The Dysheartener

The Dysheartener is the fifth world boss, introduced to Habitica as part of the Valentine's Day event on 14 Feb 2018. The associated world quest shares its name.

World bosses are fought by all active Habiticans and are damaged by players using the normal boss quest mechanics. The participating players never receive any damage.

Description
The sun is rising on Valentine’s Day when a shocking crash splinters the air. A blaze of sickly pink light lances through all the buildings, and bricks crumble as a deep crack rips through Habit City’s main street. An unearthly shrieking rises through the air, shattering windows as a hulking form slithers forth from the gaping earth.

Mandibles snap and a carapace glitters; legs upon legs unfurl in the air. The crowd begins to scream as the insectoid creature rears up, revealing itself to be none other than that cruelest of creatures: the fearsome Dysheartener itself. It howls in anticipation and lunges forward, hungering to gnaw on the hopes of hard-working Habiticans. With each rasping scrape of its spiny forelegs, you feel a vise of despair tightening in your chest.

“Take heart, everyone!” Lemoness shouts. “It probably thinks that we’re easy targets because so many of us have daunting New Year’s Resolutions, but it’s about to discover that Habiticans know how to stick to their goals!”

AnnDeLune raises her staff. “Let’s tackle our tasks and take this monster down!",

Objective(s)
Defeat The Dysheartener and rescue Habit City.

Mechanics
All active Habitica players automatically participated in this quest. No opt-in was required, nor did the player need to be in a party. However, The Dysheartener never hurt any players or damaged any of the players' possessions or stats.

Players damaged The Dysheartener via the standard boss fighting mechanics: completed Dailies, completed To-Dos, positive Habits, the Warrior skill Brutal Smash, and the Mage skill Burst of Flames.

Missed Dailies did not cause this boss to damage a player's health (you still took damage if you were fighting a party Boss and for your own Dailies), but they did increase The Dysheartener's Shattering Heartbreak bar. When the Shattering Heartbreak bar was full, the World Boss would attack an NPC. Only active Habiticans were checked for missed Dailies.

Phobia Protection Extension
For those with phobias who don't want to see bugs during gameplay, there is a Phobia Protection Extension. On Android, the boss image can be collapsed by going to the Tavern, and clicking the up arrow icon beside the "Boss Art" sub-header. On iOS, the boss image could be hidden by going to the Settings.

Tips

 * During the world quest, players could take part in party quests as normal (both boss quests and collection quests).
 * Resting in the Inn prevented a player's incomplete Dailies from increasing The Dysheartener's Shattering Heartbreak bar.
 * The Data Display Tool showed The Dysheartener's current status in more detail, as well as how much damage the player had done to The Dysheartener, under the Quest Progress link.

Development and Credits

 * Release date: February 14, 2018
 * Writers: Lemoness
 * Artists: Boss - AnnDeLune, Lemoness, and Beffymaroo