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Avrenka

2026-10-07T16:31:34Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF
* Incredibly balanced seems to provide +20% OF. Extreme imbalanced/very badly balanced seems to give -40% OF. (A 60% OF differential!)

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]
*Web flare ensnares for 6 sec, with diminishing returns on players
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF
* Hurl feels like it gets -100% OF, it's so hard to land on at level target. Full nerve dmg, stunned, prone, I was barely landing hits. Only with that and adeptly balanced + 3x bob debuff, I was finally landing good hits.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* Stun diminishing returns: 60 sec timer when 1st stun hits. Renewed when 2nd stun hits, which is reduced by 50%. Third stun always reduced to 1 sec, timer does not renew.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* HULP and SB max success duration is 45 seconds
** SB prevents target from leaving or advance/retreat. It also prevents the caster from advance/retreat, but caster can leave the room. Even if caster leaves the room, target still cannot move.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
* Advancing takes 7 sec to polearm, 3 sec to melee
** Indoor advance starts at polearm

Avrenka

2026-10-06T20:22:13Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF
* Incredibly balanced seems to provide +20% OF. Extreme imbalanced/very badly balanced seems to give -40% OF. (A 60% OF differential!)

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]
*Web flare ensnares for 6 sec, with diminishing returns on players
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* Stun diminishing returns: 60 sec timer when 1st stun hits. Renewed when 2nd stun hits, which is reduced by 50%. Third stun always reduced to 1 sec, timer does not renew.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* HULP and SB max success duration is 45 seconds
** SB prevents target from leaving or advance/retreat. It also prevents the caster from advance/retreat, but caster can leave the room. Even if caster leaves the room, target still cannot move.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
* Advancing takes 7 sec to polearm, 3 sec to melee
** Indoor advance starts at polearm

Avrenka

2026-09-24T18:12:23Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]
*Web flare ensnares for 6 sec, with diminishing returns on players
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* Stun diminishing returns: 60 sec timer when 1st stun hits. Renewed when 2nd stun hits, which is reduced by 50%. Third stun always reduced to 1 sec, timer does not renew.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* HULP and SB max success duration is 45 seconds
** SB prevents target from leaving or advance/retreat. It also prevents the caster from advance/retreat, but caster can leave the room. Even if caster leaves the room, target still cannot move.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
* Advancing takes 7 sec to polearm, 3 sec to melee
** Indoor advance starts at polearm

Avrenka

2026-09-23T03:49:44Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]
*Web flare ensnares for 6 sec, with diminishing returns on players
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* Stun diminishing returns: 60 sec timer when 1st stun hits. Renewed when 2nd stun hits, which is reduced by 50%. Third stun always reduced to 1 sec, timer does not renew.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
* Advancing takes 7 sec to polearm, 3 sec to melee
** Indoor advance starts at polearm

Avrenka

2026-09-23T02:36:04Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* Stun diminishing returns: 60 sec timer when 1st stun hits. Renewed when 2nd stun hits, which is reduced by 50%. Third stun always reduced to 1 sec, timer does not renew.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-23T00:31:37Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Crippled commands

* Nerve damage prevents the following commands: "swap", "wave", "search"
* 50% head damage prevents the following commands: "focus", "invoke", "wave", "point", "predict", "search"

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-22T05:41:36Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.
Combat attacks: (these are all guestimates)

* Gouge -15% OF, Punch neutral
* Feint -10%, Slice -5%, Chop neutral, Sweep +20%
* Jab -15%, Thrust -5%, Lunge +20%
* Swing -5%, Bash +20% -- Pummel and Slam really bad attacks, don't use
* Draw neutral, Charge +60%?? (huge boost to accuracy and damage for huge RT)
* Stealth bonus up to +25% OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-18T05:16:52Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Full nerve damage seems to be about -35% to -40% DF and +35 to +40% dmg taken. It's equivalent to being Stun and Prone.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-18T04:49:41Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
Combat
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.

Moonmage
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.

Magic
* Many TM spells do not work in water

* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.
** Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Group Breaking

* Casting Blend breaks you out of group
* Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group
* Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you, and prevents retreating/advancing

Misc
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-18T04:27:22Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +16% advantage to base stats
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Max success requires +50 advantage
* Nerve damage lowers Will defense by 3
* Heavy debil bonus gives +40 advantage
* PSY appears to give +20 to +30 Will defense

Empath vit healing

* pulses every 3 seconds
* unlimited links possible
* amount healed per pulse depends on Charisma:
** Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max is 8%/link

Gyres:

* do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
* being hidden/invis prevents gyre invoking, so be careful when putting Earth Meld, Refractive Field or Eyes of the Blind in there

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 1040-1120 ranks (+30-40%) provided 100% success rate.
** Esoteric spells (1000 rank difficulty) seem to require more than 1500 arcana skill to invoke

Armor Type Comparison (for Moon Mage):

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light Armor skill:

* it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Parry Stick + Shield:

* Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF?

* 1 pt of Shield hindrance = 1 pt of Shield protection? 3 pts of Fortuitous block = 1 pt of protection?
* Each pt of hindrance/protection adds +1 DF?
* Hindrance may also influence damage taken?

DF and OF:

* 0% Fatigue seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.
** Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

* Retreating seems to apply a -10% OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

* Webbed status seems to apply a -20% DF, as well as +20% dmg taken
* Stunned status seems to apply about -15% DF, and +20% dmg taken
* Prone status seems to apply another -20% DF and +20% dmg taken. Yes, Prone penalties stack with Webbed and Stunned penalties.
* Grapple and Analyze (masterful, but no combo completed) do not seem to impart any DF penalties
* Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7% DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever
** These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%
** Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

* RAGE seems to provide +20% OF

Flare:

* Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip: 22.6% proc chance.
* Haralun Broadsword avg dmg: 17.1 dmg vs flame-etched cinq avg dmg: 18.5 dmg
** Implying flare dmg of +6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-17T20:20:52Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his and Rakkor's. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

TM tests:

* Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

* TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
** vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%
** My best guess: Chest/Abdomen -10 OF. Limbs -15 OF. Head -20 OF. Neck -30 OF. Eyes -40 OF.
* TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate
** +25 to +30 OF
* PD has -20 OF penalty, Sorrow has -25 to -30 OF penalty
* Rumor has it, IFL gives Burn +10 OF and dmg per source

Random body part damage distribution:

* Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
* TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Brawling knuckles comparison:

* Accuracy is unaffected by brawling gear
* Regular knuckles do the most PUNCH damage, but Spiked knuckles do the most PALMSTRIKE damage
* Haralun vs storebought = +20% damage
* Plate gauntlets = handwraps
* Leather gloves = half the damage of haralun knuckles
* Weight is just as important as hardness. Make sure you hit 7.5 stone density (max density).
* COMPARE verb is useful only in determining which knuckles are better. Not accurate in determining in how much better.

SvS tests:

* Primary stat = 1.5, Secondary stat = 1.0, and Tertiary stat = 0.5, then divide by 3 to get the relevant SvS number
* Attacker = Defender, success rate = 15%
* Attacker has +5 advantage (= +10 primary stat), success rate = 100%
* Max mana provides +15 or +16% advantage
* Min success stun = 6 sec, +23 adv = 17 sec
* Nerve damage lowered Will defense by 3

Parry stick balance makes a notable difference. Looking at Tambellis' tests, it looks like each point of balance on the weapon adds a point of OF, and each point of balance on the parry stick adds a point of DF

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

Flare testing on (Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip): 22.6% proc chance. Compared to Haralun Broadsword with almost identical stats: 17.1 dmg vs 18.5 dmg, implying flare dmg of 6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-17T18:38:14Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

Flare testing on (Flame-etched indurium cinquedea with a smoi leather grip): 22.6% proc chance. Compared to Haralun Broadsword with almost identical stats: 17.1 dmg vs 18.5 dmg, implying flare dmg of 6.15 (+36%). Overall bonus dmg: +8.1%.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats
*Flare mechanics: [[Post:New Flare Mechanics - 11/01/2018 - 18:07]]

Avrenka

2026-09-16T19:10:28Z

AVRENKA: /* Beginner Moonmage PvP */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Debil (IP or COTW) and Sorrow/Punching
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-16T18:46:42Z

AVRENKA: /* Moonmage Spell Recommendations */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

# Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.
# Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden
# Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast
# Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH
# Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy
# Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff
# Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer
# Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!
# Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

# Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates
# Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt
# Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana
# Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

# Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier
# Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.
# Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast
# Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward
# Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.
# Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you
# Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training '''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

# Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.
# Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell
# Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells
# Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell
# Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game
# Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around
# PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast
# Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.
# Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.
# Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.
# Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.
# Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.
# Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.
# SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot. '''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

* Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.
* Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.
* Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).
* All the other sects are PvP neutral.
* WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Sorrow and a Debil like IP or COTW
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-16T18:44:08Z

AVRENKA: /* Moonmage Spell Recommendations */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

1 - get Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

1 - Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training
'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

1 - Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.

2 - Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell

3 - Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells

4 - Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell

5 - Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game

6 - Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around

7 - PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast

8 - Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.

9 - Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.

10 - Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.

11 - Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.

12 - Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.

13 - Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.

14 - SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot.
'''Spells to avoid:'''

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.
'''Choosing a Sect:'''

'''Choosing a Sect:'''

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral.

WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Sorrow and a Debil like IP or COTW
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-16T18:43:27Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Moonmage Spell Recommendations ==

'''Beginner Spells to get:'''

1 - get Piercing Gaze (PG) as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get Calm, it's much easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get Telekinetic Throw (TKT) for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get Manifest Force (MAF), you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward Shadow Web (SHW) (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward Seer's Sense (SEER) (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward Cage of Light (COL) (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get Aura Sight (AUS) & Shadowling, more mana is always nice

'''Beginner Feats to get:'''

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

'''Advanced Spells to get:'''

1 - Read the Ripples (RTR), this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - Destiny Cypher (DC), this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - Telekinetic Storm (TKS), makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - Telekinetic Shield (TKSH), our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons (RS) -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward (LW) (use a runestone to save spell slot) -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Advanced Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

'''(Optional) PvP Spells to get:'''

1 - Whole Displacement (WD), without this, you will die in 15 sec vs Barb, Thief, Ranger, and Paladin.

2 - Mindshout (MS), arguably our best PvP spell

3 - Shear, this spell combined with Lay Ward allows you to block 2 enemy spells

4 - Sorrow, our bread and butter TM pvp spell

5 - Unleash, allows us to buff ourselves with every non-signature spell in the game

6 - Psychic Shield (PSY), protects you from Mind debil spells, which tend to be the nastiest around

7 - PvP Feats: Magical Theorist + Improved Memory to use spell scrolls; Debil Mastery to reduce Mindshout cooldown; Silent Prep to hide your casting and Advanced Spell Knowledge to see what others are going to cast

8 - Refractive Field (RF), invis is always good. Allows you to move without Roundtime, and you can snap cast it to disrupt enemy targeting in the fight. Causes you to miss Group whispers though.

9 - Moonblade + Shape Moonblade, being able to store and instantly cast 3 debil spells is a large advantage in the first minute of the fight. Takes 5 seconds to switch between debil spell. Can cast 3 moonblades, even with only 1 moon.

10 - Invocation of the Spheres (IOTS) so we can buff our mentals and land Mindshout better, but not necessary since Unleash can cover this. But the less you Unleash, the better.

11 - Rend, it's an okay spell. Ward Break is far more efficient and doesn't carry the risk of dispelling debuffs on the enemy, which Rend seems to do 50% of the time.

12 - Partial Displacement (PD), armor piercing damage is always good, even if the accuracy on this spell is slightly lower. Useful against heavily armored foes like Paladins. Otherwise Sorrow is better. Can be combo'd with Sorrow to explode heads.

13 - Burn + Fire Lens (IFL), man I think this spell sucks. It's highly accurate, but low damage. Main use is to punch up in a big rank disparity fight. Otherwise, I never use it.

14 - SLS, very rarely used. Does pretty good damage in combo with SCO, but it takes a valuable cyclic slot.

'''Spells to avoid:'''

* Steps of Vuan (SoV), mostly cuz it's a cyclic. The most useful part of Refractive Field is that it can be snapcast -- but there's a roughly 1 minute cooldown for casting new cyclics. Cylic slots are way too valuable for just another pulsing invis.
* Empower Moonblade, moonblade attack stats suck, don't bother using it as a weapon
* Artificer's Eye, Tenebrous Sense, and Machinist's Touch buffs can all be replaced with prediction buffs, it's a waste of spell slots.
* Sleep, just a really sucky version of Mental Blast
* Thoughtcast, just buy a gweth
* Hypnotize, unusable on players
* Be careful with acquiring quest related spells, as they are unforgettable no matter what
* Teleologic spells (Sever Thread, Tangled Fate, Sovereign Destiny, and Tezirah's Veil) are extremely hard to land. Saesordian Compass (SCO) provides like a +25-30% to Partial Displacement and SLS's DPS, but it's pretty expensive to spend 6 slots to get this one spell. It provides an overwhelming boost to Bonegrinder DPS, but this combo is way overpowered and needs to be nerfed.

'''Choosing a Sect:'''

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate from 4% down to 1%.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral.

WARNING: once you choose a Sect, it is irreversible -- exception being that you can always change Sects to Heritage House.

== Beginner Moonmage PvP ==
'''Armor:'''

* Leather -- my recommendation. Stealth is important for us, as it allows us to disengage and engage on our terms. And we should reset often to recast MAF and Shear, or regain any lost balance.
** Start with onyx-hide leathers, then save for punka leathers. If you've got cash, buy the shadowleaf MT end-loot.
* Shield -- small, we're armor tertiary after all.
** Start with onyx-hide small shield, then upgrade to either damite target shield or agonite triangular sipar. Best is diamond-hide or shadowleaf small shield, or MT octagonal cobwood shield.

'''Weapons:'''

* TM focus -- accuracy is considered best, since damage is heavily influenced by to-hit %. Players can craft one via enchanting. MT end-loot TM focus are best, but expensive.
* Physical weapons -- you must be ready to use them. 5 out of 11 of our matchups require weapons, and they can be a surprising source of extra damage in the other matchups.
** For a beginner, I recommend getting the best Spiked Knuckles and best Heavy Thrown (HT) you can get. Get to melee range and MANE PALM and then PUNCH. If you can't, take out the HT and starting HURLing!

'''Spell Scrolls:'''

* Easiest and most powerful to use: Ice Patch (IP) and Curse of the Wild (COTW). IP to stun, COTW to moderately debuff their offense and defense.

'''Pre-fight Prep:'''

* Repair all armor & weapons. Lower than 90%, you start to see penalties.
* No clownsuits (i.e. make sure you're wearing only 1 armor type)
* Make sure all your prediction pools are filled. Use your predictions to buff your TM, Tactics, Shield, and your two favorite weapons (Brawling and HT probably). If allowed, you can use RTR to buff more, like Defending and Light Armor.
* If allowed, cast IOTS intelligence/discipline
* Cast all your buffs: AUS, Shadowling, SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, SHAD, and RF. Cast Glythtide's Gift (GG) via runestone. Save WD and LW Shear right before the fight starts, as those only last 10min. And save Shear for last, since you don't want to weaken it with your own spellcasting.
* Save time when buffing -- you don't have to wait for full prep to successfully cast spells.
* Check your stance, 100% evasion + 99% shield. If you buffed your defending, then it's 100% evasion + 99% shield + 9% parry.
* Check your AOE, make sure it's set to Nongroup
* Always cast every spell at max mana.
* Invoke your TM focus.
* In a 1v1, SHW is our best native cyclic ... in a group fight, go with SLS so you don't accidentally web your teammates.

'''Fight!'''

* Start with Mindshout, it's our best spell. Just make sure you grouped, so you don't hit your teammates.
* Alternate casting Sorrow and a Debil like IP or COTW
* Bob in between casts -- it helps your balance and also gives a small debuff to the enemy's defense.

'''After Fight:'''

* Say "good fight" whether you won or lost
* Save the fight log
* Get ready for the next fight!

== Intermediate Moonmage PvP ==
'''Review your logs'''

* #1 way to improve
* Ask lots of questions from more experienced players

'''#1 problem of all moonmages: "Why am I dying so fast?!"'''

* Problem: You died in once Ice Patch or Stun.
** Solution: get Awaken and Aesandry Darleath (AD).
* Problem: You died in 10 physical attacks.
** Solution: highlight the message of your MAF going down. Leave the room and recast it.
* Problem: You always die first.
** Solution 1: stay hidden when the fight starts. Your teammates get first strike while the enemy wastes time searching for you.
** Solution 2: alternate between casting Shear and casting stuns. Shear will block their spells, and stunning them also reduces their offensive capabilities. Don't bother with casting TM, go full defense.

'''#2 problem: "Why are none of my attacks hitting, and all of theirs are?!"'''

''"Balance is life." -Rakkor''

''"Balance rules." -Warbrolus''

'''Understanding Balance Advantage'''

Balance advantage provides tremendous buffs to your offense and defense, and huge penalties to theirs.

How do you gain a balance advantage? Usually with stuns, which instantly tank the target's balance to "very badly balanced".

For example:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You evade.

The throwing axe lands nearby!

[You're invigorated (100%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), incredibly balanced and overwhelming your opponent.]</blockquote>I had stunned Warbrolus right before this hurl. Note the message "overwhelming your opponent", which signifies maximum balance advantage. He missed every hurl, while most of my Sorrows landed and did damage. And then he stunned me back, resulting in this:<blockquote>* Warbrolus hurls a polished silversteel throwing axe sculpted with the lines of an anguished visage at you. You fail to block with an octagonal shield of cobwood reinforced with a chitinous boss. The axe flashes midnight-blue, lacerating with countless denticulated blade projections and lands a very heavy hit that scratches the right bicep (But another battle scar for your collection!).

The throwing axe lodges itself shallowly into you!

[You're hurt (70%), energetic (100%), mighty (100%), very badly balanced with opponent overwhelming you.]</blockquote>His stun tanked my balance to "very badly balanced", giving me the message "opponent overwhelming you" which is maximum balance disadvantage. This hurl did 30% damage to me, and the next few Sorrow bolts missed.

'''''Do not stay in balance disadvantage.'''''

