Monday 31 October 2011

Rodentia: Cruisin' the S.S. Huntington III

So, you've conquered the Catacombs with your ACRoNYM eh?


Feeling bored of the Catacombs? Then were off to the next region!


Preparations for Rodentia
For the first time, instead of a map piece from loot or buying it, were gonna craft it! However, be warned that this is no easy task and requires about 1.3 million gold!


If you're prepared, we'll get started with the recipe:-
  • 1x Ship Blueprints
  • 18x Scrap Metal
  • 70x Bolt of Cloth
  • 100x Rope
  • 900x Splintered Wood 
  • 1x King's Reserve Bubbleh
That's alot of items!! Along with many items, this ship also costs quite a fortune. However, we have a location called the Catacombs. To those who took the Whisker Woods path, you should try to explore this area.

For the Blueprints, if you've read the Whisker Woods section, the Blueprints are dropped by the Hydra. A tricky task though but the Hydra will drop some important items for the ship. However, you're gonna spend some time in the Lagoon due to it's strength and a guarantee that it won't drop the Blueprints.


However, there is another way of getting the Blueprints. For those lazy hunters who have plenty of gold to spare. Yes, we can buy the Blueprints at the Catacombs. However, the Blueprints costs about 750,000 gold! Not including the items you're gonna buy!


The other items...
Splintered Wood
If you remember, Splintered Wood can be bought from the Training Grounds General Store. However, saving gold for 900 pieces can be a problem. For those cheapskate hunters, the Treant will give off about 1-6 pieces per catch


Scrap Metal
If you're still at the Catacombs, try collecting at least 18 Scrap Metal. They are dropped by the Scavenger and Terror Knights. For those hunting at the Lagoon, the Hydra too drops a huge amount of Scrap Metal.


Clothes, Ropes and the Bubbleh
All these items can be bought at the Great Gnarled Tree's General Store. However, the Bubbleh costs a pretty penny of 210,000 gold.

Unfortunately, this ship can only be crafted by those hunters who are Legendaries or above. So sorry, to those Grandmasters. In the meanwhile, those who are sitting around can try out the Burroughs and Furoma if they haven't explore those regions...


If you're done, then were off to a journey like no other!


The S.S. Huntington II


Here in the S.S Huntington, the breeds are all Hydro types, which means that Hydro traps work well against them.


For the bait, you'd better stock up on Brie, try stocking up in Gnawnia before travelling here. Here in the S.S. Huntington, Bries costs 400 gold per piece!


For the traps, Physical and Tactical will also work here. Use your Ambush or Digby Drillbot and you'll do fine...


If you've browsed through the Trapsmith, you'd noticed two different Hydro traps, the Net Cannon and the Harpoon Gun . Both costs about nearly the same price at 664,000 gold.

However, the difference between these two are their power and luck. The Net Cannon has a high luck but sacrifices much of it's power while the Harpoon has a higher power but a lower amount of luck.


If you're planning to buy one, I recommend the Net Cannon, because it's luck is important here. Don't worry though, if you want the harpoon, smash the Net Cannon and craft the Launcher parts. The same for the Net Cannon, except for the need of a rope.

For the base, you might have noticed the Aqua Base. If you saw, it costs a slightly miserable price of 125,000 gold. Quite expensive isn't it? However, you'll need the base for it's 8 luck, since luck is becoming an important factor in the game

The Three Breeds
Anyway, if you're done shopping or whatsoever, arm your Brie. However, were gonna look for three specific mice in this Ship, which is the Captain, Bottled and Shipwrecked! Why? Because they all drop an important loot!
  • The Captain drops the Telescope.
  • The Bottled Mouse drops the Compass.
  • The Shipwrecked drops the Sextant.
If you've managed to get all three of them, craft them together and you'll get a map piece known as the Ocean Navigation Kit! With this, you'll be able to access a new region, the Tribal Isles.

Sunday 30 October 2011

The Slushy Shoreline

Requirements to access the Slushy Shoreline
In order to enter the Slushy Shoreline, you must buy an Icebreaker License from the Cartographers from the Harbour or the S.S. Huntington III. It only costs 145,000 gold and takes one hour to finish it. 

Another thing, you'll have to be a Lord to enter the shoreline and beyond.

If you've met the requirements, head back to Gnawnia and go to the Slushy Shoreline.

