Is this a tough boss entrance?

MakBow

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Y'all tell me what you think.
Is this tuff?

Context
While pushing open the heavy door, a heavy gust of wind brushed against his face as the malicious aura began to overcome him, but he kept moving. When he opened the door all the way, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

And then he felt it, a pressure so great it could kill him with a glare alone.

The one who sat upon the golden throne that shone with divinity and authority.

An imposing and slim figure clad in jet-black armor, an intricately designed suit of armor that exudes an aura of deathly majesty. The plating was sharply angular, jagged, and aggressive in its form; the crest of its loyalty lay bare on his long, red, and tattered cape. And his face was completely concealed by a menacing helmet, crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest and elongated points that looked like horns, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that contrasted the entire body below.

[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]

Looking upon Ethan with its silent gaze, it stood up, just that act alone, making him feel the need to bow down and submit, but he fought against the urge.

Raising its hand, the sword from above the door was telepathically moved, brought to his hand. He raised in the air, and pointed it directly at Ethan, a declaration of war made.

Modified
While pushing open the heavy door, a powerful wind disguised as a malicious aura blew against his face, threatening to push him away as he stepped inside, and taking his first step in, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

And then he felt it, glare so strong he thought his heart would have stopped had he not looked up at the slim figure clad in jet-black armor intricately designed, sharply angular and aggressive to exude an aura of deathly majesty occupying the golden throne that shone with divinity not belonging to himself.

One foot stomped on the ground was enough to send a shockwave so heavy Ethan’s blood pressure dropped, his legs weak, struggling to keep him afoot, and as he walked forward, his glory was revealed in full, walking down the steps.

The crest of his loyalty on his long, red, and tattered cape, waving along wind created from this figure’s aura and his face was completely concealed by a helmet crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that flowed like fire:

[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]

Raising his hand, Valor's hand was enveloped in a purple light which grabbed the sword telepathically, the sword from above the door ripped from where it was, brought to his hand and he pointed it directly at Ethan, declaring a battle to Ethan.

“Heh, I accept.”

With those final words uttered, in a split second, without having any time to register the moment, the executioner had already appeared right in front of him.

“...!!”

In utter shock, he just barely managed to dodge his attack, but the aftermath of a swing let everything behind him suffer the shockwave of that attack as it destroyed everything in sight, the door brought down to rumble, and the roof itself falling, trapping him inside.
 
Last edited:

Paul__Michaels

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Meh... It's fine.

I find "boss" adversaries a little more imposing if they are a little more proactive. Just sitting there brooding is fine, but it very bog standard, and doesn't engage the reader.
If you want him to seem menacing this is my approach to a guy sitting there.


*****

It began as a sensation in the marrow, a pressure that promised to crush his very bones into dust should the figure so much as glance his way.

Upon a throne of molten gold, something sat that reeked of twisted divinity.

A whip-thin frame poured into obsidian armor, each plate a shard of night forged into cruel angles that seemed to hunger for the flesh of lesser beings. The sigil of fealty emblazoned on the tattered crimson cloak, a banner soaked in the blood of countless worlds, fluttered with a life of its own. Not an inch of flesh was visible beneath the helm, a mask of pure malevolence crowned with golden talons that clawed at the heavens. From its apex rose a mane of crimson fire, a river of raw hatred cascading down an entity born to unmake creation.

*****

This makes him sound imposing without saying it.
Anyway, best of luck.
 
Last edited:

Lufli

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Your boss doesn't really feel tough. You did a good job describing his appearance but I don't really feel his 'presence', primarily because you tell me to feel a certain way, where you should instead show me and let me do the rest.

For example, instead of saying: "And then he felt it, a pressure so great it could kill him with a glare alone," you could show the reader through focusing on these (or similar) questions:

What does his body do (before his mind reacts)? For example his hands could shake before he even notices.

Which simple actions become difficult?

How do his senses fail or distort? If the 'aura' of the boss really is so immense, his senses should fail him. You could make sound collapse to a ringing tone, for example.

These are only few of the many ways to establish pressure and fear, that the reader feels. Also, make the place itself react to that pressure or power.


Aside from that the beginning needs to be edited. Your choice of words doesn't fit the situation. This is kind of a stylistic complain, I guess, so deal with it however you want.

You say the "heavy gust of wind *brushed*" his face, when he is actually overcome by a "milicous aura", this just feels very wrong *to me*.
 

