Introduction

The New Year kicks off with a bang through the generosity of GungHo North America in both Magic Stones, new Challenge dungeons, and Monster Points (MP). In fact, just logging in once during the month of January will give all players 700,000 Monster Points through their in-game mail.

For newer players, this will be the most they have ever had and the temptation to spend them immediately will be great. With that being said, I want to caution players from making ill-informed decisions and wasting this amazing gift.

This article will explain how the Monster Point system works, basic do’s and don’ts, a review of the new Dark Meimei , and an overview of the best MP cards to purchase at this point in time

Video commentary

–video coming soon–

Monster Point system

The Monster Point system has been around for a couple of years and over time has become more user friendly in the sense that players are able to acquire MP more easily. The Monster Point Shop can be accessed via Shop -> Purchase Monster.

In the past, the only way to acquire Monster Points was to sell Rare Egg Machine (REM) cards. This was both costly and impractical for the average player and is arguably the worst way to acquire MP.

Presently, we are able to acquire Monster Points via Monthly Quests, Rogue Descend farming for PreDRAs, and generous gifts from GungHo. As such, it is not unreasonable for players to rack up a hefty amount without ever selling a REM card. Furthermore, some players have been able to acquire various MP cards via Ranking Dungeon rewards.

Traps to avoid

Historically, players were forced to sell Rare Egg Machine cards to acquire Monster Points and while it is still possible to do this, there are less costly ways to acquire MP.

As such, I am loathe to ever sell any REM card unless I have a stupendous amount of duplicates as cards are now enjoying split evolutions along with more flexibility via Skill Inheritance.

Another point to remember is that there is no pressing need to spend Monster Points right away as they never go bad and the maximum capacity is something outrageously high.

To reiterate, do not sell Rare Egg Machine cards for Monster Points and do not make a purchase just because you have the MP to do so.

Finally, DO NOT purchase evolution materials, Pys, Tamadras, Tans, or Latent Tamadras with Monster Points.

 Dark Meimei

Dark Meimei is the newest card to be added into the Monster Point shop and is permanently available for 750,000 MP. This places her in the higher cost bracket should not be purchased without proper research.

Generally speaking, she is not a worthy purchase due to her higher cost and the fact that she does not break the meta as a leader along with having lower value as a sub.

Active: Change all orbs to Wood, Light & Dark orbs. Delay 2 turns to all enemies. (13 turn cooldown)

Leader Skill: All attribute cards ATK x4, 50% all damage reduction when attacking with Wood, Light & Dark orb types at the same time. ATK x4 when simultaneously clearing 5 connected Fire, Water, Wood, Light, Dark, Heart, Jammer, Poison, Mortal Poison or Bomb orbs.

Awakenings:         
Super Awakenings:   

Pros	Cons
256x ATK / 75% Damage Reduction Board change + Delay 2 VDP	Better VDP options exist Board does not produce Hearts Damage Reduction tied to 3-colour match Hard to find ideal board changers Meimei does not produce Hearts Meimei has low/no personal damage

On paper, Dark Meimei’s Leader Skill is promising as she can provide a sizable ATK multiplier combined with a 75% Damage Reduction with dual leaders. Sadly, Meimei herself lacks personal damage due to no 7 Combo  or Killers which means both leaders will be contributing significantly less than the subs along with her Leader Skill being modestly restrictive.

Dark Meimei’s Leader Skill is broken into two components: match Wood, Light, and Dark along with a 5+ connected clause. While the 5 connected orbs can be anything (including Jammer and Poison), the Damage Reduction is tied to the Wood, Light, and Dark match. This can be problematic and can lead to consistency issues as not all given boards will have these three colours. Thus, failing to match these three colours leaves her vulnerable to most attacks as there will be no Damage Reduction component.

In regards to bolstering her offensive capabilities, forming a Dark Row  is encouraged as it will trigger the 5+ connected clause while contributing to the mandatory three colour match. This can help patch up her own lacking personal damage and it is still possible to hit 7 or more combos with a row on some boards. Thus, subs should be those that can either provide defensive utility while also wielding 7 Combos.

In regards to her sub potential, Dark Meimei is lackluster due to the fact that she cannot synergize on due to the fact that she lacks personal damage. While she can gain 2 VDP  awakenings, this is only 6.25x ATK for herself and faces stiff competition from cards who have higher personal damage along with a VDP.