Ways to stay in balance advantage:

* Keep Shear up to block their stuns
* Stun them back
* If you don't have a stun spell ready, leave the room, hide, prep it, then re-engage
* Use TRIP or SHOVE (but only in melee range)
* Ask a Warrior Mage to cast Sure Footing (SUF) on you. Unleash Centering on yourself if you can. You should already have AD up.

'''#3 problem: "Why are all of their stuns hitting me, and none of mine hitting them?"'''

'''Understanding Stats'''

Landing a Debilitation spell is very different from landing a TM spell or a weapon attack.

* TM & Weapon attacks depend on ranks and balance advantage
* Landing Debilitation attacks depend on stat advantage
** Each spell has its specific stat vs stat matchup (See: [[:Category:Contested abilities]] for details)
*** For example, Mindshout puts our Int + Disc + Wis against their Disc + Wis + Int (in that order of importance!)
*** '''''Therefore, it's recommend our highest stat be Int, second highest stat be Disc, and third highest stat be Wis'''''

No one can defend against every stat matchup

* If they pump their mentals to defend against Mindshout and Rend, then they will be vulnerable to Dazzle and SHW
* Most players will prioritize mental stats
** This provides defense against nasty debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, and Huldah's Pall
** It also enables MANY offensive debils like Mindshout, Ward Break, Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, Frostbite, to name just a few...
* Raising stamina or reflex is nice for defending against Ice Patch, Lethargy, Tremor etc., but then you won't be able to stun your opponent, and you'll still be vulnerable to the other mental attacks like Mindshout and Ward Break -- which is why you won't see many people going this route (exception being Barbarians, who must avoid Ice Patch at all costs)

'''Upgrade your weapons:'''

* You need 9 weapons to cycle thru all the ACMs. Polearm, Brawling knuckles, 2HE, 2HB, LE, LB, Staff, Crossbow and SE.
* Start with high carbon steel (with 33% gold or plat, ideally), then upgrade to haralun or kertig. You want 7.5 density in your weapons and armor, higher density is always better (but there's no benefit to going above 7.5). And then the best as usual is MT end-loot.
* For Staff, bo staff is the best template. Start with Ebony, then upgrade to Rockwood.
* For LE and LB, go for the heaviest template to maximize damage. For 2HE and 2HB, go for the lightest template to maximize balance.
* For knuckles, go for spiked knuckles template for max damage.

'''Learn how to use Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACMs)'''

* Create scripts that automate the ACM for you
** For example, to get to melee range I will have my script: (1) wear left, stow left, stow right; (2) remove shield; (3) MANE RUSH %target
* Practice cycling thru all the ACMs to do maximum damage in the shortest amount of time
* All ACMs have a 90 sec cooldown, except Palmstrike which is 45 sec. Play around this.

== Advanced Moonmage PvP ==
'''Unleash'''

The spell that allows us to buff everything. The most important spells, in order:

* AD and Awaken, otherwise you just die to one stun
* Centering and SUF for balance, cuz balance is life
* Rage of the Clans and Righteous Wrath to enable weapon usage
* Tailwind if you didn't predict buff Heavy Thrown
* Sentinel's Resolve for extra defense, if you can't predict buff Shield & Defending

Secondary spells to Unleash:

* Depending on who you're fighting, you might want Courage, Soul Shield (SOS), Nonchalance and Redeemer's Pride (REPR) to fend off Spirit, Fear, Charm and Mind debils. Tranquility to bolster your Fortitude defense.
* Essence of Yew (EY) gives a small but not insigifnicant bonus to all debil defense
* Buff all your stats. Vigor, Heroic Strength, Gift of Life, Turmar Illuination, Will of Winter. This will help you win your Debil stat matchups.

Tertiary spells to Unleash:

* Only if you have time: Ignite, Resonance, and Rutilor's Edge, to give a little bit of extra damage to your favorite weapon.

Mid-fight Unleashing:

* If you can manage it, landing a Curse of the Wild (COTW), Lethargy, and Tremor mid-fight can be devastating, but it can be difficult to do.

Gyre -- if possible, use it to reduce the amount of Unleashing you do. It's very time consuming to Unleash this many spells, try to keep it to a minimum.

Learn how to cast Unleash at minimum mana -- saves you a lot of time, and conserves a lot of mana. Requires understanding how Sorcery penalty multipliers work (See: [[Sorcery#Mana Inefficiency]])

'''Empowered Moonblade'''

You can store 3 spells in each moonblade, and you can summon up to 3 moonblades -- hypothetically, you can have 9 insta-cast debils at your disposal, but practically speaking you'll likely only ever use 1, as it is extremely difficult to manage more than 1 moonblade at a time.

* STUDY the moonblade to figure out how this works
* There's a 5 sec switch time between stored spells, which means you need to alternate between non-stored spells and stored spells.
** For example, I might start a fight casting Sorrow, then immediately casting a stored Ice Patch to stun, then prepping Mind Shout and switching to the second Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is complete, I cast Mind Shout (with buffed Debil, I only need 6 sec prep time to cast Mind Shout), then immediately cast a stored Ward Break to capitalize on the stunned status. I prep Sorrow while switching to the third Moonblade node. After the 5 sec RT switch is done, I cast Sorrow (with buffed TM I only need 4 sec prep time to cast Sorrow) and then immediately cast a stored Rend.
*** In 21 secs, I will have casted 7 spells: 2 Sorrows and 5 Debils.

Casting this many spells in such short time requires many scripts to handle -- similar to cycling thru ACMs, but harder since you need to customize which spells you want to store, depending on the fight.

* At minimum, you want 7 scripts. Three to switch between the 3 nodes. Another three to set the spell variable for each stored spell. And the last one to insta-cast the stored spell at %target.
* If you plan on using 3 moonblades at a time, this can blow up to 19 scripts, or more if you want to insta-cast at more than one target.
** Don't talk to me about how hard Warrior Mage micro is, Tirost! Look at all this crap I have to do, all in 21 seconds!

'''Herbs and MT goodies'''

* '''Herbs:''' Buy them crafted, or make your own. If you plan on fighting for more than 3 min, you need 'em. If you're gonna get nerve damage, you need 'em. Check the Remedies product page to see which ones you need (See [[Remedies products]]). I usually just use chest, abdomen, limbs and nerves, since the other body parts are rarely hit. Unless you're against another Moon Mage, then you want the head herbs (Sorrow!).
* '''Regen items:''' I don't have any, but vit regen is probably best.
* '''Hand of Glory:''' +10 to your stats. Who doesn't want more stats?
* '''Wands & Tattoos:''' Ice Patch is of course the best wand. I would probably get a Tremor tattoo. WB and HULP wands are okay, if you can land 'em.
* '''HE gifts:''' tend to not be allowed, cuz they're too strong, like the automaton, totem or mask pigments (bees!).
* '''Flared weapon/armor:''' Flares don't really move the needle much. Nice bonus when it happens, but don't plan around it.
* '''Ice cube, poisons:''' Don't seem to be working properly in the Arena

'''Know the Matchup'''

* If you're up against stealthers, use Mindshout and Sorrow.
* If you're up against weapons, keep your WD up, keep them stunned, and refresh MAF often.
* If you're up against anti-magic, use your Mindshout/Ward Break combo, switch to weapons, or use Magic-based Debils. Refresh Shear often to win the Debil contest.

'''Learn the Mechanics'''

* There's a million hidden mechanics in the game. Knowledge is power. Learn them, investigate them, ask around about them.

'''MOST IMPORTANT: Know the Game'''

* Know when to go all out, and know when to keep it casual
** The PvP community is a small one, much akin to playing pickup basketball at a local court. There's a huge range of skill, and the teams or matchups usually aren't balanced.
** '''Play in a way so that everyone has fun!'''

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

* A lot of my work was built upon his. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-16T15:11:42Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF, as well as +20% dmg taken. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF, and +20% dmg taken. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF and +20% dmg taken.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-16T15:08:35Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave, Circle and Bob seem to each contribute around -7 DF to target, as well as increasing dmg taken by 7-10% depending on the manuever. These tactics can be stacked up to 3 times for 18 seconds for a total -20 DF to target, as well as an increase in dmg taken by 20-30%. Practically speaking, Bob x3 and Circle/Weave/Bob are the only stacked tactics worth doing, as spamming Circle will tank your balance and spamming Weave will tank your fatigue.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-14T06:47:42Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

Weave lasts 18 seconds and seems to apply about -10 DF? Increase damage like it's -20 DF though. Unclear what's exactly going on with Weeave.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-14T06:36:36Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties. Weave seems to apply about -10 DF? Increase damage like it's -20 DF though. Unclear what's exactly going on with Weeave.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-14T05:46:20Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF.

Grapple and Analyze do not seem to impart any DF penalties.

RAGE seems to provide +20 OF

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-12T20:09:50Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +14 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense
Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

Webbed status seems to apply a -20 DF. Stunned status seems to apply about -15 DF. Prone status seems to apply another -20 DF.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-11T16:31:33Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

Retreating seems to apply a -10 OF to each retreat, stacking. 1 retreat lasts 13 sec, 2 retreats lasts 18 sec.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-10T19:43:07Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

6 - Lay Ward -- really good at blocking spells that critters cast at you

7 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, IOTS, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal. Evasion is our primary defense, so we need to minimize armor hindrance.

Weaponry -- In open world, TM focus is our best weapon, since offensively TM should be our highest skill. In WT Heroic, you'll want haralun weapons. Get the heaviest LE/LB you can, and the lightest 2HE/2HB you can -- you want max dmg but at least 3-4 balance so you don't miss. Get haralun spiked knuckles and the best piercing polearm you can find -- MANE PALM and MANE IMPALE are often your two hardest hitting ACMs. Also haralun HT that you can weapon bond, HURLing is another option that you want available to you in the fight.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Lethargy, WB, maybe Frostbite or Vertigo. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES (or GOL), NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your TM, Sorc, Debil, Util, Aug, Shield, Defending, Light Armor, Tactics, and HT, so you won't need SUB, SAP, SR, WOTP, or Tailwind scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. And nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, but quite pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - has the strongest Mind vs Will attack in the game: Mindshout, which unlocks other powerful Mind attack spells like WB, Vertigo, HULP

4 - Shear grants powerful anti-magic defense and usually allows you to have first cast. And moonblade makes it possible to cast double the offensive spells in the first minute.

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - lowest defense

3 - requires a lot of micro to realize full potential

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* MS is your most powerful spell by far. It'll blow away your opponents' Will defense wards, or give them full nerve damage if they don't have any. Nerve damage is crippling for 3 reasons: it lowers enemy defense significantly (-20%), lowers their Will defense significantly (-7%), and lowers their Stealth significantly. Once they have no Will wards and full nerve damage, they're wide open to getting WB, Rend, HULP, or Vertigo, all crippling Mind attack spells.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief) -- hit them with MS, nerve damage is their worst enemy. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. If you REALLY need to, cast AVA or Tremor, but probably not necessary.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT or LT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Necro, Trader, WM, Cleric, MM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Hit them with IP, then use all your ACMs as quickly as possible.
** Note: vs Necro you will need to MANE RUSH first before casting IP, due to how WORM works. Then as you're ACM'ing, try to get a MS in too. Once Necro has nerve damage, they can't snipe you anymore.
** Note: vs Trader you will need significant Will defense, or you won't be able to penetrate Elision. If you can't get thru Elision, then play keep away with lots of Shear, IP and Sorrow. It's an uphill battle, since you basically have to pray IP will get thru their MOM before they get thru your Shear.

Basically, you figure out how to use IP and MS intelligently, then blow 'em away with ACMs or Sorrow depending if they have anti-magic or if they have superior weapon firepower.
'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC for predicts, if needed. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD.

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), and Tremor (best soft debil). WB, HOT, Lethargy, Frostbite and Vertigo are also good.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI. In Heroic, none of these are necessary since you can't go above +20%.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it. There is an argument to be made to use chain in WT heroic mode.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 9% parry, 100% shield in WT Heroic. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. I recommend wearing the shield, since many spells like Mindshout or Tingle can make you drop your held items. If you get MS'd and drop your shield, you'll die in like 2-3 hits.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense, Will, and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I do not like this spell, and do not condone its use. It is too powerful.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise! Note: do NOT use against Barbarians, as it stacks AGAINST you with their Swan & Serenity. It's also a double-edged sword vs Paladins, since their SP becomes more powerful when you have Shear up.

5 - Moonblade - Allows you to cast 3 extra spells in the first minute. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively.

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

A moonmage's greatest weapon is Mindshout -- therefore, it behooves you to prioritize Intelligence first, then Discipline second, then Wisdom third, in order to maximize MS successfully landing. This will also help you land other Mind spells like Rend, WB, Vertigo, HULP.

Coincidentally, prioritizing those stats in that order will also give you great Will defense, which helps against the nastiest Debil spells out there, and also gives you pretty good stats for casting other strong secondary Debils like Ice Patch, Tremor, Lethargy, and Frostbite.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-10T16:21:39Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double. Regular knuckles do about 6% more damage w/ PUNCH vs spiked knuckles, but spiked knuckles do about 15% more damage w/ MANE PALMSTRIKE vs regular knuckles (darkstone 85 hardness).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-08T15:11:15Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

* This should be equivalent to around a +10% to OF?

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double.

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Fatigue 0% seems to apply a -20% DF and OF, prevents getting items, adds a lot of RT to athletics and makes it harder, and -20% to spellcasting.

* Lethargy drops target Fatigue to 50-60% (if below, no effect), and reduces Fatigue regen to stabilize at that level. If Fatigue ever hits 40% or below, it immediately tanks to 0% and stays there.

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-09-07T15:25:37Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%). COMPARE verb is effective for comparing knuckles, but not accurate measure of difference in damage. Difference between storebought knuckles and haralun spiked knuckles about 20%. Difference between haralun spiked knuckles and leather gloves is almost double.

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-08-31T04:16:07Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

* SvS: primary stat counts for 1.5, secondary stat 1.0, tertiary stat 0.5
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5 advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20 boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* +30 advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be +50 advantage
* PSY appears to give 20-30 points of Will defense

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too. It's been said that Immobilize applies an Evasion penalty.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena HIGH multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
** HEROIC equalizes to 958 stat points. Health, spirit, fatigue pools are flexed with stats, but almost all other stat aspects are not (i.e. encumbrance, weapon RT).
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-08-21T18:10:35Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.
* Kodius -- 3/26/2021: templates have no hard caps, weapon stats increase +1 per stone of weight up to 7.5 density, swappables and throwables slightly penalized on base stats

Avrenka

2026-08-20T17:52:58Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* Javac — 8/20/2026: Armor is applied before reactors.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Avrenka

2026-08-19T00:29:10Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.
* CoZ mechanics: if target is wearing no armor and holding no weapons, CoZ does not take effect. CoZ only curses worn armor -- any armor put on after cast will not be cursed. CoZ takes 1-3 seconds to affect a weapon grabbed from a container, and will remain for the duration of the curse. CoZ does not affect parry sticks or brawling gear.

Avrenka

2026-08-19T00:27:23Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308
* Javac — 8/18/2026: Looking at the code, there is no autostance penalty.

Avrenka

2026-08-13T14:47:16Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit. Vertigo is 8 pulses, same timing, but 1st pulse is missed.
* Bardic screams mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/823599885693354064/953128015129366538
* I believe "stun" condition gives a sizeable penalty to DF, from my many armor tests. Tambellis theorized immobilize gives a large evasion penalty. Golameth believes immobilize gives the highest penalty.
* Glyph of Dueling mechanic: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/619330202614497290/857613082099580959
* Damage calculation mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1019333944212201513
* OF vs DEF mechanics: https://discord.com/channels/619301383451181075/819303984719200297/1431285731632091308

Avrenka

2026-02-13T20:54:53Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.
* Tremor pulses 9 times (10 if you count the initial cast, which does hit) every 4-5 seconds. Spell ends in 42-44 seconds. Ending message does not hit.

Avrenka

2026-02-13T20:41:12Z

AVRENKA:

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate. Type SPELL STANCE 130 100 70 to get a little extra juice in your spells.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

== Avrenka's Crappy Notes on Random Mechanics ==
* Accuracy affects dmg by as much as -80% penalty to 2x bonus (KODIUS)
* Damage bonus from rank disparity is capped at 2x (KODIUS)
* Sliding % of damage is given as wound damage. At > 80%, is very little. (KODIUS)
* It is possible to be dragged away from your own rogue moongate, and avoid death
* Many TM spells do not work in water
* Moongate in water no longer applies an AOE stun
* Conventional wisdom holds that grapple and analyze apply a Defensive Factor penalty. From my own experience, nerve damage applies a DF penalty as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Stun status also applies a DF penalty too.
* From my own experience, armor protection starts to deteriorate under 90% durability
* Many cyclics pulse every 18 seconds. RAGE, NAME, and REPR seem to pulse quite randomly (8-30 seconds).
* Herbs pulse every 30 seconds, 9 times, split between # of affected areas (i.e. limb remedy to multiple limb damage will heal multiples slower than chest remedy to chest damage)
* Gyres cannot be invoked while hidden/invis, so don't put an invis spell first into the gyre, then all the other spells won't invoke
* Certain spells can't be cast on others by non-native guild, like PSY and Uncurse
* Integrity barriers stack. So always combine LW with whatever, like AC, Shear, SP, WORM, etc. This makes it so your spells can go out (since LW doesn't affect it), but their spells can't go in. Shear and SP do not play nice with each other, I've tried stacking them, doesn't work.
* Casting Blend breaks you out of group. Whole Displacement pulses break you out of group. Soul Bonding breaks you out of group, and prevents you from joining any groups at all while it's on you.
* Shift Moonbeam has a 2 zone limit.
* WT Arena multiplies your stats to equalize them to 800 points in total, but only for SvS purposes. So if you're wondering why you get hit harder than others, it might be cuz your Reflex and Stamina aren't 100 and theirs is. And if you're wondering why small players seem to always succeed their debils on you, it's probably cuz their mentals are way above their other stats.

Blend

2026-02-13T20:33:12Z

AVRENKA: /* Notes */

{{Spell
|name=Blend
|abbrev=-
|minprep=15
|castcap=100
|minskill=80
|maxskill=800
|minduration=10
|maxduration=40
|validtarget=Self
|guild=Ranger
|magic=Life Magic
|spellbook=Wilderness Survival
|prereqs=[[Earth Meld]]
|slot=1
|illegal=no
|corrupt=no
|desc=The Blend spell changes the color and texture of the magician and their equipment, granting almost perfect camoflauge. While it works best in the wilderness, recent advances in the spell pattern have allowed for effective use while in urban areas as well.
|buffs=No buffs
|debuffs=No debuffs
|dtype=No damage
|htype=No heal
|poststring=No
|effect=Pulsing self-invisibility.
|messaging=You blend smoothly into your surroundings, making yourself unseen.

