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Comparison of the Main Quest Lines
of the Wizard101 Worlds

Part 1: Wizard City – Krokotopia – Marleybone – Mooshu – Dragonspyre

Anyone who has quested through the Spiral has noticed that not every world is the same. Some are much longer than others. Some have more dungeons, while others have more Defeat and Collect quests. This article will add some specific numbers to how the worlds differ from one another. In part 1 we will look at the first arch, so Wizard City through Dragonspyre.

Quests and Tasks

As you know, a quest is a series of tasks that have to be completed in order to get xp and advance in the story line. As such, you may have realized some quests have only one task (e.g. talk to Ceren Nightchant), while others might consist of many things (talk + mob + boss + interact + talk).

If this reminds you of my main quest line guides, good! This article is based on the information from my main quest line guides. We have these guides:

Wizard City, Krokotopia, Marleybone, Mooshu, Dragonspyre

Celestia, Zafaria, Avalon Azteca, Khrysalis, Polaris Mirage

Wysteria Grizzleheim Wintertusk

Amount of Main Quests

In this article, we’re focusing on the first arch, but I think you might find it interesting to first get an overview of all the worlds. As such, let’s start with the amount of main quests in every world, and then move on to this article’s worlds afterwards. I’m sure no one will be surprised when I say Khrysalis rules the Spiral with the highest number of quests. It has a staggering 287 quests, which contain 808 tasks in total. Second in line — again, not a surprise — is Azteca with 196 quests (containing 509 tasks). Khrysalis and Azteca together cover a quarter of the main quest line quests in the whole Spiral.

On the other side of the spectrum we obviously have Wysteria (38 quests – 117 tasks) and Wizard City (39 quests – 89 tasks). Marleybone and Wintertusk come in next with 50 and 51 quests respectively.

Personally, I was amazed to see Mooshu, Celestia and Polaris each have almost the same amount of quests! Polaris has 99 quests, Celestia 95 and Mooshu 91. To me, Polaris has always felt much shorter than Celestia. The same is true for Dragonspyre and Mirage: while DS has 107 and Mirage 110, DS has always felt much longer. It’s probably due to the fact that I’ve done Dragonspyre quite many times, while Mirage is still fresh and new for me.

The Average World

Let’s first take a look at what kind of quests the average Wizard101 world would have! This world doesn’t exist, but is a theoretical version that is the average of all the worlds combined. To begin with, the average world would have 107 quests. This is exactly the amount of quests Dragonspyre happens to have, but that’s a mere coincidence. Dragonspyre is not all that close to being the average world, other than with the number of quests.

As explained earlier, quests consist of different kinds of tasks. Our average world would have 46% talking tasks. We do talk a lot, don’t we? Or maybe you’re like me and just press the space bar a lot? The second most common kind of task would be interacting, with 15%, closely followed by exploring with 13% of the tasks.

Next, we have the actual WORK that needs to be done. The average world would have 9% boss tasks and 9% mob tasks. Defeat and collect tasks would count for 4% of the task total. I’m glad it’s this way and not the other way around. I have terrible luck with defeat and collect tasks!

There would be 2% cheating bosses. However, counting that average is kind of useless, because 7 of the Spiral’s worlds don’t even have any cheaters in the main quest line. We’ll look at that more closely once we get to the part where we discuss each world separately.

All we have left is 1% of collect quests. Phew! I don’t like collect quests very much, because I multibox and collecting 10 things 4x is just way too many things.

I’ve rounded all these percentages, but if we want to be accurate, there’s a measly 0,4% left, of which 0,3% is accounted for by puzzle tasks. I personally love puzzle tasks in dungeons and wish we would see more of those! In addition, there would be 0,1% fights where you fight more than one boss at the same time. 

Next, let’s take a look at Wizard City through Dragonspyre and compare these worlds to the bigger picture. I will hang on to the colors that I’ve used in the image above.

The First Arch’s Main Quest Line

Talk Tasks

Wizard City is the first world you do and wow, are they chatty there! Of all the task types, talking tasks are by far the most common, with 69%. In fact this is the most talking you will do in the whole Spiral, unless you decide to do Wysteria. Those pigs are even worse chatterboxes than our dear professors in Wizard City, with 73% of the tasks being talking tasks. More about that in part 3!

Krokotopia has marginally less talking tasks than Wizard City: 59%. Marleybone, with 49% talking tasks, is very close to what the average of all the Wizard101 worlds would be (which was 46%). As you can see from these first three worlds, the amount of talking tasks has been steadily declining. Next, in Mooshu, we go back up to 57% talking quests, and then down again to 44% in Dragonspyre.

All in all there isn’t much to say about the frequency of these types of tasks. It’s logical that there’s many of them because talking to people makes it feel like someone cares about whether we do the quest or not, I guess. Those people who like reading the lore probably appreciate these quests the most.

My favorite talking tasks are probably the ones in Dragonspyre with Zarathax, where you enter several chambers to interact with the crystals, one of which is missing. It’s just a nice sequence, especially since Zarathax happens to be one of my favorite NPCs. I think it’s his lisp and the terrible grammar that pull me to his side: “Sssee? You hasss all the power. I do not lie. Tsss! I helpsss you do good.”

Explore Tasks

I wouldn’t pay too much attention to this type of tasks so early into the game. There no real pattern to the changes in the number of explore quests in the first arch. While you do a lot of exploring in each of these worlds, the explorations don’t show up in my data. That’s because most of them aren’t a task inside the quest like they are in later worlds. This means you won’t hear the “task complete” sound that we have come to love so much.

Both Wizard City and Krokotopia have only 3% explore quests. Marleybone has 10% explore quests, Mooshu 7% and Dragonspyre 6%. All of these stay below the average of 13% when we look at the “average” world.

FUN FACT:

Polaris is the world where you do the most exploring tasks. Explore tasks make up 24% of the tasks in its main quest. Lovely to hear that “quest completed” sound so often! More about Polaris in part 2!

Interact Tasks

Interact tasks are tasks where you have to press x close to a certain object. The amount of interact tasks grows steadily as you quest through the first arch. In fact, the decline in talking quests coincides with the popularity gain of interact tasks for these worlds. So you’re talking less but interacting more. Wizard City has 1% interact tasks, Krokotopia 3%, Marleybone 10%, Mooshu 14% and Dragonspyre 22%.

Interact tasks are nice and easy, like the one in the Ironworks in Marleybone where you pick up the plans from a table for Baxter. Sometimes, they do require a bit of running, like that annoying quest to find the key below a pile of dirt in the Royal Hall in Krokotopia.

Collect Tasks

By collect tasks I mean the following: “interact tasks where you interact with more than 2 of the same item in a row”. This task type is pretty rare. We have two collect tasks in Wizard City, which comes down to 2%: the 4 bone cages in Unicorn Way and the Barrels of Lumina Crystals in Triton avenua.

Krokotopia also has one (which accounts to 1%). It’s the one in the Hall of Champion where you have to collect 10 gemstones without getting caught by the mobs roaming the street. I thoroughly dislike this quest, as 10 turns into 40 when I quest 4 new characters through Krokotopia. This requires so much running and realm changing!

Mooshu has three collect tasks (which comes down to 2%): the one where you have to interact with the three Scout Towers to set them on fire, the one where you pick flowers and the one where you destroy the diseased mushrooms.

Mob Tasks

The world in the first arch with the most mob tasks is, surprisingly, Marleybone. However, these mob battles are not spread out evenly throughout the world. They are mostly concentrated in the last area and its instances, Counterweight East and West and Big Ben. They account for 16% of the tasks in the world. Dragonspyre comes second with 13% of mob tasks, which are fairly evenly distributed throughout the whole world. There aren’t many mobs in the other three worlds: Wizard City has 6%, Mooshu 5% and Krokotopia 4%.

