Wayhaven Book 4 Discussion Thread

[EvilChani]

@Savor

I also have an mc for the A route but that is like licking sand paper (which would be more pleasant than this romance honestly)

That’s a perfect description of A’s “romance”.

@Savor

Plus all the constant things going on without zero downtime (unless you count the “downtime” you get where it just time skips) to actually spend some time with your LI just makes me feel mentally tired reading it.

That’s because if you spent time with your LI during the downtime we don’t get to see, progress would have to be made. There are seven books to fill, so progress is not allowed.

On M

@wenus

Oh hell no

Yep. And the info drop from M to a bff-MC is a bazillion times better than what we’ve gotten from a romanced M thus far. We get to learn about the reason M joined. A romanced MC has no fucking clue about that other then “derrp, memory loss something something”. Oh, and then ask for the umpteenth time if M really has no memories. I wouldn’t fault M for punching the MC the next time they utter that ridiculous question.

@notapretzel

On that note, the MC really needs to stop asking M if they truly don’t remember anything. How many times do they need to hear “no” before they get the message? M has the patience of a saint

Agree with this. But then, M doesn’t tell a romanced MC a damned thing. That’s for a bff MC. Fuck anyone who wants to romance M…

@notapretzel

I think it has more to do with M’s past than anything else, similar to when the MC hurt them the first time in the forest.

Well, M doesn’t remember their past, so that can’t be why they don’t trust the MC and assume the worst of them. M doesn’t do that with anyone else that is a constant in their life–not UB and not anyone at the Agency. Only the MC is assumed to be a monster who has hidden solar powers for the past six fucking months or more and who intentionally used said powers to hurt M when they least expected it.

This is supposed to be a “soulmate” kind of love, according to Sera, but M is literally the only one of the four (five, if you include the new villain) LIs that treats the MC like the fucking enemy if things don’t go just so for them. What she’s writing for M isn’t a soulmate romance and it’s not love. It’s just… fucked up and confusing. It literally feels like she’s trying to botch it, at this point, which makes sense considering she can’t seem to fathom why anyone would like M or why they liked b3 M so much. Gotta make sure to undo that!!

@maymay

hoenstly, playing M’s route is flabbergasting with the way they act completely territorial with the MC while simultaneously refusing to admit and talk about their feelings and never broaching the “relationship” subject. it’s a bit ridiculous at this point, either M is just plain stupid (esp regarding emotional intelligence) or they just don’t care enough abt the MC to be honest with them.

Well, Mishka has repeatedly told us in asks that M “doesn’t care” about anything the MC is doing at any given time and “wouldn’t notice” much of anything about them and their feelings. That said, the whole “M is stupid” plot as run its course and ventured into complete absurdity.

If she wanted to drag out M’s “romance” for seven books–which is apparently what we’re getting, because if almost having the MC drained to death for their blood wasn’t enough to make M realize they cared, nothing will–then she should’ve gone a different route. Some ridiculous part of me had hoped her declaration that M was ‘realizing quicker’ on one bff route wasn’t just more meaningless drivel and she intended to go with that.

After all, M basically admitted to A that they love the MC and they are just too scared to ask MC if they feel the same (read the room, M). Wouldn’t that have been a cool way to approach it? Instead of more stupid M, on the A-bff path, you get M showing they care but seeming weird and conflicted. The MC wouldn’t realize why that was, but M’s POV could show that they want to tell the MC but are scared of losing what they have with them. Then the powers come into play and they’re cut off from MC physically and end up blurting out how they feel when the MC tries to back away to protect them (bonus if it’s practically shouted at the MC in a very irritated tone).

For the other two bffs, M still isn’t confused–they realize it, but they are both afraid and resistant because N and F are being N and F and it annoys M so they can’t deal with the feelings they have. With one of these two as bffs, it ends up taking a bit longer for M to admit it.

No matter who the bff is, a M POV could make it clear that they know this is love, and that it’s not like the love they have for UB, but M also doesn’t have a burning desire to go out and get the MC flowers or take them dancing (would love to have M say/think this, then have M take them to the stupid ass ball without MC having to ask them). But M doesn’t even seem to realize that much, even after fucking saying as much to A. Instead, we get M basically wondering why they want to be around the MC, then waving them off when there’s something that has to be done as though they couldn’t care less about the MC unless they’re in sight.