You fade into view for all to see.
|sig=Yes
|diff=intermediate
|source=standard
|type=utility
|ctype=standard
}}
==Notes==
* Pulsing self-invisibility.
* You can move around with it, and use it in cities with some additional difficulty and increased pulse length (based on your personal wilderness level, adjusted by [[Memory of Nature]], in whatever room you happen to be standing in when the system needs to calculate a pulse).
* Breaks you out of whatever group you're in upon cast. Subsequent pulses do not break you out of group.
{{RefAl}}

Avrenka

2026-02-12T20:38:29Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test
* DR-Kodius has said that Armor skill affects Absorb slightly, but Protection heavily -- meaning, Armor skill impacts small hits a lot more than big hits (i.e. PvE more than PvP)

Avrenka

2026-02-12T05:25:50Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Light armor skill testing: it appears armor skill does make a difference. To-hit % seems to remain the same, but damage received from hits is slightly reduced with higher skill.

* Light armor skill 511 vs 756: lost vit/hit 2.83 vs 2.10, and 0.54 vs 0.41, sample size ~400-650 per test

Avrenka

2026-02-10T19:39:33Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder + SCO: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Avrenka

2026-02-10T19:39:21Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous) This test may be skewed by the fact that I am a moonmage, and my Evasion is always higher than my Parry/Shield and my stance is 100% evasion, so hindrance probably is more impactful for me.

Bonegrinder: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Avrenka

2026-02-10T19:38:16Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.

Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous)

Bonegrinder: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala: No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%

vs t2 Xala: No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala

* PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
* Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
* each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10% (I'm not sure about this)
* TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%

TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)

* I believe SvS contest equation is: (Attacker's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) / (Defender's Primary *4 + Secondary *2 + Tertiary) - 1
** For example, 108/100/100 vs 100/100/100 = 4.6% advantage, which should grant about 90% success rate
* Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
* Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
* Max mana provides +20% boost
* Minimum success stun = 6 seconds (SHW)
* 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds (SHW)
* Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
* Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
* Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild

* invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
* i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced

* Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
* Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
* Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
* higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
* reinforcing armor is almost always bad
* Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
* results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Avrenka

2026-02-10T19:30:27Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Experiments */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.
Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous)

Bonegrinder: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
- vs t2 Xala No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala
- PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
- Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
- each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10%.
- TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
- TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)
- Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
- Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
- Max mana provides +20% boost
- Minimum success stun = 6 seconds
- 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds
- Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
- Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
- Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
- invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
- i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced
- Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
- Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
- Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
- higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
- reinforcing armor is almost always bad
- Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
- results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Avrenka

2026-02-10T19:29:27Z

AVRENKA:

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - Best spells are IP (best hard stun), Tremor (best soft debil), HoT (for stripping wards), Bonegrinder (for best damage). If you can land it, HULP and WB.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

7 - Moonblade - load with your 3 best debils. IP is always in there for me. I like to load MS last, since the 4 sorrow charges get used up fast, and MS replenishes them.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill, and prevents wand usage. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears. Have ACM scripts ready (see: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Combat_maneuvers#Advanced_Combat_Maneuvers)

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage in the first minute of the fight. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliable method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

== Avrenka's Crappy Experiments ==
First, go check out Tambellis' experiments: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Tambellis

Yes parry stick balance makes a notable difference.
Shield hindrance seems to be a bit more important than shield protection. Fortuitous chance to block is even less impactful than shield protection. (If I had to guess, 1pt hindrance = 1.5 pts of protection = 3 pts of fortuitous)

Bonegrinder: 75% instalock rate (86/115), 16% backlash rate (15/93)

TM body part targeting accuracy: vs t1 Xala No target 94%, Legs 79%, Chest 94%, Abdomen 94%, Eyes 9%, Neck 34%, Head 69%
- vs t2 Xala No target 49%, Chest 21%

TM accuracy focus vs no focus, vs t2 Xala 85% hit rate vs 55% hit rate

Moonmage TM spells vs t1 Xala
- PD appears to have a decent accuracy penalty (67.4%) vs DO/TKT/unempowered Burn (84-87%). This is likely to offset the extra dmg that PD gets from being armor piercing.
- Sorrow is even less accurate than PD (54.0%). Keep in mind, fully targeted spells get a +20% accuracy bonus, which Sorrow does not get.
- each IFL source appears to slightly increase Burn accuracy. Conventional wisdom holds that each source increases accuracy & damage by 10%.
- TM accuracy focus appears to give about a 25-30% accuracy boost to hit

Punching no-target body part distribution: head 1.9%, eyes 1.6%, neck 3.2%, chest 18.4%, abdomen 8.9%, back 6.0%, arms 30.5%, hands 5.7%, legs 23.8%
- TM no-target body part distribution: head 6.6%, eyes 8.5%, neck 7.5%, chest 9.4%, abdomen 17.9%, back 17.9%, arms 10.4%, hands 2.8%, legs 18.9%

Punching damage: plate gauntlets seemed about as effective as handwraps. Spiked knuckle dmg +7.4%, regular knuckle dmg +17.7% as compared to plate gauntlets/handwraps. Buffing brawling skill did not affect dmg when accuracy was capped (~95%).

SvS testing: Primary stats seem to be about double as impactful as Secondary stats. Conventional wisdom holds that Secondary stats are double as impactful as Tertiary stats. (In my testing, it could be 2.5 as impactful?)
- Attacker vs Defender no advantage, success rate 15-20%
- Attacker vs Defender +5% advantage, success rate 100%
- Max mana provides +20% boost
- Minimum success stun = 6 seconds
- 30% advantage stun = 17 seconds
- Stun appears to lower Will defense by 20-25%, full Nerve damage appears to lower Will defense by 7%
- Maximal success appears to be 50% advantage, given Tambellis's test of 150/100/100 vs 75/100/100
- Conventional wisdom holds that PSY & REPR each give about 80 secondary stat points of shields. In my opinion, I'm willing to bet they instead each give +20-25% of Will HP defense.

Empath vit healing, pulses every 3 seconds, unlimited links possible: Charisma 14: 5%/link, Charisma 30: 6.3%/link, Charisma 60: 7.3%/link; max appears to be 8%/link

Gyres do not work with signature spells unless it's your guild
- invoking Gyre requires Arcana check, which depends on the difficulty of the spells being invoked
- i.e. max mana Intermediate spell difficulty (800 rank difficulty) had a 0% success rate with 800 ranks of Arcana, and somewhere around 30-40% advantage provided 100% success rate.

Armor testing on Moonmage w/ 859 evasion, 632 parry/armor/defend vs 2 Xala thralls + magus, solidly balanced
- Leather armor yielded the best results, at 0.29 dmg/atk
- Cloth and Bone were next best, at 0.36-0.37 dmg/atk
- Chain, Brig and Plate were noticeably worse, at 0.51, 0.61, and 0.80 dmg/atk respectively
- higher armor density appears to always be beneficial
- reinforcing armor is almost always bad
- Clownsuiting is even worse than Plate. Clownsuiting with mostly Leather was better than mostly Chain, 0.39 vs 0.54 dmg/atk (I had TKSH up to help)
- results indicate hindrance is extremely important, which may be due to my defensives being skewed towards Evasion. Whatever benefits the extra protection gave was more than outweighed by the % to-hit penalty. And, accuracy appears to increase damage all the way up to around 80-85% accuracy.

Bless

2026-02-09T19:16:17Z

AVRENKA: /* Notes */

{{Spell
|abbrev=-
|minprep=1
|castcap=100
|minskill=0
|maxskill=400
|minduration=10
|maxduration=40
|validtarget=Self, PC
|guild=Cleric
|magic=Holy Magic
|spellbook=Holy Evocations
|prereqs=-
|slot=1
|illegal=no
|corrupt=no
|desc=The Bless spell renders a profane object sacred. It is used in the production of holy water and oil, and prepares weapons and shields for use against the Undead. It may also be cast upon others, who will gain the benefits of the blessing whether they are armed or not.
|buffs=No buffs
|debuffs=No debuffs
|dtype=No damage
|htype=No heal
|poststring=No
|effect=+damage to undead/cursed. Ability to hit incorporeal.
|messaging='''LIGHT ALIGNMENT:''' 
You gesture. 
A pure golden glow enwreathes your body.

'''NEUTRAL ALIGNMENT:''' 
You gesture. 
A brilliant silver glow enwreathes your body.

'''DARK ALIGNMENT:''' 
You gesture. 
A deep indigo glow enwreathes your body.

