It’s Wiki Wednesday! Once a month we highlight a helpful post from the Wiki with tips about productivity, wellness, and optimizing your use of Habitica!
Greetings, denizens of Habitica! One of the key features of Habitica which makes it work as an accountability tool is the Party system. It’s easier to force yourself to get up and do that last load of laundry if you know the boss is going to attack your friends far too hard if you don’t, right? Parties can be more motivating when they’re active, friendly and fun, and this can be especially important to pay attention to if you’re partying up with people you only know from Habitica. This month’s featured Wiki article is on Keeping Parties Motivated:
Parties are one of the primary social features of Habitica. Players in a party have their own chat. They can cooperate on quests, send letters, and use unique items on each other. Quests are a primary means to earn unique rewards. Only players aligned in a party may participate in quests together. They can be a fun way of interacting with the game. Quests also help with accountability, and can provide support and encouragement. It is recommended that a party have no less than four members before engaging in all but the most basic quests.
Over time, even large parties or powerful party members may lose interest or experience burnout. Challenges are one of the many ways of motivating your party. This page is about other methods to keep your party engaged or entertained.
Want to read more on how to spice up your Party life? Head over to the Wiki and check out the full article.
The “Behind The Scenes” series is a chance for us to give you a glimpse into the inner workings of HabitRPG, Inc., the company that makes Habitica. Every so often, we’ll treat you to some silly staff shenanigans or show you the work that goes into your favorite features. Enjoy!
Hello Habiticans! It probably won’t come as a big surprise to you all that many of the Habitica Staff are huge video game fans. Today we’re sharing some of the (non-Habitica) games we’re currently playing.
Vicky (AKA Redphoenix):
“I Love Hue (iOS and Android) is a soothing mobile game where you put colors in order. I find it just hard enough to be interesting, but not so engaging so as to suck me away from work I need to be doing and thereby cause more stress. When decisionmaking can get reduced to “is this a purple-y grey or a blue-y grey”, I’m in a comforting kind of zone.
Bastion: Oldie but goodie! I’m on my first play through (rather than watching someone else play it) and I’m enjoying a lot about the game—particularly the narration performance and art direction. Did you know it was made by a seven person team?”
Leslie (AKA Lemoness):
“Minit:
A snappy, fun pixel adventure where, thanks to a cursed sword, you have only 60 seconds at a time to run around the world, accomplish tasks, and solve puzzles. I thought this game handled its unique constraint in a very clever way.
Gorogoa:
A beautiful, contemplative, wordless game that uses unique perspectives to drive its thoughtful puzzles as you slowly unfold the plot. Dream-like and fascinating, this mobile game has become one of my recent favorites.
Guildlings (Beta Testing):
Technically this comes out in the summer, but I enjoyed the build that I tested enough to mention it! Fun character banter, great art, and an enjoyable “wizards and wifi” premise… but I probably shouldn’t say too much about it yet. I will note that I particularly loved Syb the Upstart and her various “startups” — a word that has a slightly different meaning in the fantasy world of Guildlings… ;)”
Beth (AKA Beffymaroo):
“Like many out there, I’m playing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on the Nintendo Switch right now. I’m shamefully behind and haven’t had a chance to play in a while, so I definitely need to get back to it! It’s a beautiful game with a gorgeous landscape and soundtrack, and I love all the many many things to do and explore. As far as I’m concerned it lives up to the hype!
On mobile, I’m playing Flutter: Starlight (available on iOS and Android). It’s a moth collecting game, pretty much. I love lepidopterans generally, and I chose the “Starlight” moth version over the original with butterflies because I find the color scheme and music more soothing. I also love learning more about all the beautiful and strange moths out there! Vicky is also playing and we like to compare notes on our strategies for collecting moths during their special events.”
Keith (AKA TheHollidayInn):
“Final Fantasy 14 – my default stress relief. I’m a big Final Fantasy fan and this game has been create since the release of A Realm Reborn
Monster Hunter World – A very nice sequel to the ongoing franchise. My friends pushed me to get in to this grind with them, but it is pretty great.