Anyway…

If she went with something like this, she could still keep M and MC apart for longer, but M’s character isn’t turned into a window-licker who can’t reason their way out of a cardboard box with the top and bottom removed.

@maymay

. i read some time ago that the author plans for the M route to have a big moment in the next book (if I’m not wrong) but until then this is just a ghastly exclusive situationship

I don’t think there’s going to be a “big” moment for M. She said i an ask that it’s not going to be some big revelation for M. More like, they just suddenly realize it’s more than banging, say ‘huh’, and move on. However, she did say long ago that deep romance for M wouldn’t be until the very end of b4 or, more likely, b5. I have no fucking clue how we’re supposed to distinguish the two, since the MC will just “figure it out” that M loves them and it continues as normal from there.

@maymay

i fear i’m just in a sunk cost fallacy loop with this series :((

Lol. Try being on her patreon since its inception and buying three books. I’ve been in the sunk cost fallacy loop since b2.

@notapretzel

Let’s talk about Rebecca… The one time she decides to be proactive in her kid’s life… that’s what she does? But I think we all saw it coming the moment Li-Sar started killing people around town.

I wasn’t surprised at all. Nor will I be surprised when she’s magically okay from it.

On Li-sar

@vera

What doesn’t feel personal and well-written is Li’Sar. They’re bland, persistent and so incredibly boring - I can feel the staleness from the second their no-romance framework kicks in.The main way these relationships are supposed to progress is by MC being a weak-willed pathetic little thing that gives up the second they see them!

I mean, the MC is weak-willed and pathetic in all the romances. It’s less obvious with F and N, since there can be a relationship in both of their routes and it’s not a one-sided thing, but the MC is still an UwU tweener.

I have no desire to play Li-sar’s romance for the exact reason you stated, though. The character is flat and cartoonish. And not in the good Satoru Gojo kind of way (Gojo is anything but flat).

I read your screenshots and ugh. It’s close to a non-romanced Li-sar, but it has all the added shivering and shuddering. Why can it never just be a warm feeling or something less like frostbite or a stroke? Nothing is ever subtle from the MC, who is somehow able to decipher A’s hot and cold shtick and M’s… incessant stupidity.

When this one finally comes out, I’m going to depend on you to show us the Li-sar romance. I can’t abide the thought of trudging through that mess, at this point, especially since Li-sar will someone be painted as a better partner than M, lol.

@StrangeBird

The MC could have a little more self-love, in A’s route. The MC can give some cold answers to A and even push A, it’s quite satisfactory, but it’s still not enough.

Telling A to fuck off with their weird mixed signals still wouldn’t be enough, at this point. An HR visit asking for a team transfer is the only appropriate reaction to A, AFAIAC, especially considering A is trying to act like a couple after basically telling MC to move on with their life at the end of b3. It’d be more fun to say, “Guess what? I did move on, now stop looking at me like that before I sue your ass for sexual harassment.”

Just gonna put this here for the A-mancers, too…

[Nazroth]

I really appreciate your posts Chani, they not only share some of my own thoughts but sometimes also show me kinda what to expect when I haven’t played the new update yet and lets me take less mental damage from it when I do.

@EvilChani

Just gonna put this here for the A-mancers, too…

I was hoping a bit to be allowed to do this in A and M’s route but I always knew it wasn’t going to happen, and I don’t believe for a second we will get another chance when we have the perfect one now with the villain ro, also if it is true it just means that there will be 0 progress with A for at least most of book 5 so yay I guess.

I was reading through some of the villain ro post in there and it says that their route will have a sad ending no matter what you do or choose so +1 to disappointment, I really wanted at least one ending where you join them fully committed and you get an alternative early end of the series as a villain power couple and if you want to continue the other books you have to do it from another of the endings.

[LiliArch]

@EvilChani

Nothing is ever subtle from the MC, who is somehow able to decipher A’s hot and cold shtick and M’s… incessant stupidity.

New headcanon, MC is an empath but nobody ever realized because their powers only work with their soulmate, and they only trigger physical reactions.