'''On successful attacks against cursed or Undead enemies:'''
*The weapon flashes with a brilliant silver light

'''Triggering [[Divine Radiance]]:'''
*The light about a Maelshyvean cinder beast blooms into a radiant flare!
|sig=No
|diff=intro
|source=standard
|type=utility
|ctype=standard
}}
==Notes==
*Can be used to turn {{ilink|i|water}} into {{sloot|i|holy water}} or {{ilink|i|oil}} into {{sloot|i|holy oil}}.
*:Syntax: {{com|CAST}} {{tt|WATER IN MY <vessel>}}
**Must be cast on the water/oil inside a vessel or container, and not on the container itself, in order to render the water sacred.
*Can be used to turn any wine into sacramental wine used for [[clerical rituals]].
*Self cast bless for blessed brawling is simply {{tt|CAST}} without a modifier.
*Will give a weapon 400 strikes at maximum mana.
*Can be cast on another player (only if caster is a Cleric). It will bless any weapon held by the person, or if they are not holding a weapon, it will bless them for brawling and extend the blessing to any weapon they hold for the duration of the spell.
**Casting on another player reduces the strikes by half (maximum 200 strikes).
**40 roisaen capped cast on a person not holding a weapon.
*Having Bless active, and attacking a target inflicted with [[Divine Radiance]] will trigger the latter's damage amplification effect, causing further potential damage.
** (The light about a Maelshyvean cinder beast blooms into a radiant flare!)
*Can be placed into the [[Osrel Meraud]] orb.

{{RefAl}}

Psychic Shield

2026-02-09T15:38:32Z

AVRENKA: /* Notes */

{{Spell
|abbrev=psy
|minprep=5
|castcap=100
|minskill=10
|maxskill=600
|minduration=10
|maxduration=40
|validtarget=Self, PC
|guild=Moon Mage
|magic=Lunar Magic
|spellbook=Psychic Projection
|prereqs=[[Calm]]
|slot=1
|illegal=no
|corrupt=no
|desc=The Psychic Shield spell offers a defense against spells and attacks that target one's mental faculties, regardless of the source. It is weakened by each blow it absorbs.
|buffs=No buffs
|debuffs=No debuffs
|dtype=No damage
|htype=No heal
|poststring=No
|effect=Ablative ward against vs. will contested abilities.
|messaging=You gesture.
You sense forces gathering about you to protect you from harm.
|sig=No
|diff=basic
|source=standard
|type=warding
|ctype=battle
}}
==Notes==
* Creates a shield that protects against Mind attacks such as [[Mental Blast]] and other [[:Category:Willpower contest abilities|versus Willpower]] spells.
* Protects against Nissa's Binding, the only spell that features Mind vs Fortitude (as opposed to all other Mind attacks being vs Willpower)
* Can only be cast on others by a Moonmage. Non-moonmages can only cast on themselves.

Psychic Shield

2026-02-09T15:37:53Z

AVRENKA: /* Notes */

{{Spell
|abbrev=psy
|minprep=5
|castcap=100
|minskill=10
|maxskill=600
|minduration=10
|maxduration=40
|validtarget=Self, PC
|guild=Moon Mage
|magic=Lunar Magic
|spellbook=Psychic Projection
|prereqs=[[Calm]]
|slot=1
|illegal=no
|corrupt=no
|desc=The Psychic Shield spell offers a defense against spells and attacks that target one's mental faculties, regardless of the source. It is weakened by each blow it absorbs.
|buffs=No buffs
|debuffs=No debuffs
|dtype=No damage
|htype=No heal
|poststring=No
|effect=Ablative ward against vs. will contested abilities.
|messaging=You gesture.
You sense forces gathering about you to protect you from harm.
|sig=No
|diff=basic
|source=standard
|type=warding
|ctype=battle
}}
==Notes==
* Creates a shield that protects against Mind attacks such as [[Mental Blast]] and other [[:Category:Willpower contest abilities|versus Willpower]] spells.
* Protects against Nissa's Binding, the only spell that features Mind vs Fortitude (as opposed to everything else being Mind vs Willpower)
* Can only be cast on others by a Moonmage. Non-moonmages can only cast on themselves.

Uncurse

2026-02-09T15:35:08Z

AVRENKA: /* Notes */

{{Spell
|abbrev=uncurse
|minprep=5
|castcap=100
|minskill=10
|maxskill=600
|minduration=-
|validtarget=PC, Creature, Item
|guild=Cleric
|magic=Holy Magic
|spellbook=Metamagic
|prereqs=Circle 5, [[Bless]]
|slot=1
|desc=The Uncurse spell can temporarily lift or permanently break a curse on an object, person or creature.
|buffs=No buffs
|debuffs=No debuffs
|dtype=No damage
|htype=No heal
|effect=Dispels offensive spell, curse, or Death's Sting on target.
|messaging=You gesture at a <BOX, WEAPON, other CURSED OBJECT> 
Small tendrils of curious silvery light slither from your fingertips toward a <BOX, WEAPON, other CURSED OBJECT>
|sig=No
|diff=basic
|source=standard
|type=utility
|ctype=battle
}}
==Notes==
*Will dispel a single offensive spell on the target.
*With enough mana can be used to remove a hostile debuff on the target.
**If the target is wearing a cursed item or items, this spell will affect all cursed items on that target. (Worn, or in hands)
*Will reduce the effects of Death's Sting on the target.
*Will destroy the [[giant skeletal claw]]s in [[Zaulfung]].
*Can only be cast on others as a Cleric. Non-clerics receive the message: "You strain, but lack the training to direct the Uncurse spell at others."

Avrenka

2026-02-06T21:25:23Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - IP is must have. HoT is a great second choice, for opponents you can't rend. Tremor is also top tier, but very difficult to cast and can give bad sorcery backlash.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears.

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage over other spell casters, albeit only briefly. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''

Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliably method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

Avrenka

2026-02-06T21:24:56Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - IP is must have. HoT is a great second choice, for opponents you can't rend. Tremor is also top tier, but very difficult to cast and can give bad sorcery backlash.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears.

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage over other spell casters, albeit only briefly. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliably method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!

Avrenka

2026-02-06T21:24:32Z

AVRENKA: /* Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP */

{{PC
| name = Mathematician Avrenka[[File:Avrenka 3.jpg|thumb]]
| status = Active
| race = Human
| gender = Male
| guild = Moon Mage
| instance = Prime
| relative = None
}}

A Human who values knowledge above all else, Avrenka seeks the truth and its meaning behind everything. Skeptical to a fault, he takes no one at their word -- but equally, he will not dismiss anyone's words without careful consideration. To him, social constructs hold no value -- only truth and knowledge have merit.

== Background ==
Avrenka, whose name means "Moon Tree" in Gamgweth, was born under an oak tree at a night when all three moons shone brightly.

Raised on the outskirts of Dirge by his father, an apothecarist, Avrenka was no stranger to delivering medicines to miners injured from accidents, trolls, volcanic eruptions, to name a few. And while his two older brothers demonstrated talent and skill in the healing arts, Avrenka found he had none.

Instead, he excelled at school, particularly in Mathematics and Astrology. So when he became of age, with his father's reluctant approval, Avrenka moved to Crossing to become a Moon Mage to pursue greater knowledge on how the universe works.

Nowadays, Avrenka spends his time conducting magical research experiments, and maintains his adolescent practice of rescuing fallen adventurers.

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Starting a Moonmage ==

''"Hey, you. You're finally awake." -Ralof''

1 - Forage sticks/branches and sell 'em to Mags for a few gold

2 - Go to Tembeg's, buy 1 of each armor type covering every body part (recommended: leather hauberk, plate gauntlets, chain helm, scale mask), and buy target shield (toggle shield A, wear shield)

3 - Type STANCE. Always max out Evasion Stance, then split the rest between Shield and Parry.

4 - Go to the Tanner, ask falken for rope, toggle bundle W

5 - Go to shipyard rats, skin every rat you kill and bundle it with the rope, wear the bundle, adjust it and tie it. Train offhand (feint left), TM (target stra, wait, cast), Debil (prep burden, cast). Prioritize balance gaining attacks like feint, jab, gouge, bob.

6 - Study divine charm. Learn how to use it to heal yourself and teleport yourself around. It stops working after several circles. You lose the starting spells EASE, MAF, BURDEN, and STRA after Circle 10. Familiarize yourself with the Empath guild and find out how to get healing before the charm stops working.

7 - Go back to the tanner, sell your bundle. Do this until you have 5 gold. Or go scavenging in the Empath Courtyard, sometimes people drop nuggets or other sellables on the ground or in the statue that you can sell at either the Gemshop or Pawnshop.

8 - Go to Milgrym's, buy 1 of each weapon type (recommended: scimitar, bola, broadsword, greathammer, greataxe, flail, shortbow + arrows, crossbow + bolts, sling + rocks), and buy parry stick and wear it.

9 - Go to the backroom of Berolt's, buy two weapon straps, then go back to Milgrym's and buy a spear and quarterstaff. Tie the straps to the spear and quarterstaff, and wear them over your shoulder as those 2 weapons won't fit in backpacks.

10 - Now you're fully kitted out. Look up Zoluren Hunting Ladder in elanthipedia, follow the progression.

11 - Train every skill. Type "EXP 0" and look up each skill in elanthipedia.org. It'll tell you how to train each skill.

12 - For training magic, cast at the most mana you can before failing. Use DISCERN <SPELL> to figure it out. Later on, you'll need to add in PREP SYMBIOSIS to make spells more difficult, in order to keep your training up. For sorcery, get a Bless runestone from Sierack's, focus it until it stops teaching, then start casting it. Get Sorcerous Patterns feat to reduce backlash rate.