My least favorite world of these to do mob battles in is Dragonspyre. Somehow I feel like the mobs in Dragonspyre walk extra slow, thus making me have to wait to attack until they have joined the battle circle.

FUN FACT:

In fact, Marleybone is the world in the whole Spiral with the highest percentage of mobs. Second in line is Mirage with 14% of its tasks being mob tasks. We’ll get back to that in part 3!

Defeat & Collect Tasks

Defeat and collect tasks are rare in the first arch. Wizard City has the most, with 10% of its task being D&Cs. Luckily it’s rare not to collect in this world. Second in line is Krokotopia, with 5%. The other three worlds are strangely void of D&C tasks: 3% in both Mooshu and Dragonspyre and 1% in Marleybone. In Marleybone’s case, it looks like they decided to balance give up D&C tasks in favor of mob tasks.

I’m not a fan of defeat and collect quests. Nobody is, I would think. However, in the first arch, we can’t complain about the number of them. We’ll save that for Zafaria in the second arch, shall we?

Boss Tasks

Krokotopia has a crazy amount of boss battles, as 24% of all the tasks are boss battles! That’s a huge amount compared to the other worlds, with the Marleybone and Mooshu tying for second place with 13%. Dragonspyre has 12% boss tasks and Wizard City comes in last with 9%.

However, please note that the average world has 9% boss battles as well, so Wizard City might be last in this arch, but still has a fair amount of boss battles compared to some of the later worlds. Obviously none of the bosses in the first arch cheat. There also aren’t any battles where you face more than one boss at a time.

Personally, I liked the exorbitant amount of boss battles in Krokotopia, because I prefer boss battles over mob battles. It’s annoying to have to wait for mobs to join the battle circle. I’m too impatient! My favorite boss is Maito in Mooshu, because his name means “milk” in Finnish. Other favorites in Mooshu are Oyotomi the Defiler and Jade Oni, because of their drops you can farm for.

Puzzle Tasks

Last but not least, we have puzzle tasks! Unfortunately, my data doesn’t represent these completely correctly. It isn’t entirely accurate, because not all puzzles are represented in the main quest line. While they are required to advance, they don’t advance your quest. As such, Krokotopia has 4 puzzles in the main quest line, but in reality has 6. Three of those are inside the instance the Vault of Ice, and the last three are in the Temple of Storms.

The riddles in Temple of Storms give me that nostalgic feeling whenever I do them:

• “Those things that live must shine bright. Those things that do not live, must remain dark.”
• “The lighting in here isn’t quite right for a Storm.”
• “The Sun shines down on the Tree. The tree shades the Snake. The Snake hisses at the Beetle. The Beetle runs away.”

Likewise, there are puzzles in Marleybone, but they’re not represented in the main quest line. There is the puzzle in the final instance Big Ben, remember that one? In addition, in Ironworks, you have one puzzle (lighting the the chimneys) and in Katzenstein’s Lab you have two to open up the gates, and one where you turn off the smoking chimneys. That makes a total of 5 puzzles!

I would love to see more puzzles in future worlds, because I love figuring out how they work. If there is anything I could wish for for future worlds, it would be more puzzle quests. They’re silly little things, but I think they’re fun and break the mindlessness of questing a little.

Conclusion

The first arch is nice and easy with no task type being overwhelming. Well, that is, unless you found the amount of bosses in Krokotopia overwhelming of course. These first worlds are perfect for new wizards to get into the groove, while preparing them for what’s to come. No cheating bosses yet, no double boss fights, nothing all too difficult. I’ve quested through the first arch way too many times. Still, after looking at this data, I feel I need to be proud of the job KI has done with them.

Was anything a surprise in this article?
Let us know in the comments!

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Khrysalis Teleporters Guide

Khrysalis is a very long world, so there is lots of running. To make that easier, there are the teleporters of course. Only, where are they? Which one leads where? I know I always get confused when trying to reach a specific location, so maybe you do too!

First off, there are two places with teleporters in Khrysalis: one in the Bastion and one in the Silent Market.

Teleporters in the Bastion

To reach the first group of teleporters, take a right turn from the Spiral Door and go towards the little pond. There is space for 6 teleporters there but – strangely enough –  only 5 of them seem to be functioning.

1. Fort Rachias Teleporter

Both teleporters 1 and 2 lead to Fort Rachias. The first one (see map) is located near Crescent Beach (aka the beginning of Khrysalis part 2). This is the best teleporter if your destination is Crescent Beach, as there is no teleporter straight to this location. The Great Beast (the instance that leads to Ruined Alcazar) is located in Crescent Beach.

2. Fort Rachias Teleporter

This teleporter also leads to Fort Rachias, this time closer to the tower where you face Ghost Dog (see map).

3. Tyrian Gorge Teleporter

You will find that the Tyrian Gorge teleporter transports you to a spot between the Sky Screamer and the Hundred Legger mobs (see map).

4. Moon Cliffs Teleporter

The Moon Cliffs teleporter is located underneath the Apiary (see map), which is where you fight the Broodmother. This boss is interesting if you’re a pet collector, because she drops the Tarantula Hawk pet. This is also the area where you will find the Eclipse Tower, in case you want to train the shift shadow spells or shrike (see here).

5. Last Wood Teleporter

The Last Wood teleporter puts you in the middle of the small village (see map), where you can find the Khrysalis gear vendors. It’s also a temporary location for Barley, the gardening vendor of Khrysalis. His Gardening Spells and Seed Shop in Silent Market are available only after completing the “Putting Down” quest. To be given this quest you will have had to complete the Eclipse Tower (where you learn shadow magic), and be at least a rank 15 gardener.

Teleporters in the Silent Market

The teleporters in Silent Market are located all the way to the back of the area, behind Eloise and Prospector Zeke (see map).

1. Radiance Reborn Teleporter

The teleporter to Radiance Reborn (see map) will put you right in front of Amelia Stardust, who will let you train your Khrysalis bubble. Radiance Reborn, as you might remember, is the place where you do three fights from the perspective of young Morganth with her spells (our guide to that is here). Sadly these fights are non-repeatable.

2. Ruined Alcazar Teleporter

You will find yourself to the right side of the area when using this teleporter (see map).

3. Sardonyx Teleporter

In Sardonyx, you will find yourself close to Ezekiel (see map). The teleporter is handy if you’re looking for the crafting vendors of Khrysalis part 2. You can pick up the recipe for the awesome looking shadow-forged wands here, as well as recipes for housing items! Prospector Zeke will give you the Iron Butterflies training point quest in this area as well.

4. Khonda Desert Teleporter

Khonda Desert is a good area if you’re bored and want to collect Comet Tails, Stone Blocks and Agave Leaves. The teleporter (see map) will put you close to many reagents.

5. The Hive Teleporter

The teleporter to the Hive is probably the one you will use most, as it’s the closest to the Shadow Palace. To get to Morganthe, turn right when facing the teleporter, go past the Aracnhna Gladiators, twice up the ladder and through the red door. Inside this area, circle the statue in the middle to go straight ahead, and you will find yourself at the doom tree. This area has lots of delicious reagents, ranging from Ore and Stone Blocks to Comet Tails and the occasional Deep Mushroom.

Good luck reaching the locations you want!

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Tour of the House Arenas (Battle Circles)

We have quite a few houses in the Spiral these days that come with an arena! It’s the perfect location to test new spells and mechanics. These arenas are also perfect for battling your friends in the privacy of your own home, or to organize PvP parties in.

There are currently 14 house arenas, if I got them all. Do let me know if I’m being a misthead again and forgot some! I have attempted to list the houses in the order from oldest to newest, so you get a peak into how wizard101 has developed. It was hard to find information about when they were released though!

Massive Fantasy Palace (2010)

• Retired: Epic Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

This stunning classic was the first house ever with a PvP arena. The arena is conveniently situated in the courtyard, right before the entrance to the house and is a great location for large gatherings. If one is so inclined, you can climb the walls and acquire a view down on the arena as well. I have good memories of this house, where I’ve attended a menu chat PvP tourney. I don’t know if they planned it, but it was purely non-speaking people PvPing and spectating, quite interesting!

Sun Palace (2011)

• Retired: Super Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

The Sun Palace’s arena is uniquely located in an enclosed area behind the house. The torches and wall hangings give it a wild feel, as does the lush, leafy oasis around the house. You are able to both get close to the battle circle, or go up a ramp and watch from a higher viewing angle. This stunning classic is waiting just for you!

Sultan’s Palace (2011)

• Retired: Mega Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

The magnificent Sultan’s Palace is a keeper with its pastel colors and stylish layout. Welcome to paradise! The arena is separated by a moat with beautiful turquoise water, giving it a more private feel. In this arena I faced my first polymorph, with its massive health and funny spells.

Celestial Observatory (2011)

• Crafted, Master Artisan (see our guide here)
• Recipe: Buxley Turtleton, Celestia Base Camp, for 75 000 gold
• You must be at least lvl 15 to craft this house.

Prepare to be stunned by the one and only crafted house with an arena! The battle circle is located in the very center of the area, impossible to miss! The typical celestial environment goes together beautifully with the sensational view of planets and stars. Let’s enjoy this space journey together!

Winter Wind Tower (July 2012)

• Retired: Majestic Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

Located on a separate island only accessible through a teleporter, this arena is hidden away, while still offering a stunning view on the actual house. The handsome sturdy walls create an Avalonian air of romance and refinement. Be careful to dress appropriately as there is snow on the peaks of the mountains in this house. Bundle up!

Pyramid of the Lost Horizon (November 2012)

• Retired: Dino Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

This beautiful arena, accentuated by a bright yellow star pattern around it, is the first thing you see when entering this enormous house. This is the perfect arena for PvP parties, with the complete lack of walls around the arena making it feel spacious and bright. It’s a location I actually spent quite some time at during a Duelist101 PvP event.

The Acropolis (June 2013)

• Retired: Olympian Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

The Acropolis arena is located on stately rock which you access through a conveniently placed teleporter. It’s a spacious area with spectator benches on two sides and a beautiful open sky opposite of the entrance. I crashed the afterparty of a Duelist101 event in this house, which was awesome because I was sad the event took place after my bedtime.

Amber Estate (November 2013)

• Retired: Hive Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

This floating arena’s soothing brown hive tile floor forms an amazing contrast with the turquoise clouds floating by. While this one is also only available through a teleporter, it’s not hidden away at all and you can admire it in its full glory from the main land as well.

Botanical Gardens (October 2014)

• Retired: Evergreen Bundle Gift Card
• Available on some Throwback Thursdays, 12,500 crowns

This majestic mansion comes a dark themed arena with a mysterious charm to it! One of the entrances to this secret garden arena is cleverly hidden by vines, which untangle as you approach them. All in all, this arena will keep out the faint of heart and guarantee you brave and honorable opponents. This arena is desirably tranquil.

Polarian Shipwreck (November 2015)

• Retired: Polarian Explorer’s Bundle Gift Card
• Perhaps coming to future Throwback Thursdays?

Time for some wintry fun in the polarian arena! This arena is cozily nestled right next to the majestic ship wreck. The floating mana whisps – though unnecessary for PvP – give the area an extra freezing atmosphere. Get ready to cast those Frost Giants and shatter Kevin the Noob to pieces!

Darkmoor Mansion (May 2016)

• Witch Hunter’s Bundle Gift Card, currently available on wizard101.com for 39 USD

Another dark themed arena, it comes with a gloomy arena, perfect for death wizards who love to PvP! Don’t lose, or you might end up under one of the grave stones around the battle circle. This area is spacious and the darker theme makes it easier to see the chat, which is always a plus in my books. 

Shinobi Dojo (October 2016)

• Shinobi Bundle Gift Card – Available at Gamestop
• Perhaps coming to future Throwback Thursdays?

This oriental house arena is unique in the sense that you can place it in any of your homes! The Feng Shui is just right in this spacious dojo. The perfect place to cast some ninja pigs! As an additional advantage, you can get a daily present from the Great Moodha Statue.

Nomad’s Camp (November 2016)

• Mirage Raider’s Bundle Gift Card, currently available on wizard101.com for 39 USD

This stylish arena is nestled on a large rock with a stunning view of the rest of area. Its prestigious location near to the Spiral Door makes this arena a personal favorite for many avid practice PvPers. The peaceful night sky will relax you and you don’t need to worry about this arena getting too full; there’s ample space to spectate.

Outlaw’s Refuge (May 2017)

• Avalon Outlaw’s Bundle Gift Card – Available at Gamestop
• Perhaps coming to future Throwback Thursdays?

Avalon has never felt this peaceful and summery before! This spacious arena is another good candidate for any PvP party. It’s a real wooded wonderland with an actual functional catapult for your spectators to fire at the height of battle. The area is green and bright for that perfect feel-good summer vibe.

Which one is your favorite arena and why?

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Stat-Boosting Mounts

Every little boost to your stats can make a difference. As such, stat-boosting mounts are a pretty neat addition to the game. Yes, we know you can’t equip a mount in the Arena. However, you can equip it in Unicorn Way and the stat-boost will still count in the Arena.

Stat-Boosting Mounts from the Crowns Shop

Stat-Boosting Mounts from Bundles

Which one?

So which one should you use? My personal answer is whichever one you own. I can’t be picky. However, Jades might want to pick either the healing or the accuracy mount. The power pip mount could be good for low level quick matches. On storm, pierce is great because everyone carries storm shields these days.

Suggestions for the Future

Here’s Peridot’s wishlist for the future of stat-boosting mounts:

• Energy and shadow pips, pip conversion, critical, outgoing heal
• Fishing luck should be added to the fishing boat
• A mount may cast!
• May cast 100% speed for 5 minutes, 1 minute cooldown
• A mount that regenerates health/mana
• A mount that can cut the energy regeneration time by a few seconds
• A mount with a jewel slot
• A mount with a portable bank!
• A bazaar mount that links you to the bazaar from anywhere!
• A setting that randomly changes your mount every hour
• A mount that would give you the power to choose the arena you want to fight in. If both have the mount and choose differently, it’s a 50%
• A supreme warlord mount, which would let you gain double the amount of tickets in regular matches

What kind of stat mounts
would YOU like to see next?

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Review of PvP Arenas from a Spectator’s Perspective

So we know most of you are interested in PvP, but do you spend a lot of time watching other people do it? I definitely do. Whenever I watch a friend, I’m known to get cross with them when they “choose” the wrong arena. Yes, there is such a thing as a wrong arena. Any arena that make it hard to survey the area, like the Wysteria one, is a wrong arena. Bad arenas also include the ones that require you to run for hours to your destination (yes, I’m also known for exaggerating), like the Avalon one. So I thought I’d give you my take on which arenas are good and which ones are bad. So, you know, you can stop using the ones I dislike when I’m watching you.