While Meimei does have some merits overall, one has to remember that stronger options do exist and better value Monster Point cards are also available.

Monster Point cards to purchase

Due to the fact that North America is 2-3 months behind the JP server, we are able to “see into the future” for upcoming content and adjust our behavior accordingly. As such, we are able to preemptively see any upcoming Monster Point cards to better determine how to spend ours. With this in mind, there is currently no new card coming out at this point in time and all recommendations made will be based on this information.

Just remember that these recommendations are my own personal opinion and are mostly targeted to the average/newer player. Your own individual Monster Box and personal goals will determine what is best for your own PAD progression.

Monster Point Purchasing Guide – January 1, 2019
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*Order within each tier is random*
MP Cost is taken into consideration

 Odin Dragon – 300,000 MP

Odin Dragon is one of the original 5 Monster Point cards and only costs 300,000 MP. The lower price combined with his incredible utility and weighted stats should make him the first purchase for essentially every player.

While he may not look too flashy for a new account, the fact that he provides a full Bind / Awoken Bind clear, haste, and 50% heal is invaluable when pushing through harder content. When factoring in his massive weighted stats and valuable awakenings, it is not surprising to see Odin Dragon on countless meta teams.

Harder content is riddled with problematic Bind and Awoken Binds that it has almost become mandatory to bring some form of counter and Odin Dragon is often the best choice. Furthermore, the 50% heal can greatly aid high HP teams or those who must be above a certain threshold to function. Finally, the haste component provides some merit if no other effect can be used.

If one is trying to determine their first purchase, it is hard to form a rationale argument for purchasing someone other than Odin Dragon first.

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 Amen – 750,000 MP

Amen is one of the newer cards to be released for 750,000 Monster Points and has quickly become one of the most powerful cards to own. This is because he offers the highest ATK multiplier in the game which has directly translated into incredible farming builds that cannot function without his multiplier. Furthermore, Amen’s Weapon Assist  form provides a Skill Boost  which enables luxurious set ups to function when it would otherwise be impossible.

As a leader, Amen provides 100x ATK by himself (10,000x ATK with dual leaders) but must match exactly 7 combos along with leaving 3 or less orbs behind. This is quite challenging to achieve and is sometimes not even possible on a given board which can lead to problematic situations. Thankfully, with coop and careful planning, players are able to theory craft specific teams for a dungeon with actives to counter various mechanics while also providing activate-able boards through full board changers + double row makers.

Due to the fact that Amen provides 100x ATK can lead to interesting pairing with something like Vajrabhairava   results in a 600x ATK multiplier with a built-in Follow Up Attack of 100x Vaj’s base ATK. This is important as it enables one to trivialize resolve spawns and simply focus on solving the board at hand while also having an easier time forming a VDP .

As a whole, Amen is an incredibly powerful tool to own and will often be a player’s second purchase once their Monster Box and Puzzling skills have caught up to his skill cap.

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 Kuroyuri – 750,000 MP (GungHo Collab event)

Kuroyuri has quickly become an incredible card to own assuming one is able to purchase two of her. This is because she is able to provide a 40% HP heal every turn for 6 turns along with a single turn of Haste on only a 12 turn cooldown. This means that two Kuroyuri are able to loop indefinitely to have a permanent 40% heal every single turn.

Naturally, this has the most application on teams with 4x HP as this can essentially solve all healing issues when one is able to restore a massive amount of health each turn. This can lead to pseudo immortal Beach Barbara & Julie  and Sherias Roots  teams. Furthermore, due to the Haste component, Kuroyuri can be inherited onto any 1-turn cooldown card if her typing/colours are inappropriate.

While one does not need to own Kuroyuri to succeed, she greatly improves high HP teams and at this point in time, GungHo does not have a direct counter to this healing method outside of Dispells which are almost never seen. One last point to consider is that Kuroyuri does not work well in coop unless all parties have the system.

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 Ragnarok Dragon – 300,000 MP

Ragnarok Dragon remains a powerful card due to his Killers, Super Awakenings, and ability to use God Killer latents. All of these enable him to deal massive amounts of damage to God type spawns and while he does face competition from cards like Lucifer , No.6 , and Sherias Roots , the fact that he is Wood can give him an edge in various scenarios while also being obtainable (do not have to roll for him).

