• Member Since 18th Jun, 2012
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D48


Has a new gaming PC eating all his time.

Nov
1st
2019

Closing Thoughts · 6:45pm Nov 1st, 2019

It's well known that the show has been a growing disaster for years. The fandom is much smaller than it used to be with far less engagement of all kinds, and Hasbro is unwilling to acknowledge that they royally screwed up with MLP. In all honesty I'm shocked I'm still here at all considering the last episode I watched was in season 5, but at the end of the day I just haven't found anything more substantial to take my time. That said, I've always been happier giving constructive criticism

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Highly Recommended Stories (under construction)

While I read quite a bit and have a fairly long list of stories I have enjoyed, I have compiled a relatively short list of true gems that I strongly recommend reading even if you are not particularly interested in the concept or genre (or familiar with the crossover universe in those cases). I have also provided a brief description of why each story is worth reading because in some cases the part that really makes the story shine beyond being well written is a few chapters in so I feel it is important to warn readers ahead of time to avoid giving up the story early. I will also mention sequels and/or side stories as appropriate because quality is not always consistent across different stories. It is also important to note that these are presented in alphabetical order to avoid any appearance of a quality ordering since they are all great. I have sorted them based on status with complete standalone stories or complete stories with complete sequels first, complete stories with ongoing sequels second, incomplete stories being worked on third, and stories that appear to be dead last. Now, on to the list.

Complete:

Coming Home by The Cyan Recluse
This is a very unusual piece for this site which definitely deserves special attention. While the story is about Chrysalis and the changelings journey to the Crystal Empire, what really makes it stand out is the author's way with words. This is an absolutely fantastic piece of writing which does an exceptional job of showcasing exactly what the English language is capable of in the hands of someone who is willing to put in the effort. This 4000 word piece is a shining example of what you can do when you really put your mind to it and is absolutely worth the few minutes it takes to read.

A Foul Light Shines by Karazor
While there is a lot to recommend this story, what really makes it stand out is the sheer audacity of the concept. This story manages to cross over with Warhammer 40K while remaining true to the tone of both IPs. I have read it and still have trouble believing this, but it really does manage to keep Warhammer feeling like its grimdark self and MLP feeling like its cheerful optimistic self as they interact in the same story. Neither element overpowers or fundamentally alters the other as they interact and learn from each other through the course of the story and both sides are critical to resolving the plot so the whole story really does feel fair and balanced to both sides which is frankly amazing given the crossover. One other interesting little detail is that due to the strangeness of human society in Warhammer, the ponies wind up feeling human while the actual humans feel much more like an alien culture which is quite unusual in this fandom.

The Thessalonica Legacy by Dashukta
While being a BattleTech crossover is a major positive for me both due to my own personal love of the universe and the fact that the BattleTech fanbase is older and more mature than most for a number of reasons I will not go into here, this story is very strong in its own right and definitely earns its place in this list. While the beginning is a little slow and the first chapter is set entirely in the BattleTech universe which will probably be unfamiliar to most readers, the story does an excellent job of presenting everything you actually need to know about the crossover elements without diving into unimportant specs and numbers (with the exception of one scene where a character does it to deliberately to confuse the ponies with an impressive description of his machine) so a lack of prior knowledge is not an obstacle no matter what the first chapter might look like. It is of particular note that the BattleTech universe is big enough that there are a number of invasions of minor planets which are conquered at various points and noted by nothing more than "unit X took Planet Y from militia at time Z" in a sourcebook somewhere so the crossover characters are all OCs which also helps its accessibility. The plot and resolution is well handled with some interesting world building elements and backstory, although the real highlight of the story is the first contact scene which is one of the best I have ever read. It is well set up in the relatively slow introduction and handled logically by both sides while maintaining proper characterization. Everyone behaves with the cautious uncertainty you would expect in such a situation while moving forwards slowly and deliberately rather than assuming the other party is friendly or hostile like many stories do.

Without a Hive by Phoenix_Dragon
This is one of the best changeling stories on the site with none of the stupid hive mind or stupid evil garbage that tends to infect them, although part of that is that Nictis is cut off from other changelings for most of the story because Chrysalis does stray into the stupid evil category a bit in the sequel. Regardless, this is a fantastic story of a changeling cut off and isolated in Equestria trying to figure out who he is and what his relationship with a pony means to him when he cannot get home. Perhaps the most unusual part of this is that the story starts several years before the invasion which isolates the conflicts associated with Nictis figuring out his new life and lets the story really dig deep into that before turning his world upside down with the invasion. The side story and sequel are both excellent despite the issues with Chrysalis in the sequel, and the sequel has some excellent examples of unforeseen but perfectly logical consequences which add a very interesting twist to the story.

