9 Best City Building LitRPGs

LitRPG’s have shaken up the world of literary fantasy over the last few decades, growing from a niche interest into a hugely popular subgenre. Many of its biggest stories follow adventurers battling monsters, clearing dungeons, and gaining levels, but that’s not the only kind of LitRPG out there. There’s also a growing number of LitRPGs that give its protagonists something more ambitious to do: build a place for people to live.

Also known as settlement-builders, kingdom-builders, or empire-builders depending on the specific series, city-builder LitRPG novels draw on mechanics from real-time strategy games and building sims as well as traditional hack-and-slash RPGs. Resource management, planning upgrades, and keeping ever-expanding populations satisfied become just as important as combat stats. There are dozens of city-builder LitRPGs to choose from, but only the best balance their game-inspired systems with stories that make every new settlement worth investing in.

9

The Shadow Sun Series By Dave Willmarth (2019-2022)

A Gamer Builds A Stronghold For Humanity After An Alien Invasion Transforms Earth Into An RPG World

Earth’s apocalypse is only the beginning of Dave Willmarth’s six-book Shadow Sun series. Starting in 2019’s Shadow Sun Survival, protagonist Allistor faces a world overrun by monsters and governed by a new magical system. His gaming experience gives him a useful head start with the LitRPG mechanics that now rule his life, but personal survival isn’t enough for long. As he gathers other survivors, Allistor begins establishing a stronghold that can protect humanity and give it a chance to fight back.

This being the reason for the growth of Allistor’s stronghold throughout the Shadow Sun novels keeps this city-builder LitRPG series engaging beyond its stats and upgrades. Allistor must find ways for his people to develop, including seeking out class trainers who can help them become stronger under the new system, but it’s never just progression for progression’s sake. As his community expands, its leader’s concerns stretch beyond keeping monsters away from the walls to dealing with alien factions and the future of humanity. Shadow Sun still has plenty of combat and individual progression, but its settlement-building elements give those battles a clear purpose: creating somewhere the survivors can call home.

You can purchase Shadow Sun Survival, the first book in the Shadow Sun series by Dave Willmarth, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

8

The Ten Realms Series By Michael Chatfield (2018-2022)

Two Military Veterans Enter A Fantasy World Where Crafting And Community-Building Are As Important As Progressing Through Realms

Few city-builder LitRPG’s offer readers as much to sink their teeth into as The Ten Realms. Michael Chatfield’s series spans 12 books, beginning with 2018’s The Two Week Curse. It follows former combat medic Erik and his friend Rugrat, a Marine veteran, after they enter a magical world divided into realms. Advancing means growing strong enough to meet each realm’s requirements, but the pair’s military experience also shapes how they develop the series central settlement of Alva.

For LitRPG fans who enjoy watching a community develop over several books, Alva in The Ten Realms provides one of the genre’s most rewarding arcs. Erik and Rugrat’s ambitions extend beyond their own levels as they help build up the settlement, bringing together people with useful skills and encouraging crafting and innovation. They don’t just build a settlement, they build a society. Later books broaden the scope to cities and larger conflicts, so there’s much more action to be found than is usual for a community-focused builder LitRPG’s. Even so, the growth of Alva makes victories feel like they have consequences beyond stat sheets.

You can purchase The Two Week Curse, the first book in the Ten Realms series by Michael Chatfield, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

7

The Natural Laws Apocalypse Series By Tom Larcombe (2021-2023)

A College Student And His Friends Create Monster-Free Safe Zones When Earth Is Transformed By A Game-Like System

In Natural Laws Apocalypse, the city-building LitRPG series by Tom Larcombe, the end of the world comes with help files. In the first book, 2021’s Enter System, college student Marc Cavanaugh receives a warning that Earth’s natural laws are about to change, bringing magic, monsters, and new laws of physics that feel ripped right out of a video game. Marc and his friends prepare as best they can, then set out to rescue people once the transformation begins. The crucial early achievement is establishing a Safe Zone where monsters cannot spawn, and from there the settlement building takes shape.