These are the criteria I’ve taken into consideration while ranking the arenas from worst to best:

• Prettiness: While I do mainly focus on watching your match, I do tend to get distracted from time to time. As such, I like to be in an arena that’s pretty. That way, I have pretty things to look at while you turtle for hours on end.
• Theme: These arenas are designed to represent a certain world. If I’m in the Avalon arena I want to feel like I’m in Avalon.
• Amount of running: Having to run to the battle circle is bad. I don’t like running. No running please!
• Visibilty & perspective: I like to have a clean look at the match even when not in spectator view. While I do click the eye button most of the time, sometimes I prefer to look at a match from slightly further away. In addition, it’s important for me to be able to survey the entire area in an instance. I don’t like it when I can’t see who else is watching the match. You never know if Kevin the Noob will show up. I want to see him when he comes!
• Ability to hide: Sometimes I just don’t want to be seen. I feared I would come across as a stalker saying that. However, I asked a girl in game what she finds important in an arena and she mentioned hiding as one of the key factors as well, so I’m not alone!
• Exit areas: While most of the time you can just press the “return to lobby” button, the location of an exit area can be a factor when you ported from a random location to watch a friend. Also, the exit areas are sometimes the most beautiful or interesting part of the arena.

Wysteria Arena: 36 points

• Prettiness: 6/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 8/10
• Visibility and perspective: 0/10
• Ability to hide: 5/10
• Exit areas: 7/10

By far the worst arena there is. The main reason for this is definitely the visibility. There is no way to survey the whole arena at once. Finding your friends when you teleport to them can be a problem in this arena. Standing behind bars while watching isn’t very pleasant, and the visibility from way up is bad as well. I don’t know how we managed with this arena before we got spectator view! Hiding from people is both easy and hard. On the one hand people will have trouble finding you, but on the other hand there isn’t any spot that is truly hidden. The exit area with the stairs leading back to the PvP Lobby is beautiful but not very practical. The limited amount of running is a plus and they did nail the theme on this one. This arena couldn’t be any more Wysterian.

Avalon Arena: 36 points

• Prettiness: 9/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 0/10
• Visibility and perspective: 6/10
• Ability to hide: 5/10
• Exit areas: 6/10

The Avalon arena doesn’t get a lot of points from me. In fact, it ties with Wysteria as the worst arena ever. The main issue with it is the running required to get to the battling circle. Could it be any longer? The road from the exit to the actual battle is beautiful, but the magical bridge with the stones floating in the air isn’t really worth the long run. I suppose it makes hiding possible, if you stay near the exit, but you can’t hear what people say from that far away. The colors are beautiful and the area’s Crystal Cave theme fits Avalon well. The visibility is okay near the battle circle, but as I said, there’s a long way to the exit and as such people could be there without you knowing.

Wizard City Arena: 37 points

• Prettiness: 5/10
• Theme: 8/10
• Amount of running: 10/10
• Visibility and perspective: 8/10
• Ability to hide: 2/10
• Exit areas: 4/10

The Wizard City arena scores low on most factors, sadly. It does fit the Wizard City theme, but that’s a fairly boring theme. They could have made it more interesting. Hiding is hard in this arena. There are two exit, but they’re boring. On the other hand, the visibility is great. You can choose between standing close to the arena or higher up. The lack of running required is also a positive feature.

Dragonspyre Arena: 42 points

• Prettiness: 8/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 9/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 3/10
• Exit areas: 3/10

The Dragonspyre arena is clearly Dragonspyre themed with its subdued colors and typical textures. Though it is fairly big, the part you are teleported to when you enter is still the best spot to stand. As such, it doesn’t require much running. The only exit area is a little strange as there is no door or anything, you just run into nothingness. The visibility is excellent and there is plenty of space to stand. The opponents battle on an island surrounded by lava, which gives it a menacing feel. This is perhaps not the best arena to remain unseen in.

Zafaria Arena: 44 points

• Prettiness: 9/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 7/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 3/10
• Exit areas: 6/10

This arena excellently fits the Zafarian theme. The waterfalls are beautiful, the wooden ramps are very rural and the green grass and foliage help give the area an outdoorsy feel. The visibility is good and you can choose your perspective by going up the ramps. There is a bit of a run to the battling circle, but it’s not too bad. Having both opponents on an island surrounded by water is a nice feature that makes the battle more intimate. Hiding is fairly difficult in this arena, but you could always stay in the exit area. However, the exit area is – plainly said – boring.

Krokotopia Arena: 48 points

• Prettiness: 5/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 8/10
• Visibility and perspective: 10/10
• Ability to hide: 8/10
• Exit areas: 7/10

This is another arena with great visibility. While there are some places to hide, most of this arena is easy to survey. Granted, this is a small arena, but you still have options. You can stand both near ground level and higher up, so you aren’t limited in any way. There is some running down the slope to get to the battle circle, but it’s by no means a long run. The battle circle is surrounded by a deep fall, which is a nice touch. The exit area is pretty with the pilars and allows for some hiding space as well. The overall feel fits the Krokotopian theme nicely. While Krokotopia as a world IS a little boring, this arena is easily one of my favorites.

Marleybone Arena: 48 points

• Prettiness: 5/10
• Theme: 9/10
• Amount of running: 10/10
• Visibility and perspective: 7/10
• Ability to hide: 8/10
• Exit areas: 9/10

The Marleybone arena is very simple. It doesn’t come with multiple levels to stand on, but it allows for a clear view from every side. The dark colors are stylish and they nailed the Marleybonian theme pretty well. The most fancy part of this arena is the exit area, which contains both a planning room and a bar area, which you can hide in while still hearing what everyone says. This arena requires no running at all. All in all, a solid choice for any battle.

Celestia Arena: 48 points

• Prettiness: 6/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 8/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 6/10
• Exit areas: 9/10

This circular arena is simple but practical. It’s fairly small, but the visibility is great. The exit area is once again magnificent, with a small gazebo and plenty of running water. While it’s a good area to hide in, you sadly can’t hear what is being said closer to the battle circle. The theme has been executed very well: the circling celestial writing above the battle circle is a nice touch and so is the water pooring off the sides of it. This arena requires virtually no running, which is another plus.

Grizzleheim Arena: 48 points

• Prettiness: 9/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 9/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 4/10
• Exit areas: 7/10

This arena is one of my personal favorites. It’s not especially large, but you can both spectate from ground level and from the higher platform. The visibility is excellent. The area is as Grizzleheim themed as is possible with the viking boats, the huskarls guarding and the little islands towards the exit area. The blue sky with stars and whispy clouds is stunning. Hiding is fairly hard here, but there’s the boat to stand on. There’s very little running required to get to the battle circle. If you want to exit through the exit area, you do have to run quite a bit though.

Mooshu Arena: 53 points

• Prettiness: 6/10
• Theme: 9/10
• Amount of running: 10/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 10/10
• Exit areas: 9/10

The Mooshu arena is a solid arena that has nothing really wrong with it but nothing special about it either. The visibility is great and there’s no running required. The arena is clearly Mooshu themed, though the only part that really stands out is the exit area with its little bridge, waterfall and potted plants. You can hide in this beautiful area, which is close enough for you to still hear what is being said in the match. 

Azteca Arena: 56 points

• Prettiness: 10/10
• Theme: 10/10
• Amount of running: 10/10
• Visibility and perspective: 9/10
• Ability to hide: 8/10
• Exit areas: 9/10

The Azteca Arena is a great Arena for multiple reasons. For one, it doesnt require any running! You get teleported to a spot fairly close to the battling circle and there are three ways to exit it as well. The visibility is another great factor. No matter where you stand, you can see people and the battle circle very well. Nevertheless, there are spots where you can hide if you’re so inclined, because this is a large Arena. There is a “secret” part near the back that teleports you upwards, which is pretty fun. The battle circle is surrounded by bubbling water, which separates the opponents from the spectators. Additionally, it’s a beautiful arena. It fits the Aztecan theme perfectly with the decor and with the boulders falling out of the sky.

