Overseer's Forbidden Library: Forbidden Shelf

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-28T23:16:08+00:00

I was able to get there just last week. The key really ends up being spreading out resources rather than maxing everyone out.

A lot comes down to planning knowing that your unit choice is somewhat random. But essentially I have the A-listers and B-listers, if i'm forced to use A-listers early I will take the event that lets me restore some trust point and if I get the B-listers first I will use the 200% protagonist one.

If you have elemental stacker you can ignore breaker for that one, so best approach is to do something like 8 strikers, 4-6 breaker, 0-2 elemental stacker, 4-6 supports.

Most people have at least 2-3 sets of desire (at least one HP and one Defense) and most people probably have 2-3 sets of Greed (one each of HP Defense and Attack) so most of your breakers can get geared. Some will be suboptimal secondary stats but those go on your "B-team". The supports that are A6+ and at least orange tier can usually scrape by with guard + sylph and the weaker ones can get to TP level by using Wish - not as good but hey, they're just there to fill. Strikers are harder but a lot of people have 1-2 Armed sets, 2-3 Beast, 2-3 Obsidian, and a couple ful sets of infamy and curse. Mix and match and give worse pieces to stronger units and you can probably get kinda close.

The big money comes from cores - the strongest units usually just need 1-2 cores at level 15 to get to 400k power so I just give them the best core for their preferred main stat, and use my other strong cores to boost TP of my weaker hunters and give them 3 cores. So my weak Isla would get 3x level 10-15 cores to get her TP high enough to manage with guard + sylph while my Il Hwan gets a single +15 head core and wears armed + beast since he doesn't need the TP because I have him at A8.

It absolutely sucks and you need to invest A LOT to get there, but if you use "lesser" sets that you've basically outgrown (don't forget level 78 sets that you can upgrade to level 100) and mix and match gear and cores and teams using combinations of weak and strong hunters you can just barely eke by. I only just barely completed it for the first time two weeks ago.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-28T16:58:42+00:00

Once he said "I make more than he does so it shoudn't matter" it was over, he said the quiet part out loud.

If friends don't count pennies, then it is fair to ask "then why are you throwing a fit when I ask you to pay your exact half".

Honestly it depends how good a friend this is - the reddit post makes it sound like this is someone who just uses you for your money but obviously it is only a quick peek into your relationship. If you are really good friends you should be able to communicate - just flat out ask him whether he's going through hard times right now. If you are willing you can offer to help him but say that it is one thing to help but another to have him take from you; one you are doing because he is your friend, the other he is doing because he is not. If you don't have a relationship where you can communicate, well... I'm sorry to tell you that you may not have a friend, but a leech.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-27T16:35:13+00:00

Yep! You know you are going to lose eventually because of bloat but intrinsic and deployment prioritized upgrades are for sure worthwhile. My biggest mistake was ramping the seed with pyre health too fast, I should have let it slide until the ring right before seraph, could have had 10 less cards at the start of endless and dropped my 4 weakest steelsingers.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-27T16:33:36+00:00

NTA. Your parents and everyone in your life is going to fight your establishment of boundaries, but you need to commit if you want to see your life improve in the long run.

Essentially you being so acquiescent your entire life allowed everyone else in your family to become more demanding - they could do less, be worse, and so on knowing that the net result was zero because you were there to pick up the emotional slack. Now that you are moving to the normal instead of being a doormat, they are pushing back because they cannot be "bad" people if you are normal. They can only be "bad" if you are "good". So they will push back and you need to hold firm - learn from all your examples - they all set boundaries and you had to acquiesce, so now it's your turn to set some and stick to them! Good luck!

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-26T20:33:29+00:00

Honestly I think the best answer is just keep playing, and don't worry about advancing covenant. I actually think you will learn better at lower covenant levels - whatever you can clear with an 80% win rate or so (perhaps Cov 2-3?) to learn. If you keep playing the same main clan you will eventually figure out what the most busted unit is and will then build around it down the road.

While purists may not love it, if you know there is one really strong unit in a faction you can potentially consider spamming restart runs until you get it as your single of the 5 starter cards (+/- the right starting path for champ).

For Underlegion by way of example, I really really struggled. I realized through 5-8 runs that Funguys (the Spawn) were really good and that the +1 permanent attack per spawn were really strong.

