Mu Online

MU Online (Korean: 뮤 온라인) is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, produced by Webzen, a Korean gaming company. In the Philippines, the pay to play (P2P) version is distributed by Digital Media Exchange through the company Mobius Games.

Gameplay
As with many MMORPGs you select a character and fight monsters to gain experience. MU is populated by a large variety of monsters, from simple ones like goblins to frightening ones such as the Elite Yeti or Gorgon. Each monster-type is unique, has different spawn points, and drops different items. For more information regarding monster types and descriptions, refer to the Official Global Webpage.

Outside of a duel, PvP fighting is possible but discouraged. When one player attacks another, a self-defense system is activated, in which the attacked player may kill the aggressor within a time limit. Self-defense is also activated when a player attacks an Elf's summoned creature. If one player kills another without Self-defense active, he/she becomes an Outlaw, more commonly known in-game as "Player Killer" or PK. Outlaws have disadvantages during game play, depending on his Outlaw level.
 * Outlaws and Heroes


 * Outlaw Warning: A normal player assumes this level after killing another without Self-defense. The character’s name becomes orange, there is a 1/8 chance that you will drop items when killed, and lose extra experience when killed by a mob.  If attacked, you will still have Self-defense.  If you kill another person within 3 hours of gaining this status, you will advance to Outlaw 1st Stage; otherwise, you will go back to normal.


 * Outlaw 1st Stage: On this level the character’s name becomes red. The chance of dropping items upon death is 1/4, players can attack you without activating Self-defense, the Guards attack you, and you will lose even more experience when you die from a monster.  Also, the Non-player character shops will refuse to sell any items to you.  If three hours pass without a kill, you drop to Outlaw Warning, but another kill within that period advances you to Outlaw 2nd Stage.


 * Outlaw 2nd Stage (Murderers): On this level the chance of dropping items at death is 50% and lose a substantial amount of experience when killed by a monster. You are also unable to warp.  Players can target you as if you were a monster, and without activating Self-defense. This stage is dangerous as there is an incentive for players to become Heroes. A stage 2 Outlaw becomes almost totally black in color, and his wings, shield and weapon(s) (if any) become a crimson red color. As soon as this stage is reached, 3 hours have to pass before you revert to 1st Stage, and the timer increases by 3 hours for every additional person you kill.

To clear Outlaw status, the character must wait a significant amount of time without killing other players. The wait can be shortened by killing large number of monsters, which is generally done in one of the servers that does not permit PvP attacks, to avoid being attacked by another person. The amount of time reduced from the outlaw penalty is equal to the monster's level in seconds, and depending on the number of monsters killed, the penalty time may be dramatically decreased.


 * Hero: A Hero is a character that has killed three or more 2nd Stage Outlaws since logging into the account. The Heroes have a 1/32 chance of dropping items at death and will lose less experience when killed by a mob.  The Hero status clears in one hour, though the timer is reset back to one hour after every PK killed. To become a Hero, you must kill three 2nd Stage Outlaws without letting them hit you. If Self-Defense activates, the kill doesn't count to become a Hero.

Note that the chance of dropping an item at death only applies when killed by a monster, a Guard, a Hero or a Commoner. Also, items that cannot be thrown to the floor, such as wings, items +5 or above and excellent items will never drop at death.

Every character has four basic statistics: Strength, Agility, Vitality, and Energy. When you gain enough experience points and level up, you can distribute 5 points freely among these stats. Magic Gladiator and Dark Lord characters gain 7 points instead of 5. When a character reaches level 220, every level up will get you 6 points instead of 5.
 * Character Stats


 * Strength - This is a character's physical strength. The more invested in this stat, the more damage dealt when striking with a melee weapon and the less chance of missing an enemy. Higher strength allows a character to equip stronger armor and weapons.
 * Agility - This measures a character's dexterity. Agility increases a character's hitting accuracy, attack speed, defense and evade rate (known in the game as defense rate). While Strength determines melee damage, Agility determines damage from a Bow or Crossbow. Some weapons and equipment require large numbers of Agility points, and every piece of Elf armor requires some.
 * Vitality - This is a character's toughness. Vitality gives a character extra HP so that it can survive more damaging hits.
 * Energy - This is a character's capability to use skills and spells. Dark Wizards and Energy Elves need large amounts of Energy to learn new spells, while Dark Knights mainly require it to use their weapon skills more often. Investing points in Energy increases maximum mana, mana recharging rate and "AG" as well as increasing the damage that a skill does.
 * Command – This is a special stat that only Dark Lords have. It measures the ability a Dark Lord has to handle the pets of nature. By increasing command, a Dark Lord may learn new spells (apart from Fireburst, which only requires energy, and Force, the spell given to new DL's). A Dark Lord that has raised a lot of command can also hold the maximum capacity of 80 guild members if he's a Guild Master.

Character Classes
At the start of the game the players can chose between three different character classes. Each class has its specific powers and items, making no class truly "better" than the other, and all three are typically used to their fullest extent when grouped together. Later on in the game, the player can create special characters only accessible to players who have reached certain levels.


 * Dark Knight (DK): The Dark Knight, shortened DK, is the most popular character, most likely because of its focus on pure physical combat. Dark Knights have naturally high HP, great weapons, and the best armor.  This makes them well-equipped to be the primary attacker in a party, and coupled with the "buff" of an Elf, is a mighty force indeed.  Lower level DKs generally apply their stat points as they "level up" to Strength with some stat points applied to Agility. Strength is a very important stat to them because it helps them with their attack and their equipment.


 * Blade Knight (BK): After completing the game’s first quest, the Dark Knights are promoted to Blade Knights, which have stronger stats and are able to use greater weapons and armor than those of Dark Knights. They can also learn new skills a Dark Knight can't learn, such as Death Stab (which requires level 160)and Rageful Blow (Which requires level 170). Also notice the character's change of hair from black to blond and long sleeves and pants.


 * Blade Master (BM): Beginning with MU Online Season III, the Blade Knights can evolve to Blade Masters after completing the three-part quest. They can use all the armors and weapons for Dark Knights and Blade Knights. Moreover, there are 3rd Level Wings (Wings of Storm) with special options.


 * Dark Wizard (DW): The Dark Wizard specializes in offensive magic and can kill from a distance. Although able to handle some weapons made for Dark Knights, the Dark Wizard's weak armor and slow growth in "strength" makes this impractical.  Instead, they wield magical staffs, which increase the offensive power of their spells.  A well-developed Dark Wizard can grow to become a Soul Master and cause massive damage with the "Nova" spell, hitting with over 5000 points of damage, far higher than most Dark Knights can achieve.  Dark Wizards, however, have the least defensive power available to any of the other classes, which makes physical combat difficult for any level.  They are useful in parties, however, being able to hit from a distance with powerful spells. Lower level DWs must make a difficult choice in applying stat points: they need to grow their Energy stats in order to cast higher level spells, but need sufficient Strength in order to wield more powerful staffs and wear higher level armor.


 * Soul Master (SM): After completing the game’s first quest, the Dark Wizards are promoted to Soul Masters, who can use mighty and awe inspiring spells, and can equip better armor. Also notice the character develops longer silver hair and longer sleeves.


 * Grand Master (GM): Beginning with MU Online Season III, the Soul Masters can evolve to Grand Masters after completing the three-part quest. They can use all the armors and weapons for Dark Wizards and Soul Masters. Moreover, there are 3rd Level Wings (Wings of Vortex) with special options.


 * Fairy Elf (FE or just Elf): Elves specialize in long-ranged combat and defensive magic. Because of the lack of synergy between their fighting and magical skills, they have been developed over time into two separate playing styles, not acknowledged by the game itself but by the players.  The "Agility Elf (AE)" focuses her stats on Agility and Strength, in that order.  This allows them to use the strongest bows and crossbows, and cause great amounts of damage out of harm's way.  Because of their ability to attack far away from an enemy's melee attack, and a much higher defense (evade) rate, Agility Elves are great at fighting by themselves, but are also included in parties for that extra bit of damage.  The "Energy Elf (EE)", focuses her attention on the Energy stat, allowing them to use monster summons and three brands of defensive spell: "Heal", "Greater Defense" and "Greater Damage" (the latter two known as "aura" and "buff", respectively, although "buff" may apply to both), but in Asian servers buffs and auras are mostly known as "++"  These three spells make them invaluable to a party, allowing the top attacking players to cause more damage and receive less, and allowing lower level characters to resist attacks from strong mobs.  Some players combine both styles, naming themselves "Hybrid Elves."  They have high Agility in order to equip strong weapons and kill by herself, but also a good Energy stat to make herself useful in parties. Hybrids are not very popular because their buff is never as good as an EE's, and they're not as powerful as an AE. However, many AE's spend some points in Energy to gain extra Mana and AG, and to fully make use of the raised energy, they learn the corresponding buffs if applicable, and tend to be confused as Hybrids.


 * Muse Elf (ME): After finishing the game’s first quest, the Elves are promoted to Muse Elves, who are stronger and can use more powerful armor and weapons. Generally the more powerful armor and weapons are used by AE's, because EE's focus their stat points towards Energy. Notice the change from a brunette ponytail to long blond hair and a different outfit.


 * High Elf (HE): Beginning with MU Online Season III, the Muse Elves can evolve to High Elves after completing the three-part quest. They can use all the armors and weapons for Fairy Elves and Muse Elves. Moreover, there are 3rd Level Wings (Wings of Illusion) with special options.


 * Magic Gladiator (MG): The Magic Gladiator is a combination of DK and DW, and can be unlocked as a new class when your character reaches level 220. He cannot wear a helm, and has three sets of class specific armor (Hurricane, Storm Crow, and Thunder Hawk) though he can also wear the armor of a DK (up to Dragon) or DW (but not those of a BK or SM). The Magic Gladiator can run without the need of +5 boots, and swim faster without the need of +5 gloves.  Following the example set by Elves, Magic Gladiators tend to split into two groups, focusing on either magical prowess or physical might. MGs receive 7 stat points per level, as opposed to the 5 gained by three other classes.


 * Duel Master (DM): Beginning with MU Online Season III, the Magic Gladiators can evolve to Duel Masters after completing the three-part quest. They can use all the armors and weapons for Magic Gladiators. Moreover, there are 3rd Level Wings (Wings of Doom) with special options.


 * Dark Lord (DL): The Dark Lord is a fabled class and the newest character to arrive on MU. It can be created when your character reaches level 250. A Dark Lord's power is formidable, his spells can score a high amount of damage, and has the ability to control pets. Dark Lords also receive 7 stat points per level, and have the ability to swim faster/run without the need of +5 boots and gloves, like the MG. Dark Lords tend to split in two groups: Strength DL, which focuses on power, and Command DL, which focuses on using pets, leading parties and usually leading a Guild.


 * Lord Emperor (LE): Beginning with MU Online Season III, the Dark Lords can evolve to Lord Emperors after completing the three-part quest. They can use all the armors and weapons for Dark Lords. Moreover, there are 3rd Level Wings/Cape (Mantle of Lord) with special options.

Spells and Skills
Like most RPG games, characters in MU can use many different kinds of magic and special abilities. Each character has its own set of spells and some weapons may be enchanted in order to provide the character with a specific spell. Casting a spell costs MP (mana, or magic point) and sometimes AG.

A DK has the following character skills: Twisting Slash, Impale (can only be used when riding a mount unit and wielding a spear-type weapon), Greater Fortitude, Death Stab, Rageful Blow, Combo Skill (which is a combination of Twisting slash, Death stab, and Rageful blow, all executed in quick succesion), and Raid (which comes with every Dinorant). There is only one shield skill that can be used called Defend. Dark Knight weapon skills include Falling Slash, Cyclone, Stabbing, Uppercut, and Slashing.
 * Dark Knight and Blade Knight Skills

DWs have the largest repository of spells of any character. These are Energy Ball, Fire Ball, Power Wave, Lightning, Teleport, Meteorite, Ice, Poison, Flame, Twister, Evil Spirit, Hell Fire, Aqua Beam, Blast/Cometfall, Soul Barrier and Inferno. Once a Dark Wizard has completed the class change quest and become a Soul Master, they are able to learn more spells. These are Mass Teleport, Decay, Ice Storm, and Nova.
 * Dark Wizards and Soul Masters Spells

Depending on the playing style chosen by the player, elves may learn different types of skills. All elves may learn the Penetration skill at level 130, independently of the playing style. Agility Elves learn the very damaging Ice Arrow spell, which requires over 600 agility points. Energy Elves are able to learn a number of spells that affect other characters in the party. These are Heal, Greater Defense, and Greater Damage. They are also able to summon monsters to help fight for them. They are able to summon a Goblin, Golem, Assassin, Elite Yeti, Dark Knight (as in monster found in the lost tower), Bali (also called Vali), or a Soldier. Only one monster can be summoned at a time, and when summoning a new monster the previous monster is unsummoned. Bows and crossbows can all come with the Triple-Shot skill. Season II introduces a new skill for Muse Elves (after completing the 150 level quest) called 'Infinity Arrow'. This is a buff that helps the elf not to consume arrows/bolts for a period of time. The skill can't be cast again until the effects are diminished.
 * Elf Skills

Magic Gladiators can use all available Dark Wizard spells except for Energy Ball (the default Dark Wizard skill) and all the SM spells. Similarly, they can use all DK and DK weapon skills, but not BK skills. Strength MGs can also use a power slash skill given to them by three swords only. One is the Rune Blade, another is the Dark Reign Blade, and the newest one is called Valiant Blade. The skill unleashes five orbs that resembles the effect of an Elf's triple shot skill. Strength MGs can also use a fire slash skill, which does high damage and can cause a fire status effect that lowers the target's defense.
 * Magic Gladiator Spells

The Dark Lord can learn powerful spells from scrolls. These spells are fireburst, critical damage, electric spark, and summon. Fireburst is the most commonly used spell due to its range and high damage. A DL also has an innate spell called force, and can wear any scepter equipped with a skill to transform it into the stronger force wave spell. Dark Lords can also use weapon skills normally used by DKs, although some of these weapons are restricted from DL use (Such as the Crystal Sword). Season II introduces also a new skill for the Dark Lord. It is called 'Fire Scream'. It is said to be an evolved 'FireBurst' that consumes not only mana, but AG as well.
 * Dark Lord Spells

Game World
There are many maps in this game. The beginning maps are Noria, where elves begin, and Lorencia, where all other classes begin.

NOTE: Map restrictions by level on Magic Gladiators and Dark Lords are cut by one third.

Noria - Noria is located east of Lorencia. This is the elves’ city where the Fairy Elves start the game. Always bathed in a bright sunshine, Noria is considered the most beautiful land mass on the continent. On the center of Noria is the Chaos Machine, which is used to combine items and jewels needed to create powerful items used by the high level characters. Characters other than Fairy Elves need level 10 to visit Noria.

Lorencia - Lorencia is a city located on the plains on the center of Mu. The Dark Knights, Dark Wizards, Magic Gladiators and Dark Lords start their careers here. This is the easiest map on the game, suitable for low-level training until they can reach the perilous lands of Devias and Dungeon. This city also is the main trading center on the game, and often you’ll find characters on the market square selling their items. Elves that wish to visit Lorencia must reach level 10 first. The entrance to Noria is located in the eastern corner of Lorencia, with the entrance to the Dungeon located slightly further north. The entrance to Davias is located on the north western edge of the map.

Devias (or Davias) - The land of Devias, to the north of Lorencia, is a land covered with a perpetual snow. This land has stronger monsters than Noria and Lorencia, so only characters over level 15 can enter. It’s the favorite town for mid to high level characters, as it has monsters that suit their training needs.

The Dungeon - Long before Kundun’s arrival the Dungeon was used as a jail. However when the feudal wars began, the Dungeon was abandoned, and when Kundun arrived he occupied it as an outpost from where he can send monsters to attack Lorencia. Kundun set one of his most faithful servants, Gorgon, to control it. The Dungeon is a three-story cave, becoming increasingly difficult with every floor, with Gorgon on the deepest room. One of Dungeon's particular traits is the amount of traps located on the ground and walls. Always be very careful when walking around Dungeon.

The Lost Tower - The Lost Tower used to be a shrine dedicated to life, but it was invaded by Kundun and has been cursed with evil. Now the seven story tower is dark, and some of the most dangerous creatures of the land are in it. On the seventh floor is Balrog, A huge creature resembling a Centaur. There are many ground traps in this map, which unleash a barrage of meteorites that hit every person on-screen. People usually form groups while fighting in here, and high levels often train here. Requires level 80 to enter.

Atlans - Atlans is the sea to the east of Noria. When Kundun arose, his ancient servant, Hydra, had fled to these seas, carrying one of the pieces of the Sealing Stone. This is one of the best training maps for mid-high level characters, and it requires level 60 to enter. Since the area is underwater the players swim instead of walk, and they can’t enter with a mount.

Tarkan - This is a desert to the north of Atlans. This is the best map for high levels to train in. Tarkan, meaning “Desert of Death," is ridden with some of the strongest monsters found on the continent of Mu. Within Tarkan are two powerful monsters, the Zaikan and Death Beam Knight. Requires level 130 to enter.

Icarus - This map is based on the skies above Mu. The strongest monsters on the game are found on this place. Only people that can fly using wings or with a Dinorant can enter. One of the strongest monsters, the Phoenix of Darkness, is on the highest cloud, and is hard to defeat.

Kalima - On this map are ruins that are ravaged by a strong water current. It is an event location, so it's divided into several difficulty levels ranging from 1 to 6 with character level limitations. At the end of each map, which resembles a corridor in shape, is a monster named "Illusion of Kundun", which can range from being fairly easy, as in Kalima 1, to very difficult, as in Kalima 4, 5, and 6. However, at the end of the map on level 6 is Kundun himself, the strongest monster so far.

Valley of Loren - A map in which Castle Siege is held, but private servers can allow visitations if they do not allow Castle Siege events. For more info see Valley of Loren.

Land of Trials - A land reserved to the owning guild of the castle on Valley of Loren from winning the Castle Siege. The owning guild's master may choose to either block other people (so they have an exclusive training area without Kill Stealing and with very good drops) or charge players an amount fee to enter. It has recently opened on Global Servers.

