Squad Games [Mercenary Management LitRPG] [Book One Stubbing on May 1st]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Gal'azu. A new, unexplored world. A fresh start. And a last chance.

Lothar 'Stiff' Sauer is a mercenary captain. Unfortunately, he has no mercenaries left. He never caught a break in the old world. Maybe in Gal'azu, he'll finally achieve the success he craves.

But he soon finds out things aren't going to be easy. Starting at the bottom rung, he can only recruit the mercenaries no one else wants. The feckless; criminals, and noobs; the unhinged. Can Lothar build his squad into something to be proud of? Or will this be yet another, and final, failure?

What to expect:

+ Influenced by the turn-based/tactical RPG genre, and games such as Battle Brothers, Heroes of Might and Magic, Jagged Alliance, Valkyria Chronicles, Wartales, & X-COM.

+ A gritty, medieval fantasy setting.

+ Squad members are selected for missions. If they perform well (and survive), their relevant stats improve, and they can level up.

+ Multiple points of view: the story is told from Lothar's POV but also from the mercs' POV, especially during missions.

+ Most chapters are between 1k-2.5k. The regular schedule will be 3 chapters per week, on Mondays, Tuesdays, & Thursdays.

Appendix 1covers the game stats and mechanics. This is an optional read for number crunchers and isn't recommended until you've read some of the story and want more detail.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: LordAetius

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.3/ 5.0
Followers: 603
Views: 245,859

Chapters(181 total)

Reviews

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

Community Reviews(10)