Mafia III – I’m just starting this game because it is on my Humble Bundle Monthly (which I highly recommend getting). So far so good!”
Tressley (AKA Apollo):
“Alien: Isolation
A dark, stealthy survival horror game based on the Alien film series. The game’s plot is set 15 years after the events of the original Alien film. You play Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen Ripley, while you try to investigate the disappearance of your mother. I’ve really been enjoying this installment in the Alien game series as the stealth/survival horror aspect evokes the original 1979 film’s feeling and tone.
Golf It
A fun mini-golf game focused primarily on the multiplayer experience. The map editor makes for some frustrating, but exciting games with friends. Best paired with a fun group on Discord.”
Sabe (AKA SabreCat):
“Current game: Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura. Isometric RPG from the early 00’s with a fantasy-steampunk milieu. Has a lot of variety in how you can build a character, from gunslingers to necromancers to diplomats!
“I’m usually playing too many casual games at once, while neglecting a plotty behemoth I should be keeping track of. Right now I’m ignoring my replay of Final Fantasy XIII — I love the whole FF series, but this is not a fave! I do really enjoy strategising with the different class combinations, but I haven’t got to that stage in my replay yet. Casually, I’m playing Kingdom Rush Frontiers, which is a tower defence game with fun Easter eggs now and then. Perpetually, I’m playing Faster Than Light, which I’ve played nearly 200 hours of and won only eight times. I enjoy the mix of luck and strategy, though, and I have some fun mods which make things even more strategic.
Huh, apparently I’m into strategising and tactics? Good to know…”
Sara (AKA piyorii):
“I’m playing Nier: Automata. The game has an existential, calm post-apocalyptic atmosphere to it that I really enjoy exploring. Its one of those games that sticks with you after you turn it off, and I find myself talking with friends about our interpretations. It also has a very in-depth combat and upgrade system that has you learning slick combos and new strategies long into the game. I’m on my third playthrough, but unlike most games, each playthrough is like a sequel built into intended experience of the game as a whole. the first time you beat it, you don’t get all the story! I’m having a lot of fun exploring the world and uncovering all the secrets it’s hiding, and would highly recommend it to anyone who likes third person action RPGs.”
What games are you playing right now? We’d love to hear your recommendations! Feel free to share them in the comments, or pop into the Tavern chat to discuss there! ❤
In last month’s Use Case Spotlight, we looked at ideas for upping your Spring Cleaning game and getting your home in order. This April, in honor of National Volunteer Month, we’re focusing on tips to help motivate you and keep you on track when you’re working for positive change in your world. These great ideas for using Habitica to make a difference come from your fellow players in the Use Case Spotlights Guild!
Dagger-13 starts us off with some ideas for tasks for making a difference, as well as a great method for keeping track of all your hard work:
I’ve got a number of habits in the theme of ‘making a difference’ – I volunteer at a local arts venue, so that’s on there (I ‘plus’ it each time I help out), and I also attend and help out at a meditation centre (again, a plus each time I attend). I take part in a monthly challenge to pick up and throw away/recycle rubbish I see outside (one plus for every three pieces I pick up) and I have a ‘donate to charity’ positive habit. I’ve also recently set a ‘did a good deed’ habit to encompass other things which I do which don’t have their own habit.
I set all of these to reset weekly, so at the end of the week I can have a look at my total and see how much I’ve managed to do. Doing it this way gives me the motivation to keep going, or to buck up my ideas I don’t put a negative on these as I don’t feel like we have to do these things (there’s too much ‘should’ing in the world!), but I choose to do them and therefore they’re a positive contribution to others.
Shutzie27 uses tasks and tags to help organize their civic activism:
I’m a very civically active person and Habitica is a huge part of helping me keep different ongoing projects going. For example, at the moment I’m trying to make my street safer by getting sidewalks, so I have an “Operation: Sidewalks for ALL” tag and whenever I need to call the city to ask a question a prospective signer may have I put that on my To Do list.
