For some reason I didn't vibe with it the first time I watched the first episode but gave it another shot after seeing it so highly reviewed. Definitely worth watching.
I wish there were more Dwarfs though I got Dwarf brain. Whenever Eisen isn't on the screen everyone should be asking "Where's Eisen?"
I really love it because it's doing straight fantasy as opposed to fantasy as filtered through an isekai or some shit. It's great having a setting that doesn't have to worry about that.
I like that it also feels like the down moments of a DnD campaign. Those are some of my favorite moments of playing. Just role playing and riffing with the group.
have you read dungeon meshi? because i think that's starting in january and is also an excellent straight fantasy*. clearly inspired by dungeon crawler games both tabletop and video, but no bullshit
*well, straightforward. not entirely hetero though
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in the subtext perhaps. There is no explicit romance in the story either hetero or not, and that's something I kinda like about it. Also, in the succubus arc - Izutsumi is the only one of the party to not have any sexual fantasy for the creature to turn into and lure her with, basically making her canonically asexual.
spoiler
it is all subtextual, but i saw the joke and i made it. i agree that it's nice to not have any explicit romance