There are many possible fates that can await those whisked away from our world to another.
Some became heroes or villains, given the right power to forge their own destinies as they wished.
Others, the powerless, became victims, doomed to perish, at the mercy of the cruel world filled with mystical powers they are unprepared for.
A lone man that woke up alone under the alien sky was neither of those.
He didn't get to choose what he was going to become - a disaster, an unwilling source of intelligent, yet violent monsters, rapidly rising in numbers. Stranded in a foreign land, without even knowing the language, forever locked in the unending cycle of violence he neither wished for nor can escape from. His creations may be the only company he would ever find.
The man wasn’t powerless. But was he really that much better off?
It just took one wrong power.
A man without a name woke up in a foreign land.
They tried to kill him.
They messed with the wrong guy.
The Mook Maker is the story built around the premise of receiving the wrong power upon being transported to another world. It's the progression fantasy, but one in which numbers going up is the part of the problem, not a solution.
The nameless protagonist, referred throughout the story only as The Master, is not a hero. He is the equivalent of the Prime Evil from Diablo, or "Root" in a case in this universe, the source of the endless waves of the bloodthirsty monsters plaguing the land, quickly ramping up to the situation where only magically shielded cities could even hope to survive against the endless waves of monsters. Except in this case, all monsters are anthro furry ladies, because why not?
How does all that work?
The MC's are essentially powerless. He can't even speak the local language, all his skill translates in an ever-increasing number of the minions. They are all sapient; they are all female furry ladies, all of them very devoted, and most-importantly, hyper-aggressive. Their default approach is to kill humans now, ask questions never.
Their numbers rise extremely fast as long as they keep killing, and they respawn should they be killed, and their growth rate is exponentially doubling their numbers essentially every other day. The MC wasn't in the world for an hour, and there were already thirty of them after the random encounter with the native humans. Seven days later, there are thousands of monsters.
It is mass attrition-based power. The fact he was essentially turned into the walking ecological disaster (and probably a local extinction event, considering the murderous nature of his followers)
Will he be ever able to rein in this growing horde?
Or would he start to become the "Root of All Evil" he is supposed to be?
He started as a guy not used to violence, in shock from what is happening, very unusual for an isekai protagonist.
It's mostly a story about the guy, trapped in the position he doesn't want to be in, and slowly warming up towards his horde of insane furries, exploring both his growing affection for the devoted furry yanderes that keep him alive, and the blue-and-orange-morality of his hive minded minions.
A lot of chapters are also dedicated to the interludes from the perspective of the humans and their reactions to the threat from beyond.
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EXCELLENT PREMISE, FLAWED EXECUTION
NOTE: I'm relatively new to the world of web novels (started browsing and researching this market only a few months ago), and my main reading background comes from traditional published literature. Consider this a disclaimer if you prefer.
The Mook Maker's premise is refreshing when compared to the vast majority of isekai that's out there. The protagonist's main power is interesting in that it doesn't directly enhance him (although there are subtle hints that he does become stronger/more capable personally, too), and the fact that he's thrust into the role of the villain - while nothing new in and of itself - is presented in a way that poses some interesting moral and philosophical questions, as well as opening a potential debate about the nature of determinism, prejudice, and historical inertia.
What personally drew me in was the cute, innocent way in how the relationships between the Master and his horde of monster girls develop. There is no deception here, no discord, no enmity, no jealousy, or any other emotional turmoils which plague most complex human interactions. The girls' love for their Master is pure and unconditional, and he gradually responds to their affections with equal intensity - he is their whole world, a they are his. It's simple, yet that's the beauty of it - sometimes, a simple premise is all I need; and I enjoy it all the more when that simplicity is examined in all kinds of external situations. Consider this the main positive of this story.
Another thing I liked is how sentimental the narrative is when describing the interactions between the Master and his beloved monster girls. Maybe I've been jaded by too much "serious fiction" and dystopian duplicity of contemporary literature, but the soppy, almost child-like interactions were a breath of fresh air for me; a "return to simpler times" if you will, when I did my reading very differently than I do now.
Now, let's talk downsides.
The story's structure and pacing are a mess. There is almost no narrative zooming, every chapter is an endless chain of scenes after scenes, most of which superficial. It gets tedious after a time, given how the story is over 800 pages already. It also prevents the plot, in my opinion, from really "taking off" and exploring larger narrative arcs that will certainly drive events forward and make this merely enjoyable ride into a truly gripping read.