The fact that Natural Laws Apocalypse‘s building mechanics are centered on Safe Zones in an apocalyptic scenario gives the LitRPG series a simple but effective building hook: every person the group brings in needs somewhere secure, and expanding that security across the series’ 8 books means understanding the System’s rules. As Marc’s network of connected Safe Zones develops, the story combines the classes and magical abilities typical of good LitRPG’s with the larger challenge of helping a community endure incredibly dire circumstances.

You can purchase Enter System, the first book in the Natural Laws Apocalypse series by Tom Larcombe, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

6

The Dungeon Lord Series By Hugo Huesca (2017-2024)

A Man Becomes A Champion Of Darkness And Develops A Dungeon Stronghold While Navigating A Dangerous Fantasy World

Building a thriving settlement is difficult enough when the neighbors are friendly. In Hugo Huesca’s Dungeon Lord series, Edward Wright has to contend with enemies who see his very role as proof that he belongs on the wrong side. Recruited as a Dungeon Lord by the dark god Murmur in 2017’s The Wraith’s Haunt, Ed enters the world of Ivalis and finds himself caught between powerful forces of Light and Dark. The five-book series may have a classic fantasy premise, but the building LitRPG mechanics put an incredibly fresh spin on it.

What’s more, the specifics Ed’s dungeon gives the series a different flavor from a conventional city builder. The dungeon isn’t just a home for Ed the people who join him, it’s also an important asset in a wider realm-spanning conflict. Hugo Huesca also gives Ed room to question the conflict he’s been drawn into. For readers who prefer things darker and more action-heavy, Dungeon Lord offers an entertaining alternative to the settlement-building LitRPG’s that focus on managing a peaceful village.

You can purchase The Wraith’s Haunt, the first book in the Dungeon Lord series by Hugo Huesca, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

5

The Awaken Online Series By Travis Bagwell (2016-2026)

A Bullied Teenager Becomes A Necromancer In A Virtual World, Where An Undead City Gives Him Power And Responsibility

Travis Bagwell’s Awaken Online is a massive city-building LitRPG journey told across 15 novels, including side quests and subseries. However, it all begins with Jason, a teenager looking for an escape from a miserable real life in a new virtual reality game. His choices lead him toward necromancy and an unexpected reputation as a villain. In 2016’s Catharsis, the first novel, Jason leads a coup in the undead city of Lux that culminates in him taking the Twilight Throne and being crowned regent. Once becoming its new ruler, Jason must expand Lux while dealing with threats not just from within the game, but outside it too.

Leadership is a core theme of the Awaken Online novels. Jason must use his growing power to not just expand and shape a community, but defend it too. The game’s NPCs and rival players make ruling a city much messier than simply selecting upgrades from a menu. City management isn’t the focus of every installment, either, as there’s plenty of PvP conflict and character-driven drama too. This mix of more traditional LitRPG fare with healthy doses of necromancy, grand strategy, and an evolving stronghold makes Awaken Online one of the most distinctive builder LitRPGs out there, and one of the most satisfying.

You can purchase Catharsis, the first book in the Awaken Online series by Travis Bagwell, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

4

The New Era Online Series By Shemer Kuznits (2017-2021)

A Betrayed Player Trapped As A Goblin Builds A Monster Settlement From The Ground Up

Few city-building LitRPG premises are quite as distinct as Life Reset. In the first book of Shemer Kuznits’s six-book New Era Online series, a powerful guild leader named Oren is betrayed and transformed into a low-level goblin. Trapped in the game and stripped of his former status, he faces the unenviable task of starting over as one of the creatures players usually kill for experience. However, Oren doesn’t take his fate laying down. After the initial wears off, he gets to work gathering fellow goblins and coordinating them to build a home and, after years of being fodder for low-level players, finally turn the tables.

Oren’s path back to power runs through the development of a goblin settlement, but the reasons he has to are what make the New Era Online novels so satisfying. Recruiting and managing monsters, improving their home, and building a force capable of defending it aren’t just central to his survival, but also his plans for revenge. Those building mechanics are also closely tied to his changing relationship with the game world: the creatures around him cease being disposable enemies and become his community. Later books expand the conflict and the ambitions of Oren’s clan, but the satisfaction of turning a vulnerable group into a formidable settlement is what makes New Era Online such a rewarding city-building LitRPG.