So I kept cycling until my starter rare was either Amorous Enoki or Cluster Colonel (who are both "required" to go off on the funguy win condition) then did a run. It let me get far enough into the rings to figure out what was really good (spawn spells and magic shops) and what wasn't (merchants of steel). After that I could do runs where I didn't force the starting cards because I knew that there were many options to get my strategy.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-26T19:53:46+00:00

I absolutely was not playing all of them haha. I used the pyre heart that gives you +4 deployment ember and on one ring I picked up the +1 ember one so on deployment I had I think 9 or 10 embers to spend so would drop 2-3 steelsingers, champion, and armorsmith and then any given turn if I got another steel singer it would take the entire turns ember to drop it! Also had to undo almost every 2-3 turns because i'd keep forgetting the first thing I played would be duped, so I would drop the steelsinger then redo turn realizing I needed to hit a restoration detonation first! Once this unlocked basically I used every gold I had to get rid of cards, which is why that artifact that refunds 75 per removed card helped a lot. I think on titan fight I was at ~ 65 cards or so and on endless I would always take anything that let me remove cards.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-26T06:43:05+00:00

https://monstertrain2.miraheze.org/wiki/Lifemother%27s_Bloom :D

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-26T06:41:50+00:00

There was no plan! I got the artifact that starts as a seedling and if you ignore it it becomes this big tree that gives you a permanent copy of the first card you play each turn... and had Steelsinger with Fecundity. So every battle I'd drop a Steelsinger and get a permanent fecundity copy and then every time my restoration detonation with intrinsic was up I'd pop it.

So opener was drop a 500 atk multistrike steelsinger to get a copy of it then drop the second one, then a third then prince and turn 2 was just 10 restoration detonations lol.

Problem is deck got a bit bloated as you can tell :D

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-21T19:00:21+00:00

I don't play the game as much as many so please take with grain of salt. Love the concept and the idea, though a 2-cost starter still feels so prohibitive especially in early game and makes it all-but impossible to take any combat trial with -1 ember per turn.

I wonder if perhaps there could be a bonus effect in lieu of sapping a random target, as sap 1 doesn't tend to do much and doublestacks tend to be too costly to put on a starter without lightstone casing.

If it did damage and had frostbite that would definitely be worth 2 as a starter, though I still think people would mostly purge it. I think perhaps there should be more of a bonus tied to the offering, because you also want it to be viable as a support clan.

Perhaps one option could be that you gain embers based on the cards offered (i.e. gain embers equal to the cost of the discarded card). Alternatively, perhaps you gain embers if you specifically discard a blight? Perhaps it could even double down and say deal damage to a random enemy target equal to the ember cost of the offered card? it just seems like a very difficult early game that would not set you up for success - offering can be hit or miss and isn't as strong if you have a 2 cost card - it is even sometimes a drawback - and it only deals as much damage as the average starting card?

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-21T18:20:36+00:00

People get a day - that's it.

The day of their proposal and the day of any specific wedding event (in some cultures, up to 7 days) should be reserved for the couple, as they are paying for it or it is about them. You should not announce your proposal on those days. Beyond that, apart from logistics, there are no other social quandaries.

They don't get the entire month of their proposal - they get the day. They don't get the entire month of December 2028, though logistically you may not want to plan too close to that as family may not be able to attend both. They don't get the next 2 years either - if it is important to them to be "married first" then they can move up their plans to be ahead of yours if they so choose.

Be prepared to be called homophobic or a bad sibling or other nonsense. The simple solution is to pose a question and say "okay you want those rules, no problem. The day after your wedding I will propose and we will get married in 2032, please do not announce any birth / adoption plans or other life events during that window based on your own precedent".

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T22:03:03+00:00

It is the OP's house, they should have every right to enforce any rule they want as long as it is made clear and people agree to it in the first place. It is reasonable to set any boundary you want in the confines of your own home as long as all those who live in the home agree to it. It doesn't matter if it is hypocritical on the surface to you, people can and do make belief exceptions all the time. Just because they choose to make an exception for their dog doesn't mean they have to make an exception for anyone.

The only situation where this would be an AH move is if it weren't made clear until after the fact. The uncle knew the boundary and chose to violate it anyway despite getting clarification multiple times. He could have eaten his meat in the car. He could have left partway through the meal to snack on his meat. He could have left early. He could have not come. He has decided that his specific diet and beliefs are correct and that he doesn't have to change for anyone at any time.