[notapretzel]

@EvilChani

Well, M doesn’t remember their past, so that can’t be why they don’t trust the MC and assume the worst of them.

I think it’s more a ‘you might not remember it but your body does’ kind of scenario, due to past trauma.

[Akme2000]

Played the demo.

Thoughts

M route isn’t bad for me, but my MC didn’t realize their love despite Book 3 clearly wanting them to.

This means the MC also comes off like an idiot who can’t recognise their own feelings despite the writing basically telling me they do love M and it being extremely obvious. There’s still a forced and annoying lack of progress, but I find it a better route when both are complete idiots, definitely way less frustrating and oddly fun at times to have neither of the two realize it. I suspect there’ll be a forced realization for MC, the narrative has come close to it already.

Overall it’s quite good, it is repeating itself a bit with MC asking about Ms memories and the discussion about her senses. I get it already.

A route still comes off as emotionally abusive to me, especially if you tell A to back off multiple times. It’s not a case of being stupid, A is knowingly doing this. The Book 3 route was better as an easygoing MC, so maybe that’d be the case here too.

N route is an improvement from Book 3 so far, still mostly bland and there are times where I don’t believe the N from Book 1 and 2 would act a certain way. Some good scenes and the intimate scene didn’t feel jarring here. MC does feel too coddled on this route.

F route is again light and breezy. I don’t get invested when the F route tries to be dramatic but it’s sweet in lighter moments, at least with an MC who matches Fs energy and immaturity I can’t handle it with any other character.

I feel the BFF routes are much better paced than the romances, and the backstory reveals are superior to the ones on the romance paths. If the romances progressed more like this I’d probably not have much issue with them.

Verda and Bobby routes are the most interesting to me. The game is seemingly trying to force Verda into the agency path or at least make me feel bad for discouraging it, I hope Verda continues to have a role without being in the agency. Bobby is done well so far I enjoyed her office scene it was my favourite in the demo, I do not feel bad about her keeping her memories.

Tina path is poorly done, not just because you can’t tell her anything there’s no lingering tension so far, Tina suddenly drops all her frustration toward the MC so we can have the usual friendly talk scene. Douglas path is a bit boring, and I feel like the game tried to guilt trip me for not sending him to the Agency, which was annoying, it’s not bad though.

[vera]

@EvilChani

When this one finally comes out, I’m going to depend on you to show us the Li-sar romance.

I’ll need someone who’s not my poor girl Illiyana for this mess. Non-romance route had the unevitable Damocles sword finally leave its string - now we, too, get our personality rewritten because of the romance. Granted, it isn’t this bad yet: MC resists, MC actually gets a choice, they don’t get magical falling in love and, most importantly, they don’t forget about all the people who suffered when they’re next to their current book villain. It was really obnoxious with Sin - I don’t care about your tragic backstory, you kindap supes and sell them.

Given how one of her dads was, maybe I’ll throw my Mecha Ace MC into this verse and try my best for toxic yaoi.

[Francisco_Teixeira]

Well… that was something, i guess.
Not gonna lie, this demo didn’t get me excited for the actual game (might be because I’m fucking tired) it’s just very… idk?
As filler as B3 was, it’s demo did a far better job when it came to introducing mystery, raising the stakes, the interactions were better… it was just better paced (even tho the pacing of the actual book is fucking terrible). It’s also helped by the fact that up until B3 we had some sort of progression, character development and what looked like an overarching narrative.
B4’s demo up until this point just proves that everyone already should be in a relationship and that it’s just starting to stagnate.

The Villain of The Week (Cause this series does not have an overarching narrative, it’s structured like a literal episodic sunday morning cartoon that refuses to break the status quo) tries to establish themselves as a threat, but their goofy ass interactions and dialogue just make them annyoing. The plot also forced that ritual to happen by nerfing MC for the millionth time (Why weren’t they carrying the spray they used on Murphy?)

The MC’s magic, let’s be real… it’s nothing but a plot device to create manufactured drama between the vampires. Now the interactions and the romance are even more reduced cause the MC has solar magic. And why wasn’t this piece of information properly developed in B1 when the enemy was a fucking vampire? Lore is pratically nonexistent.

