The System Apocalypse Short Story Anthology, Volume 1

By: Tao Wong, Alexis Keane, Craig Hamilton, IX Phoen, L.A. Batt, R.K. Billiau

Narrated by: Neil Hellegers, Shamaan Casey, Gary Bennett, Christian Gilliland, Ian Pringle, Derek Shoales

Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

A bounty hunting survivor. A Galactic dark elf. A woman who has given up her humanity to become something more.

These stories and more are available in the first short story anthology for the System Apocalypse, covering year one on Earth. When the world ends, humanity steps up, finding new ways to survive in a world with classes, magic, and monsters. The anthology features exciting, new stories by five new writers and a new, never publicly released short story by Tao Wong.

The System Apocalypse world was first introduced in 'Life in the North' and is a LitRPG science fiction and fantasy post-apocalyptic work that features monsters, science fiction technology, character sheets, supernatural races and ancient myths in one heady, LitRPG brew

Stories and writers featured in this anthology include:

Craig Hamilton - "Hunting Monsters" has our protagonist doing what he does best. Finding those who would exploit the System and the people within. Except this time, there are even more complications than normal.

Alexis Keane - "Tooth and Claw" is a heart-warming tale of friendship that knows no bounds of race or distance.

Ix Phoen - "Rebel Within" tells a tale of hardship in South America, where the monsters are not always the ones outside the walls.

Tao Wong - “Debts & Dances” covers the arrival of the System from the perspective of our favorite Truinnar Lord.

R.K. Billiau - “Phoenix Rising” covers an unconventional hero, one whose mind is slipping from him before the apocalypse. Will the apocalypse be his salvation? Or doom?

L.A. Batt - “Overture to Obliteration” brings us to far-off New Zealand to glimpse the wreckage the System has wrought.

©2019 Tao Wong (P)2020 Tao Wong

Decent stories with some major flaws.

Most of the stories were decent, but a few very obviously demonstrated that the authors weren't paying attention in the main storyline.
One had a basic class quickly killing a creature with over 70,000 HP. John Lee struggles to do so as a high level Master class.
Another's whole story is around a guy with alzheimer's. Which doesn't make any sense, since the system automatically cures all non-system generated diseases and injuries upon integration. Another story even had some get cured of alzheimer's.
If these stories weren't tied to the System Apocalypse series, they'd be good. But as it is, its like watching a director butcher a novel's concepts because he thinks he can do it better.

not bad

wonderful world building!
most of the characters are fun, all are interesting...
the stories and narration are of varying quality, but they are never bad...
if you enjoy the universe, you will enjoy this book...
if you just want the overpowered main character, this might not be for you...

Sad I slept on it

NGL, not typically a fan of anthologies but this one is pretty epic. it honestly lends a much needed bit of depth to the world that isn't available in the normal series.

Love this setting, and this does not disappoint!

This series is a great one, and one of the pillars of the LitRPG genre. This set of short stories does not disappoint either!

A Good listen

I really enjoyed the look at system apocalypse universe through a new perspective. I thought many of the stories were a unique take on some old ideas

Pleasant

This book is a collection of stories that I believe listeners will enjoy hearing—all in all, well worth the credit.

A High Fantasy/Sci-fi Experience

This anthology does not disappoint. Each one develops their characters and takes the listener on a journey through the System universe.

Besides having a cool RPG gaming theme, the vignettes are carefully crafted to explore the human (and canine) condition.

Pro tip: if you’re a dog lover, the second story will make your heart leap.

Can’t wait for the next volume.

Not Good!

Gave it 2 stars primarily for the companion Dog story. All the other stories were lame! Two were absolute trash.

I enjoyed the various points view

I couldn't really get into Tooth & Claw or Debts and Dances but overall the collection is great.
It's good to see inclusions from around the world. I hope to read more from Craig Hamilton and L.A Batt.

Keep up the good work!

Love this post apocalyptic world

This is a great compilation of stories. They provide some depth to the world that Tao Wong creates. There is a great cast of narrators today go along with the stories.