Magic Chronicle: Isekai RPG

Contents

Smart Whale Guide

Smart Whale Guide

By Henrylin22.

Spending Basics

In this game, every top-up is recognized as Merits, contributing to your daily top-up rewards, VIP levels, and spending events. Typically, each dollar spent translates to approximately 60 Merits. However, for larger purchases, particularly those ranging between $50 and $100, the rate improves to around 65 Merits per dollar.

Here’s a structured breakdown of the VIP levels and their respective costs, along with the incremental increase required from the previous level:

VIP 1: $1
VIP 2: $5 (Increase of $4, ~5x more than VIP 1)
VIP 3: $16.66 (Increase of $11.66, ~3x more than VIP 2)
VIP 4: $33.33 (Increase of $16.66, ~2x more than VIP 3)
VIP 5: $66.66 (Increase of $33.33, ~2x more than VIP 4)
VIP 6: $116.66 (Increase of $50, ~1.75x more than VIP 5)
VIP 7: $166.66 (Increase of $50, ~1.4x more than VIP 6)
VIP 8: $250 (Increase of $83.34, ~1.5x more than VIP 7)
VIP 9: $333.33 (Increase of $83.33, ~1.35x more than VIP 8)
VIP 10: $500 (Increase of $166.67, ~1.5x more than VIP 9)
VIP 11: $833.33 (Increase of $333.33, ~1.65x more than VIP 10)
SVIP: $1,080
VIP 12: $1,666.66 (Increase of $833.33, ~2x more than VIP 11)
VIP 13: $2,500 (Increase of $833.33, ~1.5x more than VIP 12)
VIP 14: $5,000 (Increase of $2,500, ~2x more than VIP 13)
VIP 15: $8,333.33 (Increase of $3,333.33, ~1.67x more than VIP 14)
VIP 16: $16,666.66 (Increase of $8,333.33, ~2x more than VIP 15)
VIP 17: $33,333.33 (Increase of $16,666.66, ~2x more than VIP 16)
VIP 18: $66,666.66 (Increase of $33,333.33, ~2x more than VIP 17)

Most Important: Distribute your spending over time!

To get the most out of every dollar, aim to keep your spending under $20 per day (equivalent to 1280 Merit). If you’re eyeing additional purchases, hold off until after the daily reset. This approach leverages the Daily Top Up rewards, the Daily Vault, and Fortune Packs, all of which enhance the value of each purchase up to $20 (Fortune Packs actually higher, but not worth.)

For instance, instead of buying three $20 packs in one day and receiving bonuses for only that day, spread your purchases over three days—one pack each day—to triple your daily bonuses. The benefits are substantial; for example, by the second month, the Daily Treasure Vault offers rewards like an Orange Treasure Selector (valued at $9.99 in the shop) on the 15th day.

TLDR: Save your top up for the next day once you receive the Daily Total Top-up reward of 1280 Stargems, which is about $20 spend.

Daily Top Up Reward and Daily Deposit:

Starting Out

Before diving into any gacha, it’s crucial to establish a budget and strategize your spending. Avoid the common pitfall of heavy initial spending (whaling) only to deplete your gacha funds prematurely, which could result in being overtaken by more prudent, low-spending players who pace their purchases wisely.

First, prioritize purchasing the three permanent packs, which total $8. As their name implies, these packs remove the limitations associated with being entirely free-to-play, and they also grant one free daily pull on the standard banner.

If you anticipate spending and have a budget of around $200 or more, It’s recommended you prioritize the “Trumpet” and “Merry-Go-Round” packages, each priced at $99.99. These become available in the “Rare Treasure” section a few days after the server’s launch one after another. If faced with a choice between the two, the “Trumpet” should be your top pick. This is due to its superior yield of 200 Stargems, which adds up to one 10-draw every 13.5 days or 73,000 Stargems per year. Additionally, the “Trumpet” offers an added benefit of +100 attack for each timed pack purchased, enhancing your overall combat power.