Generally speaking, Rainbow teams are best able to use Ragnarok Dragon as he may cover unique colours while also providing a full 5-colour board with Heart orbs. With that being said, his base cooldown is modestly placed at 9 which means he can inherit something over top as needed.

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 Christmas Sonia (or any other Bicolour + 2 turn Haste) – 300,000 MP

Christmas Sonia features a bicolour board changer along with 2 turns of Haste and is highly prized for farming or Ranking Dungeons.

From a farming point of view, the ability to provide a kill board and 2 turns of haste can provide more team building flexibility. On the other hand, non-fixed Ranking Dungeons are often dominated by bicolour hastes on 7×6.

7×6 has no penalty in Ranking Dungeons and the easiest board to solve is a bicolour by forming vertical combos. Thus, the board yields the highest combo count and speed but the Haste aspect helps recycle used actives for base cards. With enough Haste, players may be able to use an active on every floor which will greatly improves scores/consistency. Unfortunately, this often requires 3-4 of these types of actives along with a deep Monster Box to craft these teams. Thus, these cards tend to be impractical for many players who either do not have the puzzling skills, Monster Box, or drive to Crown in Ranking Dungeons.

One last thing to consider is that Mori Motonari  also provides a Bicolour + 2 turn Haste and can be a viable replacement.

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 Red Myr – 750,000 MP

Red Myr has received several buffs since her release and while she is quite powerful overall, she still has a long way to go before she can be considered top tier.

The main issue is that Heart Cross teams face an uphill battle with Combo count along with activation consistency as not every board has 5 Heart orbs. This is problematic as the meta has greatly shifted to 7 Combos  for supplemental damage along with spawns that deal incredible amounts of damage on a regular basis.

Unfortunately, perhaps the largest downside of Red Myr is that her farmable cousin  exists is able to fulfill a similar role overall and does not come with a 750,000 MP price tag.

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 Mut – 750,000 MP

Mut will almost exclusively be used for her Weapon Assist  which grants Full Bind Immunity  when inherited. This can be amazingly powerful but most meta cards are already bind immune and the 750,000 MP price tag and short base cooldown (runs the risk of charging up) make Mut impractical for the majority of players.

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 Dark Athena – 750,000 MP

Dark Athena debuted as one of the best leaders in the game but was quickly overshadowed by stronger leaders and the Combo meta. Despite the fact that she has lost her edge, she still has minor uses as an inherit and a niche sub.

Possessing 3 Skill Boosts  and a 3 turn delay on an 11 turn cooldown makes her a situational sub while her 4 TPA  can provide sizable personal burst. Furthermore, she can be inherited and I often find myself using her as a quick charging delay for when Orochi  will not come up in time.

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 Leo – 750,000 MP

Leo Bloomfield is part of the GungHo Collab and is a potent Rainbow leader who is sadly overshadowed by stronger options available such as Reeche  and Sherias Roots . This is largely tied to the active skill clause which sacrifices a sub slot and the preferred tendency to use Water-based cards in order to tap into Leo’s base active skill. Furthermore, Leo lack personal damage unless facing God or Devil spawns which hinders the team’s overall output.

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 You Yu – 300,000 MP

You Yu is the only 4 Gentlemen to have some relevance due to his massive ATK stat, 2 Skill Boosts , offensive awakenings, and reasonably short base cooldown. All of these factors provide You Yu with some usability in Ranking Dungeons, a button base, or a high damaging Water sub. With that being said, many players own him from scoring in the top 20% of a previous Ranking Dungeon.

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Tier 6-7

In all honesty, all the cards in tier 6 or 7 have similar levels of value but there is some differentiation that can be made. With that being said, players should almost never find the need to purchase these cards at this point in time due to the fact that they have trivial usage overall.

Conclusion

The Monster Point system is a wonderful aspect of Puzzle and Dragons as it gives players the chance to acquire a powerful card of their choice over time. Outside of Seasonal or Collab cards, the monsters featured in the shop are always available which means there is no rush to purchase something with the newly given 700,000 MP.

With that being said, it is highly advantageous to purchase Odin Dragon  due to his amazing utility and versatility while also costing only 300,000.

Let me know what you think about the Monster Point cards available and how you would rank them.

Happy Puzzling!

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