The Ultimate Geek Bucket List: 50 Things to Do Before You Die

Part to-do list, part flight of fancy, but 100% geek-approved, here are 50 things any true geek should do, see, or experience in their lifetime.

OK, so you are a self-proclaimed geek and want to make the most of your life before you shuffle off this mortal coil and onto the next (Valhalla, anyone?). Or maybe you want to have some fun and do something truly memorable that will live on in the annals of geekdom forever. Whichever it is, we’ve compiled a list of 50 awesome things to tick off while you’re still around. From visiting science-fiction conventions and building robots to having STAY GEEK tattooed on your knuckles — these are 50 must-do items for geeks of all stripes and fandoms. PS feel free to throw your suggestions in the comments—we may just add them for posterity!

1. Become an expert in something random, like taxidermy or Slavic languages.

2. Convert a non-geek to your fandom of choice.

3. Finish coding that one project you’ve been working on for years and keep forgetting about.

4. Read all the sci-fi classics.

5. Create a podcast/Youtube channel/blog about your geeky obsessions and turn it into a successful business.

6. Dress up as your favorite character and go to a con. While there, only speak in character quotes.

7. Organize a high-tech scavenger hunt with friends.

8. Memorize the first 1,000 digits of pi and recite them at your local Pi Day celebration (March 14, you’re very welcome).

9. Have your blood tested for midi-chlorians, and refuse to believe the results.

10. Become a speedcuber.

11. Level to max in Dark Souls. Subsequently, tell others to git gud or die trying.

12. Visit the Large Hadron Collider.

13. Create your own board game.

14. Join your local chapter of the 501st Legion.

15. Go on a LARPing adventure in the woods.

16. Watch a meteor shower. If kryptonite is involved, run.

17. Appear as an extra in your favorite geeky TV show.

18. Sneak into Area 51 and live to tell the tale.

19. Build your own robot. Then enter it into BattleBots, and watch it start a robot uprising.

20. Get a geeky tattoo, real or fake.

21. Dress as your favorite anime character and attend a cosplay rave.

22. Start a Displate collection.

23. Go to an MLG Tournament.

24. Figure out what Lost was actually about. Twin Peaks, too, while you’re at it.

25. Write your own D&D campaign. Make it so good it will make Critical Role look like child’s play.

26. Duel someone with lightsabers (if you run out of kyber crystal, just hit each other with pool noodles).

27. Start a petition to add an emoji of your favorite comic book character.

28. Play through all the side quests in your favorite open-world adventure game. 

29. Witness a rocket taking off. Bonus points if you’re flying it. 

30. Learn to speak Klingon.

31. Or Vulcan. Whichever gets you further in life.

32. Compete in a cosplay contest.

33. Have a movie marathon of all the films in your favorite franchise. Consequently, achieve outstanding bliss and/or exhaustion.

34. Check off all the Smithsonians.

35. Build your own personal geek cave.

36. Take a trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and pretend you are a wizard for a day.

37. Write a novel and release it online.

38. Crochet a dragon egg (or a clutch if you’re feeling ambitious).

39. Attend a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (in costume, of course!).

40. Learn how to draw your favorite manga character.

41. Win an argument with a significant other using only Star Wars quotes.

42. Beat all the Cuphead bosses on hard mode.

43. Make a pilgrimage to Bletchley Park.

44. Start a book club for your favorite sci-fi/fantasy series.

45. Design and 3D print your own action figure.

46. Get at least one cyberware implant.

47. Go on the LOTR Hobbiton tour in New Zealand.

48. Brew your own butterbeer.

49. Get retweeted by your favorite geek celebrity.

50. Take a tour of NASA.

Over to You!

What are you passionate about? Whether it’s superheroes, tech gadgets, robotics, or anything else in the realm of geekdom, it’s worth having a bucket list of experiences and accomplishments to strive for. We hope you have fun ticking yours off! And if owning a Displate or two (who are we kidding, Displates are collectible!) helps you get there, make sure to check out our ever-growing catalog of geeky wall art to hang in your home. Happy bucket-listing!