The “Merry-Go-Round,” while secondary, is highly beneficial for quickly amassing Fate Stones through its 1,500 medals-per-10-draw feature, facilitating spaceship upgrades. Additionally, these packages offer notable boosts, such as increased attack stats and benefits from timed packs and top up. Personally I gain more stats from “Merry-Go-Round” Top Up buff as it counts everything, including Time Packs. If you buy both treasures, Time Packs will actually give you +200 attack.

As the game progresses, new items like the “Globe” at $99.99 and other red-rare treasures at $49.99 will become available. Exercise caution here; it’s advisable to skip the “Globe” and the rest of the Red Treasures since the second-month Empire Supply Pack offers a better deal by including a selector for a red treasure, encompassing the “Globe” among other valuable resources, all for $49.99.

Apart from the treasures, the next substantial investment for dedicated players is the Arch Mage costume at $99.99. This outfit significantly boosts stats and is designed to stack additively with future costumes. Though highly recommended, it’s advised to prioritize it below the Golden Treasures due to their superior long-term benefits, even though the costume offers considerable immediate improvements.

Other worthwhile starter packs, though not as crucial as the top three, are the “Angel In White” and “Seraphim” packs found in the “First Top Up” section. These are not time-sensitive and can be purchased at any time, so it’s advisable to allocate funds to the aforementioned packs first.

Be aware that these appear before the Golden Treasures in the game’s sequence; if under a tight budget, it’s wiser to reserve your funds for the superior Golden Treasures and Archmage packs. However, if those are beyond your budget’s reach, then opting for the “Angel In White” and “Seraphim” packs is fine.

Recurring Spend Recommendations by Budget

Budget 1: ~$50 Monthly, About $600 Annually (Equivalent to purchasing a PS5 or Xbox Series X with a game)

Option 1: Opt for the Empire Supply Pack at $49.99. This pack offers exceptional value, yielding over 2000 Stargems per dollar spent, and its benefits increase with each passing month. In the second month, the pack includes a Red Treasure Selector; utilize this to acquire the “Globe,” which had a previous price tag of $99.99 just three weeks prior. The only drawback is that this option may lack excitement.
Option 2: Purchase the Monthly Packs for $4.99 and $14.99, acquiring approximately 19k Stargems and 85 pulls. With the remaining $30, the Royal Supply offers the best value, providing 80 normal pulls and 20 Witch Prayer Pulls, equating to around 2100 gems per dollar. This option shares the same downside as the first: it’s less thrilling. Additionally, without self-discipline, there’s a risk of overspending by impulsively buying various other packs.

Budget 2: Approximately $100 Monthly or $1,200 Annually

Initially, allocate funds to the packs outlined in the $50 Budget Options 1 & 2. With the remaining $50, you have the flexibility to select from high-value packs according to your preferences.

Suggested packs for acquisition include:

Limited Banner Passes: Priced at $19.99, these passes grant 60 Limited Pulls. Given the daily limit on using Stargems for this banner, this pack offers the best value for pulls per dollar. The four $5 packs, providing 10 Limited Tickets each, are also beneficial since Limited Units often outperform those from the Four Faction units.
Legacy Hero Packs: Available for $19.99, this option includes your choice of an Angel or Demon Unit, complemented by 70 Standard Pulls, assorted shards, plus 2100 Stargems and Dust, offering an impressive value of approximately 2350 Stargems per dollar.
The Exclusive Privilege Pack for $4.99 twice a month, awarding three complimentary General Shop refreshes daily for 15 days. This package provides significant value, offering resources like Dust, Dice, and Divine Stones, translating to an impressive return of at least 1260 Stargems per dollar spent. For additional strategies, consult the “Shop Refreshing Tips” section below.

If your budget permits, adding another $20 can allow for the purchase of an additional Limited Banner Pass or Legacy Hero Pack, enhancing your monthly haul. Remember, each pass lasts about a week. For the Legacy Hero Pack, note that regardless of the purchase date, you can collect all the rewards. Therefore, if you’re distributing your spending, you can opt to buy this pack last without missing out on any benefits.

