Genshin Impact - My Newest Addictive Game

OK, so this post is likely just going to be mostly screenshots, and a little bit of my own art. PICTURES. That's about where my brain is today anyway. Processing words = hard (I haven't been sleeping well lately so, yeah...).

As many of you already know, I'm a gamer. Yes, I still play Everquest and Summoners War, but now I have a new addiction. Actually, it's kind of a family addiction since Hubbie and Eldest play as well!

Last October, the three of us started playing Genshin Impact, by MiHoYo. The biggest thing that drew us in at first was that it was available for free on Playstation 4 (it's also available on PC and Mobile, and it's in the works for Nintendo Switch).

As a warning, though it's available on a console, it's still a gacha game. But oh man, have they brought that genre of games to a whole new level! It plays like a normal console/PC fantasy RPG. There's a huge and beautiful world to explore. Chests (some hidden insanely well), puzzles, adaptability in game play, fleshed out characters (the ones we've received stories for at least), and a great overarching story. When I grind in this game, I feel like I'm playing Everquest (fantasy MMORPG) instead of Summoners War (fantasy gacha). Take a look at some world screenshots below.

We have paid in a little bit of money to it, but we're looking at what we've spent as pretty much a monthly subscription for the game (which we pay in Everquest still). The best deals to make the game a little easier but not spend too much is going for the monthly Welkin Moon ($5 USD) and the lower tier of the Battle Pass ($10 USD every six weeks). The Battle Pass especially has helped us with being able to partially build a few more characters to experiment with.

Of course, the characters are the biggest gacha draw, especially if you want some of the 5-stars. Though, if you're patient, you will gather enough Wishes to get a 5-star without spending a penny. The rates are pretty low, but they have a pity system built in, so you're guaranteed a 5-star after so many Wishes.

Here's one of my favorites that I pulled last month. ♥ Yes, I have fallen into the world of waifus and husbandos - lol.

So, me, Hubbie, and Eldest have decided to do some challenges with each other in Genshin Impact as well. It's a PvE game (so no PvP content at this time), but you can group with up to three other people to tackle some things together if you'd like. Our first challenge, though, had us killing as many monsters as we could in our own worlds. We had six categories of monsters to slaughter in an hour. I decided to make some "trophies" for these categories. So I drew some Genshin Impact cards! They're still in pencil only, but the front of the cards are below, and what's on the back of the cards is to the right.

Finally, we eventually plan to do a challenge in one person's world, only using one character each, and each type of mob will be worth different points. I made a big primogem for the trophy for who gets the most points (kind of similar to a wrestling title, it will be handed to whoever the current champion is, as we plan to do this challenge more than once). This one I colored already, but scanning it in dulled some of the colors. It's posted below.

So, what do you think? Am I crazy as usual? (Yes, probably.) Am I playing too much Genshin Impact? (Oh, definitely.) Have you tried Genshin? If so, what do you think? (Hit me up for a friend request if you enjoy the game and plan to continue playing!).

And you do know you'll all be seeing more screenshots from me in the future, right? Happy gaming!

2021 - This Year Has To Be Better

I won't do it. I won't talk about The-Year-That-Shall-Not-Be-Named. That was the last post. This post is looking toward the future, and I'm mustering as much optimism as I can (this can be a difficult task at the best of times, for me at least) for 2021.

To go with that optimism, I've turned down my usual goals to about half. This is mainly because I have kids in and out of face-to-face, blended, and virtual learning, and I have to be adaptable. I will be adaptable if I want to keep going with writing instead of coming to a screaching halt again. And I've already proven to myself I can be adaptable this past Monday and Tuesday while Eldest was in Zoom classes. Headphones are a wonderful thing...

Anyway, Happy 2021! On with the goals!

2021 Mantras

❦ Just Write.

❦ Trust My Instincts.

❦ Focus.

❦ Embrace My Process.

Not much different from last year, aside from that second one. I think these are all great mantras to have that may persist for many years.

2021 Upcoming Publications

❦ Well of Solitude (Fortunes of Fate, 7) - Spring 2021

❦ Bytes Bite, And So Do Fairies (Fractured Fairies, 4) - Summer 2021

❦ Fortunes of Fate Collection #1 (Fate 1-6) - Fall 2021

2021 Writing Goals

❦ Revise and Edit Well of Solitude (Fortunes of Fate, 7) - I'm feeling more confident with what I need to do in the re-write of this story now, which is good. I've already gotten through another 501 words, and my brain is itching to continue it tomorrow. Slow but steady on this one, though.

❦ Revise and Edit Bytes Bite, And So Do Fairies (Fractured Fairies, 4) - This likely won't need too much work, but it will sure be fun to poke at Grinka and the fairies.

❦ Draft Nymphs Need Love Too (Fractured Fairies, 5) - Now, my brain has been going a million miles an hour on ideas for this since drafting Bytes Bite in June. The only foreseeable problem is that due to all of the elements I want to weave in, it's going to turn out rather long. Novella?

❦ Draft at least 42k of Gemini's Echo (Zodiac Aegis, 1) - Yes, I know this looks like I'm abandoning Dead As Dreams and Downward Spiral, but when your brain loosely maps out an entire arc for a 13-book series... Not looking a gift horse in the mouth. We'll see how it goes, though. I could always abandon ship and go back to the others. You can always realign my focus - just post a comment or send an email. What novel series do you want me to work on?

❦ Author Newsletter - 1 every other month, plus extras for releases. Trying to keep it simple for now. Chains of Nect: Obsidian's Obsession chapters for the most part.

❦ Born To Write - At least 1 blog post per month.

❦ Social Media - Have fun trying to post a cat picture every day on Instagram (which will also be posted to Twitter/Facebook). Year of Cats!

I'm feeling a little bit of deja vu with this post, but we won't talk about why... because I promised.

That's what it all boils down to for me this year, though. Not as much as I'd like to get done, but hey, it's better than nothing. Progress counts.

What are your goals or resolutions for 2021? Are you happy to have a fresh start in the new year? Feel free to share with me! Happy writing and reading. =)

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2021 Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay