Monster Level
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Information on how Monster Level affects monster stats can be found at Monsters.
The level of a monster can be raised or lowered as you encounter it, based on your equipment, buffs, active effects, and the current setting of the Canadian Mind-Control Device, The Annoy-o-Tron 5000 or detuned radio. This adjustment affects all of the monster's point ratings. Monster level modifiers in effect before the fight begins typically do not affect scaling monsters in any way.
The objects and familiars that affect Stat Gains from Fights do not affect monster levels. For example, bringing a Blood-Faced Volleyball familiar will increase your stats per fight but will not make the fight more difficult.
Definition
For every point of increased Monster Level, the monsters you fight receive:
- +1 HP
- +1 attack (and therefore +0.25 stat gain)
- +0.9 defense
- Increased Combat Initiative (the formula is not simple)
There are some Special Monsters which are exceptions to these rules.
Colloquially, the term "Monster Level" (in the context of an absolute value, as opposed to "+X to Monster Level") is often used to mean "the value from which the monster's stat gains are calculated". This value is actually the monster's attack. Some people use these terms interchangeably.
Strategy Implications
Based on this, here are some basic adventuring strategies:
- Know the peak monster level of an area, and don't enter it until your Moxie is at least 10 greater than that level, guaranteeing that you can only be hit by monster critical hits.
- Know the average monster level of an area, and go ahead and enter that area when your attack stat is equal to or greater than that level, so that you will hit at least 50% of the time, but you will have to heal during or after each battle.
- In combination with either of the above, wear equipment that raises monster levels to set up the monsters you will encounter with higher stat point gains, and then use combat skills that lower monster level to make the monsters beatable again (although you will still have to deal damage equal to the raised hit point value).
Manipulating +ML is a cornerstone of most speed ascension strategies. The gist of it is: pump up +ML to the highest point you can, while still reliably winning battles.
Special Interactions
Monster Level Modifiers
Variable Modifiers
Some modifiers vary with moonlight or player choice.
History
- Before November 30, 2005 a monster's hit points did not increase with its level. This allowed the LTSynergy strategy to be very effective before this "nerf."
- Between the advent of NS13 and January 15, 2009, running +ML would counteract the effects of running +noncombats.
- A hidden Combat Frequency modifying effect was added to ML increasers with NS13, leading to an anti-synergy between net combat decreasers and +ML. This anti-synergy had no effect on the base combat rate, and caused a flat 1% combats per +5ML applied. Monster Aggravation Devices were a special case, and did not effect noncombat frequency.
- This mechanic was removed with the trivial announcement: "The much-maligned, super-secret hidden interaction between +Monster Level and +Noncombat Chance has been removed."
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