Budget 3: ~$200 Monthly, Approximately $2,400 Annually (Comparable to the cost of an RTX 4090 Laptop)

Implement the strategies suggested in both Option 1 and Option 2 of the $50 budget scenarios. Additionally, purchase the Exclusive Privilege Pack for $4.99 on a bi-monthly basis. After these, prioritize acquiring the daily $2.99 Value Packs for continuous value.

By purchasing the Daily Value Packs, you’ll receive 16 Fuma shards and 20 Four Faction Moon Shards, essential for enhancing Legacy Heroes in the Celestial Temple. To summon Fuma, you’ll need 120 Hero Choice Card Shards, while combining 60 Moon Shards will yield a Taelan Moonlight. Additionally, this pack provides 200 Stargems and 200 Dust, among other bonuses. This pack is particularly valuable for late-game as Limit Breaking Legacy heroes require T. Moonlights, which otherwise cost $19.99 each in the cash shop. With the daily pack, the cost is effectively reduced to one T. Moonlight per $9 spent. Moreover, each Fuma Shard is valued at 208 Stargems, calculated from the 50 Witch Prayer Tickets needed per Fuma at a 2% rate, totaling 25,000 Stargems for 120 shards.

I advise swapping a few $2.99 Daily Value Packs for the $19.99 Limited Banner or Legacy Hero Passes (see details on the passes in budget 3.) With this budget, you can afford 30 Daily Value Packs. So, for every $19.99 pass bought, scale back by omitting a week’s worth of Daily Value Packs.

Furthermore, purchasing the “Merry-Go-Round” provides an additional +300 Attack from the Daily Value Pack, as it is equivalent to three packs. Additionally, you’ll receive +125 Attack from the free treasure “Butterfly Specimen.” This results in a substantial daily increase of +425 Attack when acquiring the pack, significantly enhancing your power.

Budget 4: Approximately $300 Monthly, Totaling $3,600 Annually (Equivalent to the cost of a nice vacation)

This budget follows the structure of Budget 3, with the addition of two $0.99 Daily Soul Crystal Packs. Allocate the leftover funds to additional purchases like Limited Banner and Legacy Hero Passes, or $5 Limited Banner Packs.

The two $0.99 Soul Crystal Packs are particularly valuable as they each contribute +100 Attack when combined with the “Merry-Go-Round” treasure. Collectively, they provide one multi-summon on soul crystals, significantly enhancing your units’ stats. Given that Stargem multi-summons are capped at two per day at 3000 Stargems each, these packs offer an exceptional value of 1500 Stargems per dollar on a limited summon banner.

General Tips

How to Acquire Taelan Moonlights Efficiently

Obtaining Taelan Moonlights through the cash shop can be done in three main ways:

$20 for 1280 gems and receive 1 T. Moonlight from the Material Shop.
$30 to get 4200 gems, 42 Prayer Scrolls, 1 T. Moonlight, and 0.28 of an Immortal Selector via the Value Rebate Weekly.
$9 by purchasing 3 Daily Value Packs, which collectively offer 1 T. Moonlight, 0.25 of a Fuma Selector, and 60 Element Starstones.

Be wary of the T. Moonlight pack listed directly in the Material Shop, as its pricing can be misleading, designed to make other packs appear more attractive. A strategic approach, focusing on daily packs, enables the accumulation of up to 10 T. Moonlights a month, presenting the most cost-effective and my recommended method.

Shop Refreshing Tips

The escalating costs for shop refreshes start at 100 Stargems for the first two refreshes, followed by 200 Stargems for the next two, then increase to 400 Stargems for the subsequent pairs, then 600 for the next two, and continue to rise in this pattern. The $4.99 Exclusive Privilege Pack is an excellent buy by providing three free daily refreshes for 15 days. While early game shop refreshing is generally not advisable, it turns highly rewarding after completing Chapter 36 of the Mainline Story.

