The Forge

When farm boy Tane's Selection Day gift fuses him with the mind of an ancient war-commander, he becomes the only soul who can see the alien invasion no one else believes is coming. Branded a madman by a paradise that has forgotten war, he exiles himself to the open sea to prove the threat is real. With a misfit crew turning farm tools and unconventional magic into naval weapons, Tane races to sound the alarm before the enemy returns. A progression-fantasy saga of foresight, exile, and the burden of being right too soon.

A warrior before their divine patron — The ForgeDivine patron summoning — The Forge

The Books

Cover of Book 1: Awakening

Book 1

Awakening

Tane thought Selection Day would bring peace. He wanted to be a farmer, but the universe gave him a Paladin of Nature and a voice in his head: the ghostly General Vexaris, a war hero with a grudge against boredom. Trapped between a goddess’s impossible quest to find other lost legends and his own stubborn love for his quiet life, Tane is forced into an adventure he never wanted. As Vexaris pushes them toward truths hidden for centuries, Tane must confront a past nobody remembers and a threat from beyond the stars that is far from gone. On the open water, with an unlikely crew forged by fate and fire, Tane will have to decide if his new destiny is salvation or a death sentence.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 2: Gathering

Book 2

Gathering

For centuries, The Islands have known peace. Nobody remembers the last war. But farm boy Tane just bonded with Lord Commander Vexaris, a legendary general who died four hundred years ago defeating an invasion from another universe. Now, Vexaris sees what no one else does: the same ancient enemy is returning. Tane and his misfit team must race to uncover the truth hidden in archives, infiltrate enemy camps, and translate long-lost tablets before the Islands are conquered again. As the shadows of the past rise, they discover that forgetting the war doesn't mean the war forgot them. Time is running out.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 3: Warning

Book 3

Warning

The Islands have forgotten the war. Farm boy Tane is forced to remember. Sharing his soul with a dead general, he saw the enemy’s return. Now, he’s a messenger nobody wants to hear. The misfits are scattered. Councils call them liars. Armies see them as tools. And the forces of the divine demand silence. Tane must fight a war on three fronts: the political machines of his home, the ancient powers seeking to maintain their control, and the whispers from his own mind. As the first blood is shed and the truth becomes undeniable, Tane learns the greatest threat might not be the invasion, but the men who refuse to prepare for it. The warning has been given. The real battle for the Islands has just begun.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 4: Preparation

Book 4

Preparation

The peace is a lie, and Tane knows it. Lord Commander Vexaris’s warning echoes in his soul as the Islands scramble to prepare for an invasion their ancestors forgot. But their ancient ways—ritual combat, canoe raids, champion duels—are a death sentence against an enemy that corrupts the very laws of their world. Tane and his companions become the teachers, scattered across the archipelago to forge an army from scratch. They must invent new tactics, forge desperate alliances, and unlock hidden powers within themselves and the land itself. As the invasion clock ticks, the line between teacher and student, soldier and civilian, begins to blur. The Islands have a plan. Is it enough?

Coming soon

Cover of Book 5: First Wave

Book 5

First Wave

Peace is a lie. For four centuries, The Islands have been a tomb for the truth. Now, the dead have returned.

Tane, a Paladin bound to the ghost of his nation’s greatest hero, knows peace is over. When the enemy invasion strikes, it’s not a single wave, but a thousand cuts. Corrupted bosses with abilities that defy the system descend across the archipelago, forcing Tane and his battle-hardened allies into a desperate, war of attrition.

They race from crisis to crisis, fighting an impossible war on two fronts: against the invaders, and against the crushing weight of their own mounting losses. As the first wave crashes ashore, victory isn't the goal—it's just survival.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 6: Alliance

Book 6

Alliance

The invasion has shattered their peace. The Islands are occupied, and standing alone means annihilation. In Book 6 of Misfit Awakening, Tane and his allies know they must find allies to survive. But who would dare face an enemy wrenched from the fabric of reality itself? The answer is more complex than they imagined: among the invaders, there are those who serve by force, not choice. From conquered kingdoms to fallen heroes, cracks are forming in the enemy's facade. Now, Tane must navigate treacherous alliances and forge a coalition from the ashes of his world’s greatest enemy. Every decision could bring salvation or deliver them straight into a new kind of war.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 7: Liberation

Book 7

Liberation

The counteroffensive begins. With the island coalition mobilized, Tane and his allies launch a devastating liberation of conquered territories. Each victory is a triumph, but each success reveals a deeper horror. The invasion is not just a warlord’s doing; the very LitRPG system is being corrupted. As Tane’s unique Beast power evolves, he suspects the ancient general within his soul stone is hiding more than just tactics. The cost of victory is mounting, and questions of loyalty and divine purpose plague the coalition. With liberated worlds celebrating and enemies pushed back, a final confrontation looms—against a corruption that threatens the foundations of their reality.

Coming soon

Cover of Book 8: Resolution

Book 8

Resolution

Four hundred years ago, Lord Commander Vexaris died ending an invasion. Now, the enemy is back, and he’s hitched a ride in Tane’s soul stone. The war was never about the invasion; it was a smokescreen. The true threat is an ancient temple where reality was first coded, and it’s about to be remade. The Coalition’s final push begins, but victory demands more than battles—it requires sacrifice. With heroes lost and futures uncertain, Tane and his companions must assault the temple itself. Can they shatter the source of all corruption before the world they know is rewritten?

Coming soon

Never miss a release

Join the newsletter for new books from The Forge and the rest of John Nairn's worlds.

Join the newsletter