Time for some new arenas!

I’m sure many of you agree when I say we want more arenas! Time for a Khrysalis, Polaris, Mirage and Arcanum arena!

Another cool thing Sierra thought of would be to have fish added to the arenas with water, like the Celestia and Azteca arena. Maybe if people are fishing they won’t be talking trash so much! And wouldn’t it be cool if you could fish for chests with actual PvP items? I’d love to fish for the Dragonclaw Blade — Duelist101’s official wand — for example! And maybe some PvP themed fish? The Jade Juju fish? Or doodle fish shaped as popular PvP spells?

Which Arena is your favorite
and which one do you like the least?
Let us know in the comments!

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Free Training Point Buy Back: What to Use it for?

Kingsisle announced today that members can buy training points back for free until the 6th of August. This isn’t the first time this member benefit has come around, and you may have already bought back things you accidentally bought last time it was here. So what’s the point of it? Why should you care this time around?

Well! We have something not everyone knows about yet that could benefit you! Especially if you are a Death wizard, this member benefit is a great opportunity. You could get your hands on a stash of Deadly Minotaur TCs without having to farm the Bazaar or garden for them!

Mutate Spells

The Archivist in Celestia sells 7 different Mutate Treasure Cards.

Why would you want these?

So what’s the connection with the free training point buy back, you say? Let’s go back to our example of a Death wizard. Necromancers love Deadly Minotaur because of its double hit. With it, you can ignore a shield and still get a decent hit in one round. However, gardening for Deadly Minotaur TCs is annoying and the Bazaar rarely sells them. Using the Mutate treasure card, you can make as many as you want! The only catch is that you have to have the Myth spell Minotaur trained.

Unfortunately, this is a problem for many people. Not everyone has enough training points for this, like in the case of a Magus or Grandmaster level wizard. With this member benefit, you can now buy back your points, train Minotaur, enchant a million Deadly Minotaur TC (or as many as you can stash in treasure card decks).  Then simply buy back your training points once more, to train the things you will ACTUALLY use, like tower shield and infection. You will be left with a stash of Deadly Minotaurs that will hopefully last you until the next time this member benefit comes around.

You will need the following amount of training points to train each of these spells:

• Forsaken Banshee: train Banshee in the Death school for 4 training points (level 10 required)
• Mutate Swarm: train Locust Swarm in the Balance school for 4 training points (level 10 required)
• Midnight Sprite: train Sprite in the Life school for 4 training points (level 10 required)
• Inferno Kraken: train Kraken in the Storm school for 6 training points (level 22 required)
• Fire Wyvern: train Ice Wyvern in the Ice school for 6 training points (level 22 required)
• Thunderbird: train Phoenix in the Fire school for 8 training points (level 33 required)
• Deadly Minotaur: train Minotaur in the Myth school for 8 training points (level 33 required)

The Mutated Spells

Of these, I have personally have used Deadly Minotaur, Midnight Sprite and Forsaken Banshee on my Death. The buff the latter two leave can be very useful sometimes and they’re excellent shield breakers. Thunderbird is also very useful for Storm wizards!

Other considerations:

1. Be careful when buying your training points back after the rank reset if you have trained conviction! This spell requires you to be a Sergeant or higher, so if you’re still a private, you won’t have access to it until you rank up. 
2. You may want to screen shot your deck set-ups so you can rebuild them easily when you are done.
3. All resulting treasure cards are no trade, so you will have to keep these on the wizard who will be using them. Be sure to buy extra decks with lots of treasure card space so you do not over flow your main treasure card inventory.
4. There are also other mutate treasure cards available from the Bazaar. Especially useful is the Mutate Elf (storm) which will turn a fire elf into a storm version which can provide a storm wizard with a much needed DOT.

Let’s start hoarding those TCs, shall we!?

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Top 10 PVP Plants in Wizard101

I know what you are thinking, what are PVP Plants? Many of us already garden for snacks to feed those endless pet fails, but I am here to show you that gardening can also be a great way to obtain those rare treasure cards that can be so useful in PvP.  

There are many plants in the spiral that drop treasure cards, but for the purpose of this article I will cover the ones that drop rare and/or hard to find ones. Of course at the end of the day it is up to you on which are most valuable and/or worth your time and effort! Happy Gardening!

This article will cover:

1. Cards the plants drop
2. How to get the plants
3. Likes/Needs
4. Pros/Cons

#10 Ultra Alligator Pear Tree

#9 Ultra King Parsley

#8 Ultra Trumpet Vine

#7 Boom Shroom

#6 Sword Fern

#5 Sour Fickle Pickle

#4 Red Grapes of Wrath

#3 Dead Beets

#2 Ivy League

#1 Sunion

Wilt and Revive

Wilt and Revive refers to a method of gardening where you do not allow the plant to elder. This can be helpful in cases where plants do not reseed at elder and you do not need any of the drops from the elder harvest. This method is also used to preserve pixies on “pixie plants” or in case of the Ultra King Parsley, to multiply your seeds.

1. When the progress bar is getting close to elder DO NOT care for the plant’s needs, If you have new seeds to add to the gardening plot do so at this point.  Generally I do this earlier, that bar is pretty close to done!
2. Leave the garden for at least a day, also keeping in mind the seed to young cycle time on the new seeds you added.   I have found in most cases 24 hours is plenty.
3. When you come back all the plants progress will by indicated as “progress to dead”
4. Be sure to take care of ALL their needs and voila, your plants are young again. The additional seeds you added will also be young, so everything will be in sync.

Tips and Tricks

• You do not need a giant stacked plot in most cases to get what you are after. Plant a few seeds and work your way up from there: something is better than nothing. If you are interested in learning to stack plants, visit this great guide here.
• You do not need to have all the plants “likes”, but each one you do have will decrease the growth time needed for plants. In some instances you may actually want them to grow slower and use less likes. For example, with my Ultra King Parsleys, I put all the likes to progress them to Mature as fast as possible and then take them away once the plants are mature. That way, I can harvest them in 12 hour cycles.
• No need to put 2 or 3 of each like, if it fits in a large spell ring, the plants they will “see” them, see picture above.
• When doing mixed plants in one gardening plot, be careful. One plant’s plants like may be another’s dislike! Consider grouping plants that have similar needs so you do not overextend yourself energy wise and wind up with dead plants. Speaking of Energy, be sure to peruse our  Energy Gear guides, Level 50 & 60 and Max Energy.
• Do NOT visit your gardens unless you have the energy to care for all the plants there, needs will not show up until you actually go to the garden. For more on that and other useful tips, check this out, Green Thumbs Not Required!
• If you happen to accidentally kill off a plant, do not despair: you are in good company. Watch this video while you regroup.

Do you have a favorite plant for Treasure Cards not listed here? Have any questions? Let us know in the comments below!

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Daily PvP Assignments: Analysis and Suggestions for Improvement

The summer update introduced some interesting things, one of which was Daily PvP Assignments. It sounds like a pretty good addition for the arena, but is it really? Some time has passed, and have been checking and analysing the implications of the new daily assignments on the PvP environment. While the idea itself is pretty good, as with anything else new, it could use some improvements. 

Problems with Daily PvP Assignments

Right now, Daily PvP Assignments are just there – they don’t do much to help PvP as a whole. With only one task available, it severely lacks in diversity and accessibility to casual players. Entry barriers for PvP are insanely high and it’s almost impossible for casual players to win the one match a day required. Although the matchmaking system works in theory, a lack of experience and good gear makes new players’ lives much harder.