I’m also on my Legislative District’s communications committee and a precinct committee person so whenever I have a task for that it goes on the To Do list with my “LD24” tag. Finally, I have some Habits and Dailies I use as well. One plus-only habit I have is “Protect democracy through civic engagement.” I give myself a plus whenever I attend a meeting of a civic or advocacy organization (for example, today I went to a Phoenix Spokes People meeting) so I plus’d myself.
SweetenedPoison points us to another Guild you can join for tips and support for volunteering (and for fun manga discussions!):
My guild, The Magical Girls is focused on “saving the world” through volunteering, community service, being generally helpful/friendly, and so on. The challenge that highlights volunteering is the Become a Magical Girl! challenge. It’s helped me get started in the volunteering process, as well as a bunch of other Habiticans who are out fighting the good fight or working on their way to getting there 🙂
Scea reminds us that even making a difference for one person is important!
Since I heard how [little] service workers earn, I learned to appreciate their work. Every time I meet one of these persons, I remember how important they are for my every day life, and I try to give them at least an encouraging smile – even if I had a not so funny day. Perhaps I am the only person in a good mood the cashier has seen this day – so I try to be polite and cheer them up with some chit-chat or simply brighten their day by being a happy person. And sometimes my own day wasn’t this bad, too.
Perhaps this is not a big difference I make, but I know that even the tiniest things can make a big difference for another person.
You can see more tips and join in the discussion in the Use Case Spotlights Guild– one of your ideas could be featured next month! Look for an announcement of next month’s theme from Bailey soon.
And lastly, if you missed it you may want to take a look at our most recent Guild Spotlight, where we’ve highlighted more groups that can help give you even more motivation and support as you volunteer and work for causes that matter to you!
Habiticans enjoyed yet another April 1st marked by silly pixel antics this year! This time, the April Fool assured us he’d “keep it small.” Little did we know his nefarious prank would indeed be shrinking some of our favorite things in Habitica: our pets and mounts!
As part of a special Challenge to mark the occasion, many Habiticans shared their avatars with their newly miniaturized friends on social media! Here are just a few of the many awesome pics you all posted as part of the Challenge!
First, here are the entries from our Challenge Winners!
Al Lith is ready for battle with their itty bitty (but very shady!) Cactus and Ferret!Frar of the Lonely Mountain‘s Hippogriff is suddenly quite overwhelmed by that sack of loot.Here’s Koliz and the Order of the Teensy PhoenixLuckily for mighty Garwinna, the Skeleton Cactus’s intimidation factor is hardly diminished by its small size.Meakuel‘s Penguin is SO CUTE but maybe should be a little worried about being carried off by butterflies.
A few of Habitica’s mods and staff may have had just a bit too much fun:
Beffymaroo can’t resist a classic art reference.“Habitica has never illustrated my life quite so well before!,” exclaims shanaqui.
And here are some more of our favorite entries! There were so many great ones, it was hard to choose just a few to feature here.
“Just a regular fancyman with his tiny friends,” says Epic.claudia, Evil Overmom, has news for the Fool: “The April Fool is supposed to make trouble, but instead he granted my wish for a slug pet too tiny to threaten my tulip-y gorgeousness! The joke’s on you, April Fool!”skasha has an urgent message! “My dragons were annoyed about it right up until they realized they could dive into my rainbow sherbet head first. Now everything is sticky. … Send help.”“What are these, pets for ants?!“ Nyctereutes exclaims.kkgmt notes, “Though she be little, she is fierce!”
Look 1: Serving Springtime Realness
Look 2: Winter Harvest
Look 3: Winter Whale!
… and one experiment gone awry! XD
Citrusella favored us with three unique looks, and one interesting experiment with a css style!
Folks in the Costume Carnival Guild also had a lot of fun with the mini-pets and mounts:
Drexxis makes it springy (but with a touch of spookiness) in the Skeleton Skin.TangerineQuartzFox is: THE FROZEN GUARDIAN OF THE MICROGRIFFS!Poirot‘s frog is determined to be the best mount it can be, despite its small stature.
Lalaitha gave us two looks: Tiny Bees! And Crocheted Hippo Plushie Time!
