Unbound Deathlord
Edward Castle
When virtual reality becomes real enough that people feel transported to another world, Valia Online arrives. A man running from his past joins the game to forget it all, calling himself Jack Thorn and choosing the undead Deathlord race. As the game becomes too real, his war against the company (V-Soft/DIR) that stole his life escalates across three volumes - from survival and strategy, to vengeance, to wielding the corrupting Blight of the Fallen against the gods' war and Valia Online itself.
Progression: VRMMO LitRPG progression inside the full-immersion game Valia Online: explicit character levels, attributes, combat/craft skills and skill advancement. Protagonist Jack Thorn selects the undead Deathlord race, advancing a hybrid mage-by-choice / swordsman-by-necessity build (spell ranks, sword mastery, necromantic minions). Later volumes add a corruption/Blight power track (Fallen god-war weapon in his veins) as a second measurable advancement axis. Structured, quantified advancement is central to every volume.
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