Let’s split the Arena players into 3 categories:

1. Experienced PvP players,
2. Inexperienced PvP players who have a desire to learn it,
3. Inexperienced PvP players who are just trying a PvP.

In order to get more players into PvP, we have to appease players in the 3rd category. This means the daily PvP assignments should be easier and accessible especially for players belonging to that category. Players from the first category won’t have any difficulty finishing the tasks – whether it’s “win 1 ranked match” or anything else. Players belonging in the second category might have problems with “winning 1 ranked match”, but they’re aware that they’re at the beginning of their journey and still need to improve. While they won’t always be able to finish the task, this won’t turn them away from PvP.

But what will happen when casual players (from the third category) try to finish the daily assignment? They’ll get destroyed in PvP, won’t know why this is happening and get discouraged from doing PvP. This means we lose a potential player. In wizard101, we want and need more players doing PvP. In order to achieve that, we need to make the PvP environment friendlier to the inexperienced players.

Our Proposed Solution

We at Duelist101 always have a goal in mind when proposing changes. Each one of our articles aims to either improve the Arena atmosphere or make things easier for beginners. Our proposed changes fall into the second category.

With the new, improved daily assignments we’re proposing we’re going to kill two birds with one shot. Firstly casual players won’t have problems finishing these new dailies. The tasks are going to be really easy to perform and you won’t need a ton of training points or heavy knowledge about PvP and game mechanics.

Secondly our daily assignment proposal is designed with the best PvP practices in mind. These dailies will subconsciously teach casual players what kinds of moves are good and useful behavior in PvP. For example, there are many players using traps or amplify in the Arena – none of these spells belong there. Similar to using these spells, players also don’t have much of a clue on how to perform good moves in a match. With these proposed assignments, they’ll get better insight into what is right and what is wrong in PvP.

New Tasks with Explanations

1. Summon a minion

Although minions are generally really easy to kill, they are always a good addition on the field. They can blade, destroy shields and generally be a nuisance to our opponents. Some minions fit offensive strategies while others are rather defensive. Most good players will try to kill minions as soon as they come out, and thus be prevented from doing other things, like potentially from killing you. Read more about minions here.

2. Use at least 2 tower shields

Survivability in PvP is a bit harder than it is in PvE. You can’t set for your opponent’s school as easily, so having tower shields ready should become second nature to all players. You can read more about shielding in this and this article.

Of course some newer players will complain about this daily and say they don’t have tower shield trained because it’s an Ice spell. However, that’s exactly the point of this daily: it will encourage them to train it. There is always the free buy back training points member benefit if they don’t have the training points to do so. In addition, there is the treasure card version available as well.

3. Use a set shield to your opponent’s school

While tower shields are universally good, school specific ones provide more resist and can’t be removed with an off-school attack. This daily would encourage players to try to take note of their opponent’s school, which is another important aspect in PvP.

4. Use stun blocks

This spell is often neglected by new players. A lack of stun blocks is often a key mistake leading to losses – even for experienced players. While facing a Myth wizard, for example, it would be vital to get up stun blocks as soon as you can, to avoid suffering a loss due to Medusa.

5. Use a weakness

The situation here is similar to tower shields. Using weaknesses should become second nature to all players. Unlike shields which only reduce the damage of the next incoming attack, Weakness reduces the damage of the entire outgoing attack spell which makes it very effective for DoT spells (Damage over Time) such as Fire Dragon, Snow Angel, or Rampage, making weakness a must-have defensive spell in your dueling deck. Many players also wait for the perfect circumstances before they attack. Thus, you can buy some time with putting a weakness on them, since they will try to remove it before attacking.

6. Stack 2 weaknesses

This could maybe fall in the advanced category for new players, but it’s still a very important skill in PvP. Since weaknesses can dampen DoT attacks (shields can’t), it’s important to guide players toward weakness stacking rather than shield stacking.

7. Save 7 (power)pips

By this we basically mean to encourage new players to not spend their pips on an attack as soon as they can. Inexperienced players often have the habit of attacking as soon as they have enough pips rather than saving pips for a combo. Though this skill loses a bit of value at Max PvP, it’s still valid there and extremely important at lower levels.

8. Use a damage over time attack

Finding ways around shields is another common problem for new players. They often go ahead and try to ram through the shields. A DoT spell is a good way to get rid of shields. Leading players towards smart decisions for dealing with shields is a good thing to achieve.

9. Stack at least 2 blades

More blades equals more damage. While almost everyone knows that, it’s important to lead newcomers toward blade stacking rather than trap stacking.

10. Use a global spell/bubble

Ah, good old bubble control. Not only are you making your attacks stronger, you’re also removing one of your opponent’s buffs. This is a must-have spell for every PvP player’s deck. Read more about bubbles here.

11. Use an infection

While this is not relevant on 100+ levels, it’s notable that even experienced players often neglect infections. Although it’s losing its value, it’s still one of the core PvP spells and everyone should know the importance of suppressing healing spells.

12. Use a healing spell

PvP isn’t a regular boss battle where you can kill before he’s able to scratch you. Sometimes you need healing to stay alive in the arena. How much you should heal is very dependent on your playstyle and your opponent. Still, barely anyone is going to survive a PvP match without heals.

13. Use a single hit attacking spell without having any debuffs

While DoT spells are a good way around shields, using single hit spells provides more instant power. It’s even more important to hit without any debuffs (towers or weaknesses) and this is the perfect exercise for highlighting that.

14. Use an off school spell to kill a minion or remove tower shields

After teaching players about blade stacking they face a new problem: getting rid of their opponent’s utility spells without wasting any blades. This easy trick will teach them how.

15. Enchant and cast an attack with a sun damage enhancing spell

Another self-explanatory thing that the majority of players know, but newcomers often neglect in PvP. You should never attack without an enchantment (unless it’s for stacking purposes, but that’s a story for another time).

16. Cast a Fortify or Brace

Both Fortify and Brace are useful auras to increase survivability. Fortify reduces all incoming damage by 15% and Brace for 20%. These are 2 of the most common auras seen in the Arena. Players who don’t have these trained can buy Fortify from a Treasure Card Vendor. Brace can only be trained, not bought.

17. Cast infallible or flawless before attacking

Infallible is an aura that severely increases the damage output of your spells by increasing pierce and accuracy. Unfortunately, most newcomers prefer amplify, so it would be wise to lead them toward this better option. 

18. Use pre-enhanced attacks

While the previous task focused on enchanting the spell and casting it, this one would focus on using pre-enhanced tc attack cards. While treasure cards are available in the Bazaar, this is usually the better/stronger option. If you’re new to enchanting hits, here‘s a guide on how to make enchanted treasure cards.

19. Use an Ice dispel

Dispels are another type of spell that’s not seen in a newcomer’s deck. Ice dispels are overall a good choice to deny your opponent the option of putting a tower shield on themselves.

20. Use a Balance dispel

Similar story to Ice dispels, except that the point of this one is denying your opponent the ability to cast weaknesses, tri-blades or reshuffles.

21. Use a life dispel (not max)

This one falls into a similar category as casting infection. Since healing at levels 100+ is almost non-existent, this task would show only to levels from 1-99.

22. Use shadow shrike and reduce backlash to zero (max)

This is another level specific task. Shadow shrike is pretty much the most important shadow school spell and everyone should use it. Due to the level limit, this task would show only to levels 100+.

23. Have a stats damage boost in battle of at least x %

A lack of gear is a huge issue among casual players in PvP. Since resist is bit harder to obtain with bazaar gear, forcing new players to have a set amount of a damage boost is a better idea. It wouldn’t completely solve the gear issue, but it would force them to start thinking about it.