longwindedone1Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This review comes after reading the first seven chapters of Squad Games. I apologize for any spoilers in this review.
Story
This is a tactical, turn-based LitRPG that follows Lothar. He is a weary veteran mercenary, trying to carve out a new life in the frontier city of Avolo. Lothar recruits a ragtag team of rogues and mercenaries to complete a series of missions. Each mission pushes his team to the limits. Sometimes, the team's tension rises, especially with volatile characters like Stricken (great name for a character - also a great Disturbed song title).
Style
The tone of Squad Games is gritty with an edge of humor. The author gives us a mix of action and introspection. We see the hard decisions Lothar must make as a leader. The tactical mechanics add a nice flavor. It gives the feel of an RPG. The pace is tight, driven by Lothar's new challenges.
Grammar
There were no noticeable grammatical issues. The writing flows well, especially given the format, and fits the tone of the story. This said, I always listen to my RR stories using the app, so I'm not the best judge of this category.
Characters
Lothar is the MC. His interactions with his crew are the highlights of the story. Wade (the rogue) brings a sharp wit. Stricken's unpredictable violence adds tension to the missions. The secondary characters, like The Baron and Mila, provide comic relief. Watching the team barely hold together while carrying out missions is really fun.
Fans of LitRPGs with a tactical twist will find a lot to enjoy here. While the story is dark there’s enough humor in the characters to keep things fun. Highly recommended. 5/5
Theora WattersRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I've never really delved into anything close to LitRPG before, despite my enjoyment of RPGs, both in the form of tabletop games and video games. I found Squad Games to be a very pleasing example of the genre that has a nice balance of literary elements and gaming elements, while staying very accessible and engaging.
As far as reviews go, I have little to say that isn't positive about this story. The gritty feel of the setting and characters comes through well in a concise, effective manner. The game elements are easy to follow and integrated well into the world, both from the reader's perspective as well as the character's.
The story itself is interesting and very gradual; while there is no massive overarching mystery or narrative goal that is apparent this early into the story, there are plenty of hints that there is more depth to things. A lot of our characters have unknown backstories and ambitions and the setting itself is very new and undeveloped, it seems, which has plenty of potential. The fact that I've yet to see a major plotline is a very minor nitpick, as I am greatly enjoying the "early game" plot aspects of development and growth, while also eager at the potential for deeper story beats that can develop.
Grammatically, I think the writing itself is very succinct and effective. There are a few very minor grammatical errors in the form of punctuation, spelling, and tense, but nothing that takes me out of the story. The prose is descriptive but errs on the side of brevity, which I think is a good thing. The overall flow is quite good, as the writing is very brusque and efficient.
I am honestly surprised at how much I like the characters, even the ones with lesser screen time. They all have unique identities and motivations and I actually feel tension when they are in harm's way, knowing full well from my game experience that a bad roll can change a character's trajectory (or outright end it) with painful suddenness. My personal favorites are Murder, Auntie
AEVRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
A wonderful story, containing a fantastic balance of action, characterization, and humor. There's a rather wide cast of mercenaries present here, and each one is pleasant to varying degrees: while this wide cast stops any one character from being very deep, they're still dynamic, interesting, and well-written. The system and progression elements are also well done, and are not very intrusive. People who want an emulation of Squad Games inspirations might end up disappointed – character deaths are few, far-between, and foreshadowed – but honestly, it serves the story well. Fantastic work!
Ana87Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Overall
Squad Games is a tactical LitRPG novel that combines strategy, mercenary management and military narrative with a dark and detailed fantasy setting. The story follows Lothar 'Stiff' Sauer, a mercenary captain seeking to rebuild his company in a new and hostile world full of opportunities. With a focus on tactical combat, mission planning and character development, the novel offers an immersive experience for fans of the genre.
Story
The premise of the story is simple but still appealing: the hero arrives in a new city and starts recruiting people for risky missions. The author has opted for a realistic approach, which means that progress is slow and tactical decisions can make the difference between survival and annihilation. I found this quite enjoyable because, unlike other stories where a slow pace can potentially run the risk of being boring, in this case it works because the author manages to successfully balance action and intrigue with the world-building. The latter is the novel's forte. The narrative feels so immersive and realistic that at times I felt like I was inside a video game with the advantage of not having to do all the work.
Style
The writing style is direct and efficient. The author's knowledge of war stories and strategy games is evident. The descriptions are detailed and the combats are well developed and you can feel the tension in the action sequences. The author manages to convey the physical and psychological toll on the characters.
Grammar
I found no errors that interfered with the reading. The story is very well written.
Character
Unlike many LitRPG stories centered on overpowered protagonists, Lothar is a down-to-earth hero who must deal with real problems: the abilities of his recruits, lack of resources, threats from his rivals, etc. As the story progresses we learn more about the secondary characters. The interactions between them are realistic and dynamic.
Conclusion
Squad Games is an excellent choice for fans of tactical Lit
D.N. NewynRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Style: The descriptions are strong. For example, the author doesn't linger on describing a place too much, just giving us enough details (and the best detail) to activate the imagination of the readers. The explanations of the things like action rounds are clear and not intrusive or take away from the immersion. I find the style of writing to be very strong. The LitRPG elements are just enough for me, I love when they exist but not when they're overwhelming. This is fine.
