In Splinterlands (and outside of the game as well!) there are a wide range of ways to participate in the game. So this week, we are going to take a look at a few tips on how members of the community, both new and old, can set their goals and position themselves for success. These tips can be applied to any goal you would like to set yourself, both in Splinterlands and elsewhere. To a new player, all of the options can seem daunting, and it is incredibly easy to keep going back and forth on your decisions and end up accomplishing a whole lot of nothing - definitely something to be avoided at all costs!
Don't set your first goal to be the owner of a land region, compete at the top of champion league, or some other a goal unreasonable for your starting amount of assets. Set your initial milestones small, and then when you reach them feel free to set additional goals. If you're just starting off on your journey then maybe try to get a few cards and staked SPS in order to be able to earn through your ranked play without renting as many cards. You could start off by trying to get some Bronze level summoners, or a legendary or two. Starting off with something reasonable to achieve and then doing it feels good, and is this is a great way to get going on your journey.
This applies to your goals outside of Splinterlands as well. Again, start small! I am a runner, and would not recommend to anyone who is just starting out to try and run a marathon right off of the bat. Instead, just try and get yourself off the couch and out the door. Maybe try and run a mile without stopping, or sign yourself up for a fun run or 5k in your area. Trying to set unreasonable goals and bite off more than you can chew is a sure way to get discouraged and give up without accomplishing much of anything.
I would like to emphasize here that I'm not saying that you shouldn't set ambitious goals - you should! But I would encourage you to break those big goals down into smaller, more achievable steps. You can still get to the top of that mountain, but you are less likely to hurt yourself if you don't try and do so all at once.
Once you have settled on your goals then you need to figure out a series of steps that will allow you to achieve that goal. Do you want to compete at a higher league? Maybe you can start off by getting properly levelled summoners and then filling out the the rest of your deck and getting enough staked SPS to earn your "full" rewards points. Want to get started in the land game? Maybe you can keep an eye on the markets and scoop up a cheap plot or two when you see one available.
Judging your success simply by the metric of your end goal (e.g., your rating, or your new worth) can be potentially misleading. There are plenty of sources of randomness in Splinterlands, and your actions will not always be directly correlated with your results. For example, a large portion of your value from rewards chests are tied to low probability high value hits (legendaries, gold foils, etc.). If one of your goals is to gain value through ranked play, then you may want to focus on your process and learn the gameplay and card interactions. Eventually this will maximize the amount of rewards chests you earn (along with your SPS earnings, of course!). After that, judge your success by your game skill gained and the number of chests you get, and not the actual contents.
This is related to the previous point, but it is important to enjoy what your are doing as you are doing it. Otherwise, you are likely to deviate from your premade strategy, and likely lose some expected value. Achieving big goals nearly always requires consistent effort applied over an extended period of time. The way I think about it is that the best strategy for yourself is not necessarily the best strategy possible, instead it is the best strategy possible that you are capable of sticking with. Know yourself!
Personally, I originally started Splinterlands to play it for fun, so a large portion of my strategy involves competing in ranked play. However, I do enjoy economic games too, and I also have fun optimizing my resource allocation and asset strategies. For these reasons, I have recently decided to dip my toe into land as well recently. Figuring out what you enjoy is an important step in finding your best path forward. I would say that you want to enjoy the "grind", but really if you are doing it properly then it shouldn't feel like a grind at all.
This is just as important outside of Splinterlands. Maybe you are trying to grow your investments, or your personal relationships, or work on a particular skill. Focusing on increasing your odds of success will most likely pay off in the long run, regardless of your short term results. Have fun researching possible investments, enjoy your training runs, put yourself out there and do your best to have fun while you're doing it.
Once you know what you are trying to do, have some steps set out to achieve it, and are enjoying yourself while you are doing it, then you're all set! Be sure to keep focusing on your process, and updating your goals or intermediate steps as your situation changes. Sit back, have fun, and watch your account grow. Sure, it probably isn't going to happen overnight (unless you happen to get extremely lucky), but give it some time and you'll be well on your way!
Thank you so much for reading all the way to the end. Interested in seeing some more of my writing in the future? Be sure to give me a follow! In the meantime, if you'd like to see some of my recent posts:
Rebellion Sale Plans and Goals - My plans and goals as we approach the Rebellion release!
Neutrals Not Necessary - Battling with Taking Sides! - A Splinterlands battle analysis, featuring the Taking Sides ruleset!
Investing in a Changing Meta - Rebellion is Coming! - A few things to keep in mind as the Rebellion release approaches!
Thinking about giving Splinterlands a try but haven't signed up yet? Feel free to use my referral link: https://splinterlands.com?ref=bteim, and be sure to reach out to me if you have any questions!
All images used in this article are open source and obtained from Pixabay or Unsplash. Thumbnails borrowed with permission from the Splinterlands team or made in Canva.