24. Participate in a tournament to obtain at least 250 tickets

The second part of this quest is key here. With this quest we’re showing the positive side of tournaments (you’ll get way more tickets there than in ranked) as well as subtly letting new players know that gaining arena tickets is an important thing in the Arena.

25. Play a practice match

Nothing special here – just to add a little diversity.

26. Play a ranked match

Same as the previous – adding a little diversity as well as giving an easier alternative to win 1 match.

27. Win one ranked match

This is the one that exists right now and there is no problem with it staying. With all the tasks available, this one shouldn’t show up more than once a month.

Did we miss any casual-friendly tasks which would also help inexperienced players to improve in the Arena? Let us know!

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Monstrology Bugs – Let’s find them all!

This article’s purpose is to track down any remaining Monstrology bugs that are currently in the game and group them together. Unlike other articles, this one is aimed to provide constructive criticism for Kingsisle. Therefore, no negativity will be allowed in the comments section.

Monstrologists in the Spiral have probably figured out by now that we can’t complete every section of the Monstrology Tome, and hopefully this will help in fixing that. I listed every single bug I ran into and also other ideas that could help improve each section of the tome. Please, don’t hesitate one bit to post your ideas and/or findings in the comments below in a respectful and constructive manner. Afterwards, these will be posted in Wizard101’s message boards (Halston’s Laboratory) as well.

Bugs include:

• Creatures listed under incorrect sections
• Wrong statistics for creatures in the tome (incorrectly not/marked as a boss)
• One time creatures in the monstrology system
• Missing descriptions
• Creatures that should clearly give animus but don’t

Wizard City:

• Spectral Guardian in Malistaire’s house gives animus but is a one time creature.
• Simon the Sayer is not marked as a boss.
• Creatures from Tanglewood Terror should be placed under the Dungeons section.

Wysteria:

• Bleys Flamerender and Randolf Spellshine are indeed repeatable creatures and should be available. 

Dragonspyre:

• Burning Flamewing is incorrectly marked as a boss.
• Feral Lavaling in Dragonspyre’s finale is a wyrm that doesn’t give animus.
• Nodnarb should be able to give animus since it’s a wyrm.
• Creatures from Baddle of the Bands should be placed under the Dungeons section.

Celestia:

• Creatures that should be included: Marcio, Yogash, Procyon, and Thunderfin.

Zafaria:

• Carrion Flower Man don’t spawn unless there are 3 wizards present in the dungeon.

Avalon:

• Lambent Fire is not listed as a boss.

Azteca:

• Grim Calaca is incorrectly listed as a boss.
• Should be classified as a boss: Anacaona Black Snake, Ezhua Bad Taste, Grinning Death Moon, Mozar Turtle Hunter, Uacalxochitl Blood Eye and Storm Caiman.

Khrysalis:

• The Tree Root elites are missing their descriptions.
• Hebitoho Wyrmling is incorrectly listed as a boss (all 5 tiers)
• The Tier 3 Gaikotsu Skeleton might be counting towards the total count of Khrysalis, but the creature is not in game.
• Creatures from Midnight Sun Pagoda should either be placed under Mooshu or the Dungeons section.
• Undead creatures that don’t give animus but should: Cree Curdwright, Deer Mouse Revenant (Balance), Laughing Calaca, Arkyn Moonblade, King Alric Fatesailor, Deer Mouse Revenant (Ice), and Wraight Knight.
• Shadow of the Land may be classified as a treant.

Polaris:

• Need to be marked as bosses: Broken Land Guardian, Shattered Sky Guardian, Sundered Seam Guardian

Mirage:

• Scrollkeeper and Shrowdenger’s Qhat (Death) don’t give animus but are clearly undead.
• Need to be marked as bosses: Achey, Chilly, Cough, Shadowbones, Sneezy.

Dungeons:

• Ervin the Barbarian and Kaimanite Mummy should be listed under Wysteria.

Did you find anything else that is not listed above?

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Most Successful Schools in 3rd Age PvP

We’ve said goodbye to 3rd age PvP and welcomed the 4th age. Let’s still look at the past for a second and check which schools and levels managed to obtain highest rank in the 3rd age. We’ll check the top 1000 highest ranked players and break them down by school popularity. We’ll be looking at the amount of players across all levels as well splitting them by every 10 levels.

Notes:

• The data was taken on July 6th 2017. It might come with little anomalies if you’ll compare the data with actual standings on other dates.
• There are obviously a lot of boosters on the leaderboards. Some are easy to find, others (for example in the 2,5k-3,5k range) harder. We kept all players in data to prevent accidental mistakes, like keeping some in and eliminating the others.
• People might level up after reaching a certain rank and will thus show up as higher level in the leaderboards than they were at the time they were pvping.

Most Successful Schools over All Levels

Ice, the Master of All Levels

The Ice school is well known to be good choice for PvP at any level. Whether you’re starting, fighting as Grandmaster or max wizard, Ice is always on top. It’s no surprise that it had the largest amount of wizards on the leaderboards. With 277 wizards, they were covering over one quarter (28%) of the whole top 1000 population.

Another strong school on all levels is Balance, which followed Ice with 22%. They have a lot of tools to control their opponents which can quickly turn them into an unbeatable force. Fire and Myth, another pair of strong PvP schools, had a surprisingly low attendance. Fire was on 4th place with 130 players (13%) and myth on 6th with only 69 players (7%). 

On the other hand, there are positive surprises like the Life and Death schools. Although Life is good choice for any level, it doesn’t achieve the status as best school yet. Still, 16% with 163 wizards was pretty impressive. Life’s survivablity definitely plays a big role for players making their way into the top 1000. Death on the other hand is known as a low tier school. While the school does have its perks, having more wizards on the leaderboards than Myth (101 Death vs 69 Myth) and only 29 less than Fire is pretty impressive.

And then there’s Storm. They look really scary, but regardless it’s still one of the easiest school to beat. With only 37 wizards on the leaderboards (4%), it’s obvious they have some struggles. One of main reasons is that the school is so highly offensive, while you need to be pretty defensive and careful to reach high ranks at lower level.

Most Successful Schools According to Level

Boosters Paradise (0-9)

We’ll start breaking the popularity down by levels starting from the lowest levels. If there is any legit top 1000 player in the level 0-9 range, I apologize, but reaching 1,8k at this level is pretty much impossible. You would start fighting magus warlords and having such a small deck with small amounts of spells and low health makes ranking high really hard. With 38 players being on the leaderboards, they represented almost 4% of top 1000 population. 

For the Lazy Ones (10-19)

You start getting your first power pips, you can train Tower Shield and don’t need to waste your time questing. Have one high level wizard to provide you with good tc’s and you’re ready to go! However, these levels still don’t have enough tools to survive so it’s still pretty tough and challenging to reach the leaderboards. The situation here is similar to the one with the lowest levels: we can still find lot of boosters here. Regardless, some players might legitimately reach the top 1000. The number of wizards on the leaderboards in this level range was also almost the same as it is at the lowest levels – 37 , which means another 4% added toward counting boosters on the low levels. 

Bone and Basilisk, Baby (20-29)

Personally, I don’t find this range appealing since there is the juicy Sky Iron Hasta wand at level 30. Still, quick blades with strong high pip DoT spells turn out to be a really successful combination. However, our data shows that this still isn’t good enough for leaderboards, since it contained only 11 people from this range. With all of them having insanely high ranks it’s pointless to waste any more words for analysis here.

Getting Bullied by Grands (30-39)

Magus is a pretty popular PvP choice among wizards. The size of your deck is growing, you have more health and power pips and plenty of training points for defensive purposes. But even though they have all these things, we still don’t see many magus wizards on the leaderboards: 25 wizards (2,5% from total amount), represented by only 6 schools. 

