Storm Strider
Maradina
Nearly a century after rifts opened and giant magic-blooded bugs called the Swarm descended upon humanity, Sand-Dancer Marisol dreams only of sailing to the legendary Whirlpool City to bring healing seawater back to her sickly mother. When leviathans attack her ship and strand her in the middle of the sea, the System forces her to pick a class. Three classes will save her life, but only one—Storm Strider—lets her stand on water and keep moving. Across the sea, the depths, and a war against ancient leviathans and insect gods, Marisol must master her mutations, movement techniques, and System progression to save her mother and survive the Swarm war.
Progression: LitRPG System with explicit class selection: Marisol is forced to choose a class when stranded at sea, with System-calculated odds (<1% for Storm Strider). Progression is via leveling, mutations adapted to terrain (water-skating, underwater movement), and class-based skills. The series emphasizes power progression, magic, and mutation upgrades tied to System advancement, bug-faction tiers (Harbor Imperators, Deepwater Legion), and escalating Swarm/leviathan threats. Each book requires mastering new movement and combat adaptations (sea skating, deep diving). Verified from Goodreads descriptions: 'LitRPG elements with magic, mutations, power progression' and 'forcing her to pick a class from a system'.
Royal Road
Goodreads