Arena or Stadium - Should two guilds be at war they can reason their fights playing 'MU Battle Soccer' in the arena, where both killing the adversaries and scoring goals renders the guild points. Other players may watch the game if they want. The arena is usually used for repotting because of its easy access to the Stadium Guard who sells potions. On most private servers, Arena is considered as a training place.

 Aida - The grassy lowlands of MU, it is like her sister map Noria but much bigger and beautiful, it is extensive and holds strong monsters.

Crywolf - The Crywolf map can be entered through the Valley of Loren. It is an event map where characters must protect a statue while also fighting off powerful monsters, including the boss Balgass. -- in private servers Crywolf is one of those maps that are incredulous, and hard to go in most especially since it contains the strongest monsters in the game.

Kanturu/Kantur - A new map that comes with the season 2. it can be entered through Tarkan. As is Crywolf, this map is only for events. It isn't available in Global Mu Online yet.

Balgass Barracks - New map that comes with the Season 3. It can be entered through CryWolf by talking to a NPC 'Werewolf Quarrel'. This map has been introduced because of the 3rd Class Quest.

Balgass Refuge - New Map that comes as well with the third Season. It can be entered through 'Balgass Barracks' by talking to a NPC 'GateKeeper'. There, you must face the ultimate challenge and complete the last phase of the Change Class Quest.

Illusion Temple - New Mass Event Map. A place for a new kind of event. A battle between 2 teams: Blue Team and Yellow Team.

Items
The availability of different types of items on MU is considered the most interesting feature of the game. Besides the normal item variety, items may contain special bonuses that are assigned almost randomly. Creating a 'perfect' (as in maximum levelled) item within the game is almost impossible. Since items can be so different, it's quite common to have your own custom set of armor.

The item can have different levels ranging from 0 to 13 on the global servers and often going further on other servers. The item will change colors or even glow depending on its level. While a higher level item is stronger than a lower level item, it will also require more strength and agility to be used.
 * Item Level

Example: Bill of Balrog +4, Elven Bow +2, etc.
 * Level 0, 1 and 2 items won't glow. These items appear normal, but some high level items have a glow even in this state, such as the Dragon Spear.
 * Level 3 and 4 items are tinted red. These items are rather common.
 * Level 5 and 6 items are tinted blue. Some weak items drop at levels 5 and 6. Greater items must be upgraded to these levels and beyond with jewels, although some can be acquired from boxes.
 * Level 7 and 8 items glow slightly. You can only obtain one of these through upgrading, trading or dropping a box (Or any "Drop" Item, like a Ring of Warrior).
 * Level 9, 10, and 11 items glow strongly. Level 11 items usually have an occasional glow of white to distinguish them from level 9 and 10 items.
 * Level 12 and 13 items glow like +9 to +11, but it has a quick white flash every now and then.

PRIVATE SERVER ONLY
 * Level 14 items glow like +13 items.
 * Level 15 items turn into transparent reddish objects (yet, other players see it as +14).

If the character wears a full set of the same armor, extra effects will be bestowed upon the character. A set with only level 10 or higher items will make small lights will fly around the character when he stands still and gives a 5% total defense boost. A set with level 11 or higher items only will add lines of energy circling around the character giving a 10% defense boost. At level 12 and 13, the lines will become an aura around the character and will add a 15% and/or 20% boost.

Items may randomly have bonuses attached to them. They are commonly known as "options" throughout the game. These bonuses make the item stronger. These bonuses, similarly to an item's level, can be increased using a Jewel of Life. The levels range in increments of 4 (ex. +4,+8, +12, +16, and 28) on armor and swords, and increments of (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30) on shields. The maximum bonus on an armor or weapon piece is +16 (on regular MU ONLINE) or +28 (on private servers), or +20 (on regular MU ONLINE) or +28 (on private servers) defense rate on a shield.
 * Item Bonuses

Example: Bill of Balrog +4+8, Elven bow +0+12
 * Weapons: The bonus increases damage.
 * Armor: The bonus increases total defense by a percentage (Rather than a constant value), which can prove to be extremely useful.
 * Shields: The bonus increases the defense rate, which affects the probability of the character being hit by an enemy.

Luck Items - When an item has luck, Jewels of Soul will have an extra 25% chance of succeeding (making the passing rate 75%). When using the Chaos Machine, it will then have a 75% chance of upgrading to +10, and a 70% chance of upgrading to +11, +12, and +13. If an item does not have luck, it will only have a 50% chance of succeeding with Jewel of Soul up to +9, and when using the Chaos Machine, it will only have a 50% chance of upgrading to +10 and a 45% chance of upgrading to +11, +12, and +13. Most importantly in combat, luck gives an extra 5% chance of hitting critical damage for every luck item the character is currently wearing.

Excellent Items - Very special and rare items that can give an extra and powerful boost to your items. An excellent item will glow the colors of a rainbow, and its text will appear in a fluorescent green color. An excellent item will have additional properties which vary from increasing total mana, to increasing overall damage. An excellent item can also increase in level, have a luck option, and have a bonus option just like normal items. Excellent weapons and armors have different bonuses. Pendants are classed with weapons, and rings are classed with armors. Before the item's normal name is the word "excellent."

Example: Excellent Elven Bow.

Regular excellent items can have one or two excellent options.