CinnaSloth

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Messages
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okay..
I'm not going to beat around the bush. But I also don't want to discourage you. Take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm in a mood this week. lol

TL;DR
you have the concept of a story, but it has no meat, there's no story. It reads more like plot points, and ideas with nothing tying them together except an MC (Ethan) moving things along. You need story. not details. you have the details. you need to integrate them into movement, into flow, into forming something to read. Things jump from point to point without anyone walking, or moving; like a picture book without the pictures. MORE MEAT. MORE STORY. USE the details you have, instead of listing them..


===========
Your context:
While pushing open the heavy door, a heavy gust of wind brushed against his face as the malicious aura began to overcome him, but he kept moving. When he opened the door all the way, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

I can see what you're going for. It sends a clear picture, but it doesn't feel epic. "a heavy gust of wind brushed against his face" makes it sound like he just had some chocy milk and the 'heavy' wind cleaned his face with a napkin. There's no OOMPH. No Power. Use stronger words. a gust of wind is.. "Oh no my hat fluttered a bit on this calm summer hill." Use something wild! something crazy! A thundering gale, a torrent of wind, it thrashed against him, threatened to push him away. Something. it says 'malicious aura', but he's just walking in like "cool there's a boss! 2 minutes GG EZ." There's no fear. it's empty.

And then he felt it, a pressure so great it could kill him with a glare alone.
pressures don't have eyes. I don't think it portrays what you're intending.

The one who sat upon the golden throne that shone with divinity and authority.
Either this line is missing punctuation or it's incomplete. "The one" is "shining with divinity and authority", or "the golden throne" is "shining with divinity and authority" but if that's the case, "the one who sat" is doing nothing but sitting.

An imposing and slim figure clad in jet-black armor, an intricately designed suit of armor that exudes an aura of deathly majesty. The plating was sharply angular, jagged, and aggressive in its form; the crest of its loyalty lay bare on his long, red, and tattered cape. And his face was completely concealed by a menacing helmet, crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest and elongated points that looked like horns, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that contrasted the entire body below.
This is an info dump. throw all these details into the story while things are happening rather than clumping it all into a single paragraph. This section alone, which is nothing but minor repeating details, is easily twice as long as any of your other paragraphs, which are supposed to be your story. That should clue you in that it's too much. you had three other 'paragraphs' before this that are single lines. Use those paragraphs to sprinkle in some of these details.
SOME of these details don't even need to be mentioned until the character at the door sees them. "the crest of its loyalty lay bare on his long, red, and tattered cape", cool detail, but nobody cares because nobody can see it. He's sitting on it. on a throne, unless, somewhere during the last paragraph and here, he got up, turned around, and started to shake his ass at the other character. Nothing in a story exists until someone (TYPICALLY the mc) sees it, interacts with it, or mentions it specifically. A GREAT moment to mention this would be if they exchanged attacks, crossing passed one another, and the MC turns to re-face the BIG BAD, seeing the cape billowing with the Crest, and the BIG BAD standing, looking over their shoulder at the MC to show this seemingly very important detail.
USE these details to embellish your story. make things flashy and wow the reader. don't info dump. it's boring, its a hodge-podge of details that tune the reader out when these kinds of things are supposed to be appreciated for their creativity.


[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]
I'm assuming this is a character title, and your story is a LitRPG. Try to enhance it with some text variation. BOLD, Italics, SIZE, anything to make it more exciting to see. -keeping it the same as the rest of your story makes it look bland, and gives the BIG BAD negative aura.

Looking upon Ethan with its silent gaze, it stood up, just that act alone, making him feel the need to bow down and submit, but he fought against the urge.
Its? Not 'he/she/THEY'? just IT?
"That act alone" is narrative for I didn't know how to make him tougher. You said he had a malicious aura that causes heavy winds, and pressure so great it could kill him. USE those details. explain how getting closer the aura felt heavier, casting him to his knees, and how much he fought just to keep himself standing. this is BARE minimum of story telling. Here it just sound like MC strolled in to his wittle grumpy gus of a commander's palace home, rather than BIG BAD being any sort of Big or bad..


Raising its hand, the sword from above the door was telepathically moved, brought to his hand. He raised in the air, and pointed it directly at Ethan, a declaration of war made.
Is this satire? This read more like an edgy comedy. "the sword telepathically moved". is the sword sentient? does it think? or did you meant telekinetically? different word. "IT raised it's hand-" and then "HE raised in the air? Wait does the sword have hands to climb off it's own sheath?? cause that'd be funny. also and finally, pointed IT (assumingly the sword) directly at Ethan. (Cut) the 'declaration of war' is not needed. It's not war. it's a battle. and ETHAN the Mc already insinuated a fight was going to happen the moment he barged into an area he wasn't invited to.
 
