Mercenaries of the Apocalypses [System Apocalypse Progression]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

The Augmentation technology failed to save humanity, but its power still rages through Andy’s veins.

Andy must conquer his AI implant to unlock the devastating potential of his Gunslinger archetype. Wielding his affinity .45 revolver, he is pushed to the extremes, battling horrendous apocalypse zones in the hope of a paycheck. Manipulated by AI voices, Andy is torn by his killing instinct and psychopathy; his bond with his sister is the only thing keeping him anchored to humanity.

When the mercenary duo land a lucrative contract with a powerful chieftain, they are pushed to their extremes. Haunted by mutated abominations and the demonic unknown, Andy and Clara must confront a terrifying truth: in this wasteland, some fates are worse than death.

Priority Alert: DNA compromised. Mutation detected. Emergency protocol initiated. Shutting down…

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Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: Tom Hockney

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.5/ 5.0
Followers: 806
Views: 128,866

Chapters(81 total)

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(10)

755Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
at the start of the book you are thrown right into a high octane mission with no prior warning, this doesnt fade, while there are some lulls dont expect andy to start up a brewery (as much as he would like to) and start a band. while some people may be wary due to the high adrenilne the book is amazingly well written with highly in depth characters and world building ( although tom refuses to tell me where its set) its a top 5 book or me and i hope that it continues that way. if you like deadman by seersucker then this is the book for, Andy is strong at the start but there is still enemies to defeat and no cheat skill. 10/10 must read.
ArthicernRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Mercenaries of the apocalypses is a fantastic story following a pair of sibling mercenaries in the apocalypses. Yes, this world is not ravaged by a single apocalypse but hundreds. Enough so that a day's drive could cross three separate cataclysms.
The world is well described and though out, each major location painted out in detail that would put the locations in many games and movies to shame while also being distinctly unique from many other apocalypse stories I've found on Royal Road.
Where this story really shines though is in its protagonists. Andy, largely steals the show for me his character constantly reminding me of the game Disco Elysium with his insanity and antics. From constantly boozing himself up, to his hallucinations, and flirting with his gun. (That is not a euphemism.) A state that leaves him as what can best be described as 'An insane slacker whose insanity has reached a point of finally working for him.'
By contrast his sister is highly ambitious and about as career driven as a mercenary in the apocalypse can get. Constantly trying to improve their reputation with their boss and other mercenaries while also trying to get her slacker brother to use his super soldier powers for their benefit.
The way these three things meet creates a compelling story that I had trouble putting down as I continued wanting to watch these two take on whatever their work and the apocalypses could throw at them.
LiarbytradeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Grammar: I'm going to start with the grammar because I'm always super picky. In short, this is better than eighty percent of the stuff you find on royalroad, and that's disappointing because according to every other metric (style, story, etc), it's in the top one percent. What's more, it's not any one thing that's dragging the review down. If I had to put it into words, I'd say it's the result of a reckless enthusiasm that refuses to pause or cut content, when less might read better or sound a little punchier. It's not a turn off, per se, but I know if it was a little stronger this is the sort of book I would binge.
Style: The style is really tight. Part of this might be the setting, which feels incredibly fleshed out, but even if we set aside the detail and nuance that's gone into the depictions of the world, there are a bunch of just really satisfying touches to see as a reader. Like the augmentation modules for one. Lore dumps are always hard, but the way the protagonist's abilities are just cleanly stitched into the narrative is a delight to see. The same can be said for a lot of the early setting and character details. I never feel like I'm being given a bio page, despite the abundance of content. I don't know if that's a result of how much is provided for every landmark and touchstone, but it's definitely worth remarking upon.
Story: So far, everything feels really well paced. The opening scene is distinctive, amusing, well-structured and finishes up with just a nice splash of action. I get an idea of our protagonist, the situation, his adversaries and his purpose before it opens into the setting at large and the upcoming plot arc. There isn't anything here you really have to cut, and I can't in good conscience complain about not having enough. The only thing that picks at me is I can't figure out where they are geographically. I feel like it's the U.S. but I'm not certain and there are enough subtle cues that could lead me to decide otherwis
TrisityRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Read all of book 1 when it got shouted out and couldn't put it down until the epilogue.
It seems others didnt like how manic Andy acted but in a situation like the apocalypse, who would be sane? Especially when he wasn't all there in the first place.
After reading the revised chapter 1... I cant wait to see what shenanigans happen differently!
ValynoraRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I was hooked from the start, though I wasn't a massive fan of Andy (borderline psychopath), he grew on me. His love for his sister is sweet. He really cares about her - shes the only thing he cares about, actually, other than getting drunk and shooting stuff. But he's entertaining to watch, like a train wreck.
Then there's Clara's chapters. They're my favourite. She's much more concerned about the plot, the world, the other characters, and the prose actually changes quite a lot for her perspective. Andy doesn't even remember people's names, whereas Clara studies them, tries to coerce or control them.
I'm really looking forward to seeing how the world develops as the story continues to pick up. It feels like a real world that characters live and breathe in, and the characters are really starting to find their stride. The style reads very well, being a good balance of fast paced action, comedy, and sprinkling in world building in a way thats fun. Grammar is excellent. I havent found any mistakes or anything to break the flow of my reading.
So far, the story is good. It really picks up when the mission starts in chapter 8. I wasn't bored before then, but now I cant put it down.
GiacomoRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I am sitting on the toilette writing this. But dont let this take away from the Novel. It is my absolute favorite right now and If I could choose any novel to read while doing my business it is this one. Unfortunately I have already reached the latest chapter. Just to clarify this is the highest praise I can give as a male toilette reading aficionado. Humor aside. The characters are smart and witty, the world building is slow and intricate, the drama is also "grown up & complicated" which so many novels dont bring to the table (most are written for kids not this one). So Ill rate this a 5 out of 5 for sure. To whomever who made it this far into my special review, give it a read you won't regret it.
LEONOFZIONRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I love the two main characters, especially Andy. I love the way. The augmentation are similar to the system In many novels. The multiple apocalypse makes the world even more challenging for our main characters. And I like how each character has the overcome their own weaknesses in order to win. The main characters encounter only difficulties and still becoming a sort of family, even though they are not bloody related. Makes this novel very interesting. How it is always an adventure in each chapter,I’m starting to fall in love with this novel. I know they’re right gonna be a challenge. I’m looking forward to to seeing more chapters from this author and even more books written by him with the similar theme and augmentation type system.
Dennis ARoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Fun story so far. Thankfully no infodumps. We get to learn more of the world as the characters experience it. Not liking Andy but that is just a personal preference. Not a fan of characters that ignore their potential. Definitely already seeing some points of tension between the 2 main characters. Already have hints of something more going on behind it all. Will update with more once there is more written.
Howling BeastRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
The story starts off fast enough, but there is ability growth that happens later. For those who have read it, it's similar to Depthless Hunger, where a core aspect of the character happens during the story, rather than before it. I like this method very much.
The dual MC really makes the tone work. The first MC, Andy, is a badass that doesn't care enough to be concerned or scared most of the time. If it was only Andy, it would probably get boring, but seeing the world through Clara's eyes shows the reader how the world is like for normal people. She herself is quite badass, but she cares about a lot of things. It really contrasts with Andy, showing just how broken he is.
My one nitpick is that some small parts of the story fall into the absurd. Since the rest of the story is quite grounded, these parts feel a bit out of place. That said, it creates a lot of mystery
CroddwynRoyal Road
★ 1.0
There's a lot to like here. The depiction of a devastating apocalypse with the worst of several world endings depicted and an old-world meets cowboy desperation for its tone. It's very similar to Deadman and I mean that in the best way imaginable.
I'd love to spend some time exploring the possibilities of this world, but Andy is making that impossible. His self-destructive self-indulgence is as tedious as it is monotoned. Our boy loves his alcohol nearly as much as he loves ignoring his AI. And it isn't helping that he's relying on his long-suffering sister to provide the drive to give them any kind of life at all.
If you find an inebriated slacker leaning on the one woman in his life to enable his indulgent wallowing then maybe this one is for you? Personally, I got tired of him the second time the author pulled strings to make his self-indulgence pay off for no reason besides driving plot.