Now for the routes (Not much to say) Why does it take 4 out seven books for us to get any information about the characters? And why do they still feel like four unidimensional Wattpad archetypes ?

N… it was better than I expected i guess… it felt less like a goddamn yandere and more like a real person… wich makes their character even more inconsistent… either make them a full on yandere and tie the overprotective, obsessive nature into the romance for character development… or make them the overly sweet Wattpad archetype. If you’re gonna do both you need to commit to the idea instead of going back n forth (B1-2 Wattpad archetype, 3 treats the yandere traits like a flaw, 4 forgets about it completely and everything is fine)

F was… well at least there was SOME character development, finally. I’m gonna be honest, F’s route is becoming my favorite, not because it’s well written, but because it was so clearly created for people who want the slow burn to move faster without angst. As a RO, F’s personality is less annoying, they actually treat the MC with respect… and the only angst you have is their backstory being tied up with them being overly clingy and emotional. It feels more organic.

M pisses me off. That’s it. The character development from B2-3 is there, wich is great, but now every interaction feels forced because Sera is forcing them to stagnate. For the first 3 books, M being oblivious and dense as a rock made sense. But after B3 where they treat the MC as more than a fucktoy, we need them to confess their love to the MC by the first climax of B4… yk… the midpoint. And that’s not gonna happen, so… and AGAIN… THE MEMORIES THING. Like… that was already established in B3, instead of wasting paragraphs writing the same useless conversation, give them a memory lapse or don’t mention the memories up until the next book! The crystal thing in B3 was effective because it showed us what would happen if they hyper senses got out of control… it didn’t spoonfeed us the information, like OMG.

A… pisses me off even more. I don’t mind them not being able to let the detective go… but this plotline can only work if you give the MC the option to give A the cold shoulder. It cannot be this one-sided, I’m so sorry.
And… right now… their character has completely stagnated. Every book is literally the same thing but more intense. It made sense for the first three books cause they were still learning how to feel again, but after they let their walls down in B3 and allowed the kiss, they should’ve become a couple… or like I said, taste their own medicine to fucking grow some balls and see how much of a piece of shit they’re being to the MC.
The fact that we get no information about the vamps also does not help whatsoever.
Oh, and the options to flirt? To kiss? Be so for real right now, they’re not even pushing the MC away anymore!! What the fuck is keeping them from growing some balls?

[Mosie]

Demo so good I legit forgot I played it, before checking out the forum and seeing the thread come back alive. No, but seriously, it was a nothingburger.
It’s like a copypasta of what was already in it but worded slightly differently, in terms of drama. Which tbf it’s on me, cause at this point I shouldn’t hope for the vibes to suddenly shift.
This is wayhaven, this is always going to be wayhaven, this update was the final straw in the take it or leave it department.
We are in the big 2025 but this story is stuck in the early 2010s teen drama television. I think reading twilight in one sitting would hurt less than this. Sorry for the salt, I’ll shut up now.

[Francisco_Teixeira]

@Mosie

I think reading twilight in one sitting would hurt less than this.

Even Twilight has some sort of progression.It takes three movies for them to be together, but at least both of them grow and take the risk. The lore is also developed troughout the movies so you get some sort of continuity.
Wayhaven is stagnated and it feels more like an anthology without the cast being replaced. If you told me none of the books were connected to each other, I wouldn’t question you cause it basically restarts the status-quo and none of the events from the previous book affect the next book.

[LiliArch]

@Mosie

This is wayhaven, this is always going to be wayhaven

This sounds like a tagline to a horror novel.

[EvilChani]

Grumble grumble....

@Nazroth

I was hoping a bit to be allowed to do this in A and M’s route but I always knew it wasn’t going to happen, and I don’t believe for a second we will get another chance when we have the perfect one now with the villain ro

Yeah, if we aren’t getting the chance now to flirt to get A (and M, really) to pull their heads out of their asses, we’ll never get it. She really seems to not want to let the MC do anything that might cause A or M to stop their eternal resistance/stupidity, thereby giving the MC absolutely zero influence over how the A and M plots progress.