Stylistically, the writing is abysmal. The sentences themselves are grammatically sound, in the technical sense, but are strung together with utter disregard for any narrative flow. The most common error is improper contextual usage of "a" and "the"; they are often swapped in places where newly established items/characters are referred as "the X" and already established items/characters are "a (n) X" when it should be vice-versa. Rampant over-usage of a limited set of descriptors is also prevalent, which could be used as a deliberate effect, but there's no indication of this being the author's intent.
There's also a ton of cookie-cutter "narrative blocks" in each chapter that are repeated over and over again verbatim, be it the Master's personal thoughts about various topics/situations, references to the various named monster girls and their characteristics/motivations, or other established story details. Honestly, if those segments were cut or greatly reduced, this whole story would turn into a much leaner and better read. As it currently stands, it looks like an amateurish attempt to figure out the story literally while the sentences are written. This is a novice-level mistake, one that can be corrected with editing after the story's completion. But it's frustrating to endure it. I've been reading most chapters diagonally because of that issue, slowing down only during dialogues or to enjoy the Master and his girls' interplays.
Another negative is the so-called "semi-interactive segments", where readers choose how the Master's abilities develop as the story progresses. This story isn't advertised as a quest or other type of live-interaction fiction; as such, this communicates to me that the author doesn't have a clear direction for the story they want to tell. As a reader, I lose faith in their ability to finish this story in a satisfying manner. Even if this popularity stunt is an attempt to engage their audience more, it's a poorly thought out one, in my opinion. If I wanted interactivity, I'd go play a videogame. When I'm reading, I want clear, thought-out stories that have a definite ending in mind.
In the end, I give The Mook Maker 3 out 5 stars. I like the story's premise very much, but the downsides are hard to swallow and frustrating. I will read the story to completion - if it's ever completed, this being a real risk in the world of web novels - but I recommend it only to those who really like the idea of a main character who has his personal army of s*xy anthropomorphic animal girls who love him without question. While the rest of the world considers them evil incarnate. It makes for an amusingly absurd contrast sometimes. Also, I'd like to learn more about the gods of this world, especially if they are dragons.
"For Master!"
T L ; D R
3 stars only on the strength of the story's premise and my personal affinity for it. Otherwise, it'd be less, given the poor execution and lack of direction.
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A wonderful story that far diverges from the usual isekai tropes and setting allowing for a fresh take on the genre.
The world: The isekai world the MC is thrust into is the main driving force of the conflict found within this story. It isn’t a high fantasy world with elves, dwarfs and monsters and only has moderate fantasy/supernatural elements but is still extremely hostile to our MC. In this world out MC (known only as Master) is not only viewed as, but seems to fundamentally be a creature of great evil/malice while still retaining regular sensibilities and values. This natural conflict forces Master into an unending cycle of violence he neither wished for, nor can escape from. Exploring the emotional and physical conflicts of his and the ones he cares for’s simple survival is the driving force of the story.
The MC: The aforementioned Master is a simple regular human thrust into an unfavourable and uncaring situation without the faculties to possibly surmount it. He is regular an human in the most relatable sense. He can’t easily stomach killing, he isn’t prepared for or capable of a life of death battle and he is constantly wracked by indecision, guilt and fear in scenarios that most everyone would be. Master is teetering the fine balance between ‘wining indecisive baby’ and ‘story book protagonist’ that gives a sense of relatability towards him without constantly pissing you off with incessant wining. In the moments he can, he steps up to the plate and does what needs to be done, sacrificing some of what was important to him for now what is in a manner that satisfies the readers interests. Ultimately, How master acts was what would make or break this story and I think he is so far, done very well.
The horde: The fluffy, clawy and bitey menagerie of mystical-magical monsters the make the continued existence of Master possible, that are more then willing to (and capable of due to infinite repawns) throw themselves in front of any danger that comes the way of their Master. This troupe of wonderful ladies is both a driving force to the conflict as well as the solution to it, both on the emotional and physical sides. The first thing these creatures experience upon their unceremonious birthing into existence is the treachery of humans directed towards their beloved Master cementing their hostility, and sometimes outright disgust, as an impermeable factor of their beings. Much to the dismay of Master their first conflict solution tool is swift and often brutal murder, this is ultimately upsetting as magically enhanced beastial destruction of homo-sapiens is quite distressing for the modern conflict adverse man. Unfortunately for Master the horde he commands is the only thing keeping his untimely end from him and fortunately for us this causes Master to grow closer to his horde and make decisions putting their well being at the forefront.