Last edited:

MakBow

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 31, 2025
Messages
291
Points
63
okay..
I'm not going to beat around the bush. But I also don't want to discourage you. Take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm in a mood this week. lol

TL;DR
you have the concept of a story, but it has no meat, there's no story. It reads more like plot points, and ideas with nothing tying them together except an MC (Ethan) moving things along. You need story. not details. you have the details. you need to integrate them into movement, into flow, into forming something to read. Things jump from point to point without anyone walking, or moving; like a picture book without the pictures. MORE MEAT. MORE STORY. USE the details you have, instead of listing them..


===========
Your context:
While pushing open the heavy door, a heavy gust of wind brushed against his face as the malicious aura began to overcome him, but he kept moving. When he opened the door all the way, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

I can see what you're going for. It sends a clear picture, but it doesn't feel epic. "a heavy gust of wind brushed against his face" makes it sound like he just had some chocy milk and the 'heavy' wind cleaned his face with a napkin. There's no OOMPH. No Power. Use stronger words. a gust of wind is.. "Oh no my hat fluttered a bit on this calm summer hill." Use something wild! something crazy! A thundering gale, a torrent of wind, it thrashed against him, threatened to push him away. Something. it says 'malicious aura', but he's just walking in like "cool there's a boss! 2 minutes GG EZ." There's no fear. it's empty.

And then he felt it, a pressure so great it could kill him with a glare alone.
pressures don't have eyes. I don't think it portrays what you're intending.

The one who sat upon the golden throne that shone with divinity and authority.
Either this line is missing punctuation or it's incomplete. "The one" is "shining with divinity and authority", or "the golden throne" is "shining with divinity and authority" but if that's the case, "the one who sat" is doing nothing but sitting.

An imposing and slim figure clad in jet-black armor, an intricately designed suit of armor that exudes an aura of deathly majesty. The plating was sharply angular, jagged, and aggressive in its form; the crest of its loyalty lay bare on his long, red, and tattered cape. And his face was completely concealed by a menacing helmet, crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest and elongated points that looked like horns, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that contrasted the entire body below.
This is an info dump. throw all these details into the story while things are happening rather than clumping it all into a single paragraph. This section alone, which is nothing but minor repeating details, is easily twice as long as any of your other paragraphs, which are supposed to be your story. That should clue you in that it's too much. you had three other 'paragraphs' before this that are single lines. Use those paragraphs to sprinkle in some of these details.
SOME of these details don't even need to be mentioned until the character at the door sees them. "the crest of its loyalty lay bare on his long, red, and tattered cape", cool detail, but nobody cares because nobody can see it. He's sitting on it. on a throne, unless, somewhere during the last paragraph and here, he got up, turned around, and started to shake his ass at the other character. Nothing in a story exists until someone (TYPICALLY the mc) sees it, interacts with it, or mentions it specifically. A GREAT moment to mention this would be if they exchanged attacks, crossing passed one another, and the MC turns to re-face the BIG BAD, seeing the cape billowing with the Crest, and the BIG BAD standing, looking over their shoulder at the MC to show this seemingly very important detail.
USE these details to embellish your story. make things flashy and wow the reader. don't info dump. it's boring, its a hodge-podge of details that tune the reader out when these kinds of things are supposed to be appreciated for their creativity.


[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]
I'm assuming this is a character title, and your story is a LitRPG. Try to enhance it with some text variation. BOLD, Italics, SIZE, anything to make it more exciting to see. -keeping it the same as the rest of your story makes it look bland, and gives the BIG BAD negative aura.

Looking upon Ethan with its silent gaze, it stood up, just that act alone, making him feel the need to bow down and submit, but he fought against the urge.
Its? Not 'he/she/THEY'? just IT?
"That act alone" is narrative for I didn't know how to make him tougher. You said he had a malicious aura that causes heavy winds, and pressure so great it could kill him. USE those details. explain how getting closer the aura felt heavier, casting him to his knees, and how much he fought just to keep himself standing. this is BARE minimum of story telling. Here it just sound like MC strolled in to his wittle grumpy gus of a commander's palace home, rather than BIG BAD being any sort of Big or bad..


