That’s right: I started this resolutions business last year, and now I am compelled to continue the tradition. It’s a new year and a new game, so it’s time for some new goals. It’s also a great time to look back over 2017 and see how well I did with my first attempt at in-game goal setting.
Checking the 2017 checklist
At first glance, looking back over my 10 goals from last year I feel a bit less than successful. In all fairness, though, I only had six months to complete them before The Secret World went into maintenance mode! True, I could have continued there, but I haven’t had much drive to do a great deal of content in the game that isn’t moving forward; instead, I have been fully invested in SWL. That said, I did roll a couple of the goals over into the reboot.
Luckily, I earned the Panoptic Core outfit right before that first resolution list went live. And it’s a good thing I did, as almost all cosmetics were transferred over to the new game, so I have access to it today. I also made sure I completed my Unseen achievement goal — not just because it was a goal but because the special clothing reward was a one-of-a-kind that would be different when earned in Legends. Of all my goals, I do think The Unseen felt like the biggest achievement. I am still proud of that.
I was also successful at enticing a friend (or a few!) to play the game. Although to be fair, more have joined in after the reboot; the free-to-play offering helped finally tip the scales for a few of my friends to come in and experience the atmosphere that I love. Does it also count that I get OPTV viewer friends to play? I totally think that should count!
The goal that may seem the simplest but actually took work was wearing a new outfit every time I played. And I did it! I even carried this goal right over to SWL and continued it, making a new outfit out of all the available options every single day I played. This let me both show off the variety in cosmetics on streams and find some new combinations that I wouldn’t have otherwise done. (I tended to find one outfit and stick with it indefinitely.)Â One thing that came out of this: My Templar now permanently sports Elf ears! I’ll have fun roleplaying this change.
Two goals get partial credit. One is for creating the bestiary lore guide. I knew that there was probably no way I could complete that in one year without making a new character and running through all the missions (the second partial credit recipient). I was making good progress but had to basically start over in Secret World Legends. Due to some changes, some lores have been moved (they are also now officially called legends), so I need to double-check info I had as well as gather new info. This has been made a bit easier by having to make a new character and start over, which brings me to the second partially completed goal! Completing all missions on one character gets its partial credit because that is exactly how I was running through the game this time around; with the exception of the Krampusnacht speed story rush at the end of December, I was completing every mission, killing every boss, and getting every achievement before leaving to the next zone. I just can’t say I finished this goal because I haven’t yet finished the game. I still have to finish Egypt up, move on to Transylvania, and then finally work through Tokyo.
In all, the end result of my goals is 4.5 out of 10 (giving .25 for each of the two partials).
What I was not successful in at all was attending three RP events, hosting an event, doing a raid, or filling my Museum of the Occult. Some of that I attribute to the change in games; it felt like two six month chances to work on them instead of 12 months. For the museum, I wasn’t interested in filling the TSW one, and I had only six months to build up the currency and lore needed to do it in SWL. No one was doing TSW raids after June, and starting over slowly meant less chance of getting into one in SWL. RP events were also shaken up. I know I attended at least one in TSW, but I haven’t done any in SWL. I can definitely make a better effort, and that brings me to…
2018 goals
1. Attend three RP events
Although I failed miserably at this the first time, I am not giving up! I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities to delve into the life of this amazing world. I look forward to seeing what the community dreams up. As for hosting an event, I don’t dare make that goal. With my health I cannot commit to anything as grand-scale as this. However, maybe I can do a couple impromptu mini RP things as I go.
2. Complete The Unseen Achievement
Yes, I completed this in Secret World the first. No, this is not a cop out! The achievement is there again in the second iteration. It also has a different reward, and I obviously want the reward on top of bragging rights. I think the missions have been made easier, so there’s that in my favor for getting this done.
3. Work a TSW Templar up to Virgula Divina
This might seem like a strange goal, but there is a very specific reason for it. You see, Virgula Divina was by far my favorite mission in TSW. I was very excited to play through it live on stream for folks in Legends. While it is still an awesome mission, there are definitely some elements that I think are missing — one of my favorite parts, in fact. Since my Templar was private in the first game, I never got to stream that mission to have a record, and I want to do just that so I can compare the two. Also, I just want there to be a record of how awesome that mission was before it might disappear.
4. Get in on a raid
I am still determined to experience the Manhattan Exclusion zone. I also want to participate in the Deep Agartha raids. I may not have an interest in running these often, but I want to take part in the content. Who knows, I might find I really love doing them and want to do more.
5. Complete the beastiary lore guide
Yes, I am putting this out there. I am actually going to try and complete this guide this year! I think it is more doable for 2018 since I have made a new character and am running through the whole game fresh. I
6. Redo the Cost of Magic without crying
Or breaking my keyboard! Especially with the wonky jump mechanics, this may be asking too much. OK, the likelihood of me crying is low, but crying out in frustration is almost assured. I will not let this mission get to me this year! (Also, a friend seems to have dared me to do this. Luckily, i hve a spare keyboard waiting.)
7. Complete the zone boss guide
Of the guides, this one will be the easiest — mostly because there are fewer entries to collect! I also should be able to do this one as long as I complete all the content in all the zones, which leads me to…
8. Finish all missions on one character
This time I will have it all done. One character, every mission! Templar is the lucky faction that will be executing this goal. And it is pretty important that I actually do this one sooner rather than later, because she needs to be ready for…
9. Do Season 2 content!
I am confident Season 2 will launch this year, and with will be new content that will be totally awesome to finally experience. I anticipate it will be really hard to not rush through and see everything at once, but I will try hard to still take it slow and savor every moment of it.
10. And my ultimate super goal: FunCon
Convince Funcom to make a convention so I can hang out with other fans, finally meet and chat face-to-face with devs, see some awesome cosplay, and maybe even tour the studio. OK, so this one may seem a bit out of my hands, but so help me I am going to try!! It could be FuncomCon, FunCon, or Not-so-Secret World… hmm if they won’t create one maybe I will!
Is it real? In Secret World Legends, 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?