The Slushy Shoreline

The Slushy Shoreline hosts multiple new breeds which all have a one and only weakness to Hydro traps. The Heat Bath is recommended here, but the Ancient Spear Gun should also do fine, just arm any powerful Hydro weapon. Just arm some Gouda and your Heat Bath/Ancient Spear and settle down for a while.


By the way, the mice here all drop loot known as War Scraps. You should try to farm as much as these as possible since were gonna use a lot of them later.


While you're here, you should arm some Softserve Charms. They can be bought from the Charm Shoppe. Arming Softserve will attract three new breeds which are the Icebreaker, Yeti and the Saboteur mice and they will drop their respective loot:-
You should try to collect as much of these three loots as possible. If you're feeling impatient, you can also just farm for at least five of each loot.

Once you've collected about 5 of the three loot, go to the Trapsmith and buy the Steam Laser Mk. I

Steam Laser Mk. I (Hydro)
Power: 4,200, Power Bonus: 8%Attraction Bonus:-, Luck: 14, Cheese Effect: -
Cost: 345,000 gold, 5 Frosty Metals, 5 Heating Oils, 5 Wire Spools
A powerful Hydro trap, much stronger and cheaper than the Heat Bath. However, it's main purpose is to be upgraded into a more powerful weapon...

With your new weapon, continue farming for War Scraps until you have at least 100. Before you proceed on, go to the General Store and buy these four blueprints:-

  • Magnet Base Blueprints (48,500 gold)
  • Spiked Base Blueprints (97,500 gold)
  • Remote Detonator Blueprints (48,500 gold)
  • Hearthstone Base Blueprints (147,500 gold)
By now, you should be able to afford all four. If not, you can always come back later..

For now, we'll travel to the Iceberg.

Friday 28 October 2011

The Seasonal Garden

Before you enter this new location you must:-
  • Reach the rank of Lord.
  • Get a Dragon's Chest.
If you'd open the chest, you'll find a Zugzwang's Scarf and a Magic Feather, which will be needed later.

If you've got the scarf, then you'll be able to access the Seasonal Garden.

The Seasonal Garden

In the Seasonal Garden, there are four seasons which changes every 80 hours. The seasons all follow a cycle (Spring -> Summer -> Fall -> Winter -> Spring and repeating the cycle). Along with the season changes, the mice here also change according to their seasons.

The mice here also have their specific weakness according to their seasons, but they all share a normal effectiveness to Tactical traps. If you already have 38,000,000 points, you can craft this new Tactical weapon.

Recipe:-
1x Zugzwang's First Move Blueprints + 1x Magic Feather + 1x Chess Pieces
= Zugzwang's First Move

Remember that Zugzwang's Last Move you saw at the Training Grounds? If you didn't buy it in Furoma. You're gonna need to buy it now. Fortunately, it is for sale in the Seasonal Garden Trapsmith. Smash it to get your Chess Pieces.


The blueprints are for sale in the General Store for 615,000 gold. 


Hope you haven't forgotten that Magic Feather from your Dragon's Chest. Just add them with the chess pieces and the blueprints and you'll get the....



Power: 3,660, Power Bonus: 15%, Attraction Bonus:-, Luck: 17, Cheese Effect: Very Fresh
The stats of this trap seems comparable to the Horrific Venus, but the mice here are tougher than those you've met at Nerg. Other than that, it's higher power and luck will be important in the next location...

Now that you've got a new weapon, you should arm it with your strongest base, which will be the Molten Shrapnel base. Now then, let's have a quick analysis on the four seasons.


The Four Seasons

Spring
The mice in Spring have a weakness to Physical traps, so start arming your Enraged Rhinobot. Don't worry though, the Enraged is more than enough for the mice of Spring to handle. In spring, you must capture a Vinetail which will drop the Spring Key Shard.

Summer
In Summer, the mice are only vulnerable to Tactical traps, which means you'll be using your First Move or any stronger LE trap here. The targeted mouse here is the Summer Mage which will drop a Summer Key Shard.

Fall
 During this season, the mice can be captured using a Shadow weapon. If you bought the Gorgon for the Jungle of Dread, use it. The catch rate isn't as good, but you'll be getting a stronger Shadow trap later. If you've bought the Clockapult, just use it. The targeted mouse here is the Harvester which will drop the Fall Key Shard.

Winter
The mice of winter have adapted to the snow and ice, which means we'll be using a Hydro type weapon here. The Ancient Spear Gun does just fine here, but we'll be needing something better than that. You can try the Heat Bath or get something stronger from the Slushy Shoreline and Iceberg. Like the other three seasons, you must catch the Winter Mage to get a Winter Key Shard.