You can purchase Life Reset, the first book in the New Era Online series by Shemer Kuznits, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

3

The Noobtown Series By Ryan Rimmel (2019-2026)

A Man Reborn In A Dangerous Game-Like World Becomes The Unlikely Mayor Of A Neglected Settlement

Being sent to a beginner’s area sounds like a relatively gentle introduction to a new world. Unfortunately for Jim, the abandoned starting zone in Ryan Rimmel’s Noobtown series is full of threats that never got the message about going easy on newcomers. After dying and being reborn in 2019’s The Mayor of Nootown, Jim must learn the rules of his new existence while accompanied by a sarcastic, miniature shoulder demon named Shart. This is definitely one of the more comedic LitRPGs out there, but Jim’s genuine good-faith efforts to develop Noobtown give the absurdity a welcome sense of purpose.

As Jim gains levels and takes on increasingly dangerous challenges across the 9 Noobtown novels, he also shows he genuinely cares about making the settlement a better place for its inhabitants. Author Ryan Rimmel mixes that emotionally-grounded progression with absurd monsters, frequent jokes, and a cast of characters like Badelor the talking murder badger that ensure Noobtown is a place readers will want to visit. The series eventually ranges far beyond its first settlement, but for anyone that likes their building-focused LitRPGs with a generous helping of irreverent humor that defines series like Dungeon Crawler Carl, Jim’s mayoral career is perfect.

You can purchase The Mayor of Noobtown, the first book in the Noobtown series by Ryan Rimmel, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

2

The CivCEO/Accidental Champion Series By Andrew Karevik (2019-2021)

A Retired CEO Uses Trade And Business Acumen To Develop A Settlement In A Fantasy Strategy Game

LitRPG readers who would prefer the tension of negotiating a kingdom-saving trade deal rather than heroes grinding through yet another dungeon need to dive into the 8 CivCEO novels. Andrew Karevik’s series (which is also known as Accidental Champion) follows Charles Morris, a former multinational CEO forced into retirement after a heart attack. A new game gives Charles an opportunity to put his experience to work again, this time in a fantasy setting where building an economy proves to be just as important as winning a fight.

The CivCEO novels stand out among city-building LitRPGs because Charles approaches his settlement’s development like a business problem. His strategies don’t revolve around conflict, but making deals and finding opportunities. That focus gives the series a distinct strategy-game feel: the pleasure comes from seeing how one commercial decision can create the conditions for a larger, stronger community. There are still rivals and threats to contend with, but Charles’s greatest asset is his ability to think through a problem and find an advantageous arrangement. It’s an experience tailor-made for any LitRPG fans that also enjoy deep 4X strategy games.

You can purchase CivCEO, the first book in The Accidental Champion series by Andrew Karevik, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.

1

The Chaos Seeds Series By Aleron Kong (2015-2020)

A Definitive Settlement Building LitRPG Experience

Aleron Kong’s Chaos Seeds series, also widely known as The Land, has become one of the most recognizable names in LitRPG, and is considered by many to be the definitive city builder story. The series begins with 2015’s The Land: Founding, which sends gamer Richter into a magical world filled with quests, monsters, skills, and secrets. In other words, the standard tropes and trappings of almost every LitRPG. However, the series flipped the genre on its head by being one of the first to focus on settlement development as a way to navigate these elements. Over eight books, Richter’s adventures expand from simple survival into establishing the Mist Village and ensuring it survives the conflicts that plague the land.

The Mist Village itself is, as is now expected from city-builder LitRPGs, the core of the Chaos Seeds series’ appeal. Unlike many other early LitRPGs, Richter’s progression doesn’t stop at choosing abilities and collecting loot. Aleron Kong ensured that developing the settlement meant Richter had to factor in its inhabitants and future alongside statistical aspects like defenses and resources. It makes the progression refreshingly consequential. As the fantasy village grows, so does the sense that his achievements have left a lasting mark on the world.

You can purchase The Land: Founding, the first book in the Chaos Seeds series by Aleron Kong, 9 Best City Building LitRPGs.