SV's Pick of the Month User Submissions Thread

[CmptrWz]

Dawns on me that I submitted my previous completed story, so having completed another I might as well submit it too. Though my previous submission from 10 months or so ago being in the past page's posts indicates that this thread doesn't get enough use.

After over two years, Tome of the Orange Sky is complete.

A Naruto/MGLN Crossover where a lost Belkan Tome crash lands on Naruto!Earth, only to remain buried for thousands of years until a young Naruto Uzumaki is locked out of the orphanage and finds a nice cave to stay in. The Tome picks up enough stray energy to power back up and bond to Naruto, beginning a years-long journey of escalation...

 

[Kermie]

May I submit my own quest? Because if I can, then…

Space Oddity (A Honkai: Star Rail Quest) Sci-Fi - Action

As a girl just trying to explore the galaxy and help people, you never expected your life to be too important. But now you're one of the main players on the cosmic stage. What path will you take? Will you save it all with the Astral Express and change the galaxy for the better? Or will you doom...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

This is EXTREMELY last minute, but hear me out! The voters have gotten to play as an OC in the underrated Honkai: Star Rail setting, one who cannot feel hate (which is a very roundabout way for me to say that she's all sorts of fucked up without realizing it.)

The quest has inspired an entire wave of HSR quests, and also boasts a decently sized reader base. Most recent events in the quest include things like:
-More closer to life interpretations of split personalities/DID
-Going to the icy snowball death world and having a fairly relaxing time there.
-kidnapping the president (this is good compared to canon)

And hey, if this doesn't win, I'm fine with being a candidate for August.

 

[Eater]

Nine Last Embers by Jelloloaf

This is a lovely coming of age journey quest in the vein of Sable. It features diplomacy with talking plants, amateur archaeology, and excellent world building inspired by Caves of Qud and Rain World.

Eight Last Embers (Inspired by Rain World and Caves of Qud) Original - Fantasy

Among the humans of the Azentu, there exists an old custom; each child, upon reaching adulthood, must undertake a spiritual journey to discover the idea that they'll devote their lives to. Of course, most see it as little more than a tradition followed only to avoid the disappointment of their...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

 

[VagueZ]

Autonomous Divinity by @CatOnTheWeb

An interesting fusion of mecha and cultivation, featuring a world that's clearly been lovingly crafted. This quest features a protagonist who is picked up just for having a talent he didn't know he had to move a science-fantasy mecha he doesn't understand and sent to a remote outpost where he won't have as many resources as he needs. The friends he's made along the way include a plausibly-gay catboy and a reserved ice queen and we've just stuck a claw and a stealth system onto our mech as we make our way through our first forced march. It's a solid start and I'd love to see a little more activity here to appreciate the work behind it.

Autonomous Divinity: A Cog in the Machine Original - Sci-Fi - Fantasy

To be a Pilot is to become something more, something greater. To be a pilot is control an Armature, a divine machine that could one day become a god. That is the goal, to walk down the path of divinity and separate yourself from the common masses, and in so doing achieve autonomy and...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

 

[LucidProp]

Project Prometheus (Original Setting Superhero Quest) by Bitterman

Welcome to the city of Horizon, a metropolis built around the corpse of what could only be described as an Alien God. For 50 years, Leviathan's ominous shadow has loomed over the city, a wellspring of ichor that gave birth to the rise of strange powers among the population. You play as the only surviving member of Justice Unlimited, formerly the premiere organization of superheroes in Horizon before Leviathan came back to life and was stopped at great cost. It's up to you to rebuild Justice Unlimited from the ground up, discover the mystery behind Leviathan's revival in order to prepare for its next movement, and navigate the complex politics of Horizon's new order as supervillains run rampant and many superhero organizations are thrown into chaos by the loss of their leaders and the creeping influence of corporate and government interests. All that, and you still have to mentor a teenage rookie?!

Project Prometheus has many qualities to it. From its main cast being fun to read and all in possession of unique voices, to the worldbuilding and the mystery being fascinating enough that we're willing to piece the puzzle together with the crumbs of information we've been given instead of letting it be spelled out to us, but I would say the highlight for me is its unique power creation system. Due to plot reasons, we're able to splice the DNA of dead metahumans together, granting new powers to normal people. There are rules and limits to this process of course, but for someone who likes messing around with character creation systems, it's been addictive since it's simple enough to understand but still has a lot of depth to offer!

