MU

MU Online is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG, produced by Webzen, a Korean gaming company.

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 Gorgon or Kundun. 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

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, hey may take on a special quest so that every level up will get him 6 points instead of 5, in addition, for every level passed from level 220, he will receive 1 point, so there is no waste.
 * 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.

Quests- Like almost any other massive multiplayer online game mu online have quests. But it is quite different from others as most of the items for the quest are easily found and therefore not much of a challenge. After completing it you will be rewarded by an upper class depending on your level and class type. You must have a certain level pertaining to your class in order to start the quest. Mu online however is quite challenging and takes a long time to level, although it is one of the most vigorous game out there.

NPC-NPC- non-player-characters. Mu is loaded with NPC's. They are quite important in the game, as they stand for various shops selling armor, health, weapons etc. One thing that mu has that other games are lacking is the variety in NPC's. It has many digital coms with tasks other than just selling fighting equipment. One major flaw is that the NPC do not have the ability to move from place to place which neglects a huge possibility of the game from its high standards.

Game World
There are many maps in this game. The beginning maps are Noria, where elves begin, Elbeland, where summoners begin, and Lorencia, where all other classes begin. Successive maps hold stronger enemies, and there are level restrictions on each map to prevent weaker players from accessing the more difficult maps.

Character classes
At the start of the game the players can choose between four different character classes. Each class has its specific powers and items, making no class truly "better" than the other, and all four are typically used to their fullest extent when grouped together. As each character levels up, they can transform into stronger classes. Each progressive class change grants access to new spells, skills, weapons and wings as well as an associated change in appearance. Later on in the game, the player can create special characters only accessible to players who have reached certain levels. Certain maps have special monsters that others don't and these monsters have special drops such as box of kundun and more. Excellent weapons as well as armor are very high favored in the stronger maps. The strongest monsters are known to be in Kanturu 3 but Kundun is the main and hardest monster. The strongest items drop from him.

The Dark Knight (Dark Knight -> Blade Knight -> Blade Master) 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. After completing the game’s quests, the Dark Knights are Blade Knights, and then Blade Masters.

The Dark Wizard (Dark Wizard -> Soul Master -> Grand Master) 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 low physical damage make it impractical. Instead, they wield magical staffs, which increase the offensive power of their spells. Dark Wizards become Soul Masters and then Grand Masters after the first and second quests, respectively.

The Fairy Elf (Elf -> Muse Elf -> High Elf) specialize in long-ranged combat and defensive or offensive magic, can also create summons. Because of the lack of synergy between their fighting and magical skills, they have been developed over time into two separate playing styles. The Agility Elf (AE) focuses on Agility and Strength to use the strongest bows and crossbows and cause great amounts of damage. The Energy Elf (EE) focuses on the Energy stat, allowing them to use monster summons and defensive spells. Elves become Muse Elves and High Elves after the each of the quests. Elves, however are the least upgraded class as well. While BK's, SM's and DL's were constantly being upgraded and made new skills for Elves were left behind, which makes them the weakest class.

The Magic Gladiator (Magic Gladiator -> Duel Master) is a combination of the DK and DW, and can be unlocked as a new class when your character reaches level 220. He cannot wear a helm, and has four sets of class specific armor though he can also wear many of the DK and DW armor. The Magic Gladiator can run without the need of +5 boots, and swim faster without the need of +5 gloves. MGs receive 7 stat points per level, as opposed to the 5 gained by the three basic classes. Magic Gladiators only have one class change to Duel Masters. Like Elfs, MG's aren't upgraded constantly, and have low synergy between the magic and strength, so most players use Strength based MG or Energy based MG.

The Dark Lord (Dark Lord-> Lord Emperor) can be created when your character reaches level 250. A Dark Lord does high physical and magical damage, and can 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 +5 gloves. Dark Lords also have only one class change to Lord Emperor.