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We had so much fun bringing you more of the April Fool’s goofy antics this year! We’re glad you had as much fun as we did. Stay tuned to see what that delightful joker is up to next April 1!
Hello Habiticans! Did you know April is National Volunteer Month in the U.S.? That makes this month a great time to get involved in making the world a better place. In this month’s Spotlight, we’re focusing on just a few of the many Guilds in Habitica where you can find fellow players to support you as you change your community, country, or even the whole planet for the better!
Did you know that by becoming an organ donor, you can potentially save the lives of eight or more other people? Join Ghost Ship to learn more about becoming an organ donor and how very important that is to so many people! In this Guild you can also join the “<3 I am an organ donor! <3” Challenge so you can get an achievement for your profile that lets other Habiticans know you’ve taken this generous step to save lives.
This Guild is a Habitican community for folks interested in the social and philosophical movement of Effective Altruism, which focuses on finding evidence-and reason-based methods for improving the world. Check out this Guild for a supportive chat, and a number of Challenges to get you started on helping others and making your community and world better!
InHabitants of Earth focuses on a very important aspect of creating change for the better in the world: living sustainably! Take a look at their Challenges for ideas to help you be more eco-conscious in your everyday life. Plus, their chat is full of ideas and tips!
Some of the most important things we can do to make a positive impact on the world is to support and encourage others. Accountability Buddies matches Habiticans together so that they can pursue their goals with added support. Check it out today if you’re willing to be an Accountability Buddy, and/or if you need one yourself!
These Guilds and many, many others are here to help you find new ideas and motivation for making a difference! Stay positive, and remember all the little things we all do out of kindness and care really do add up. ❤
It’s Wiki Wednesday! Once a month we highlight a helpful post from the Wiki with tips about productivity, wellness, and optimizing your use of Habitica!
Hello Habiticans! Are you a long-time player looking for a higher difficulty level? Or are you new, but want to really test your mettle in your quest to be more productive? We’ve got some great Wiki articles detailing how to customize your Habitica experience to fit your goals and style, thanks to our wonderful and hard-working Wiki Scribes! This month we’re looking at Self-Imposed Challenges:
Habitica offers numerous ways to test the resolve of players, such as achievements, quests, and challenges. However, a player may reach a point where they feel they have earned every in-game award. Other players may find their current level or stockpile of gold makes the game too easy and allows them to indulge more bad habits than they would like.
The suggestions below have been created by users to keep the game feeling new and challenging even for advanced players. Most of them make the game more difficult, but some change play style in other ways. Several of these can be combined to create a truly challenging play experience.
Want to know more? Head over to the wiki to check out the full article!
The “Behind The Scenes” series is a chance for us to give you a glimpse into the inner workings of HabitRPG, Inc., the company that makes Habitica. Every so often, we’ll treat you to some silly staff shenanigans or show you the work that goes into your favorite features. Enjoy!
Hello Habiticans! In this month’s edition of Behind the Scenes, we’re talking podcasts! If you’re not already on the podcast train, we highly recommend hopping on. Podcasts are a great way to learn, laugh, and be entertained when your media choices are limited to audio options. We love to listen to them while commuting, doing chores around the house, exercising, and more!
Beffymaroo, AKA Beth:
“I listen to TONS of podcasts. A lot of them are true-crime podcasts, because that’s a subject I’m very interested in. A pick I think might be more relevant to Habiticans (and easier for Tavern discussion, haha) is Stuff You Missed in History Class. It’s a really fun show from HowStuffWorks where the hosts discuss interesting off-the-beaten path corners of world history, or more obscure facts about well-known events and people. It’s always fascinating and often gives me a good laugh, too!”
SabreCat, AKA Sabe:
“The Fastcast is ‘a podcast for nerds with short attention spans.’ It’s a discussion ‘cast covering pop culture and media, with an emphasis on niche games, each episode edited down to around 20 minutes. I like it because I tend not to be able to concentrate if I have a podcast running while I do other things, so the short runtime is good to sit with, listen to in its entirety, and move on!”
