Editorial Review: Overworld, Book 1 of the Dragon Mage Saga by Rohan M. Vider

Editorial Review: Overworld, Book 1 of the Dragon Mage Saga by Rohan M. Vider

With earth destroyed and nothing like it was, humanity is floundering in their new reality, and Jamie has nothing but revenge on his mind.

Overworld is a litRPG adventure in a post-apocalyptic world that sees earth destroyed when the orcs declare their claim to the planet.

When gates start appearing all over the world they are treated as a hoax, but not for long. The gnomes have been inserting elements of their world into earth's culture for years - everything from myths to game mechanics - to prepare the people of earth for eventual voluntary assimilation.  The orcs do not have voluntary assimilation in mind, they announce that earth can join the orcs or die. Humanity must enter Overworld and prepare for the Trials. 

Jamie isn't the ideal person to play a real-life fantasy game, he's out of shape and dealing with a permanent disability to his foot. Jamie enters Overworld in a particularly violent way and as such becomes unique within the system - no player has ever achieved what he has in such little time. These special attributes, and his gaming experience, are the only advantage Jamie has because he cannot take the "clean slate" offered to new entrants, he must keep his impaired body. 

Once Jamie enters Overworld, he is taken in by a group of humans who have set up camp in location seventy-eight.

Discovering his magic skill and developing it should be Jamie's only concern, but the camp who took him in needs him too. Torn between staying and going, Jamie must level as fast as he can to survive the quest he has planned. 

The game mechanics which govern Overworld are complex and the magic system within them is well structured and seems to be balanced. Where Overworld shines, especially in the litRPG genre, is in the quality of the prose. Rohan Vider’s writing is solid, they have created a well-paced plot and likable characters. There are enough inside jokes for the gamers reading the book to enjoy, but it is not overly filled with jargon so as to make it impenetrable to non-gamers. The magic creation system in particular is notable for its simplicity and elegance, which is a good thing because the rest of this series promises to have a lot more magic in store for Jamie to master. 

A fantasy RPG come to life, Overworld is a particularly fun and readable adventure that has real potential to get better and better with every installment. 

Glen Dawson - A Satirical Wake-up Call
FEATURED AUTHOR - After graduating from Duke University, Glen Dawson owned and operated a flexible packaging manufacturing plant for 23 years. Then, he sold the factory and went back to school to get his Master's degree in biostatistics from Boston University. When he moved to North Carolina, he opened an after-school learning academy for advanced math students in grades 2 through 12. After growing the academy from 30 to 430 students, he sold it to Art of Problem Solving. Since retiring from Art of Problem… Read more