''"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him... better, stronger, faster." -Oscar Goldman''

Stats -- raise what you need. Priority is getting your Encumbrance down to (None), so raise Str and Stam until it's gone. If you're getting hurt too much in combat, raise Ref. Raise Str and Agi to reduce swingtime on attacks. Raise Wis, Int and Disc when possible to increase learning rate (there are whispers that only Wis impacts learning rate, but this is not conventional wisdom). No need to raise Cha. Stats have diminished returns after 30, further diminshed returns after 60, and even more so after 100.

-- It is possible to train physicals to only 30, and then raise mentals to 100 to min/max learning rate -- but you need good armor, shield and parry stick, and a solid understanding of combat mechanics. Many people simply raise all stats evenly, except Cha of course.

Crucial Spells to get:

1 - get PG as soon as possible, training Astro is very difficult without it.

2 - get CALM, it's easier to train Debil with it than Burden

3 - get TKT for training TM, it's super fast

4 - get MAF, you'll need it as it'll be awhile until you can cast TKSH

5 - beeline toward SHW (need 80 Debil), it'll make training Debil insanely easy

6 - beeline toward SEER (need 80 Aug & Util), it gives evasion buff

7 - beeline toward COL (need 80 Ward), it makes hunting safer

8 - get Shift Moonbeam, Locate, Moongate, and Ripplegate Theory (need 80 Util) -- otherwise why did you even make a Moonmage?!

9 - get AUS/Shadowling, more mana is always nice

Now feats:

1 - Sorcerous Patterns to reduce backlash rates

2 - Injured Casting & Cautious Casting so you don't fail every spell when you're hurt

3 - Deep Attunement & Efficient Harnessing for more mana

4 - Raw Channeling & Efficient Channeling to use cylics

5 - Magic Theorist & Improved Memory to use spell scrolls

Advanced Spells to get:

1 - RTR, this makes training Astro so much easier

2 - DC, this helps maxxing out your Divination Tool a lot faster and easier. Tools are useful for reliable targeted predicts, which can fail even at 1,000 Astro ranks (with min Cha). Buy the 700 plat tool you see in fests, the 7k plat tool is overkill and not needed. Tools cheaper than 700 plat will not max out. You can forget this spell after you've maxed out your tool.

3 - TKS, makes training TM even easier and farms fast

4 - TKSH, our best ward

5 - IotS, extra stats is always useful

6 - Riftal Summons -- Shift Moonbeam has a range limit of 2 zones. RS has no limitation at all.

7 - Shear + Lay Ward -- if you ever find yourself struggling against enemies that cast spells at you, these two spells will block anything they throw at you. You just have to remember to use it!

8 - Feats: Faster Targeting, Faster Matrices, Faster Battle Prep are nice for casting spells a little faster, meaning faster training

''"Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road..." -Greenday''

Now comes the great question -- will you PvP, or will you remain in PvE? If the latter, then your build is completely flexible from here on out. Choose whatever spells you like, it has little bearing on your ability to hunt. You will have spell slots in abundance, you won't even know what to do with it all.

If, however, you decide to undertake the road less traveled, you must plan your spell & feat selection carefully. You cannot get everything you want.

Crucial PvP spells: WD, PD, Burn, IFL, Sorrow, Mindshout, Unleash, Rend, Shear, RF, Shape Moonblade, SCO, and SLS.

Crucial PvP feats: Debil Mastery, TM Mastery

Helpful PvP feats: Silent Prep, Advanced Spell Knowledge

Spells to avoid: SoV, Empower Moonblade, ART/TS/MT, Sleep, Thoughtcast, Hypnotize. I also did not have the slots for Shadewatch Mirror or Contingency, tho both very good open world spells.

Gear you need to PvP:

Armor -- full Leather suit. Start with onyx-hide, work your way up to Punka, then Shadowleaf/MT end-loot. For shield, start with onyx-hide, then work your way up to agonite triangular sipar, then diamond-hide/octagonal.

Weaponry -- TM accuracy focus is by far the most important thing you could ever have. For weapons, haralun or MT incidental is good enough. Heck some of my weapons are steel.

Misc -- most important scrolls for Unleashing: AD, RAGE, and AS/Awaken. Important scrolls to invoke: IP, HoT, Tremor, Bonegrinder. Secondary scrolls for Unleashing to land debils and resist enemy debils: Centering, Courage, EY, HES or GOL, NON, REPR, SUF, SW, Tranquility, SOS. Other important scrolls for Unleashing to enable weapons: RW, RUE, RESO, TW, Ignite.

-- if you have a gyre, you don't need the following scrolls: AS/Awaken, SOS, EY, WOTP, NON, LGV, SUF, SW, SUB.

-- you can use predicts to buff your magicks (TM being the most important, but Aug and Debil can be important too), Shield, Defending, and Tactics, so you won't need SUB, SR, or WOTP scrolls.

-- herbs. If you're on a budget, just get the ones for your chest, abdomen, and limbs. Maybe nerves. But having the all heal herbs are really nice, if not pricey. Herbs are crucial for winning any fight that goes longer than 3min.

See my crappy guide to PvP for more info.

''"Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before." -CS Lewis''

Choose a sect! Or don't, it's not obligatory. Btw it's permanent, non-reversible.

1 - Heritage House -- gives you a cantrip that reverses predict curses, very useful when you fail a predict. Reduces Unleash scroll destruction rate by a lot.

2 - Tezirite -- can predict curse easier. Reduced Bonegrinder backlash.

3 - Monk -- has a balance raising cantrip, balance is always good. Gains an extra Sorrow cast charge (~+9% dmg on avg).

All the other sects are PvP neutral

== Avrenka's Crappy Guide to Moonmage PvP ==
''"You have Unleash to put up other buffs to Batman your way to victory. You can get away with anything." -Rakkor''

MM Strengths:

1 - versatile kit means you can have an answer for almost any situation, given the right prep

2 - extremely f2p friendly, Unleash obviates any need for wands or tattoos or gyre

3 - high potential damage

MM Weaknesses:

1 - requires the most prep time

2 - high skill ceiling, must understand every matchup

3 - lowest defense

'''Stage 1 - Mental Prep: Strategize'''

''"What I learned at Tournament Camp this fall ... Have a plan. Have a backup plan. Have a backup plan to the backup plan." -Valynn''

1 - Group fight - two ways to fight: aggressive and defensive

* default defensive, since MM is so paper thin
* stay hidden & invis, be last to act, keep your eye on enemy primary damage dealer
* let them come to you: setup Tremor, as these pulses do not reveal you
* if you're being focused, consider moving and hiding while putting up Shear. Then prep Sorrow or a debil, so you can immediately cast when you jump back in (don't forget to rejoin group leader)
* if you can afford to go full offense, do so. I.e. you're not primary target or you have a paladin/empath covering you
* in general, MS and Rend are your two most powerful debils, IF you can land them. Big IF, they're hard to land unless they're stunned first (see Moonblade Tactics at the end of this guide). Otherwise, use IP to hard stun and tank their balance. Tremor is also extremely powerful, but hard to cast. CotW and ANC are decent, since they're easier to land. Against tanky opponents, use HoT to strip their wards, if you can't land Rend.

2 - 1v1s

* vs Stealthers (Ranger, Thief, Necro) -- use AVA to reveal, try to inflict nerve damage with MB, use WATCH if allowed. Spam Sorrow, the bolts pull them out of hiding. TKS also pulls out of hiding, but you'll have to guess when they're in the room with you. MS and SHW also hits hiders, but you won't know if it does or not.
* vs Weapons (Paladin, Barb, Thief) -- be very conscious of your MAF going down, MAF is literally your lifeline. WD and Shove are also essential, unless you like eating 30% impales. Be ready to curse HT if you know they will spam hurl.
* vs Magic -- LW + Shear is essential. Re-up Shear as much as possible.
* vs Anti-Magic (Forsaken, Trader, WM) -- you need to use weapons. Put up RW, TW, RESO, RUE, and Ignite along with LW + Shear. Your combo is debil, rush, impale, palm, then Hurl spam until 90 sec you can do it over again. Clerics and MM can also fit in this category if they use SPITE or Shear.

3 - Specific matchups:

* vs Ranger -- don't move rooms, or you reset Ranger SK cooldown
* vs Forsaken -- use mindshout or Tremor to disable critters, use rush to land your debil and then use weapon attacks. 99% they will have WORM setup to block magic from ranged, not melee.
* vs Paladin -- cast Sorrow first, wait for first bolt to get blocked by paladin's SP, then you can debil. If you're against someone with max armor (aka Warb), you have to use either PD or Bonegrinder
* vs Barbarian -- cast Sorrow first to trigger Swan, then debil. Or use a bubble wand.
* vs Empath -- you need to rend IC otherwise they're impossible to kill. If you can't rend, use HoT.

'''Stage 2 - Buffing'''

''"ABB: Always Be Buffing" -Illiya''

1 - Prediction pools - predict buff your sorcery, TM and tactics at the minimum. You'll also want the option available to curse enemy HT, shield and evasion. RTR is critical.

2 - Native spells - BC + DC for predicts. AUS + Shadowling for mana. IOTS (Int/Disc), SEER, TKSH, MAF, PSY, CV, Shadows, RF, WD. SCO if using Bonegrinder (and maybe PD).