The bonuses for excellent weapons are:
 * Excellent damage rate +10%
 * Increase (wizardry) dmg +level/20
 * Increase (wizardry) dmg +2%
 * Increase attacking (wizardry) speed +7
 * Increase life after monster + life/8
 * Increase mana after monster + mana/8

and for excellent armor & shields:
 * Defense success rate +10%
 * Reflect damage +5%
 * Damage decrease +4%
 * Increase HP +4%
 * Increase mana +4%
 * Increase zen after hunt +40%

Ancient Items - Even more rare than excellent items. These items have their defense/damage values increased beyond the levels of excellent items. Ancient items are characterised with text the same color as excellent items and a blue background behind the text. A blue glow will appear around the outside of these items. Each set has a different ancient metal and unlocks different options. The item carries the prefix of the appropriate ancient metal, for example, Apollo Pad Pants or Heras Skull Shield. Each set has a specific metal, and not all sets can have ancient metals. Along with the same options as excellent items, ancient items can additionally have the following "set" options that are only applied when your character is wearing more than one ancient item of the same set. The options are unique to each set. For example, a Gaion Storm Crow set has the following options:
 * Ignore enemy defense 5%
 * Double DMG rate 15%
 * Increase skill dmg +15
 * Excellent DMG rate 15%
 * Increase excellent DMG +30
 * Increase wizardry damage +10%
 * Increase strength +30

while an Argo Spirit Set has the following options:
 * Agility+30
 * Power+30
 * Increase attacking skill+25
 * Double DMG rate 5%

Armor Sets
These are the armor sets that are used by the characters. The sets are made of Boots, Gloves, Pants, Armor and Helm. The Magic Gladiator cannot wear a helm so its sets do not include helms, therefore giving this character class a disadvantage. The armor a character is wearing provides an easy way to guess a character's experience and overall power. Some higher level characters who are not able to afford more expensive armors may be mistaken for a low level. Wearing a complete set of armor where all the pieces come from the same armor set gives a bonus to defense rate equal to 10% of total defense.

The sets that a Dark Knight can wear are (In order of strength from least to greatest) Leather, Bronze, Scale, Brass, Plate, Dragon and Black Dragon, once a Dark Knight has completed the class change quest to become a Blade Knight, he is able to wear new sets of armor like Dark Phoenix, Great Dragon, Dragon Knight and Ashcrow. Dark Wizards are able to wear the Pad, Bone, Sphinx and Legendary sets. Once they become Soul Masters they can also wear the Grand Soul, Dark Soul and Venom Mist sets. Elves can wear the Vine, Silk, Wind, Spirit and Guardian sets. Once they become Muse Elves they can also wear the Divine, Red Spirit and Sylpid Ray armors.

Magic Gladiator are a special class that can wear any of the Dark Knight and Dark Wizard sets. However they cannot wear any of the Blade Knight or Soul Master sets, nor the DK's Black Dragon set. Since they can't have the complete set because of the inability to wear a helmet, they don't gain any bonuses in Defense or Defense Rate. To make up for this they are given their own sets that other classes can't wear. These are called the Storm Crow, Thunder Hawk, Hurricane, Volcano and Valiant.

Like the Magic Gladiator, the Dark Lord can also wear some of the Dark Knight armor: the Leather, Bronze and Scale sets, on certain private servers they can also wear Dark Wizard armor: Pad Set, Bone Set, Sphinx Set, Legendary Set. However, they are also given their own unique sets. These are named the Light Plate, Adamantine, Dark Steel, Dark Master, Sunlight and Grand Champion.

Weapons
Swords are either one-handed or two-handed. They come with a variety of skills including Uppercut, Falling slash, Lunge, Cyclone and Slashing. Swords are usable by Dark Knights and Magic Gladiators, altough some have no class restriction (Such as the Blade). Axes are like swords, but they are stronger and attack more slowly. They are usually two-handed. The strongest axe a Dark Knight can use is the Chaos Dragon Axe. It is the strongest weapon for Dark Knights, although they get better weapons when becoming Blade Knights. Elves have elven axes.
 * Swords
 * Axes

These are heavy and strong, made to crush bones, but are very slow. They are used mainly by Dark Knights, but the Elemental Mace can be used by elves and is usually accompanied by an Elemental Shield.
 * Blunt Weapons

Bows and crossbows can only be equipped by Elves. The bow must be placed in the left-hand equipment slot, while the arrows must be placed in the right-hand one. If an Elf runs out of arrows, she will be unable to attack. All bows may have the Triple Shot skill. Crossbows, as with bows, can only be equipped by elves. They are similar to bows. The ammunition type they require are bolts. These can also come with the Triple Shot skill. The crossbow must go in the right-hand slot and the bolts in the left-hand slot.
 * Bows
 * Crossbows

These are powerful two-handed weapons that usually combine power and speed. They are very popular, and usually require less strength and more agility. Elves may also use these, but they won't be very strong with them. Only with weapons of this class equipped can you use the Impaling skill. You can tell whether a weapon is a spear or not (and thus Impale-compatible) by looking at how your character holds the weapon. If the character holds the weapon diagonally, it is a spear.
 * Spears and Scythes

The staffs in Mu aren't very strong for physical attacks, but instead increase the power of the spells cast. These can only be equipped by Dark Wizards and Magic Gladiators.
 * Staffs

Some Shields can be used by any character class, although most are designed specifically for one class only. The Grand Soul Shield, for example, is the best shield that a Dark Wizard can wear and is worn with a one-handed staff. There are also Elf-specific shields that are worn with an Elven Axe or Elemental Mace. The only skill they can come with shields is the defend skill.
 * Shields

These weapons can only be wielded by Dark Lords. They tend to have more inherent speed than most one-handed weapons and increase a pet's damage.
 * Scepters

Wings
Wings provide a powerful increase in damage and decrease in damage received for a character, and also allow you to tell that a character is over level 180. Wings allow a character to hover over the ground instead of walking, and are faster than walking or running. They may have options attached, such as Automatic HP Recovery, and they also allow entrace into Icarus. To use first stage wings, the character must be level 180 or higher. Second stage wings require a minimum of level 215 (220 in MU Philippines), making them reserved to the most dedicated players. With the beginning of the 3rd Season, 3rd Stage Wings were implemented. They require level 400 in order to be equipped. They are manufactured in the Chaos Machine, and each class has its own type of wings:


 * Satan/Devil Wings (for Dark Knights & Magic Gladiators)
 * Heaven Wings (for Dark Wizards & Magic Gladiators)
 * Fairy/Elven Wings (for Elves)
 * Dragon Wings (for Blade Knights)
 * Soul Wings (for Soul Masters)
 * Spirit Wings (for Muse Elves)
 * Darkness Wings (for Magic Gladiators)
 * Cape of Dark Lord (for Dark Lords)
 * Wings of Storm (for Blade Masters)
 * Wings of Vortex (for Grand Masters)
 * Wings of Illusion (for High Elves)
 * Wings of Doom (for Duel Masters)
 * Mantle of Lord (for Lord Emperors)