The Summoner (Summoner-> Bloody Summoner-> Dimension Master) can be created as a starting character. She is introduced in Season 3. The Summoner has powerful new spells: "Sleep", "Chain Lightning". However, she can use some of the DW's skills, too. As the name says, she has her own summons: Sahamutt, Neil. These can be upgraded them until +13. The female character has strong new sets - each one makes her hair look different every time.

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.

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 leveled) item within the game is almost impossible. Since items can be so different, it is 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

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. Luck Items - Items with luck have a higher chance of success when attempting to increase their level (either by using a Jewel of Soul or upgrading in the Chaos Machine). Most importantly in combat, luck gives an extra 5% chance of hitting critical damage for every luck item the character is currently wearing.
 * Item Bonuses
 * 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.

Excellent Items - Items labelled as Excellent are rare and 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.

Ancient Items - Even rarer 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 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 "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.

Equipment

 * Armor: 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.
 * Weapons: There are many varieties of weapons ranging from swords and bows to staffs and Scepters. They require either one or both hands to equip. A shield can be equipped when a one-handed weapon is used.
 * 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.
 * Guardian items - You can equip guardians to give your character a boost during battle. However they are rare and disposable.
 * 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.
 * 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 entrance into Icarus. There are three levels of wings, all of which are created via the Chaos Machine.  Each character class has their own set of wings (except Dark Lord who wears a Cape).

Jewels
These are the second most expensive, rare and useful items in MU. There are 7 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. They are the Jewels of Chaos, Bless, Soul, Life, and Creation. There are also Jewels of Guardian and Harmony. On Mu Global, jewel drops are very rare, since they have a very low drop rate. This makes the jewels' value extremely high, thus forming the base of trading and exchange for items.

Combination items
These are items included in some Chaos Machine 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. But there are chances of failing and losing the items as well as your money.

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.

Events
Regular events are scheduled several times each day for players to compete for prizes. Many have set fees to enter whereas others occur in the openly accessible maps. For the Blood Castle event, players compete to retrieve a sword, staff or crossbow for a fallen archangel. Players who enter Devil Square must fight rapidly spawning enemies to survive, with the prize going to the player with the most kills. Chaos Castle places all the players in a small area where the last player standing wins. Similarly to Devil Square, Crywolf involves players defending against attacking mobs, however they must defend the nearby structures as well. Every few hours there is a Golden Troop invasion where a stronger version of a common enemy spawns with the prize going to the player who does the most damage before it dies. A similar White Wizard spawns with the prize again going to the player who does the most damage and so on. The most significant event of them all, is Castle Siege. It takes place once in a period of time (each server has a different period of time), roughly 2 weeks, and is a 2 hour war between all participating Guilds. The event takes place in the Valley of Loren, and, unfortunately, during the event you can kill your own guild-mates / party-mates. The guild that owns the castle when the 2 hours have passed, will be the new owner of the castle until the next event. On some servers, the castle-owning guild receives a prize for winning the castle. Others also do it for the fame.

MU Master Events
Game Masters, known in Global MU Online as "MU Masters" or [MM]s. The MM events are mostly simple events that most players have a chance to win, such as "Catch the MM", "MM is lost" or "Missing 3 items" the first player to meet the MM with his/her request is rewarded with 1 Jewel of Bless and 1 Jewel of Soul. There are examples where players have received other rewards.

Official game websites

 * Official Creator and Developer of the Game
 * Official Mu Online Global Website
 * Official Mu Online Philippines English Website
 * Official Mu Online Japanese Website
 * Official Mu Online Korean Website (Korean)
 * Official Mu Online Vietnam Website (Vietnam)

Fan sites

 * Mu Online Guide at Strategy Wiki
 * MuHQ - Mu Online Fansite & Community
 * Muchu - Mu Online Japanese Fansite
 * MU Online at Game FAQS
 * The Final Ashes Hispanic Fansite

Game Servers

 * http://livemu.net

Distributors

 * Digital Media Exchange - Philippines distributor for the P2P (pay to play) version