The “romances” feel so passive to me, like the MC is just there and it’s happening to them instead of it being a two-sided thing of MC/M or MC/A being drawn together into an agreed-upon relationship. With F and N, the MC is given options that make it feel like a mutual thing, instead of the MC being stuck in unrequited love mode with a LI who is consistently fucking with their head and emotions.

Honestly, I think that’s the part of it that really grates for me. This is a choice game where, ultimately, none of your choices mean a damned thing. It’s a romance game where your MC has no influence on how quickly or slowly the romances progres.. You are just stuck there playing a MC who behaves like a mealy-mouthed doormat with their LI, who can shit all over them whenever they please with no repercussions. It feels like being a victim, and I don’t do victimhood.

On the A and M routes, having Li-sar around for this game was the perfect opportunity to take action. An option to go to Li-sar for help with your powers would’ve been incredible, espeically with Li-sar being such an obsessive creep about the MC.

Can you picture it? MC goes there and Li-sar agrees to “slow down” how quickly the MC will die from the powers and teach them to use them, with the MC basically lying to them and saying that will give them an opportunity to get to know each other better, but then Li-sar agrees only if the MC “moves in” with them. Now there is a branch that would rock, especially on M and A’s routes. When the two of them get up in arms about MC moving in with Li-sar, they could say why they’re doing it, but then M/A would be obviously pissy over it, giving the MC an in to ask wtf do they care? After all, A basically told MC it’ll never happen between them, and M is giving so many mixed signals it’s driving the MC crazy. Leave A with their jaw clenched and M frowning while they watch their soulmate they swear isn’t their soulmate go off and live with Li-sar. Given their draw to the MC, could they really leave the MC alone, even if they’re living with the enemy “undercover”?

That could’ve seriously ratched up the angst. It could also put the MC in a very precarious position–Li-sar could insist on “trades” for more advanced lessons in controlling the power, wanting a kiss (starting with them kissing the MC’s neck or something else innocuous and trying for more, which makes the MC uncomfortable). How long can the MC keep up the ruse? Can they learn enough about their power to fight Li-sar before they give up and run away? Or before their LI comes beating down the door no matter how much exposure to Li-sar hurts them??

Gets me excited just thinking about the possibilities. Only we’ll never get them and M will be a fucking idiot all the way to the end of b4 and A will still be so tight-assed about being with the MC you could shove a lump of coal up there and in two days, you’d have a diamond. sigh

@Nazroth

it just means that there will be 0 progress with A for at least most of book 5 so yay I guess.

Well, M-mancers are in the same boat. We’ll just get the rinse and repeat from M through b4, then separated in b5 because of whatever nonsense pops up. So we’ll get zero progression with M in b5, too. But… but… maybe in b6 M will be able to use their brain.

@Nazroth

I really wanted at least one ending where you join them fully committed and you get an alternative early end of the series as a villain power couple and if you want to continue the other books you have to do it from another of the endings.

Agreed. I might have been tempted to go this route just so I’d get closure to this series.

@LiliArch

New headcanon, MC is an empath but nobody ever realized because their powers only work with their soulmate, and they only trigger physical reactions.

Interesting. I’m not sure all the shivering and shuddering could be written as reactions to the soulmate, though, since the LI would have to have strong enough feelings to trigger that. Instead, it’s the MC’s feelings triggering all those convusions… and not the good kind…

@Akme2000

I feel the BFF routes are much better paced than the romances, and the backstory reveals are superior to the ones on the romance paths. If the romances progressed more like this I’d probably not have much issue with them.

Same. We also get to see the actual characters in the bff routes. Their behavior in their romanced routes are like watching completely different people, which makes sense because the “angst” part is forced by the author to drag things out.

I also agree about Bobby and Verda being the best routes. The none learn path is annoying and makes me dislike Tina immensely (I hated the going out for drinks thing in b3). And I liked Bobby in the demo. Dezh let him keep his memories and it’s actually making her dislike him less.

Like you, I think the Tina path is awful. It’s ridiculous that the MC can’t tell her Adrian(a) is a freaking spy from the Agency. The only reason it’s being forced is so Tina can later find out and blow up at the MC, only to get over it five seconds later. I don’t like drama like this, where the MC is railroaded into being unethical just so there can be a “scene” about it later on.