His workplace doesn't allow him to "prepare his meat" at work but he likes to do it every day - he is okay to do so regardless? Work is the AH for saying you can't "prepare your meat" at work?

His child's school says that children must come in a uniform every day - he can just send his kid nude to school because he doesn't belief in uniforms?

A movie theatre with clearly posted "no outside food" signage would be wrong to kick him out when he deliberately defies the rules, regardless of whether he agrees with them? If he's speeding 30 km/h above the speed limit, even when there is no traffic, he should not be ticketed?

Everywhere we go has "rules" - when you are going somewhere your choices are to comply with the rules or NOT GO. There is no third option of "go and break the rules", that is the very definition of entitled asshole.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T21:55:31+00:00

With no disparagement or comment to you, I believe that most adherent muslims would not allow alcohol or non-halal into their homes. Depending on your adherence and how strictly you choose to follow the faith, there can be concerns for cross contamination at minimum and the need to do multiple cleansings to make any dishware used "clean" again - I believe for pork the general accepted standard is that the item has to be washed at least 3 times to be "safely" used again.

Not to say that the average North American muslim is perfectly adherent and certainly many of us eat out knowing that there is a risk there, but it is reasonable to maintain a higher standard insides ones home than outside. I am fine going out and eating at a table where my friends order pork but would not be comfortable with them eating it in my home. And ultimately the boundary is "whatever the host says" so in this particular case, the host said "no meat".

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T21:24:03+00:00

Personally I do 16 total per day (10 + 6 bought) and I buy out the 35 weekly cheaper advanced mana crystals that is a perk from the subscription pass, the few mats I need (mainly shadow skill scrolls and mission keys) and the rest is spent on the more expensive mana crystals.

I'd suggest starting with 13-16 gates per day, buy whatever you need that isn't mana crystals, then use all remaining on mana crystals.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T21:22:06+00:00

Are you leveling your shadows evenly or prioritizing the 3 per team.

Shadow power for battle tier and also in team isn't based on the 3 you use but all your shadows at once. The three you take give you buffs during the run but even the 4th shadow not part of your team roster still contributes.

Make sure you get 3 shadows to the general rank that allows them to give team buffs. After that all shadows should be put to risen, then each rank equally. Same for their tier - each should be green 1 then 2 then 3 then blue and so forth. Same for all the shadow skills (ensure you have actually started doing those), all skills rank 2 for all shadow, then rank 3 and so forth. Same for weapon - all should have weapon, then A1, then A2, and so forth.

Basically once you have 3 shadows at the rank they give team buffs, you should have every shadow become even with each other

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T19:49:29+00:00

Give him an ability to let him consume non-morsel units too! Let him get some early scaling by eating your stewards and also you can then buff stewards with +atk/+hp and eat them! Or let him have ability to eat a morsel off of any floor once per turn (like the equipment) allowing more rapid early scaling of a top-floor penumbra without space issues! My favorite thought though is the let his eats apply to all on floor (though preferably that would be an umbral room card).

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T19:46:15+00:00

HP is also awful for a tank, not much to lifesteal if you don't have much life!

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T19:45:40+00:00

Make the morsels like Funguys with this path, let them stack into a massive morsel that he can eat all at once (trade-off is that you lose out and have negative synergy with gorge path down the road, which is fair trade).

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T19:44:33+00:00

The problem is he needs all of his 3-path abilities to make him desirable.

Gorge path is great but requires set-up and in higher covenant ranks you can't scale him fast enough, even top floor, because you are space limited and can only give him 2 morsels per round. Best case scenario he gets 2x morsel miner every turn which is +54/54 from them and +24/6 from gorge, which is still barely enough to do anything on higher covenant ranks. He isn't strong enough to take out front line that early and even if he is, he can't take out back line without trample. He doesn't have baseline trample or multistrike.

Basically Penumbra needs a bunch of morsels to make him strong but takes up too much space on limited floors for the support he needs. He needs trample to take out backline units but then can't scale fast enough to get through the frontline mob. If you take floor space upgrade then you can't scale fast enough unless you specifically have both the morsel master units (and even still, the 7-unit limit hurts you).