Despite the popularity and general attraction of this level, there are still a lot of problems when ranking up. The low amount of high ranked maguses often means cross-level matches as you progress. We already know that higher ranked lower levels are mostly boosters and are out of the game, which leave you with grandmaster opponents. 

And with the rank requirement being so high, you’ll most likely need to beat a nice amount of grandmaster warlords before reaching the top 1000. While the difference in rank exists, they still have warlord gear and know how to play. 

What?!? (40-49) 

What! Why PvP at Master level?! It’s a pretty awkward level for PvP in my opinion. You’re limited to commander gear and due to its unpopularity there are high chances you’ll get matches with grandmasters in full warlord suit. Some storms like these levels, since Barkingham palace gear gives a nice damage boost. Balance wizards have access to the mana burn amulet. 

Even though certain schools have certain perks here, that’s still not sufficient to get a larger amount of wizards to the leaderboards. They managed to get only 12 wizards (1,2%) in top 1000. 

The schools were distributed pretty evenly here and it’s a bit hard to determine the reasons. It is most likely due to defensive plays, but the question is on what level these ranks were achieved. Being on the leaderboards means you can already get matched with legendary warlords – players that can easily chew through low health and put defenses.

Birth of the Turtles (50-59)

Here we are. With 43%, grandmasters boast with the highest amount of players on the leaderboards. Needless to say this is players’ favorite level to PvP. It’s also the level where it’s safe to say that 3k+ players can obtain their rank without boosting.  

Their turtling strategies are extremely annoying and many of us wouldn’t mind them gone, but we have to admit one thing. They’re highly skilled players who have managed to harmonize playstyle, given tools and gear set up. Still, even though all grandmasters have access to warlord gear, there are still differences in schools. The top was almost exclusively covered with Life (20% of grands), Balance (21% of grands) and Ice (41% of grands).

Ice wizards have really high health and together with the life mastery they have the ability to fend off attacks more easily than other schools. Life and Balance don’t have as much health as Ice, but they have other tools at their disposal. They’re the only schools that can effectively use healing spells together with Luminous Weaver and Loremaster. There are a lot of options to stack weaknesses on top of shields, which makes up for lower health. 

Lore and Ramp in a Nutshell (60-69)

Legendary wizards were in second place (26%) if we’re looking at what level range is the most popular in the top 1000. The number looks nice, but the situation is similar to grandmasters when it comes to school representation.

Fire and Balance were the most present here, together having over 50% on the leaderboards in the Legendary category. Burning rampage is already insane at lower levels, but here it can actually push PvPers into the top 1000. It’s not too hard to achieve a 100% damage boost and with all possible combinations it’s often really hard to counter it – even from first. 

Balances have another infamous spell – Loremaster. It’s even stronger than it is at Grandmaster level and many players are aware of that. Its double effect, together with Supernova and Mana Burn, is still an unsolvable puzzle to many players. 

Trolling with Supernova and Mana Burn (70-79)

The transcendent levels are pretty weird to PvP at and this is reflected on the leaderboards. Despite everyone getting interesting utility spells in Avalon, these levels haven’t gotten much popularity. Since there isn’t any better gear available, many wizards prefer to stay at Legendary levels to lower the chances of fighting shadow magic.

However, there is one school that stands out here – it’s once again Balance. They probably received the best pair of spells (Supernova and Mana Burn) and they don’t hesitate to use them. Out of the 21 transcendent wizards on leaderboards, the Balance school alone represented almost half of the population.

Supernova and Mana Burn are already popular at lower levels. Still, having a trainable version at your disposal provides sorcerers with a huge boost. One aura alone can completely turn the tide around, since enchanting them is possible now. With great controlling tools Balance spreads terror among Grandmasters and Legendaries and is able to compete with less skilled players who has access to shadow magic.

Bad Juju <3 (80-89)

With 62%, Death dominated Archmage levels: 24 of the 39 Archmages on the leaderboard were Death. From all players on the leaderboard, death wizards alone got 2,4% from all players on leaderboards with all Archmages being at almost 4%.

While Balance received the best pair of spells in Avalon, Death (and Life to a degree) received their most abusable spell. While Bad Juju is really situational and a tricky spell to use with aggressive Death builds, it’s a really strong utility when used with defensive set ups. Jade gear provides a nice amount of universal resist, ward pets make the situation even worse, then there are enfeeble pets covering them and on top of all that there’s the Guardian Spirit wand. Similar to Grandmasters, Archmage Death has found the perfect combination, which is often impossible to counter. 

Life was the second most popular school at Archmage with 18%.  They have a strategy that’s a bit weaker, but still really strong. Their ability to put several copies of Guardian Spirit into their deck means they can pull it up without as much deck digging as is required for Jade Juju’s. Cosmic Kris and Stellar Signet with possibly Sanctuary mean that there are high chances that they’ll return with full health after they’re defeated. That’s of course if their minion doesn’t heal them the same round as you kill. In that case, Guardian Spirit stays on them and the procedure has to be done from scratch.

Who Even Does This?!? (90-99)

Short answer: no one. There isn’t a single promethean wizard on the leaderboards. Shadow magic and shadow spells are so close, so there isn’t any point to stop and PvP here.

Getting Fancy Gear and Spells (100-109)

With only 7 wizards on leaderboards, Exalted PvP was even less popular than Master PvP. At Exalted, we receive our first major gear update after level 60, insane pierce and shadow spells. Despite all these additions, there aren’t too many dedicated Exalted PvP players. Exalted PvPers have similar problems as lower levels. In order to make your way to the leaderboards, you’ll be forced to work your way through max level warlords. They have even stronger spells, even better gear and there is always the RNG shadow pip factor involved.

Mirage isn’t Interesting Anyway (110-119)

Prodigious PvP was a bit more popular than Exalted (3,6% out of all players) and the schools distribution was quite even at this level. There was only a 5 wizard difference between the top (Ice and Balance) and bottom (Life and Myth) schools. Nowadays, you can barely see anyone playing at these levels though, so there’s the high probability that these Prodigious Top 1000 wizards achieved their rank before the Mirage update, but unfortunately quit the game or simply stopped PvPing. 

We are the Champions (120)

Currently the highest level possible, they had 79 wizards on leaderboards and were on 3rd place behind the Legendary and Grandmaster levels (7,9% out of all players). While max level PvP’s popularity is close to the other two ranges, it’s much harder to reach ranks high enough for the leaderboards at this level. There is no priviledge of fighting higher level privates and huge differences among school strengths make things even harder for bottom half.

As with most levels, we found Ice and Balance on top once again. There were 24% (Ice) and 22% (Balance) max leveled wizards on leaderboards, closely followed by Life (19%). Ice’s high health and Abominal Weaver made the PvP life easier for many Thaumaturges. Weaver doesn’t only give a 75% universal shield, it also deals a nice amount of damage. While Balance’s power isn’t as strong as it is at Legendary and Transcendent levels, they’re still really strong. Loremaster is still a really strong spell, especially when used under shrike. Unlike Weaver’s shield that increases backlash, Loremaster’s effects won’t get the caster punished.

Life is doing surprisingly well – even better than Fire. Angel strategies still exist and are still a really strong way to gain rank. While killing them with blade stacking has become a bit easier due to the lack of enfeeble pets at max level, there are still other problems. People don’t carry as many infections/dooms/bubbles as they do at lower levels, which makes healing much easier. Life’s total health is much higher and minions are still equally annoying. The lack of off-school hits often forces you in tough decision: let the minion live or sacrifice the blades?

Did any of the results surprise you? Which schools do you think will dominate 4th age PvP?

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