For Douglas, I really don’t care about that route. I’m tired of the narrative trying to push the Agency as the end-all-be-all in greatness and perfection. Especially when it’s full of moles.

@Francisco_Teixeira

The MC’s magic, let’s be real… it’s nothing but a plot device to create manufactured drama between the vampires. Now the interactions and the romance are even more reduced cause the MC has solar magic. And why wasn’t this piece of information properly developed in B1 when the enemy was a fucking vampire? Lore is pratically nonexistent.

Everything in this series is a plot device to create manufactured drama between MC and the vampires, as well as to delay gratification for anyone on M and A’s paths. I find the whole thing with the “solar” magic to be stupid, and the fact that it was never mentioned in b1 makes it worse. Would’ve been nice if, during that questioning session where your MC can be an asshole and ask why the vampires don’t sparkle, if the MC could’ve asked about magic that mimics the weaknesses of the vampires.

If it was actually going to be used in its full capacity–solar magic isn’t just destruction, it can be used for nurturing, transformation, and healing, just to name a few positive traits–then it would be cool, because maybe someone could teach the MC the positive sides of it. And if getting control of it was an option, that’d be great. But there’s no sign any of that will happen because “muh, angst”.

On N…

@Francisco_Teixeira

If you’re gonna do both you need to commit to the idea instead of going back n forth (B1-2 Wattpad archetype, 3 treats the yandere traits like a flaw, 4 forgets about it completely and everything is fine)

Because N is supposed to be the “perfect” choice, the Fabio with long hair blowing in the wind on your dimestore romance novel. N is perfect, from how considerate they are to being the bestest lover because they care so much. N nauseates me because it’s too overdone. Has been ever since the weird strutting like a model thing from b1.

@Francisco_Teixeira

M pisses me off. That’s it. The character development from B2-3 is there, wich is great, but now every interaction feels forced because Sera is forcing them to stagnate.

Yep. Join the club. Have a cookie.

@Francisco_Teixeira

But after B3 where they treat the MC as more than a fucktoy, we need them to confess their love to the MC by the first climax of B4… yk… the midpoint. And that’s not gonna happen, so…

Yep, that’s not going to happen. I don’t think they’ll ever confess, period, just “realize” it and suddenly stop acting like Jeckyll and Hyde. And I doub they’ll even “realize” how they feel by the end of b4. This shit will be dragged out for another two books, since b5 splits everyone apart.

@Francisco_Teixeira

Like… that was already established in B3, instead of wasting paragraphs writing the same useless conversation, give them a memory lapse or don’t mention the memories up until the next book!

Yeah, don’t hold your breath. There is so much stuff constantly repeated, using slightly different wording, that it’s not even funny. The entire M and A “romances” feel like you’re on a fucking merry-go-round, though at least M has stopped being a total asshat.

@Francisco_Teixeira

Even Twilight has some sort of progression.It takes three movies for them to be together, but at least both of them grow and take the risk.

So she’s managed to take Twilight and make it worse?

What I find funny is that, in an ask, she said that we’ll get to see A and M in relationships with the MC–actually being with the MC–“way” before the end. Well, we’re on b4 and it’s clearly not happening in this one. So what the fuck is considered “way before the end”? The last chapter of b7?

[Francisco_Teixeira]

@EvilChani

Yep. Join the club. Have a cookie.

Tastes like something I should not be eating, but since I’ve been eating them for like… 6 years, I need to know how the newest one will taste until they stop producing the cookies

[Nazroth]

@EvilChani

The “romances” feel so passive to me, like the MC is just there and it’s happening to them instead of it being a two-sided thing

Now I’m thinking that these routes will remain like this even after we get to have a proper relationship with them or whatever the hell we are suposed to get with M.

@EvilChani

Honestly, I think that’s the part of it that really grates for me. This is a choice game where, ultimately, none of your choices mean a damned thing.

Same, I always knew that we would not be able to affect the overall plot too much but I was expecting to get at least a bit more of agency on the MC relationship choices, the only choices that seem to really “matter” so far are those with the side characters.