I have done my best to be brief, but it's just really hard to contain myself when I still have so much to share about a quest that's only a week and one day old. It's been a long while since I've been this excited by a quest and the feeling is exhilarating. The QM's passion for this writing project is infectious, and you can really tell this is a story that's been with them for years already with how consistent their update schedule has been, how eager they are to discuss the world and characters, and just the fact that they had commissioned art for the various starting playable characters we had to choose between and even the first superheroine the questers made.

Project Prometheus is a labor of love, and I really want to see it keep going.

Project Prometheus (Original Setting Superhero Quest)

When the Leviathan began to awake, every superhero in the city of Horizon rushed to keep the corpse of the supermassive alien slumbering. The ensuing battle could have gone better. Now, it's up to you to use a superpower-granting serum to replenish the city's hero population, rebuild Justice...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

 

[Derpmind]

It's been about three months since the last Picks Of The Month. I know site events tend to delay them happening, but with more and more events now, is this going to continue? I really enjoyed finding new things to read, and being able to submit the occasional recommendation myself.

 

[ArlequineLunaire]

It's been about three months since the last Picks Of The Month. I know site events tend to delay them happening, but with more and more events now, is this going to continue? I really enjoyed finding new things to read, and being able to submit the occasional recommendation myself.

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PotM is still ongoing, we've just had a bit of a break due to Summerfest

 

[Derpmind]

PotM is still ongoing, we've just had a bit of a break due to Summerfest

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That's just it, though. If there's going to be a three month break for Summerfest, and a three month break for Winterfest, then it's only going to be promoting threads for half the year.

 

[T_of_A]

That's not a bad thing. This thread gets very few submissions, so giving them a few months to pile up is a good way to avoid the "there only only one thread that got recommended, by it's own author no less, so it just got picked by default" issue.

What's the worth of a recommendation if there's no element of choice, no guarantee that it's good or at least interesting ?

 

[DoobleDeeDooble]

As I understand it, every user submission 'wins', since being a user pick of the month is separate from being a pick of the month. The Picks of the Month are entirely picked by the Content Promotion team, no?

I'm guessing it's more that the 'Fests take up time and energy that would otherwise go to looking for what stuff should get promoted and mocking up the actual promotions thereof.

 

[ArlequineLunaire]

That's just it, though. If there's going to be a three month break for Summerfest, and a three month break for Winterfest, then it's only going to be promoting threads for half the year.

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Two-month break for Summerfest actually, without giving too much away August's Picks are just about ready

 

[Skippy]

That's just it, though. If there's going to be a three month break for Summerfest, and a three month break for Winterfest, then it's only going to be promoting threads for half the year.

Click to shrink...

There has never been a three month break for Winterfest; we decided to make December's Picks this year into highlights of Summerfest due to timing concerns. For various reasons, we decided that the Picks for June and July would be highlights of Summerfest content, which will go up alongside August's Picks.

But broadly I agree with you, if possible I always prefer to run Picks of the Month as normal regardless of what else we're doing. I'm really glad you enjoy seeing them and participating in the User Picks, and hope you'll also enjoy our Picks for August coming out soon.

 

[Derpmind]

The Journey Never Ends (Original Fantasy Quest) Original - Fantasy

Deirdre Pathstrider is the last of the elves who once guided the people of Orbis before fading away. An unremarkable adventurer for much of her early life, she survived not by fate or power but by circumstance and luck. In a world rapidly advancing decades after the World War, what place does an...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

Deirdre Pathstrider is the last of the elves who once guided the people of Orbis before fading away. An unremarkable adventurer for much of her early life, she survived not by fate or power but by circumstance and luck. In a world rapidly advancing decades after the World War, what place does an elf drifter have in a land of nations with industry, technology, and magic far beyond anything the elves have conceived?

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By @Stilling. A new quest by a new QM, with intriguing worldbuilding and a compelling protagonist.

 

[Wootius]

The Journey Never Ends (Original Fantasy Quest) Original - Fantasy

Deirdre Pathstrider is the last of the elves who once guided the people of Orbis before fading away. An unremarkable adventurer for much of her early life, she survived not by fate or power but by circumstance and luck. In a world rapidly advancing decades after the World War, what place does an...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

By @Stilling. A new quest by a new QM, with intriguing worldbuilding and a compelling protagonist.

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Really enjoying this, some attention so more votes come in for it would be great. 👀

 

[Kermie]

Project Prometheus (Original Setting Superhero Quest) by Bitterman

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October PoTM just came out, so here's me seconding Lucid's nomination for Nov/Dec.