Redphoenix, AKA Vicky:
“Planet Money: One of the great NPR podcasts (next to This American Life, which goes without saying). Covers topics about finance and economics in a really accessible and often entertaining way. Not at all as dry as you would expect given the subject matter.
Martini Shot: roughly four minutes per episode on the foibles of the entertainment industry, but often generally applicable to other contexts. Rob Long, the host, strikes an excellent balance between being respectful but not indulgent of the craziness of show business.
Writing Excuses: This Hugo award-winning podcast takes fifteen minutes to break down a particular aspect of the writing craft. Brandon Sanderson, Howard Tayler, Dan Wells, and Mary Robinette Kowal bring a variety of writing styles and philosophies to the table and are often joined by additional writer friends. A mini lecture series taught by the who’s who of science fiction and fantasy writers.”
Matteo recommends The Indie Hackers Podcast: “It’s a series of conversations with founders of small internet business , how they got the ideas, the customers, the problems they had, etc.” Sounds like a great fit for Habiticans interested in the start-up world or internet-based business!
TheHollidayInn, AKA Keith:
“I definitely recommend Ologies – it has a great host who interviews all different types of -ologists. Then Stuff To Blow Your Mind with two host who delve into interesting facts of life and discuss the research behind it. And finally I recommend Pod Save America because politics can be fun and it’s important 🙂 ”
Viirus, AKA Phillip:
“Currently I like to listen to Under the Radar, which is a 30 minute podcast about iOS development and working as an independent developer and Fragmented, which is about Android development. For non-tech podcasts I also like the Invisibilia podcast, that explores various topics about how humans are shaped by “invisible” influences.”
Lemoness, AKA Leslie:
“I actually spend all my listening time on audiobooks instead! I check them out of the library for free using the Overdrive app. It’s a great way to read books while doing chores.”
What podcasts are you loving right now? We’d love to hear your recommendations! Feel free to share them in the comments, or pop into the Tavern chat to discuss there! ❤
In last month’s Use Case Spotlight, we looked at methods for creating and nurturing your connections to the other people in your life. Now that it’s March, we’re switching gears and thinking about the time-honored tradition of Spring Cleaning! These great ideas for using Habitica to up your Spring Cleaning game come from your fellow players in the Use Case Spotlights Guild!
Poscogrubb gives some solid advice to get us started:
Like other tasks that may be unpleasant, spring cleaning will be easier and more fun if you are well-rested and well-fed. On a day that you plan for major spring cleaning, start your day with plenty of light, fresh air, and a great breakfast.
Dan O’Dea gives some great general tips for structuring your Spring Cleaning attack plan:
Spring cleaning: make a list and prioritize. Some general suggestions:
Do one room at a time. Finish that before moving to the next room.
Exception: certain tasks, like washing windows, are best done at once rather than separately in each room.
Pick a place/room to start and set a direction. For example, start at one end of the house and work toward the other end on one floor, then move to the next floor (if you have one).
If you have clutter, get rid of stuff. If you don’t have an emotional attachment or a need to keep something, sell it, give it to someone who needs it, recycle it, or toss it.
Use the Pomodoro Technique to clean. That is, clean for 25 minutes, take a 5-minute break, clean for 25… like that.
And (it almost goes without saying!), use Habitica to schedule your cleanup tasks.
Liško reminds us that Challenges can be a great motivation boost:
The very first challenge that I did in Habitica was a cleaning challenge.
And this is also my answer to the question on how I use Habitica for (spring) cleaning: challenges! The challenges are often very well made and it helps a lot to have a list of to-dos already prepared for you, instead of having to plan and think of everything thyself. Then I just have to do one task after the other and not think too much about what I might have missed. Also, I find doing challenges very rewarding if one exchanges ideas and progress reports with the other participants in guilds, and just knowing that others work on the same tasks as me, in addition tickles my sense for competition and motivates me more to get my stuff done.
Dagger-13 notes the importance of sorting through your things and evaluating what you actually want to keep, as well as what you could donate to those in need!