Story: If you like merc building and army building books, you'll like this one. Personally I'm into this genre, and this is one of the more appealing and immersive ones I've read. The setting gives off a medieval vibe, but the dialogues are more modern. I'm fine with that, really.
The pacing is fine. Love that the MC was (very light spoiler)
immediately off to a very bad start.
The mission scenes afterwards are entertaining, and I'm very invested in the outcome of those missions. Pretty funny to see Lothar
having to do business with those he'd just robbed.
Grammar: Clean. The misspellings are intentional (namely the accents of speakers). I find having the accents written into the dialogues to be a bit distracting, but that's just me.
Character: I find the characters enjoyable, even the rogues Lothar's just recruited have life to them the moment they're introduced. Some of them can be real nasty. The large cast can be a downside, but for now? It's a joy.
Dylan KingRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Story:
Squad Games is something that is, to my knowledge, fairly unique on Royal Road: a tactical turn-based LitRPG. It follows failed mercenary captain Lothar Sauer as he travels to new lands to start fresh. The narrative is paced well, with a smartly-judged balance between mechanics and action, and I very much enjoyed the change of pace of our MC being the orchestrator--though I do wonder how this would play out across an extended story in terms of keeping up a reader's investment in the characters.
Character:
The characters so far all seem pulled from various archetypes of lovable rogues, which creates interesting dynamics and opportunities for conflict between Lothar's growing crew. At the moment they all feel very familiar, so I am looking forward to see how the author deepens each character over time, as at the moment, they are definitely treading the line between archetype and character.
Style + Grammar:
Prose is clean and generally pretty functional. Critiquing style is always very subjective, so your mileage may vary, but I struggled a little with the lack of setting description. No real grammar issues or major spelling errors that I can see.
Overall, I would say this is well worth a go if it sounds like it might be even close to being up your alley. Competently written, well-paced, with just enough wit and fun; as well as a nice break from the standard fantasy LitRPG structure.
JimQuillRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is an almost episodic story with two really unique things going for it. First, its set up is perfect to maximize the storytelling potential. It focuses on a mercenary company as a whole, not one or a few individual characters.
second, it's turn based combat. The turn based combat is written into the world, and it is really unique and interesting. I don't know of any other stories that do actual turn based combat. The possibilities of it are really cool.
Style: It's very easy to read in a good way. The prose is short and sweet, and the combat is fast and satisfying. It also does a great job of cementing the grim dark, gritty aesthetic of the setting.
Story: Story is interesting to score, because it is not just one story. Like I said, it's almost episodic with reoccurring characters going on different missions, with some overarching stuff. But the focus is on the missions. I think this is a BRILLIANT way to dive into the systems. You will see every kind of build and character imaginable, and they could be sent to do almost anything.
Grammar: No noticeable issues. Well written, short paragraphs.
Character: The characters are fascinating and all interact in interesting ways. With a huge cast of mercenaries, pairing them up for adventures immediately creates all sorts of jokes, tension, and clashing personalities.
SqueeWritesRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm shocked the story doesn't have a higher rating. I'm guessing the few chapters it took for the author to find their footing dissuaded a few, but to me if this sounds like something you'd like give it a few chapters and I promise you'll like it.
This story has amazing characters. They are all distinct with their own stories and interests and knowing the type of story holds quite a bit of tension in it. I'm a huge fan.
Thanks for the story!
Aashish KashyapRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Hi, I haven’t read any LitRPGs before, so this was a new experience for me. I had no idea that turn-based action sequences could be integrated like this. I haven’t read much yet (about eight chapters), but it seems interesting so far.
Stiff is your typical MC in terms of being calm and confident—unwavering in the face of trouble—but the atmosphere and setting make it feel like these traits weren’t just handed to him; rather, they were developed over time. The finger-breaking scene in the first chapter caught me off guard.
As for grammar, English isn’t my first language, so I can’t say much, but I did notice one or two typos, like “lonk” in chapter two. The dialogue feels a bit too sharp for my liking, but I think that’s because I’m not yet exposed to different writing styles.
Overall, it’s quite interesting to me, and the mission system is the icing on the cake. I love how it simulates the real world—where you go to the person who assigned the mission, gather information, and then complete it.
I’m excited to continue this journey with Stiff, and hopefully, this opens up a whole new genre for me.
Fingers crossed!
OmniLightningRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Style: Engaging and exciting. Follow Lothar as he moves into a new world and builds up his merry band of mercenaries. With the story having many characters, the author jumps around points of view often, but not in a disorienting way. Each point of view is unique and fits the character it belongs to. The turn-based combat is worked in a way that feels organic. I also find the integration of LitRPG elements, such as system screens, to be unique. Instead of the info kept secret like in other stories, it is required for the proprietor of the merc company to see the info of each merc before hire, which helps them with planning out jobs and wages.
Grammar: No issues that I could detect.
Character: Lothar is the main character, though he seems to go by different names at times. His character is serious about business, but not in a boring way. The supporting cast being his mercenaries, are relatable and realistic.
Story: An exciting start that introduces rivals that will, presumably, eventually compete with Lothar and his mercs. I like how the MC is an older, experienced, and down-on-his-luck merc himself who is just trying to make a living.