Rings and Pendants
These items provide resistance towards certain status effects, but can also provide HP recovery, mana increase and AG (stamina) increase through options. Rings and Necklaces/Pendants aren't stackable when it comes to elemental resistance, so if a character is wearing two or more of the same type, only the highest level one will be counted. However, any options such as recovery rate and excellent options are stackable.
 * Pendants – These items protect your character against certain elements that come from monster attack. A character can wear only one pendant at a time. Excellent pendants may have one or more weapon-type options.
 * Rings - There are three types of rings -- regular rings, which work just like pendants, Transformation Rings and Rings of Wizard. Transformation Rings transform your character into a monster, and you appear exactly the same as they do (including the attacking animations), only your name is still displayed over your head. The Ring of Wizard is a special drop gotten during White Wizard Invasions, which increases damage and attack speed, only one can be carried by a character at a time, and cannot be repaired. A character can wear two rings at a time. Excellent rings may have one or more armor-type options.

Guardian Items
You can equip guardians to give your character a boost during battle. However they aren't cheap and they are disposable items. They have 255 HP when they are picked up, and taking damage will lower their health values, although the amount of damage they receive depends on your character's defense.


 * Angel - Increases your max HP by 50 points. Absorbs 20% damage received.
 * Imp - Increases your attack by 30%. Your character loses 3 HP every time you score a hit.
 * Uniria - Increases your defense rate by 30% (you dodge attacks more easily), and also makes you move at the same speed you would when running. It is a mount unit, so you can use the Impale Skill while on it, but you may not enter Atlans or Icarus while riding it.
 * Dinorant - Created by in the Chaos Machine (using 10 Unirias and one Jewel of Chaos), the Dinorant is like a combination of the other three guardian items; it allows the wearer to run at the same speed as a uniria and use the impale skill, absorbs damage like an angel (However, it only absorbs 10% rather than 20% and does not increase hp) and increases damage dealt like an Imp (An increase of only 15%, as compared to the 30% of an imp). It may have extra options, like additional attack speed, more damage absorption and AG increase. It also allows the character to enter Icarus, as an alternative to wings. It comes with a DK-exclusive Raid skill, the only ranged skill a DK can use.
 * Fenrir (Black, Blue or Red) -This pet can be used by all classes, the minimum level to use it is level 300. The blue ones have a defensive power, the black ones have the abillity to increase the damage, while the red ones are the normal, they all have a special ability used to hit nearly all monsters in the screen, but has a delay each repetitious time.

Pets


Pets can be used by a Dark Lord. So far there are three different kind of pets. They are similar to Guardian Items, but they have unique abilities, can be leveled and recover their health.


 * Dark Spirit - A raven that can directly attack a target, helping the Dark Lord to fight. It has 4 different stances -- Follow, Auto-attack, Attack with Character and Attack Target. It is mounted on the shield slot on the inventory.
 * Dark Horse - A pet that the Dark Lord Rides. It adds huge amount of defense ,damage absorption and the Earthquake skill, which does tremendous damage and knocks back all targets.The Dark Horse also increases moving speed beyond even that of wings. Dark Horses are equipped in the same slot as Guardian items.
 * Fenrir - A pet similar to the Dark Lord's horse. These creatures can be equipped by every class. The Fenrir's Plasma Storm Attack deals damage and reduces armor durability during PVP.

One-use Items

 * Scroll of Town Portal - Using this item you'll be sent back to the map's default safe zone. An alternative to warping for low level characters and Outlaws.
 * Healing Potions - These will recover your HP.
 * Mana Potions - These will recover your MP. When your MP depletes, one potion is used automatically.
 * Antidotes - These will cure the effects of poison, a useful item to have when your hp is low.
 * SD Potion - The newest type of potion that came with Season 2. It is used to restore SD.
 * Potion of Soul - Has many effects, such as increasing attack speed, increasing resistance of lighting and ice, among others.
 * Ale - Increases your attack speed by 20 for the next minute. Your character will have a tint of red.
 * Arrows - Ammo for Bows. One arrow item can contain up to 255 arrows.
 * Bolts - Ammo for Crossbows. One crossbolt item can contains up to 255 bolts.
 * Fruit – These are made in the Chaos Machine with a Jewel of Creation and a Jewel of Chaos. There is one type of fruit for each character stat (Strength, Agility, Vitality, Energy or Command) and when used the fruit will either increase or decrease the appropriate stat by between 1 and 3 points. However, the amount of stat points that a character may earn from eating fruits is limited (but it increases with level).

Jewels
These are the second most expensive, rare and useful items on MU. There are 5 different jewels, each one with its own use. According to the story, each of the jewels is a fragment of the sealing stone that held Kundun before it shattered.


 * Jewel of Chaos - It lets you combine using the Chaos Machine and is the most common. Combining Chaos with Bless and Soul upgrades your items to +10, +11, +12 and +13, however if fails, you will lose your item. These are used as a form of currency.
 * Jewel of Bless - Allows you to upgrade your items up to +6. Its chance of being successful is 100%. This is also a form of currency in Mu. The Jewel of Bless is also used to heal fenrirs. Also used as a form of currency.
 * Jewel of Soul - Allows you to upgrade your items up to +9. It can also upgrade +0 items, but unlike Bless, this jewel will work only 50% of the time. If the item has luck, this chance increases to 75%. If it fails, however, the item's level may drop by 1 level or if the item is +7 or +8 it will be returned to +0. These are used as a form of currency as well.
 * Jewel of Life - This jewel increases an item's option by 1 level. It is the only way to make an item have a +16 (global) or +28 (private servers) option or a shield have a +20 (global) or +35 (private servers) option. It has a 50% chance of success, regardless of luck, and if it fails, your item will lose its option.
 * Jewel of Creation - Combining a Jewel of Creation with a Jewel of Chaos may create a fruit. This fruit, when eaten, will either boost or decrease one of your stats by 1-3 points. This used to be the rarest jewel in Mu until the Chaos Castle event started, where it's a common winning prize.
 * Jewel of Guardian - The Jewel of Guardian is used during the Castle Siege to create life stones and for the Lord's Mix.
 * Jewel of Harmony - The newst type of jewel that came with Season 2. It is used to strengthen items.