Project Prometheus does have everything that LucidProp said, and more. The writing is superb, and the character creation/Ambrosia system takes the much loved Character Creation vote and allows it to be repeated indefinitely. What's not there to love?

I'd like to also point out some other things that came up in the few months that Project Prometheus has been active.

The fan community (which has been described by yours truly as a mini fandom) is extremely active, featuring multiple Omakes from all sides, and fan characters that Bitterman adds to the table to possibly receive the powers of the dead superheroes. There's also been some very interesting LGBTQ+ rep, including both a nonbinary character and a transfem character (who has one of the best representations of gender dysphoria I've read in ages).

Aside from that, the world building is extremely fun— we've already discovered TWO different corporate conspiracies trying to (maybe) destroy the world and (definitely) discredit our team of heroes. Hell, I even made a whole conspiracy corkboard for it that I regularly update. It's a blast.

Even if you're not normally into superheroes, I'd recommend reading Project Prometheus so much. Bitterman truly understands what makes a quest good.

 

[The Laurent]

No Dialogue, No Choice: Why I Like Games That Do Less Essay

There's an exchange that happens sometimes between friends of mine, where one will describe the atmosphere and characters of a video game in loving detail, reaching into poetry to describe the care with which the story handles deep emotions and complicated political and artistic topics, about...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

This is an interesting choice, and SV doesn't really get essays often enough to work with! Check it out, if you're passionate about games/etc!

 

[Duke William of]

Y'know what, I might as well submit my own quest. It's not likely to win, but Carpe Diem, am I right?

O, Child of Liberty! – An American Revolution Quest Original - Alt. History - Historic

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These are the ideals for which the Thirteen Colonies rose up in revolution against the British Empire. You are one of those souls fighting for freedom. Special thanks to Magoose, Alexander Sturnn, and Cyberphilosipher for their help during various...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

This quest follow the journey of Jonathan Halbert, a Virginian abolitionist of Scottish descent, as he lives and fights during the American Revolution and the journey of a QM whose sanity is rapidly dwindling with each update and roll that is made. Some notable highlights of this quest being the following:

1. God being Yankee and His intentions to punish the British in any way possible.
2. Everything to do with the Battle of Bunker Hill.
3. Omakes galore and an orderly list of said omakes and their rewards.
4. Historical realism while still allowing big fun moments to happen.
5. A counter solely dedicated to the amount of Confused Jackie Chan and Facepalming Picard emotes I have made.
6. The QM's growing desperation yet also resignation as Magoose Dice continue to take his sanity and inflicting twenty-eight stab wounds on it.

And so much more! So join the fight for liberty today, my fellow Patriots!

 

[Magoose]

Y'know what, I might as well submit my own quest. It's not likely to win, but Carpe Diem, am I right?

Click to shrink...

I second this motion... and not just because My dice have been mentioned making someone feel my pain.

It's just really good.

 

[uri]

You know, if we can nominate our own quests, might as well nominate my own I always welcome (and want) new players.

Distant Stars. (a WH40K/Xianxia civ Quest).

As the first cultivator on your home, lead your people through world ending disasters and into a new dawn. Advance yourself and your civilization from your humble beginning into the distant stars.

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

Shikatu, the first cultivator and emperor of keku-kind must guide his race and his sect against the might of the four chaos gods.

Cultivation, a new way to harness the power of the warp, refined and stable it is a grave danger to the power of the four and seek to snuff it out, for the path might be long but in its end power lies.

Now Shikatu must make ready, must decide what lines he might cross, what sacrifice he might make in the face of certain doom.

Armed with a minor talent for divination and a talent of cultivation that would never be seen again he must ensure the survival of his race.

Until at last they can reach the distant stars in the sky.


And if I'm already here… I think I'll face tribulation, advance to the no shame great realm and nominate my second quest (yeah, you heard right).

The Iron Oath (An Oath/Contract Based Cultivation Quest). Original

All Aurora wishes for in life, is the comfort of her thrice refined phoenix pillow. Unfortunately for her, despite being the fifth born of the Protus family, much is expected from her. Joining the Iron Oath school, Aurora has taken the first steps as an Oath bearer and must navigate family and...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

All Aurora wishes for in life, is the comfort of her thrice refined phoenix pillow.

Unfortunately for her, despite being the fifth born of the Protus family, much is expected from her.

