What Is Progression Fantasy

Progression fantasy is a genre of fiction that emphasizes the main character's progress along one or more tracks: combat ability, political influence, etcetera. In LitRPG, a popular subgenre, characters usually advance through gamelike level-ups.

The appeal is that you feel like you're progressing alongside the main character -- it's thrilling to follow someone who starts incompetent and becomes OP (overpowered). Farm boy to dragon slayer, here we go!

Progression fantasy subgenres

Genres with progression elements include litRPG, cultivation, and dungeon core.

In litRPGs, progress is often measured through status screens that quantify exactly how far a character has progressed in skills, magical powers, and overall levels.

In cultivation novels, progress is measured by one's magical realm and proficiency with martial techniques.

Dungeon core novels often combine elements of litRPG status screens and "floor" expansions to show how far the main character, a dungeon core, has progressed.

Popular subgenre crossovers

Lately, genres have been crossing over. Combining litRPG with cultivation elements is especially popular among authors right now.

He Who Fights With Monsters combines litRPG status screens with Western, cultivation-style power-ups. It's a progression system you won't find elsewhere.

The Toll-Road to Immortality is a fundamentally xianxia (Chinese cultivation fantasy) story with light litRPG elements. Its game-like elements help guide the reader through the main character's journey to immortality.

As progression fantasy stories continue to gain popularity on sites like Royal Road, we'll probably see more blending of genres.

Where to find progression fantasy books

Royal Road has a massive selection of progression fantasy series... for free! Check it out.

You can find a large selection of progression fantasy books on Kindle Unlimited (Amazon.com). Many of these are written by authors who posted their original drafts on Royal Road, the birthplace of new authors.

Searching can be tricky. Amazon has poor filters and loads of ads. Some authors are only on Royal Road, Amazon, or websites like webnovel.com.

I keep an up-to-date list of top progression fantasy books I've actually read. Take a peek. You might find something on there you haven't heard of.