Combination Items
These are items included in some recipes and are used in combination with jewels to form newer items (wings, cape, ticket to devil square, cloak of invisibility, etc.) through the Chaos Goblin in Noria
 * Loch's feather - It is a rare item usually dropped by a monster in Icarus that is used in the Chaos Machine to create second level wings.
 * Crest of Monarch - It is a rare item usually dropped by a monster in Icarus that is used in the Chaos Machine to create Cape of Dark Lord.
 * Gemstones- Base item for creating higher refining stone
 * Higher Refining Stone - Used for creating Jewel of Harmony
 * Devil's Eye (1,2,3,4,5, and 6) - Used togther with the devil's key and jewel of chaos to create a ticket to devil square.
 * Devil's Key (1,2,3,4,5 and 6) - Used togther with the devil's eye and jewel of chaos to create a ticket to devil square.
 * Scroll of Archangel (1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7) - Used together with the blood bone and jewel of chaos to create a cloak of invisibility. This cloak is used to join blood castle event.
 * Blood Bone (1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7) - Used together with the scroll of archangel and jewel of chaos to create a cloak of invisibility. This cloak is used to join blood castle event.
 * Bless of Guardian - Combined with Armor of Guardsman and used in making a fenrir. A certain number is required. (can be stacked)
 * Fragment of Horn - Used in making a fenrir. A certain number is required. (can be stacked)
 * Claw of Beast - Used in making a fenrir. A certain number is required. (can be stacked)
 * Flame of Condor - Used in making 3rd Stage Wings. (It may drop in Balgass Barracks)

Boxes
These are rare items dropped only by Golden Mobs (monster''s). To open a box and find out what is inside it, it must be dropped from the player's inventory onto the ground. It could drop zen, a good regular item (+4/+5 +option and maybe +luck), an excellent item, or nothing. The boxes currently implemented are Boxes of Luck, Heaven (private servers only), and Kundun. A Box of Kundun will have a level associated with it, ranging from +1 to +5, that determines the reward.

Boxes according to mob and location:


 * Box of Luck - Golden Budge Dragon (Lorencia, Devias and Noria)
 * Box of Kundun +1 - Golden Goblin (Lorencia and Noria)
 * Box of Kundun +2 - Taikon (comes with Golden Soldiers in Devias)
 * Box of Kundun +3 - Golden Dragon (Lorencia, Devias, and Noria)
 * Box of Kundun +4 - Golden Lizard King (comes with Golden Vepars in Atlans)
 * Box of Kundun +5 - Golden Tantallos (comes with Golden Iron Wheels in Tarkan)

Other Items

 * Sign of Lord - SOLs are stackable up to 255 pieces to form a set. It is used to participate in Castle Siege
 * Chocolate Box (Pink, Red or Blue) - Randomly drops zen, a jewel, an upgraded item or an excellent item
 * Box of Red/Green/Blue Ribbon - Randomly drops zen, a jewel, an upgraded item or an excellent item
 * Star of Sacred Birth - Randomly drops zen, a jewel or an upgraded item
 * Heart of Love - Randomly drops zen, a jewel or an upgraded item
 * Firecracker - Randomly drops zen, a jewel, an upgraded item or an excellent item
 * Gold/Silver Medal - Randomly drops zen, a jewel or an upgraded item

Blood Castle
Blood Castle is an event where players must recover a fallen angel's weapon at the end of the castle. Players in the event progress through different stages of the castle, including killing a certain amount of monsters and destroying a gate and a statue. When the statue is destroyed, the fallen angel's weapon will be recovered, and should be returned to the fallen angel. Once it is returned, the player who returned it will be rewarded with two Jewels of Chaos, some zen and some experience.

Devil Square
Devil Square can be entered by talking to Charon on Noria. It is divided into either four or seven different stages. The stage that a character must enter depends on its level. Once this event starts, many monsters will continually spawn and slowly wander around aimlessly. The goal of this event is to survive for 20 minutes while killing monsters to score points and obtain experience.

Chaos Castle
Chaos Castle is an event where all the competing players are placed against each other along with some monsters in a free-for-all deathmatch. To enter, an armor of the guard must be purchased from a shop. When a notice apears that Chaos Castle is about to start, you can click on the armor and it will send you to Chaos Castle. You must pay a fee to enter, depending on your level

Before Chaos Castle starts, a random competitor would be awarded all the fee the players paid to enter this event. All of the participating players will appear to be wearing the same armor, and each class will appear to be wielding identical weapons, but their inventories won't actually be altered in any way. Notice that players may wear their wings but have to get in without driving a pet. Once Chaos Castle has started, it will fill up with look-alike monsters until it contains 100 characters. Some of this monsters are traps which explodes when killed, killing players near it. Monsters also drops jewels upon death. While the players are fighting, the castle will start to perish and break up from the sides, doing so until there are only around six player squares left. In order to complete the event, a player must survive through the event and eliminate all of the other participants. The winner will receive a Jewel of Life or Jewel of Creation or a very slight chance of getting an Ancient item.

Castle Siege
The Castle Siege event takes place in the Valley of Loren. The castle may be ruled by a guild, and if any guild wants, they can lay siege to the castle in an attempt to win possession of it. However, the siege isn’t easy, as the castle is protected by the “home guild” characters and soldiers. This is the "Epic of Loren" quest (the Castle Siege). This is considered to be one of the most amazing parts of MU, and excites all of its users.

The lord of the castle can rule the castle when event starts. He can buy additional troops (archer or spearman) which are NPC's and fight the enemy automatically. The attacking guild also has a few tricks up its sleeve. They can bring special potions for faster attacking and more damage. However the main quest in this event is to defend the castle by defeating the enemy and to not let the attacking guild to destroy the statues of castle. When the statues are destroyed, the attacking guild can easily take the castle and the defenders will lose.

Crywolf Event
At the time of this event, The Crywolf Fortress change from a safe zone to a battle zone. Everyone in the server cluster is allowed to participate. The characters have to fight against waves of mosters that try to destroy the 5 pillar around the Crystal Wolf Statue. In this event, 5 level 350 or higher muse elves protect and give power to pillars, while the other characters defend against the monsters that enter into the fortress.

