Showing results by author "Andrew Schmitt" in All Categories

Countdown: At long last, an extraterrestrial civilization reached out and made the First Contact. The end of their message showed humankind how to access a mysterious game. But as people figure out this mysterious game, the countdown timer ticks away. And no one can say exactly what will happen when Earth's safety is no longer guaranteed.

Earth seceded from its suzerains' state and declared independence. Naturally, such a bold move did not go unnoticed by its powerful neighbors in space, who had aggressive plans for the inhabitable yet overly self-reliant planet. With black clouds gathering and the term of safety growing ever shorter, positive lines of the probable future for Earth's humanity and its allies were nowhere to be seen despite all Gnat the Devourer's efforts and unique abilities.

Eric has survived where people much stronger than him have found their deaths. And not just that: He's managed to activate his magic supply, tame one of the most dangerous dungeon monsters, find the ancient city of monster hunters, and rescue Jay, the girl abandoned by the scouts in Gulper's lair. He left the Dungeons of the Crooked Mountains behind him. Now his path leads him to Orchus, where our freshly-minted mage intends to finally free himself of his debt-repayment oath.

Includes Class-A Threat, Apostle of the Sleeping Gods, The Destroying Plague, and Resistance.

Konung Bjørn Sharptooth, ruler of Vintervald, has announced a Great Trial. Whoever emerges victorious shall be wed to the Konung's daughter, Princess Astrid. In accordance with ancient custom, for the duration of the Great Trial, a ceasefire is declared in Northland. Sworn enemies in the midst of bloody war must put down their weapons, and all those worthy of the princess' hand may come to the capital to try their luck.

Eric Bergman used to be treated like an outcast, cripple, and freak. Some pitied him, others squirmed in his presence, while others still mocked him to his face. He himself even thought he was born cursed by the gods. But bit by bit, all that changed. That which was once considered a flaw or defect transformed into an advantage. And Eric slowly learned to use it to his benefit.

Eric was born in a world governed by the Great System, in the family of Aren Bergman, a respected miner from Orchus. But the joy of gaining a son was overshadowed by the newborn's terrible affliction. Eric was completely nulled-level zero and no characteristics points. The only things keeping him from dying were his tiny base supplies of "life" and "energy". The medicine woman who delivered Eric believes this to be the work of the evil spirit, Bug. Due to the peculiar laws of the Great System, Eric cannot use experience essences or characteristics tablets.

Space is a dangerous place. Here, you're either a predator or soon to fall prey to a ruthless neighbor. And if you aren't tough enough to make it on your own, you'll need the backing of a formidable power to keep you safe from bigger fish. Earth used to have such protection—the great Geckho race. But unfortunately, the Geckho fell to an enemy onslaught, leaving planet Earth to fend for itself. And now, Earth humanity has precious little time to prove to their galactic neighbors that they are not to be trifled with.

What is it like for a small flap-eared goblin herbalist to play the role of the Dark Sovereign, the main antagonist for Boundless Realm's hundreds of millions of players? What is it like to find one's self the standard bearer for an army of man-eating giants, cyclops, skeletons, ghosts, and other hellspawn, who don't give a damn about their modest little ruler? Our hero didn't desire such an unenviable fate, but there is no way back now. But the longer he plays, the better he understands that he is just a pawn in someone else's game.

Ceasefires have one big downside: They eventually come to an end. And when they do, once again game nodes are set ablaze, and platoons of Dark Faction soldiers threaten our customary world with destruction. The enemy has grown stronger and more numerous. To make matters worse, they also got their hands on even deadlier weaponry. They have learned painful lessons from previous encounters and adjusted their tactics accordingly.

Our future. Noncitizens and individuals of low social standing can only find work in one place: the virtual world of Disgardium. And that might mean mining ore; it could just as well mean cleaning pigsties or washing dishes in a tavern, but that's about as glamorous as it gets. Fifteen-year-old schoolboy Alex has dreams of working as a space guide. All he can think about is the stars, but life gets in the way, and now his only path to achieving that goal is through the game.

When Timothy finally found work as a tester for a popular online MMORPG, his lifelong dream was fulfilled. And now, he earns money (and pretty good money, at that) just for doing what he loves - playing a beautiful and realistic computer game. But he isn't some typical run-of-the-mill player, like the millions of others. Timothy is truly capable and talented, and stands out from the crowd. In fact, the faceless masses consider him far too lucky and successful.

In a former life, Jack was gifted, meaning he possessed peculiar abilities. If rich folks found themselves in a jam, Jack could use his talents to get them out of it. Where others were sure to fail, Jack's aristocratic clientele could always count on him to finish jobs cleanly, efficiently, and leave no trace, for which his services commanded a hefty fee. But one day, Jack picked a fight with the wrong man and his old life came to an end. But, as it turned out, his story was far from over.

No one knows for certain what caused the Shadow to come into existence. Clerics say it was the gods laying a curse upon this world. Philosophers maintain that the Shadow of Strix is nothing short of a blessing and new milestone in human progress. But both sides agree that the Shadow will eventually swallow up this world and change it beyond recognition. However, there are also the mages, and they think the whole debate is just so much hot air. They accept the Shadow as is with all its horrors and wonders.

The aggressive invaders from another galaxy cannot be stopped. The Composite keeps capturing system after system wiping out everything in its path, and there is no sign of a force capable of standing up to it. In the search for allies, Gnat embarks on a long journey aimed at uniting the various branches of the human race. And though the potential for alliance is there, how can he convince them to set off to fight a suicidal war with such a disastrous balance of forces?

The Army of Earth is being sent on its first tour of duty. Its 50,000 proud and valiant troopers are the best of the best, full of hope for brilliant victories and spoils of war that can help Earth's humanity along in its development. There's just one little problem, though. The operation's Geckho commanders view their human vassals as mere cannon fodder, good only for plugging up holes in their defensive line and shipping out to the space war's most punishing hotspots where the chance of surviving is practically nil.

At long last, an extraterrestrial civilization reached out and made the First Contact. However, no one on Earth took their communique for the genuine article. In a similar vein, very few people appreciated just how little time our new suzerains had promised to keep our planet safe. Regardless, the end of their message showed humankind how to access a mysterious game. The objective of this game is unclear. No one can say where its servers are located, and its inner workings are beyond comprehension.

Gnat the Devourer is becoming a more prominent figure in grand space politics. Sure, he may not be totally independent yet, but he has enough leeway to be able to differentiate Earth's interests from those of its Geckho suzerains and act exclusively for the good of his own kind. Gnat must balance obligations to his almighty suzerains against a desire to advance humanity's position in space, and his home planet's search for ever more allies.

To be on a starship that's just sustained serious damage in a space battle and lost its thrusters and to find yourself in a totally different galaxy.... You might think that would be cause for panic or, at the very least, despondency, right? Not at all! Gnat maintains optimism, gradually gets his space frigate back in working order, and even finds upsides to what happened.

The battle with the horde of necromorphs is lost. Foreston has been overrun by Dark fiends. The foxfolk have been forced to abandon their homes and seek salvation on the far side of Narrow Lake. Its main city lost, the Order of Monster Hunters finds itself on the brink of destruction. And now deprived of their chief ally, the gnomes are left all alone to take on the army of the Steel King. Eric's attempts to halt his foe's advance have all come to naught—Alrak the Heartless and the other Dark primordials are simply too powerful.