Once you finally obtained all four key shards, craft them together to create a Zugzwang's Tower Key. With this key, you'll be able to enter Zugzwang's Tower. However, before you enter there is one more important thing you should do here.

The Tower Amplifier
An important thing in the garden is the Tower Amplifier. By now, you should have noticed a bar that appears when you enter the Seasonal Garden that looks something like this:-


The tower amplifier is a very important for your next location, which is the Zugzwang's Tower. The bar on the Tower Amplifier increases upon every successful catch in the Seasonal Garden and decreases each time a failure to attract occurs, failing to catch won't affect your amplifier though. The Amplifier is also unaffected when you leave the Seasonal Garden.

For Lords, the amplifier only charges up to 150%. Barons can reach to 160% while Counts up to 175%. So, if you're a Lord, keep on hunting till the amplifier reaches 150%.

With the amplifier fully charged, continue to the next section.

Thursday 27 October 2011

Checkmate! - Zugzwang's Tower

WARNING: Do not enter Zugzwang's Tower as soon as you crafted the Zugzwang's Tower Key!

Before you enter Zugzwang's Tower, make sure your Tower Amplifier is fully charged in the Seasonal Garden(150% for Lords).

You should also need to have a good supply of Super|Brie+ (about 200 or more) to last you for one run in the Tower. If you don't have enough Super|Brie+, Gouda is a good alternative.

Other than that, you should also get a Pawn Pincher from the Seasonal Garden's Trapsmith.

Mystic/Technic Pawn Pincher (Tactical
Cost: 643,750 gold
Power: 60, Power Bonus: 5%, Attraction Bonus: 20%, Luck: 0, Cheese Effect: Stale (Technic)/Fresh (Mystic)

Both of them have the same price and their stats are almost identical. It is highly recommended you get both of them. If you're low on gold, just buy one and then buy the other one later.

If you're done preparing, we shall enter Zugzwang's Tower!

Zugzwang's Tower

The mice in Zugzwang's Tower are themed by chess pieces. There are two teams here, the Mystic and Technic teams.

Like chess sets, you'll have to catch the mice of a certain team in this order:-
8 Pawns -> 2 Knights -> 2 Bishops -> 2 Rooks -> Queen -> King

The mice from before can still be attracted though. For example, at Rook stage you'll still might attract pawns, knights and bishops. 

Remember the Tower Amplifier in Seasonal Garden? In Zugzwang's Tower, the Tower Amplifier will increase your trap's power.

For Lords, the maximum amount of amplifier is 150%. This means that your trap power will increase by 150%, this doesn't increase luck though. 

Better watch out! When the Amplifier starts to drop below 100%, your power and luck will start to decrease and at 0% you'll be kicked out of Zugzwang's Tower back into the Seasonal Garden.

The Amplifier will decrease with each mouse caught, depending on the type of mouse. Failure to attract will cause it to lose 3%, so it's good to have high attraction cheese like Super|Brie+ or Gouda. Missing a mouse won't affect the anplifier at all.

Unlike the Seasonal Garden, leaving the Tower will cause your amplifier to reset to 0%, so leaving the tower isn't recommended unless your amplifier is really, really low.

With that let's get started on the first stage, the pawns.

 Pawn Stage
First of all, you should decide which team you want to catch, be it Mystic or Technic. if you've decided which team, use the correct pawn pincher to attract the pawns you want.

The pawn pinchers special effect is that it attracts more of the certain pawns, since at this stage the chances of attracting the correct pawn is about 50%. The pinchers also helps to capture the respective pawns much easier.

You can also try arming the Wooden Base with Target to reduce FTAs and to avoid accidentally catching pawns from the other team. You'll need to catch 8 pawns to attract the Knights.

Knights, Bishops, Rooks and the Queen 
Knight Stage
The Knights are tougher than pawns, so from here on use your most powerful Tactical trap setup. Beware though, mice from the other team will sometimes get captured. Get 2 Mystic/Technic Knights and you'll be able to attract the Bishops.

Bishop Stage
Bishops are harder to catch than both pawns and knights. Once again use your strongest Tactical trap. By now, you'd probably caught some mice from the other team by accident, so be careful. Capture 2 of them and you'll attract the Rooks.

Rook Stage
 Rooks are the second toughest mouse to catch in a team, so arming some charms is quite nice. Same thing, arm your strongest Tactical trap setup. If you've got 2 Rooks of the same team, you can now attract the Queen.