Raising its hand, the sword from above the door was telepathically moved, brought to his hand. He raised in the air, and pointed it directly at Ethan, a declaration of war made.
Is this satire? This read more like an edgy comedy. "the sword telepathically moved". is the sword sentient? does it think? or did you meant telekinetically? different word. "IT raised it's hand-" and then "HE raised in the air? Wait does the sword have hands to climb off it's own sheath?? cause that'd be funny. also and finally, pointed IT (assumingly the sword) directly at Ethan. (Cut) the 'declaration of war' is not needed. It's not war. it's a battle. and ETHAN the Mc already insinuated a fight was going to happen the moment he barged into an area he wasn't invited to.
Thank you for this, is this a better version? (Giving extra context since a lot of people think it won't fight when I kind of wanted to shock to be once the fight started )

Modified
While pushing open the heavy door, a powerful wind disguised as a malicious aura blew against his face, threatening to push him away as he stepped inside, and taking his first step in, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

And then he felt it, glare so strong he thought his heart would have stopped had he not looked up at the slim figure clad in jet-black armor intricately designed, sharply angular and aggressive to exude an aura of deathly majesty occupying the golden throne that shone with divinity not belonging to himself.

One foot stomped on the ground was enough to send a shockwave so heavy Ethan’s blood pressure dropped, his legs weak, struggling to keep him afoot, and as he walked forward, his glory was revealed in full, walking down the steps.

The crest of his loyalty on his long, red, and tattered cape, waving along wind created from this figure’s aura and his face was completely concealed by a helmet crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that flowed like fire:

[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]

Raising his hand, Valor's hand was enveloped in a purple light which grabbed the sword telepathically, the sword from above the door ripped from where it was, brought to his hand and he pointed it directly at Ethan, declaring a battle to Ethan.

“Heh, I accept.”

With those final words uttered, in a split second, without having any time to register the moment, the executioner had already appeared right in front of him.

“...!!”

In utter shock, he just barely managed to dodge his attack, but the aftermath of a swing let everything behind him suffer the shockwave of that attack as it destroyed everything in sight, the door brought down to rumble, and the roof itself falling, trapping him inside.
 

CinnaSloth

Sinful Sloth
Joined
Nov 20, 2024
Messages
522
Points
108
Thank you for this, is this a better version? (Giving extra context since a lot of people think it won't fight when I kind of wanted to shock to be once the fight started )

Modified
While pushing open the heavy door, a powerful wind disguised as a malicious aura blew against his face, threatening to push him away as he stepped inside, and taking his first step in, it was a large and long hall, with pillars holding up the roof and a golden throne at the other side.

And then he felt it, glare so strong he thought his heart would have stopped had he not looked up at the slim figure clad in jet-black armor intricately designed, sharply angular and aggressive to exude an aura of deathly majesty occupying the golden throne that shone with divinity not belonging to himself.

One foot stomped on the ground was enough to send a shockwave so heavy Ethan’s blood pressure dropped, his legs weak, struggling to keep him afoot, and as he walked forward, his glory was revealed in full, walking down the steps.

The crest of his loyalty on his long, red, and tattered cape, waving along wind created from this figure’s aura and his face was completely concealed by a helmet crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that flowed like fire:

[The King’s Executioner, Valor the Novel]

Raising his hand, Valor's hand was enveloped in a purple light which grabbed the sword telepathically, the sword from above the door ripped from where it was, brought to his hand and he pointed it directly at Ethan, declaring a battle to Ethan.

“Heh, I accept.”

With those final words uttered, in a split second, without having any time to register the moment, the executioner had already appeared right in front of him.

“...!!”

In utter shock, he just barely managed to dodge his attack, but the aftermath of a swing let everything behind him suffer the shockwave of that attack as it destroyed everything in sight, the door brought down to rumble, and the roof itself falling, trapping him inside.

Not bad. A huge step in the right direction

This Part:
"One foot stomped on the ground was enough to send a shockwave so heavy Ethan’s blood pressure dropped, his legs weak, struggling to keep him afoot, and as he walked forward, his glory was revealed in full, walking down the steps.

The crest of his loyalty on his long, red, and tattered cape, waving along wind created from this figure’s aura and his face was completely concealed by a helmet crowned with a gold, sharp-edged crest, and from the top of this helmet flowed a neon red plume of hair that flowed like fire."

This was awesome. A HUGE difference compared to what you had before. THIS had power, it had wow, it had chills. you had the details, and you used them. KEEP IT UP. Don't bog the story with unnecessary clutters of details, but if you want to use those details, spread them around, USE THEM like you did here. Master a bit more on grammar, flow, and punctuation, and you'll do fantastic.

Edit things bit more on the last paragraph, and you got yourself an EPIC feeling boss.

"he pointed it directly at Ethan." cut there.
Ethan grins.
start the fight. etc etc
 
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