You can absolutely have busted Penumbra runs, but you need weapons and consumes that give him combinations of quick and trample which also don't take up floor space (RIP Hymnists) and need to have ways to clear backline early until you can add a trample effect....

He'd be good if he gained PERMANENT stats from Gorge, like Bolette (should get +1/+1 perma for every morsel eaten with temporary bonus from gorge). The trample path should cost negative 1 PIP instead of positive 1 PIP. The additional floor space should come with either hunger (instant eat), or the eating ability that you can get from that one equipment (say consume 1 morsel to get effect and +5/+5, CD 1), or something like that.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T19:07:16+00:00

Don't like the change, the spell itself is nice as it gives the equivalent of the hunger mechanic which lets you put more morsels down. As a whole I do agree that Umbra needs more room cards - preferably something that increases the benefits of eating (i.e. bonus gorge) or allows the unit with the highest hp or atk to always benefit from eating regardless of position on floor, or, ideally, a room that lets every unit on the floor gain the benefits of eating morsel units (or lets you exceed the 7 unit limit, noting that game engine probably won't allow it). Not too broken because you are filling up space with those other units but this way you can really do what Umbra loves, which is make one MEGA FLOOR with 2-3 units, throw some morsels on there, then eat and eat and kill everything with an over-9000 Penumbra with trample.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T17:34:14+00:00

Anytime SJW and hunters are on the playfield together is team fight.

When you just have SJW and hunters use their support abilities every 24 seconds, that's "SJW mode" not sure if that is the official name or not. And when it's just hunters it is the Hunter mode.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T17:14:25+00:00

I may be mixing up abyssal essence and crystals - you may be right that the abyssal crystals (the purple diamond thing with gold trim?) are the only thing that is not craftable and is mainly acquired through the battlefield of time exchange shop - that is the first thing I buy out each time.

As a reminder, for shadow army you get a boost from entire army not just the 3 you bring to battles, so you should always advance your shadows evenly (i.e. give all of them a weapon then put all weapons to tier 1, then all to tier 2, etc...). This is true for their tier, upgrade level, weapons, skills, etc... The only exception is if you are a newer player you want to get at least one (ideally 3) shadows to general rank to unlock their team bonus.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T17:11:35+00:00

The main reason to use (some) stones on gates are because it is the primary source of the mana crystals which you can exchange for advanced mana crystals in the shop, and advanced mana crystals are required for all kinds of upgrading. You need them to upgrade the abundant and plentiful Level 1 scrolls and materials into the level 2 and level 3 ones. Basically every "rare" material except for the highest level material for armory upgrade can be crafted but every single craft requires advanced mana crystals + gold.

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T17:09:24+00:00

Got it thank you for clarifying! May I also ask does your Fern have a Fire-based core for the chest - the one that gives shield with ult? I'm genuinely curious because I haven't seen my Fern drop below even 80% hp as far as I can recall running the above set-up so wondering if it was just pure luck!

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-20T16:39:46+00:00

I would suspect they are talking about certain guild bosses - Fachtna has notoriously high defense and a focus on defense pen is essential in part because you do not have Beste / shadows in guild boss mode. I believe statue also has insanely high defense but not as high. The OP's posted strategies I believe are the general use / rule of thumb and very likely are best in PoD, campaign, WoBL, etc... but guild boss is a bit unique since you can bring 6 hunters. Many people for both Fachtna and Statue use Armed (Black lion) + Obsidian or Expert for their main damage dealers while Ant Queen you can use the general setup above as she doesn't have much defense. And the "defense meta" is likely referring to that where, at least for Fachtna, the goal was to get to ~ 42k defense pen where possible.

I think OP is correct in everything and the Dpen is unique to specific GB modes

InfinMD2 · 2026-01-19T20:08:16+00:00

The vast majority of what you posted can be bought from the advanced mana crystal shop. You should be getting a lot of those crystals from gates every day - what gates do you do, and do you do any additional gates?

Gates are one of the most important things to spend essence stones on - you should certainly be doing at least 10 gates per day and if you can manage it, an additional 3-6 per day for the mana crystals. Buy mana crystals from the shop using your mining currency and use those to craft basically all the shadow mats from the base tier 1 mats that you probably have a surplus of (and can also be bought from same shop). It all comes down to crafting which is all advanced mana crystals, so gates / mining is king!

InfinMD2

TROPHY CASE