 The Queen Stage
The Queen is the strongest mouse in the team, so once again arm your strongest Tactical setup. Arming some charms which increases your power/luck is also a nice touch. Once you finally get your Queen, you can attract the King.

The King
The King is one of the weakest mouse in a team, so you should have no trouble catching him. in fact, you can try arming the Wooden base with Target at this stage to reduce chances of FTAs and accidentally catching other mice.

Once you've caught your king, you'll automatically be transported back into the Seasonal Garden.

\
Mystic Crystal/Droid Jetpack
The Mystic King will drop the Mystic Crystal while the Technic King will drop the Droid Jetpack, but both loot are uncommon drops. If you're lucky enough to get one, you can craft the following weapons.

Recipe:-
1x Mystic Crystal + 1x Blackstone Pass Trap Blueprints + 4x Coal
= 1 Blackstone Pass Trap

1x Droid Jetpack + 1x Obvious Ambush Trap Blueprints + 1x Droid Parts
= 1 Obvious Ambush Trap

The Blackstone Pass and Obvious Ambush blueprints can be bought in the Seasonal Garden's General Store for 1,100,000 gold each. Droid Parts are sold in the Bazaar's General Store for 7,750 gold and the Coal is a loot from the Catacombs.

Obvious Ambush Trap/Blackstone Pass Trap (Tactical)
Power: 3,000, Power Bonus: 15%, Attraction Bonus:-, Luck: 12, Cheese Effect: Very Fresh (BPT)/Very Stale (OAT)
3,000 power and 12 luck, these two weapons aren't much stronger than your First Move, so why craft them? For starters, they have a special effect in the Tower. Blackstone Pass is more effective in catching Mystic mice and doing terribly against Technic mice, the Obvious Ambush does the opposite.

Outside of Zugzwang's Tower, these two traps are of not much use, you can try to skip them and take your chances with other stronger Tactical traps. They're just here to make your tower runs easier and help you save your Amplifier.

The Chess Master
Another loot the two Kings drop are the Mystic Curd and the Technic Cheese Mould respectively. These two loots are the key ingredient to craft type of cheese known as Checkmate Cheese.

Recipe:-
1x Mystic Curd + 1x Technic Cheese Mould + 12x Ionized Salt 
= 3 pieces of Checkmate 

1x Mystic Curd + 1x Technic Cheese Mould + 12x Ionized Salt + 6x Magic Essence 
= 9 pieces of Checkmate

Checkmate cheese have a special effect in Zugzwang's Tower. When you catch a King in the tower, you will not be sent back to the Seasonal Garden. Instead, you'll stay in the tower and able to attract the mastermind behind the Seasonal Garden and Zugzwang's Tower, the Chess Master! It is recommended that you craft Checkmate as much as possible before getting it.

The Chess Master can be attracted after you've caught a King with Checkmate. During the Chess Master stage, arm your strongest Tactical setup with Checkmate. Like the Queen, this mouse is quite hard to catch. 


Once caught, he'll drop the Master Bindings which we'll need to craft a super-base! He'll also drop Zugzwang's Left Sock. Why would a mouse be holding a sock that belongs to Zugzwang? If you'd notice the Chess Master's left foot, it doesn't have a sock. Could he be the legendary wizard Zugzwang? We'll never know for sure, for now the sock is a collectible item and fetches a good price in the Marketplace.


Anyway, let's craft a mighty base! The downside is that you need 67,750,000 points to craft it.

Recipe:-
1x Master Bindings + 1x Spellbook base Blueprints + 3x Torn Mystic Page + 3x Torn Technic Page + 6x Tiny Platinum Bars
= 1 Spellbook Base

The Torn Mystic Page is dropped by the Mystic King. The Torn Technic dropped by the Technic King. So yeah, you'll have to do at least 6 runs before you can craft this base.

The blueprints are sold in the Seasonal Garden General Store for 936,000 gold and the Platinum Bars are sold in the Training Grounds General Store for 60,000 gold each.

Power: 500, Power Bonus: 14%, Attraction Bonus: 5%, Luck: 7, Cheese Effect: Fresh
Now that a mighty base! 500 power is amazing and 7 luck is great. In fact, it's one of the strongest bases in the whole game!

If you're lucky, you'll find that the Rook or Queen will drop something important, although Knights and Bishops also drop it. By now, you should have it. Yes, it's a map piece! It's called the Crystal Library Card! This means you can access the Crystal Library.





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