3 - Runestones - Axinite (GG) for wisdom and Lay Ward.

4 - Scrolled - IP is must have. HoT is a great second choice, for opponents you can't rend. Tremor is also top tier, but very difficult to cast and can give bad sorcery backlash.

5 - Unleash - SAP (Augmentation), RAGE, AS/Awaken, AD, SUF/Centering, SR, EY are critical. (You can replace SAP and SR with predict buffs). Note: SAP, AS, SUF and EY are castable on others. (AS is only 5 min if casted on other). For stats: SW/SoTT, GoL, and Finesse are important. For debils: REPR, Courage, NON, Tranquility.

6 - Teammate buffs - For stats: Ask for MEF/TURI, Vigor, SoTT/SW, DIG/WotP, and HES. For skills: ask for Instinct/SW, and EM. For misc: VOI.

As you can see, this is a lot of buffs. It takes me around 10min to buff. It's rough. Gyre helps save a lot of time.

Be aware that certain spells only last 10min, like WD, AS, Awaken, and LW. Save these spells for right before the fight starts.

Yes, always use AD for your cyclic. Unless you like being Ice Patched for 25 seconds. Everyone and their mom has IP, IP wands, IP tattoos. It's literally the best CC spell in the game. Which makes AD obligatory.

'''Stage 3 - Defense'''

''"Oops I forgot to put on my armor" -everyone''

1 - Armor - I personally believe stealth is too important for moonmages, so I always recommend going Leather. Shadowleaf, Punka and Corrugated are best. Do not clownsuit. Make sure armor is repaired. Make sure you're wearing it.

2 - Stance - if you have SR up, you can stance 100% evasion, 2% parry, 100% shield. Don't forget to adjust your stance!

3 - Shield - tertiary armor means we have to wear small shields. Diamondhide/shadowleaf, octagonal shield are best. Triangular agonite sipar, demonscale blasted plains are good too. If possible, keep your shield held in your left hand, as wearing the shield reduces its defense by 20%.

4 - Balance - if you're wondering why you can't hit anybody and everyone's hitting you, it's probably cuz of your balance. When you're stunned/proned, your balance gets tanked to very badly, and likely you'll see "Opponent is overwhelming you". This is why landing debils is crucial, and why balance healing spells like AD, SUF and Centering are also crucial. This is why winning the debil contest usually means winning the match.

5 - Wounds - head and eye wounds prevent searching. Head wounds also prevent using wands. Leg, arm and nerve damage penalize stealth. Nerve damage also penalizes defense and magic skill. Use herbs, they help.

'''Stage 4 - Offense'''

''"I think you got 50% vitality on a Sorrow cast that first fight" -Malkien''

1 - TM Focus - get an Accuracy one. Make sure you invoke it in your right hand, it's a 16-20 sec RT. The TM focus bonus goes away if you swap hands, stow it, drop it, or lower it. If you do any physical attack like punch, maneuver rush, it also goes away. But Tactics are okay to use, like grapple, sweep or shove.

2 - RAGE - have it up, or Sorrow won't hit.

3 - Mana - always put max mana into all your spells, or you'll hit like a wet noodle. (i.e. prep Sorrow 100)

4 - TM skill - make sure you buffed it by predict or SUB (or both!)

5 - Prep times - Sorrow gets no benefit from full prep, so cast it at the half-way point. Debils also get no benefit from full prep, but how quickly you can cast it depends on the spell difficulty. Burn is so accurate that you can also cast it at the half-way point, it doesn't need the full prep accuracy bonus. But don't use Burn, it sucks.

6 - Toggle AOE - set it to nongroup, or engaged if you want to be extra careful for your teammates sake. If you go AOE Engaged, be aware that WD auto disengages you, and make sure you have an "advance all enemies" script ready.

7 - Be mentally ready to abandon TM and use weapons against anti-magic matchups. Nothing worse than freezing in the middle of a fight cuz you can't mentally switch gears.

'''Stage 5 - MM Battle Spells & Tactics'''

''"I always get thrown off by Shear" -Warbrolus''

1 - Sorrow - since it's a non-target TM, you can full prep it before the fight starts and immediately cast it on sight. It is an extremely low accuracy spell, so make sure you have TM accuracy, RAGE, and TM skill buffs up. Also make sure you have balance advantage. Read the wiki on the spell, learn how it works, it's got a lot of weird things about it. This is our bread and butter spell, use it by default.

2 - PD - this underappreciated spell has 2 things going for it: it's body-part targetable, and it's armor piercing. Always target the head (i.e. prep pd 50, then target warbrolus head). Use it on your favorite paladin. Combo it with Sorrow and watch heads explode since they both do Internal Wound damage, and you're targeting the head with both these spells. You will likely need to full prep PD or it won't hit.

3 - Bonegrinder - I have mixed feelings about this spell. On the one hand, with SCO, you have roughly a 1 in 8 chance of killing anybody in 5 seconds. On the other hand, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting a t2 backlash (blowing off arms, nerve damage, or magic skill debuff). I stay away from this spell because it seems unfun to win with it. Use at your own risk. Be aware that having SCO up prevents you from predicting.

4 - Shear - always use with LW. Most effective when used in the middle of the fight. I guarantee you if you leave a room and the opponent chases you, they will be tunnel visioning on casting Deadfall/Ice Patch on you, and the last thing they're expecting is a Shear waiting for them. Surprise!

5 - Moonblade - this spell right here is what gives MM the advantage over other spell casters, albeit only briefly. Having the ability to cast Sorrow and then immediately follow up with an instant Mindshout or Ice Patch is huge. It also allows you to perform a Dazzle Rend combo, stripping their wards. Do not neglect this spell, make sure all 3 nodes are locked and loaded before the fight. Warning: this spell will require scripts or macros to work effectively. (Imagine typing prep rend 100, cast balistrade in less than 1 second?)

'''Stage 6 - Stats'''

''"Who would intentionally tank their stats for an edge in the arena? I'm shocked, just shocked!" -Avrenka''Whoever wins the debilitation contest, wins the fight. So let's figure out how to land our debils and avoid our enemy's debils.

Warning: lots of math ahead.

First, read this: [[:Category:Contested abilities]]

Ok. So here's an example:

You're casting a full mana Rend on a enemy -- the game takes your Int (x4) + Disc (x2) + Wis, times 1.2 for max mana potency vs enemy's Disc (x4) + Wis (x2) + Int. If the enemy has EY (they should), their defense gets multiplied 1.2. And then PSY and REPR both block about 160pts each. Let's say both of you have 130 int, 130 wis, 120 disc. Your Rend is (520 + 240 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,068 vs their (480 + 260 + 130) * 1.2 = 1,044 + 320 of shields = 1,364 defense. Your Rend whiffs, but their EY ablates slightly down to 18%, and their PSY/REPR shields ablates by 24 pts down to 296. Rough, you're never getting thru.

But here's a little trick, if the enemy is stunned, it lowers their Will defense by 20%. And if they have full nerve damage, that's another 7% penalty to Will. Maybe your Warrior Mage teammate gives them nerve damage with EE and stuns them with Arc Light. Suddenly their 1,044 defense plummets to 762 + 320 shields = 1,082. Your Rend almost completely erodes their PSY & REPR, clearing the way for your next Rend to maybe land.

One more thing. There's a sliding scale to success. 0% attacker's advantage nets ~20% success rate. 5% advantage nets 100% success rate. With spells that have a range of success, you get minimal success at 5%, with maximal success around 40% advantage. So if you've got 5% advantage, you're better off casting Rend than MB since Rend will always strip 2 buffs whether you've succeeded minimally or maximally, but barely succeeding with MB will only give minor nerve damage.

So. Generally speaking if you want to land your Rend/MB, you gotta pump up your Int, Disc and Wis in that order. But everyone's gonna have PSY and REPR up, and if everyone pumps their mental stats too, the only way you're gonna land your Rend/MB is if the enemy is stunned, and even then you probably have to do it twice. That's really tough, since AS/Awaken takes stun away in 1-3 seconds. So good luck with that. (This is why simply using HoT to strip wards is the more reliably method!)

So if you can't land Rend/MB then what? Ice Patch, which is Magic (Wis/Int/Disc) vs Reflex (Ref/Agi/Int). If their mentals are pumped, their physicals are left wanting. Bam, they get immobilized for 15 seconds. But oh wait, everyone runs AD which pulses every 1-7 seconds. Still, that's a decent amount of time, and their balance is tanked. Or you simply use Dazzle, which is Magic vs Fortitude (Stam/Disc/Str), and again their physical stats can't keep up with your mentals, and they get stunned. It might be only for 1-3 seconds, but their balance is tanked and there's a chance they lose their prepped spell. Or hey, you use CotW or ANC (Magic vs Fort spells) to lower their defenses/evasion.

Explore the game's debils, figure out the contests you can win, and stat accordingly. I personally recommend going full mentals and dump everything else. If you can't land Mind debils, at least you can still land Magic debils.

That's all folks. Thanks for reading my crappy guide.

Disclaimer: this is how I pvp right now. I'm constantly experimenting and learning new things every week. This is just what I learned. Feel free to ignore and do your own thing!