Xenophilia by AnonponyDASHIE
Before I get started, I need to warn you that this is a mature-rated story featuring graphical descriptions of sexual acts unlike the rest of the stories on this list which are all rated T or E so you do need to keep that in mind before you open it up at work or school or anywhere else that type of content would be unwelcome. It is also important to make it clear that I personally have no sexual interest in ponies and absolutely hate clopfics so my recommendation of this story is in spite of its sexual content, not because of it. What really makes this story shine is the world building it does with a herd-based matriarchal pony society which is some of the best work I have ever seen. Everything fits together naturally and meshes beautifully with what we have seen in the show to create a society that is familiar and relatable while still feeling alien enough to be believable from an alien species. The world building is so strong that it has inspired a lot of authors to work within the framework of that universe or draw heavily on it in their own works with a group to bring the bulk of it together and provide a forum for discussions on the universe. It is interesting to note that almost none of the other stories are rated M which makes it clear that the various authors were more interested in the world than the sex, although quality naturally varies wildly with so many authors involved and no unifying continuity between stories.

The Dusk Guard: Rise by Viking ZX
In its own way, this story is more like the show than just about anything else on this list in spite of the major differences in tone and setting. While the general concept and plot are nothing special, the character work is absolutely amazing which makes the story as a whole shine. By the end of the story you’ll wind up loving his cast of OCs at least as much as the mane six, and that’s not even an exaggeration. The sequels are generally every bit as good as the first story as you would expect since the draw is the characterization rather than the writing, although there are a few minor issues in some of the sequels that keep them from being quite as exceptional as the original. Just be warned that you shouldn't expect much from the author personally. He is generally unresponsive to feedback and does not respond well to people disagreeing with him.


Complete with ongoing sequels:

Advanced Lessons by dungeonguy88
While the core of the first story is a Celestia/Chrysalis shipping, the true mastery here is in the way the characters and humor is handled across the series which rapidly spreads out into a beautiful interconnected universe which is much bigger than any one character or relationship. The major canon characters are all spot on, the minor canon characters take very interesting twists on what we know of them from the show without compromising anything, and the OCs are all fantastic. Every time a new character is introduced I want to see more of them and every time two characters who have not previously interacted much meet I am left wanting to see more of their interactions. While the network of interconnected stories is getting fairly extensive, they are fairly short for the most part so the universe is easy to get into and work through. While there is naturally some variation, these stories are generally great options if you are looking for something sweet and funny to read.

No Longer Lost by KiroTalon
This is an interesting little piece that takes an interesting twist on the usual Scootaloo is an orphan/Scootaloo adoption theme with Vinyl and Octavia. It is not especially long or groundbreaking, but it is very well written and definitely worth a read. The sequel is also good, although it takes some liberties with the universe I am not entirely comfortable with so I do not hold it in as high esteem as the original.

Stardust by Arad
Stardust is an excellent study in contrast with the adorkable and optimistic Twilight Sparkle thrown into the world of XCOM where humanity is fighting for its survival against an alien invasion. She interacts with a diverse cast of characters with some of them trying to do their best to be her friend and insulate her from the horrors they face while others hate her for simply being an alien due to their prior experience with the invaders. The character dynamics are fascinating as is watching Twilight react to the brutal realities that make it to her despite the best efforts of her friends in the XCOM organization. The sequel looses a lot of this strong contrast so it is not as exceptional as the first story, although it is still very good. I should also mention that I read this with no knowledge of XCOM and had no trouble keeping track of what was going on so that is no obstacle to anyone worried that they do not know the crossover IP.

A Voice Among the Strangers by Tystarr
This masterpiece is probably the single best human in Equestria story on the site. A prominent language barrier and a largely helpless female protagonist make for a very unique story as the ponies try to deal with the situation. The fact that her first and closest friend is a changeling and they have no way to explain the preexisting conflict between her friends makes things even more interesting resulting in one of the best stories on the site. There is also a "sequel" in work that follows the pony/changeling side of the language barrier and is looking like it will be every bit as good as the original.


Incomplete and in work:

ARTICLE 2 by Muppetz
This is the other major contender for the title of best human in Equestria story and is radically different from A Voice Among the Strangers. A prototype FTL ship screws up and winds up crashing into Equestria leaving only one badly wounded survivor. As a member of the military, he has a lot of responsibilities which are very difficult to uphold under the circumstances. The title refers to the US Military Code of Conduct, Article 2, which reads "I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist." which is just one of the many issues he has to deal with. The one major drawback to this story is that updates have slowed to a crawl since the author joined the Marines, however that first hand experience does lend a lot of authenticity to the story that is missing from many stories featuring the military.


Incomplete and probably dead:

Highly Reccommended Stories I still need to review
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Comments ( 52 )
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: O welcome to the RiMvrse group friend! hope you enjoy everything! o3o

Hey, thanks for adding my story to your library and leaving the comment! Glad to see you're enjoying it :twilightsmile:
Praise on, Sunbro! \ [T]'/

Thank you for adding my story <3

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