@EvilChani

Can you picture it?

If the Agency worked like it’s supposed to I would say no, but seeing the way they actually handle things, they would probably actually allow the rookie who they shouldn’t trust yet with a buffing ability go in a undercover mission with a high risk of them defecting to an already op supernatural.

@EvilChani

Well, M-mancers are in the same boat. We’ll just get the rinse and repeat from M through b4, then separated in b5 because of whatever nonsense pops up. So we’ll get zero progression with M in b5, too. But… but… maybe in b6 M will be able to use their brain.

Honestly I would not be too surprised if this is the book where we get M to realize their feelings after some “big moment” scene where we are exploding in magic and close to death.

I’m kinda bothered we can choose to be all about magic and yet do nothing with it when we get some and probably do nothing much with it in the future besides trying to syphon Li-sar’s magic from people.

[FleurJane]

Unfortunately, the storyline seems to be redundant at this point.

[dorquemada]

@EvilChani

Oh, and there’s a “shock and awe” moment at the end of chapter 6 that neither shocked nor awed me

Oooh, but there are quite a bit of shocking incidents happening throughout the demo, right, right? It’s totally crackling abuzz with charged tension between…fuck I am so bad with this, please someone just ground me already. Anyway, all that overabundance of lightning and electricity talk made me wonder if nobody invented rubber gloves in WH universe. Like, line a pair of 'em with lead or something against the radiation, slap them on the MC and at least some of those “OH MY GOD I PUT A SLIGHT GASH THAT HEALS SLOWER THAN USUAL ON MY IMMORTAL RO’S ARM, THE HORROR, HOW CAN I LIVE WITH MYSELF NOW???!!!” incidents could’ve been prevented.

All in all, demo somehow managed to be boring and overly melodramatic at the same time.

[Savor]

The kissing scene with A at the end of B3 was disgusting imo. The mc I made for that route really doesn’t put up with shit so instead of taking his little pity kiss she ended up shoving him off and has been cold to him ever since, but of course in the demo your whole mc’s personality gets replaced for owoo butterflies even if you don’t kiss and idk it just feels gross to me.

And that whole “run to A for comfort” scene in the demo was truly pathetic like ew why the hell would she run into the arms of this fool? I tried to ignore how much the books push for your mc’s personalities to be the way the author wants it to be but the demo was really bad with it. I don’t understand why there are even personality stats at this point if you’re just gonna make things uncomfortable and force my mc to do things they wouldn’t say or do.

[Tribal_Gawd]

Man reading this thread is kinda wild, and it does open my eyes to some of the flaws with the wayhaven stories. I haven’t done the F path so idk how their romance path is like but for everyone else’s I really enjoyed. To me there have been like baby steps of growth between each book, would I like it to progress abit faster yes but I was trying to think about it from like the vampires pov and like they have had all their own personal traumas and how this is all happening within like a year in story? Maybe a bit longer.

My thoughts on the A path: I see this as like the common troupe of them being that all business and professional, no time for fun type person but like the MC is someone they do love and with that kiss at the end of bk3 like yeah they gave in to what their heart wants but like the duty side of them is like nah, we can’t like this won’t be good for either of us because of what I and and what we do, but apart of them still yearns for the MC.

The N path: I can kinda see what someone meant by she’s yandere like(I never really do the discussion thing and don’t know how to quote or highlight other people’s posts) but I always saw her as like the deeply insecure on the inside type but like woe is me type and when she does like get that connection, her love does burn very brightly but can be alil obsessive now that I think about it and can’t believe I never noticed that before.

M path: I fuck with so far, she’s the like “bad girl” that does the crazy stupid stuff like she’s here for a good time not a long time type ( I will also admit, I’m only at the last bits of bk2 with her and I’ve been enjoying it a lot, just been lazy and busy with getting it done)

But I’m also a sucker for stupid love stories, and dramas and a basic white girl at heart so it definitely has been interesting reading other posts in here

[vera]

girl, go to a doctor. that can be arrithymia.

Also real funny that Li-Sar’s tragic backstory doesn’t appear in the romance routes.