Also he s*xes them. ?
All in all this was a wonderful find and I am excited for more chapters to come.
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Style: All I can say is that the style for this story is excellent. It's written in first person and the author manages to portray the MC in a way that fits the tone and theme of the story. With the way the MC reacts, it is possible to "relate" to their actions and experiences. Very fitting for a story themed around an army of animal girls that kill on the MC's command.
Grammar: Grammar is basically flawless. I haven't noticed anything wrong during what I've read. I know the author isn't a native speaker, but I never would have guessed that by reading this story. It's an easy read too; no complex and dense sentences that you have to read over and over again.
Story: There is still a lot to learn. The MC is thrown into a violent fantasy world and for some reason has animal girls that will fight to the death at his command. There are a lot of questions that still need to be answered, but it's not the kind where the questions are formed from plot holes, but rather open ended questions that leave you asking for me.
Character: I have to give five stars for the character names alone (no bias at all here). The characters act as you'd expect. The animal girls act subservient while the MC is clueless at first about what's going on slowly gets accustomed to what's going on. The characters deliver what is expected.
Fun read, although a bit graphic at times. Lots of stats too, so there's definitely an audience for this.
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Master, I crave violence! Guy gets summoned to another world, accidentally summons a Pyro Anthro-Fox, said fox proceeds to commit unspeakable violence upon the (invasive) natives with the help of mini-mes', Guy runs away only to summon a s*xy Werewolf Dom, said SWD proceeds to also commit unspeakable violence upon the (local) natives with her mini-mes', runs to a local temple, commits accidental mass-murder, frees random captives, summons mouse girls superior sister: Rat Healer and her mini versions, before deciding that developing Stockholm Syndrome and PTSD is vastly superior to engaging in flirting back with his summoned Fox and Werewolf yanderes. The Mook Maker is, as the title suggests, a story about the bottomless source from which all monsters came before their inevitable clash with the heroes. The mook maker in this story comes in the form of The Master, once an average man from our world, summoned by the foolish mortals to save them from themselves. Or rather, to protect the besieged kingdom from the invaders. However, the scrolls of eldritch knowledge aren’t a toy, so instead of the proper heroic power, they get a progenitor and creator of all monsters. Not like the Master wants to be a source of all evil in the land, but the massive aura that serves as a beacon for these creatures also forces all the humans to stop the inevitable extinction of their species by trying to fight the Master’s creatures. The Master, being the average mind behind the great evil, repeatedly tries diplomacy, only to fail miserably, only to become attached to his devoted monster spawns. Luckily for him, they all come in the form of the anthropomorphic animal ladies fanatically devoted to their creator and the source of their infinite respawns. They are fluffy, they are cuddly, they never leave Master’s side, and are absolutely set on murdering everything that they come across. So continue the story of the hapless man and his endless, immortal horde of insane furries. Master, I crave violence!
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Good so far. Basically a dude summoned in another world and immediately thrusted to combat. With no idea or understanding going on, he tries to do his best to gather information and survive.
Some issues with tags. The overpowered protagonist should be switch to weak. And unique skill tag should be added. Or r-15 tag
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TL;DR:
this story is written good enough to cause suspension of misbelief and start up your imagination, only for you to bang your head against your wall because of MC being a ret*rd.
Every character is interesting... except the MC and his sidekicks.
I mean, how stupid can someone be? The story is written in such a way it's difficult to tell if the MC is intentionally such an idiot, or it's just bad writing. Every possible decision and action (or inaction) of MC is just plain wrong based on what he knows.
And it's contrasted to the rest of the story which is decent if not more AND it's also contrasted to MC's though patterns, that might seem like an intelligent person, but reaching utterly useless conclusions. Even in conversations MC is just a useless wimp, behaving like a ret*rd.
This causes me to have severe "uncanny valley" effect if you could call it that, and I think I now hate this story.
In conclusion, this story is written good enough to cause "suspension of misbelief" and start up your imagination, only for you to bang your head against your wall because of MC being a ret*rd
normally this is not a problem because bad MC's are common where stories are completely bad, and you can engage your SoM on your imagination, instead of directly on the book
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