I’ve heard of a method which uses three bags/boxes – ‘put away’, ‘give away’ and ‘throw away’. When you tidy up an area, put each item in the applicable box (unless you can put it where it belongs straight away). Then you can go through the boxes every so often and clear them out into their respective destinations – the ‘give away’ box going to friends, family or charity, the ‘put away’ items being put where they belong and the ‘throw away’ stuff being recycled or chucked.
This way, you might not get so ‘stuck’ on one area as you try and decide what to do with each item as you find it. I like to have a charity bag tucked away somewhere – I place items in it as and when I decide they should go, but keep them hidden for a while so that I can be sure I definitely don’t need it. Delaying this way means that you don’t need to fret about getting rid of stuff you still need.
In terms of using habitica for this, I’ve got a ‘give to charity’ habit, but that includes monetary donations. I guess you could set a to-do once you’ve started your boxes to clear them out by a certain date and that way you won’t forget or end up with a million boxes (which would effectively be just moving clutter from several places into one area!)
There were so many helpful and exciting tips we couldn’t feature them all here! You can see them all and join in the discussion in the Use Case Spotlights Guild– one of your ideas could be featured next month! Look for an announcement of next month’s theme from Bailey soon.
And lastly, if you missed it you may want to take a look at our most recent Guild Spotlight, where we’ve highlighted groups that can help give you even more motivation for your Spring Cleaning goals!
It’s only early March, but spring is in the air in Habitica! March is a great time to think about that much-loved (and sometimes hated!) ritual of Spring Cleaning. In this month’s Spotlight we’re focusing just a few of the many Guilds in Habitica where you can find fellow players to support you as you look for tips and motivation. These groups are ready to help you plan a serious cleaning of your whole dwelling, or even just help you build habits to encourage general tidiness year-round.
Slobs Anonymous welcomes any and all Habiticans who are trying to be better at keeping their spaces clean and neat. They host a variety of cleaning- and organization-related Challenges for extra encouragement. Plus, their chat is full of folks regaling the group with tales of their grimiest adventures and sharing their tips and tricks!
Do you have lots of neglected cleaning tasks stacking up? Check out this Guild for an active and supportive chat and regular Challenges to help motivate you to wash those scary old dishes or dust your bookshelves!
Make Your Home Sweet Home is a Guild dedicated to helping you organize your living space and keep it that way! In their chat, you’ll find lots of Habiticans talking about how they tackle their most daunting cleaning tasks.
These Guilds and many, many others are here to help you find new ideas and motivation for working through your Spring Cleaning. Happy scrubbing! ❤
The “Behind The Scenes” series is a chance for us to give you a glimpse into the inner workings of HabitRPG, Inc., the company that makes Habitica. Every so often, we’ll treat you to some silly staff shenanigans or show you the work that goes into your favorite features. Enjoy!
Nothing brings Habitica together like an epic monster battle! World Bosses are some of the community’s favorite events, so in this edition of Behind the Scenes we’ll share the exciting history of Habitica’s World Bosses, plus inside information on all the hard work from the team that goes into making these events happen!
Leslie (AKA Lemoness) is the creative mind behind a lot of aspects of Habitica’s big events, including art, potential features, and quests. She had some great memories to share about the origins of World Bosses to start us off: “After our first successful Winter Wonderland event, I turned my attention to the rest of the year. The spring event would be pretty straightforward, but what about the summer event? There aren’t many classic holidays that land in the summertime, but I’ve always adored oceans and undersea adventures, so I knew that I wanted to incorporate some. Since I’d been looking for an opportunity to expand Habitica’s narrative and worldbuilding, this seemed like a perfect fit. I created a mysterious plot-line leading up to the discovery of a lost underwater city and, since raid bosses had been a common feature request, I decided to develop a World Boss to explain how it had sunk beneath the waves.”
It’s understandable to want to sink beneath the waves if you see this coming at you!