Golden Troop Invasion
Some special types of monsters don't have precise spawning points and appear occasionally within the game. These monsters are golden in appearance and are much stronger than the regular non-golden types. Rare treasures will be dropped when they are defeated. Two common golden monsters are Golden Budge Dragons and Golden Goblins. The former drop Boxes of Luck and the latter drop Boxes of Kundun +1. Both of these monsters can only show up in Lorencia, Noria or Devias. There is also a Golden Titan that spawns in Devias, Golden Drakan that spawns in Lorencia, Noria or Devias, Golden Lizard King that spawns in Atlans and a Golden Tantallos that spawns in Tarkan. They drop Boxes of Kundun +2, +3, +4 and +5 respectively. Also appears other Golden monsters like the Golden Soldier Troop, but these monsters don't drop Boxes of Kundun, only items or zen.

White Wizard Invasion
These are events where a giant wizard and an army of orcs appear at random locations in Devias, Noria and Lorencia. Killing the White Wizard earns you a Jewel of Bless and having your name displayed on the screen. Orcs may drop either 100,000 zen or the Ring of Wizard, which increases attack speed and damage.

Server Specific Events
Sometimes a server may run an in-game event for fun. In some cases, special monsters created especially for these events will show up on certain maps, often carrying valuable items. The events that take place depend entirely on the administrators and Game Masters of a server.

MU Master Events
Game Masters, known in Global MU Online as "MU Masters" or [MM]'s will occasionally appear in a server with a server-specific event. These events typically are a "Catch the [MM]", "Find the [MM]" or a "Scavenger Hunt". All of this events are won in a similar fashion, by opening trade with the [MM]. All three of these event variants have the same reward of one Jewel of Bless and one Jewel of Soul. In addition, the winner gets his/her name posted on the screen for all players to see.

In the Catch the [MM] event, one of the [MM]'s will post a clue as to which map he or she will be. The [MM] will be riding his pet, usually a Fenrir, in an area of the map in question. The first player that can catch up to the [MM] and open a trade wins the two jewels.

The Find the [MM] event is similar, but the [MM] will hide anywhere in the map that he or she specifies. This includes inside one of the three towns, which is considered the fairest of all the [MM] events. This is so because all players move at the same speed inside the towns. The winner is the first to find and open trade with the [MM].

The Scavenger Hunt begins with an [MM] listing three items he or she asks for. The [MM] reveals where he or she will be waiting for the first player to come to them. The first player to show the [MM] all three items in a trade window wins the event.

One common complaint about these events is that they are infrequent and when they do happen, they happen in bunches. Another is that most take place at odd hours, which depends on the region the player lives (this complaint is mostly heard from players in the Americas). In addition, some players have been known to complain about instances of bias and favoritism on the [MM]'s part, though these complaints are based mostly on circumstantial evidence. The most common complaint is that there seems to be too few [MM]'s.

Criticism
There has been a lot of criticism to the game. Mainly because it is one of the hardest games to level up in. But commotion started when K2 opened P2P+. P2P+ gives players 3x experience, higher drop rates, events, and customer support, which F2P lacks. This means that if you are F2P and get hacked, K2 will do nothing to help you. This problem of unbalance has caused many players to give up Global Mu Online and play other games, some of them even going to private servers. While it takes a F2P who plays at least 1 hour per day 3-4 months to get to level 70-100 (it used to take about 1 year before the Elf Soldier was introduced), P2P players will get to level 200-300 in 3-4 months. Thus increasing the numbers of max level characters and making Global Mu Online more like a private server.

Player's criticism has also concentrated on K2 Network's apparent lack of Customer Support for the P2P (Premium) servers. Customer support was one of the main selling points used by K2 Networks for introducing P2P. But even so, there are many complains about players getting "scammed" (robbed) by other players on Premium Servers and K2 Network not taking action against the scammers. K2 Network has listed the actions it promises to take against all scammers on the Global MU Online website. Players have complained that K2 Network has failed to deliver on the actions it has promised to take against the scammers. Most players report getting a standard "there's nothing we can do" message after submitting a complaint for getting scammed.

Another common area of criticism from players is the use of "hacks" and "bots" by certain players. A few players have developed hacks, a program or macro that enables them to kill other players in PvP mode with a single blow, irregardless of the victims' level or armor (called a "speed hack" because it seems to freeze the victim for a few seconds). Several videos of these hacks have made their way to other websites such as YouTube. This has forced the hackers to move almost exclusively to anonymous events, such as Chaos Castle, damaging the event's credibility. Other players have developed or obtained a bot, a hack that allows them to automatically attack, pick up items and even reappear on the same spot they were after getting killed, allowing the user to leave their character on a certain location for hours on end obtaining experience points without actually playing the game. This has given those players a distinct advantage over the rest of the players on MU Online. Bots are also responsible for aiding hackers in obtaining other players' usernames and passwords, since many contain a key counter. The majority of players who have had their accounts hacked into have reported getting a bot a few days, or even hours prior. To date, neither K2 Network nor Webzen have acted on disabling bots or speed hacks.

K2 Network has received a business rating of "F" from the BBB(Better Business Bureau), the lowest possible score. This rating is defined in the BBB website as:

We strongly question the company’s reliability for reasons such as that they have failed to respond to complaints, their advertising is grossly misleading, they are not in compliance with the law’s licensing or registration requirements, their complaints contain especially serious allegations, or the company’s industry is known for its fraudulent business practices.

Official game websites

 * Official Mu Online Global Website
 * Official Mu Online Philippine English Website
 * Official Mu Online Korean Website (Korean)
 * Official Mu Online Vietnam Website (Vietnam)

Fan websites

 * Zhyper MU best private server in the world of MU (season 3 coming soon)
 * MuHQ - Mu Online Fansite & Community
 * Mu Online Center (French)
 * Mu Online Tutorial
 * Polish Tutorial and global news in polish language
 * The Final Ashes Hispanic Fansite
 * Polish Tutorial and global news in polish language
 * The Final Ashes Hispanic Fansite