Chaos Theory: A guide to The Secret World’s Samhain 2016

Well, there you have it. After 12 months of anticipation, the 2016 Samhain event in The Secret World is here. And I most definitely have a few things I want to say about it… but right now is not the time. One, we have not quite reached the conclusion yet, so what happens between now and then could change things a bit. It would be fairer to reserve full judgment until the entire event unfolds. Two, the event is ending really soon, so to make sure everyone can take advantage of it, I have to get a guide out now! The Rider Cometh ends on November 8th, so you have less than a week to try to get all the loot and all the lore before it gallops off until next year.

And don’t forget during that time you can (and totally should!) do all the previous Samhain missions as well. We’ve got nifty guides to The Seven Silences, The Broadcast, Spooky Stories, and The Cat God to help you finish them up before they too are gone.

The Rider Cometh

What exactly is the event? It’s a giant, community-wide investigation mission that started outside the game with teased images from the devs. Much fun was had with the pre-event speculation. Once the event went live, folks started getting clues as drops, and those clues were pieced together to provide the location where The Riders appear as well as a how-to guide on changing the summoned world boss into an empowered manifestation. There are still some images out there that haven’t been added to the big communal think tank. Maybe you’ll get lucky and discover one!

Other than that bit of puzzle-solving, the event is all about going to the bosses, performing the rituals (closing portals or killing things), then fighting the world boss and getting your loot bag. Some pieces of the puzzle are still missing though, so there may be more to come involving that wisp you follow after a manifestation dies and the scraps from the various zones.

Chasing down The Rider

If you want to get in on the event, here’s what you need to do: First, join the event channel (/chat join event); without that, you are sunk. You will also need to be able to decipher the new language for the event. The most important lexicon includes the zone initials, SJ for Super Jack, and the dimension-server designations. When you see numbers like 3-25, that is telling you which dimension and server that particular event is on, with the dimension listed first and the server second. You can double check where you are by using shift+F9 and your info will show for you in your chat window. (As an aside, summoning an other-worldly horror in 6-66 has a certain satisfaction to it!) Players will also be calling out candles lit to help keep track of progress; all five candles means the manifestation is being summoned. Folks will also indicate number of worshipers at each necessary site, such as 2/3 mill (two out of three at the old mill).

Next, you might want to bookmark the compiled resources of what has already been solved. There is this ongoing thread of info that shows all the found clues and gives coordinates for the worshipers needed to make a manifestation empowered. (Hint: If you want to figure at least something out on your own, find the location and number of worshipers needed yourself by studying the pictures instead of just looking at the provided answer underneath.) There is also a map of all the zones that includes where all key factors of the event are located, such as the Rider and the objectives. You can also check out a spreadsheet that includes everything you need to know.

Now, after making sure you grab the Quell the Curse side mission from Agartha to the right of the main city portals near that rider on the undead horse (be sure to target him and /bow to get his cool mask!), you start meeting up on folks in the various zones to complete rituals and defeat the manifestations. To meet up, right click the name in chat and select the option, then you can run around completing objectives, or head to a worship spot and /emote worship until blood starts spurting and the message pops up that the boss is summoned. Just don’t be the person who stands around doing nothing until the boss is there! And then, don’t stand around after mooching even more just for the loot drop. The manifestations have the same world boss anti-AFK mechanics introduced during a Guardians of Gaia event, so you will need to use your skills a good number of times to qualify for the gold-level reward.

Between the Quell the Curse mission loot reward bag (see image on right) and the summoned boss lout bags, there is an assortment of new items to collect. Besides the oodles of cosmetic loot, much of which seems to be many color variations of items, and the pets and mounts, you can also get spirit effigies as loot off the bosses. These are zone specific and necessary for the ritual to make a manifestation empowered. The appropriate effigy has to be combined with the correct essence (which is a drop off the various special event mobs you kill in the zone to summon the boss). Watch chat for requests for a summoner and you can use/donate your items to the cause. The combinations are:

• Solomon Island: [Effigy of New England] and [Infernal Essence]
• Egypt: [Effigy of Egypt] and [Essence of Undeath]
• Transylvania: [Effigy of Transylvania] and [Ghastly Essence]
• Kaidan: [Effigy of Kaidan] and [Essence of Lycanthrope]

As expected there is also special bag you can buy in the store, including the mega 20-person bag that will reward you with a new dance. If you open the Hallow’s Eve festival sack around at least 10 other people, you will get the Freestyle dance emote. The previous year’s bags (and rewards) are also available in the item store. You can also get some single versions of previous bags from doing the previous years’ missions.

Looking for lore in all the wrong places

Finally, to make sure you get all the lore, be sure to watch chat. Why? Because — spoiler alert — you can’t find any lore for 2016 out in the world. Look all you want, but it won’t be there. Lore this year is an RNG drop off the manifestations. And there’s an even bigger catch: Not only does certain lore only drop in certain zones, but the lore is also dependent on whether the manifestation is empowered or unempowered. People tend to want empowered for the better loot, so it can be hard to get the normal version. And no matter how many bosses you kill, you may never get the lore drops you need. Thankfully, it’s TSW’s awesome community to the rescue! The community will call out in the event channel when one drops and then folks can meet up and grab it before it expires. Watch for a call out, and if you are in a zone that dropped lore, vacate it quickly so others can get in.

Speaking of lore, if you want to get it all for every year and you are running out of time to find it all yourself, we’ve got a little cheat sheet all ready for you. Just don’t look unless you really want to know! For this year, we let you know exactly which version of which boss has the chance for dropping each lore.

Warning: Looking at the lore locations for 2015’s event will give parts of the story away, so don’t look unless you want the spoilers!

Is it real? In The Secret World, rarely is it not. Conspiracies, ancient legends, paranoia, secret societies, chaos — they all swirl together in a cacophony of reality. In Chaos Theory, MJ Guthrie infiltrates this secret world, exposing the truths that lurk beneath the surface. The big question is, can you handle the truth?