in Valhalla didn’t live up to Miles’s expectations.

Miles was eagerly waiting for retirement when he was killed in “honorable combat” and sent to go fight for the gods in Valhalla. But while a lifetime of office work got him a lot of things, fighting experience wasn’t one of them. Fortunately, Miles has a few tricks up his sleeve—namely, a blatant disregard for the very “honor” that got him killed.

But between repeated disembowelments, frostbitten fingers, and alcohol poisoning, there are plenty of reasons to fight his way to the top. It will take a lot of trickery and the help from manipulative gods to achieve his goals and escape this endless cycle.

Or at least find some better booze.

This story is Norseinspired, but don’t expect it to match the myths or the Marvel lore.

The MC will start out weak and ill-suited for the environment but this will change as he does.

What to expect:

--Weak to strong

--Competent MC

--Magic and sword fights

--Harsh deals and lasting consequences

--Lots of combat

--Moral ambiguity

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: zaifyr

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.3/ 5.0
Followers: 1,300
Views: 413,291

What readers say about Escaping Valhalla: A litRPG, isekai, tower-climber

“I'm enjoying this MC, a reluctant fighter in a warrior's heaven of a fighting loop in having to kill to move up the ladder and the Norse mythical characters are a fun twist. I expect the MC and SC to develop into rich characters if this becomes anything lik…”
GretelcRoyal Road5.0 / 5
“Not quite in the same vein as what I would normally read, but this has actually been worth my time. I don’t normally write reviews, but I’d like this one to do well so I can see where it goes. Characterisation and grammar is great, and the story is pretty i…”
A_Very_Unique_NameRoyal Road5.0 / 5

Reviews

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Community Reviews(10)

GretelcRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm enjoying this MC, a reluctant fighter in a warrior's heaven of a fighting loop in having to kill to move up the ladder and the Norse mythical characters are a fun twist. I expect the MC and SC to develop into rich characters if this becomes anything like one of this author's other works, All the Dust that Falls. And I expect the plot to deepen and broaden with plenty of unique and interesting plot twists as the chapters get posted.
Give it a try!
A_Very_Unique_NameRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Not quite in the same vein as what I would normally read, but this has actually been worth my time. I don’t normally write reviews, but I’d like this one to do well so I can see where it goes.
Characterisation and grammar is great, and the story is pretty interesting so far.
Essentially, dude ends up in Valhalla by a technicality even despite not being a warrior. Shenanigans ensue from there- he has to use his cunning and whatever level of skill that he can scrounge up to get anywhere, it’s been pretty cool.
I’d recommend giving it a shot.
gryfftRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Patreon reader here. I'm really enjoying EV! Satisfying progression meets intrigue and some new twists on some classic ideas. The concept of Valhalla is pretty strange and interesting when you break it down with some deconstruction and worldbuilding.
The characterizarion is in early days for the characters we've met so far, but I look forward to learning more about the cast of characters as the MC grows and explores Valhalla. Cameraderie and intrigue are out in full force, though-- approproate, given the setting.
The magic system hasn't been fleshed out too much yet, but the fight scenes are really well written and the writing is dynamic and well paced for the most part. The gods have only just been introduced as well, but the differences and similarities to the gods of Norse tradition are already starting to pop up. (Huginn cameo! Waiting for Yggdrasil to make an appearance...)
If you're interested in the idea of a protagonist trying to figure out how to get out of a system-based afterlife from a religious tradition he doesn't even follow, EV is for you! Light and brisk with promise of deeper secrets and lore. All The Dust That Falls fans should have a good time.
notajesterRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm liking this story so far. The OP is likeable and relatable. Reading it does not exhaust me like some stories do. It's entertaining and the MC makes me want to root for him. The story as yet has little world building but that seems to be changing. I like when the world building is slow, because throwing everything at me at once is overwhelming. I also like a single MC POV.
zyzyx159Royal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Miles died thinking about how his life was not as long as it could have been, but it was a good life. He was looking forward to seeing his late wife in heaven, but things did not work out that way. Having died in honorable combat Miles has a choice to make go to Valhalla or Hell. Miles chose Valhalla, because who wants to go to Hell, but now that he is here he is having issues telling the difference. Fight, die, come back from the dead to do it again tomorrow may be someone's idea of heaven, but not Miles'. Now that Miles is here his only life line out it to cut "Needful Things" like deals with Loki. The favor's Loki wants are small, but have lasting consequences for someone else. So I ask again, Would you make a deal with a devil? What if you are already in Hell?
ArchdragonRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
The premise is incredibly interesting going to Valhalla hating it and wanting to escape. The author doesn’t immediately ruined his premise like so many other authors, it’s refreshing. The writing is good and the plot is interesting. The main character Is reasonably intelligent, but not “big brain manipulator”. The side characters are interesting and likable. The author makes you interested In his characters successes and advancement. The main character does make a deal with Loki but the author hasn’t yet made the mistake of demonizing the other gods to make Loki look good in comparison and justify his actions. Valhalla in its current state does genuinely seem like a paradise for a certain type of person just not our main character. I really hope the author doesn’t ruin his story by making Valhalla and the other gods just the worst for everyone.
Mad_FaeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
This novel is thrilling, the combat dinamic and the ways the MC interacts with all other characters believable.
Finally I stan so far, this lovely version of Loki.
It is really well written and while it is not my best area the grammar now that I ponder about it is exceptional in quality compared to other scripts.
Time Traveler KnightRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Third or fourth story I've read on Royal Road. I like the lack of exposition! Learn through actions, not being told a monologue. Nice work.
The protagonist must have characteristics that attract the unsavory god(s) while not being so odious I am repelled. So far, author has made me willing to have a suspension of disbelief and want to enjoy the hero's rise to triumph.
shade978Royal Road
★★★★ 3.5
It's pretty decent with a good plot behind it, no characters feel 2d and there's a surprising amount of depth to them. The LitRPG aspect is done well, there's also some rather surprising and entertaining twists rather than being a pure tower climber that I enjoyed. If you feel like reading it it's worth trying.
Now onto the problems. The author disregards any and all feed back, spelling errors noticed and corrected by commenters are ignored, parts are in grey text and are unreadable on dark mode unless you change to light mode, readers also noticed this and commented on it, it's been over a year and still not fixed. To be fair the grammar overall is decent just certain parts are iffy and if you notice it expect nothing to be done. I would honestly give this a 4.5-5 if the author took feedback about problems with spelling or formatting and fixed it but they don't and I find it heavily disrupts my reading experience so I can't give it more than I have. Also there isn't much actually done with the fact that it's valhalla it only mildly influences the plot it would be more interesting if it had a bigger effect given it's the main premise for the book.
Edit: In the more recent chapters of book 2 it's become extremely inconsistant numbers in levels increasing and decreasing randomly extremely annoying. Changed rating.
IbskibRoyal Road
★★★ 3.0
I like the premise, but the execution needs some work. The character interactions are fairly bland, and the characters don't really feel like they are from different cultures.
Both the characters and environment should be fleshed out more.
The editing is a bit sloppy, with wrong pronouns used a number of times...