“Implementing the Dread Drag’on of Dilatory was a monstrous task, especially since it was happening at the same time as the first Summer Splash gala, with all the attendant art and coding needs. I reached out to artisan baconsaur, who was doing a lot of art for us and who I knew was fond of dragons; they eagerly agreed to the secret project. We also had art that had been previously submitted for some Mantis Shrimps, whose rainbow splendor hadn’t leant itself well to the usual pet recolors. Seeing an opportunity, I worked them into the plot-line as well. Our exhaustion was kept at bay by the increasing enthusiasm of the community as each new Bailey announcement held more clues about the coming event. When the Drag’on finally attacked, the reaction was tremendous – a fanclub Guild even opened up!”
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing from there. Just before the first Rage Strike, an unscrupulous rogue discovered an exploit in the World Boss code and slew the Dread Drag’on overnight. We awoke to a huge onslaught of confused and despairing messages from the community, who felt understandably cheated that the mighty Boss had vanished while it was still brimming with health. Worse, we had included gold and XP rewards, like with any normal Boss, so people found that they’d inexplicably and abruptly leveled up, and that their gold reserves were completely unbalanced for no apparent reason. It was a royal mess, but we managed to hastily fix the exploit, relaunch the Drag’on (which had “merely ducked underwater to revitalize itself”), and change the prizes to include an assortment of food instead of gold/XP. In fact, it was during this glitch that Beth (AKA: Beffymaroo) earned her very first Habitica contributor tier! She got a socialite tier for answering many, many questions from players confused by the premature end of the battle, and the rest is history. And the remainder of the event went… dare we say it?… swimmingly!
Little known fact about Mantis Shrimp: They love puns.
After the resounding popularity of the first World Boss, people immediately began asking for another. Eek! Doing one during every event would be too much work (as well as anticlimactic), but Leslie sat down and planned out the next three World Bosses and how they would involve the discovery of new lands and characters during other seasonal events. The results of that brainstorming session were spread out over almost two years. If you’ve been around Habitica for a while, you might remember the Abominable Stressbeast, the dread Burnout, and the dazzling but dangerous Be-Wilder!
A shifty-looking bunch for sure!
Since World Bosses have always been such a hit with the community, we decided another battle was due soon! We’d already had a World Boss in each Grand Gala, so we thought that Valentines’ Day would be a great Habitica event for an epic monster to make an appearance. Once Leslie’s ideas and concepts were out there, it was time to make it all come together with the help of the rest of the Habitica team!
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Perhaps the aspects of the World Boss that are most familiar to Habiticans are the pieces of amazing art involved! The Dysheartener was created by talented Habitica artisan AnnDeLune, who started working on the dread creature many months beforehand in order to make it perfectly terrifying.
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We also needed art to show the destructive havoc wrought by the boss when a rage strike occurred! Beffymaroo, using colors and concepts from the boss art, created the scenes for the affected shops showing the effects of the Dysheartener’s attacks.
We will rebuild! But who will be next?? *cue dramatic music*
When it comes down to the all-important mechanics of the World Boss, we check in with Sabe (AKA SabreCat) about what’s needed from a programming perspective! Sabe gets all the ducks in a row for the boss’s health and rage, and how Habiticans will damage it, and then the team takes some time to test out the mechanics so that we know everything will work as intended. Our brave bug-smasher Alys also pitched in to help with testing and with readying the Phobia Protection Extension so that any Habiticans with phobias that might be set off by this creepy-crawly creature had the option to hide the artwork.
World Boss battles are a big event to fit into Habitica’s pixel world, and luckily we have talented designers to help us make them look and feel even more exciting! Tressley (AKA Apollo) and piyorii (AKA Sara) created special designs for the Tavern on web and mobile to help everyone get hyped about taking the monster down.
We’ve been able to make incremental improvements like these to the World Bosses each time, including adding animation in 2016, but this year’s World Boss has had the most improvements yet, including the revamped design in the Tavern, the detailed NPC banners in the event of a Rage Strike, and the improved integration with our mobile apps. And of course, as we look forward to future World Bosses, there will be plenty more fun in store!
With so many moving parts and so many folks involved, it takes a lot of cooperation, coordination, commitment, and time to bring a World Boss to the Tavern. But when we see how much the community enjoys fighting to save Habitica, it makes it all worthwhile!