In each refresh session, you’re guaranteed at least 550 Dust, two dice for the Monopoly mini-game, and Divine Stones for Copper. I typically refresh the shop until the cost reaches 400 Stargems per action and then stop, ensuring to purchase all accessible Dust, dice, Awaken Divine Stones, Tree Essence, and Gear Reroll Scrolls.

It’s essential to conserve your Copper, prioritizing it for shop refreshes over leveling Grain or upgrading gear. At the highest shop level, utilizing the three daily refreshes from the Exclusive Privilege Pack can result in gaining 1650 Dust, six dice, and three packs of Awaken Stones daily, plus possible Gear Reroll Scrolls.

Time Packs

For those who are not heavy spenders, stick to purchasing only the $0.99, $1.99, and $2.99 Time Packs. Even for higher spenders, there are better packs available. Below, I’ve listed the only packs I recommend purchasing; all others should generally be skipped for better deals. Additionally, if you have “Trumpet” and/or “Merry-Go-Round,” these Time Packs become more valuable, providing an extra +100 attack for one, and +200 attack if you have both.

How to Spend Stargems

At the start of the game, you’ll encounter a ‘cupcake phase’ where Stargems are plentiful, and for those who spend lightly, numerous high-value Stargem packs are available. However, these resources eventually become scarce, making Stargem acquisition more challenging. Based on my experience beyond day 50, here’s what you should and shouldn’t spend your Stargems on.

DO NOT spend Stargems on the following banners, just use tickets:

DO spend your Stargems on the following banners:

Don’t spend Stargems on Witch Prayer, Fate Summon, Soul Crystal Banner. Summon on any Limited Banners before and after Lucy/Chronos (early servers) or Athena/Hades (new servers,) since you are limited to 10 Stargem summons daily. The rest of your Stargems you should be saving. Once either Lucy/Chronos or Athena/Hades banner drops then yeet your Stargems into the banner until both rate ups are at least Eternal+.

Limited banners restrict daily Stargem summons to ten and charge at least $5 for each additional set of ten, which is not particularly cost-effective. Conversely, the Lucifer/Chronos banner offers an amazing discount: summons cost 3,000 Stargems, a 40% reduction from the typical 5,000, with an enhanced success rate of 3%, compared to the standard Witch Prayer’s 2%. While the Lucifer/Chronos banner rates have been verified by many in my guild, be wary of other limited banners that advertise a 3% rate but realistically hover around 1%. Still, spending Stargems on these banners can be worthwhile, but avoid real-money investments.

For players on new servers (as of 3/13/2024,) save for the Athena/Hades instead of the Lucy/Chronos banner.

For the always-available Witch Prayer and Regular Summon banners, I strongly advise against using your premium Stargems. Instead, obtain tickets through more efficient means. For instance, the “Trial Bounty Pass” and “Value Rebate” offer six Witch Prayer tickets and sufficient coins to exchange for ten Regular Banner Tickets or an additional six Witch Prayer tickets. If you’re fully committed to free-to-play, focus on earning tickets rather than spending Stargems in these areas.

The Element Bless banner, accessible later, is only recommended for players with Immortal units at the Eternal+ tier and after the Chronos/Lucifer or Athena/Hades Banner due to its high cost. As there is a limit of 10-Stargem summons daily, and only if you have a large stockpile of Stargems, summoning on this banner is recommended. If low on Stargems, save for Limited Banners. I recommend having at least 21,000 Stargems saved for the 7 daily summons.

When the Soul Crystal banner becomes available later in the game, consider the option to purchase ten-summons daily for $1.98, along with one free summon each day. A more cost-effective approach involves buying two daily $0.99 packs, equivalent to around 1560 Stargems per dollar. Reserve your Stargems for banners without such favorable deals. Additionally, these packs are particularly worthwhile if you own the “Merry-Go-Round” treasure, as each pack increases your attack by +100.

Supreme Realm Teams

Sylvan Void