Joining the Iron Oath school, Aurora has taken the first steps as an Oath bearer and must navigate family and school politics, annoying rivels and dangers at every turn.

All so she could someday return to her peace filled life and spend her days in the comfort of her bed.

Thankfully she is not alone and to help her on her journey she is joined by her retainers.

Gallus, the rough brute with the soul of a big nerd.

And Octavia, a former peasant girl in possession of the Truth-Seeking Eyes legacy.

Will they manage to find a way for Aurora to spend her time doing nothing? No, probably not.

Would it be funny tough? Maybe, If I ever manage to get this comedic writing style down (so no promises).

Note: this is "generic" cultivation school quest but the main cultivation path is oath based, so it isn't that generic.

 

[ArlequineLunaire]

I also wanted to promote my Art thread, as I just finished all of Inktober I'd say it's earned it. Plus art threads are rarely ever Picks of the Month:

Art by Arlequine

My place for art old and new, fan and original. Comments & criticism appreciated, since there's always room to learn

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

 

[WallFlower]

The Secret Winslow Theater Department by @LadiesWhoLunch

This story is about a Taylor that gained whose heart might have grown three sizes after being saved by Panacea after an "accident" in the theater clubroom that made her nose grow at least three sizes.

I want to recommend this story due to the witty writing and Taylor's endless enthusiasm. And because it recently reached what feels like the end of an act With a gripping scene where everything comes together and the queers of brokton get told that the moon loves them.

The Secret Winslow Theater Department [Worm/Cyrano de Bergerac]

A couple of months before "the locker" happened in canon, Taylor discovers that Winslow has a theater department, which puts her in with some new people and sets her on a different course, including a different trigger and different powers. Crack taken somewhat seriously.

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

EDIT: Forgotten words

 

[ThaTrueRealmWalk]

I don't know if this story has actually ever gotten picked as the story of the month yet...

But I'd like to suggest it, it's really good.

Best of Intentions (Resident Evil) (DnD Gamer SI)

The Umbrella Corporation was determined to start a zombie apocalypse. They were doing everything short of handing out samples of the T-virus in shady back alleys to anyone who wanted to give it a try. Fortunately for the world, Rudeus Raine, blessed with a DnD inspired gamer power, is on the...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

It follows the story of Rude, an uncharismatic soul who found himself suddenly tossed into what world but Resident Evil- specially the games.

Why I specify is that Rude actually doesn't know much about the Resident Evil games, which would already make his meta knowledge kinda spotty, but what's worse is that what he does know a lot about is the movies.

Yeah. The guy is operating under the assumptions that the Resident Evil Movies are canon.
not good

What is good though is that he at least has one boon on his side: Reality decided to give him a DND Character Sheet- and while the author said it was like those Gamer fics out there... it's surprising a lot more unique in it's approach, not weakening the story by taping on any numbers or dice rolls, and instead letting the stats be a loose way for the audience to see Rude's skills and how he grows over time.

Further more it's very respectful to the rules of 5E, actually having Rude need to use the material and action costs of spells to use them, and the Spells don't feel very gamey at all, so again: Not very game like hehe-

Oh! And also fully locking into the ramifications of the basic 'kill something and you get EXP' way of leveling up, which is also written very well.

And I'll be honest, I don't exactly know much about Resident Evil, but the writer is very good at making the interactions between characters fun, the action really engaging, and honestly I think they do a wonderful job inserting Rude into the story in such a way that people in the tread, me included, have talked about Rude like he was part of the Remake or an actual attempt at a Resident Evil movie.

Please, go give this a read at least

 

[catDreaming]

An excellent quest that just came back from the dead written by @Prok :

Hold It In (RWBY/Transistor) Crossover

Your name is Jaune Arc, and when you built your sword, it asked you to do one thing. {Don't let go.} A RWBY/Transistor (read: RWBY/really just the entirety of Supergiant's catalogue in some way, shape, or form at this point) quest. I don't, really know what else to put here, I just read the...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

Hold It In features a healthy cast of original characters, including a Jaune Arc MC (stop it, I hear you groaning already) with a very different backstory than in canon. The author has a wonderful way with words! Watch the voters follow the impulsive decisions of a squirrel on our shoulder! And of course, be first year Huntsman in Beacon Academy with all the shenanigans that hormonal teenagers with superpowers and military grade weaponry can get up to. That kind of thing.
Oh, and if you like Transistor or any of the other Supergiant games, there's a fair amount of influence there to. The author has done a great job weaving it all in.