Summary

no romance:

romance:

[vera]

Number 2, LT. Lara gets a fourth man in her life who doesn’t understand the simple two-letter word of “no”. If Adam and Nate cockfighting and attempts to force themselves on MC were annoying in the previous books, here they are simply disguisting and sickening in the way they’re implemented and used. Each time anyone but Mason, Lara’s best friend and F, tries to support a woman who is currently busy dying, they will always start a pissfight between themselves and stare coldly and frighteningly, and even before that they’re getting pissy right before a) a patrol and b) an incredibly important sealing mission.

everything else

Which, given the whole absolute shitstorm that is currently happening and the woman they both supposedly love again, being busy dying, feels really in poor fucking taste. Time and place? Can’t you both take sticks out of your arses when there was nothing confirmed between either of the two?

cocfighting galore

Other funny revelations - Agency’s no-romance way to contain the storm requires no manipulation of human thoughts and gives MC no options to ask about their father or Unit Bravo. Romance route involves that and gives MC a useless moral choice which I still pick, because roleplay and Lara being three steps away from either a nervous breakdown or murderous rage. Li-Sar hates being called delulu. Nate was turned by evil bloodthirsty vampire pirates and his brother died because of vampires, which I don’t remember seeing in either B2 or B3. Would have made him more interesting of a character if he actually was a bloodthirsty vampire pirate. You can also figure out something is skeevy with Ostin, but all it gets is MC saying that to the team who then does nothing and M going fucking told you so after the incident. You can’t say that you’re dying to the whole team, only to your LIs, who in my case didn’t give much of a shit, and you can’t say you do on non-romance route in general.

cyoa, anyone?

M ends up being a far better friend to MC than either half of the forced love triangle as well.

hey bestie

Onto Xiulan and the torpedo of Li-Sar content when you don’t resist. Also, love me some polybait that will never actually happen.

Number three, M. M gets the proud title of being actually normal about MC accidentally hurting him twice and about their powers, but the vibe is getting really obnoxiously close to this particular edit.

everything else

I sure don’t remember him being like that in B1 and B2. Sure don’t remember him suddenly being touchy without permission and constantly calling MC handsome. The only good thing about it is the fact narrative stops beating Xiulan over the head with the idea that he is totally in wuv with Mason.

not now kitten

The other funny moment is M suddenly realising he doesn’t have blue hair, exposed abs and acts not even nearly alike to Mr. NY Dark Romance Bestseller - that totally means that MC can leave him, but he’d really prefer he didn’t pretty-pretty-pretty please please please please. The jump between discord daddy dom behavior and pathetic wet rag is the only funny thing in his route, and thus the most interesting/ Everything else is more of the same, now with even higher density of bruh behaviour. I have given up on noting reactions and actions that don’t fit Xiulan in the slightest.

fuck yeah i'm proud to be a [data expunged

The Special. @EvilChani, did you want the cringe of Li-Sar? Did you know that flirting with him actually activates the Chana agent scene, which did not appear on pure no-romance route? I have it, finally. Feels pretty boring.

everything else

The romance when you do answer in kind is mostly uuuuh the feelings how can I love him when le fae has le killed le peple with MC in pretty passive position despite Li-Sar excuding mostly pure bottom energy.

le feelings

The most hilarious part of this shit is the fact leader of the team you’re training with gets in and personal to go “hey bestie it’s okay to love don’t hold it in pls”. It was more obvious with other LIs, but here it’s just hysterical how they sniff out a person they don’t know shit about just to give you life advice about the power of love while the people bleed from every orifice because of radiation sickness.

But once the revelations pour in, hold your horses, we need a hefty dose of uguu why do I love him when he le killed le peple?

le peple

But soon it changes for pity and the magical brewing romance. Can’t give too much of a shit about le peple, can we? We have blue hair and pronouns acting seme when he can’t give anything more than an omega uke energy and MC is still forced into the same scene when they do give in.

blue hair uke

pathetic twink

I rate the whole thing as 2/10 as of now. MC is too subby for this supposed push and pull to properly work. There’s currently not much in-romance branching - you either go uguuu i wuv you despite the muwdews or you don’t get your villain romance. Which is really boring when he’s so bitchy, pathetic and blue-haired that I want to break him in half while still romancing him.