INTRODUCTION:
Welcome to the second edition of my guide for the Mercrack AoE Ringmaster. Within this guide you will find information on how to build your Ringmaster, what sort of gear to invest in and upgrade, the type of awakenings to shoot for, and the pets that will be most useful to you, and when.

The last guide was designed for those who were financially well off, level 95 or higher, and with an advanced sense of AoEing. This guide is different, and includes information for every Ringmaster, starting from level 60 on up.

For all those of you who are just joining the realm of the AoE Ringmaster, the method described in this guide is not for those who want a relaxing cruise in the Caribbean. The method can be taxing for some, adrenaline pumping for others. It takes much more attention to detail than the Merkaba-only AoE variants, as you will constantly be changing your weapons to maximize the damage you deal to maximize your leveling. The biggest trademark of this method is that we use both Burst Crack and Merkaba in our AoEing.

I will say now that if you fear death in-game, and prefer the much safer alternative of Merkaba-only AoEing, it would be best to hit the back button on your browser and ignore this method.

With that out of the way, I present to you the Mercrack AoE Ringmaster.

Builds
OVERVIEW:
Included in this guide are four builds, which show the maximum amount of STA you are recommended to have at any one time – which you should have by level 120. I do not place a cap on STR, as you will continuously increase STR once you reach your STA cap.

RECOMMENDED BUILD:
STR: XX
STA: 140
DEX: 15
INT: 15

You may of course vary the build specifics to suit your own purposes, either more or less STA, but this guide recommends following what is outlined. To that end, I have included three variants on the recommended build which you may use at your leisure.

LEISURE BUILD:
For those who prefer to have a little more padding between life and death.
STR: XX
STA: 180
DEX: 15
INT: 15

BLEEDING EDGE BUILD:
For if your gear is good, such as +10 set, 28% HP, but no awakenings or pets.
STR: XX
STA: 90
DEX: 15
INT: 15

SUICIDE BUILD:
Recommended only if you have very, very good gear, awakenings, and pets at your disposal.
STR: XX
STA: 40
DEX: 15
INT: 15

I have a guide for your STR/STA levels at 10 level intervals using the recommended build, providing mini-goals for your stats on your journey to 120 and beyond. Generally, it’s expected that if you follow this chart, you’ll have Plug Earring +9′s, and a +3 set with modest piercings. Otherwise, you may wish to up your STA and lower your STR some.

LEVEL 60:
STR: 108
STA: 40
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 70:
STR: 113
STA: 55
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 80:
STR: 123
STA: 65
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 90:
STR: 128
STA: 80
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 100:
STR: 128
STA: 100
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 110:
STR: 128
STA: 120
DEX: 15
INT: 15

LEVEL 120:
STR: 128
STA: 140
DEX: 15
INT: 15

For Master-class Ringmasters, I recommend adding 50 STA initially, with the rest of your points into STR. Each level, increase your STR by 2 and your STA by 1 until you reach the STA you want, then pump STR.

Armor
OVERVIEW:
While this method can work fine with Blue sets, they will not be addressed. Instead, I will address each of the Green sets, show their bonuses and DEF ratings, and discuss each of them in turn, as well as when you should switch to them. Note: Only the male version of each set is featured.

Now, if you have reduction A’s or B’s at your disposal, you may of course switch to the higher set sooner, but this is only recommended for the higher level sets, the Rimyth and the ultra-rare Revenio.

I will also cover Elementing.

GREEN SETS:

Starting out at level 60, you should find yourself a Shurand Set. This set has an HP percentage modifier bonus, which when upgraded to +5 (recommended as a minimum) will come to a total of 20% additional HP. This will increase your tanking ability with respect to your low STA at that point. By 75 (65 with reductions) as your STA is increasing and the spawns growing in size, you will need additional defense.

Now, there is no reason to switch to Pact if you have a decently upgraded and pierced Shurand set, but if you’re putting a minimal amount of Penya, SProtects and GProtects into your sets until you get the Rimyth, then you may as well switch and upgrade the set to +3 and get a moderate piercing, such as two Earthquake cards or two Lightning cards.

Shupon is available to you at level 90 (80 with reductions), and may be switched to at your leisure. If you have a highly upgraded Pact or Shurand, you may forgo upgrading yet another set in favor of sticking with what you already have, saving your upgrading energy for when you get to Rimyth. If you do instead choose to use Shupon, you are recommended to get the set to +5 for the basic HP and Block bonuses, and at least two piercings, either two Earthquake cards or two Lightning cards.

Navil is okay for AoEing, but as there are two 105 sets, you should try for the Rimyth as it is the better of the two for AoEing. If you are restatting at 105 (95 with reductions) or later from an FS build and your Navil set is already heavily upgraded and pierced with Volcano Cards, then go ahead and use that. The more heavily upgraded a set is, the more useful it is, and if you don’t have the funds to get and upgrade a Rimyth set to match your Navil, stick with the Navil until you can get around to building your Rimyth set.

Having reached level 105 (95 with reductions) you now have the Rimyth set at your disposal. This is your power-house set, and is the set you will spend many an intimate hour with as you grind your way to level 120. Upgrade this as high as you can manage, and get the best piercings you can. This set is a major investment, but it has major returns, and is worth every Penya.

At level 110 (with reductions, and quite a bit of fortune) you may have a Revenio set available if you invested in the time and Penya required to get the 10,000 Red Chips. If so, then you probably don’t need to be reading this guide… but anyways, I do try to be thorough. This set is your end-game set, and will see you to the end of Time, as it were. Upgrade this to the maximum, piercing it with Lightning (7%) or Earthquake (7%) cards. Nothing less than the best for the best set, eh?

OPTIONS FOR FEMALE CHARACTERS:

The Yuandain set, which is dropped from Clockworks and is available as soon as level 50 is actually a decent alternative from the Shuran and Paxt sets. It has approximately the same defense ratings as the Paxt, as well as a +80 DEF bonus. If you have the money to spend, you may want to consider using this from level 60 through to your Shrian set. If you’ve upgraded it far enough, such as +8 or +10, you may even consider using it through to your Remingster set. Up to you.

ELEMENTING:
At all times you should element your Suit with the element that is strong against whatever element the Monsters you are AoEing are. This will reduce the damage they do to you, and allow you to tank more, longer, and focus on killing and less on running.

The following is a diagram of what element is stronger than another. It’s a lot like Rock, Paper, Scissors. Flame beats Wind, Wind beats Earth, Earth beats Electricity, Electricity beats Water, and Water beats Flame. Simple, really. Reverse the arrows for what each element is weak against.

Jewelry
RINGS:

The staple of your jewelry, the Vigor Ring is your best friend. Unless you have problems tanking, use this Ring (typically Vigor+9′s, as they are the most common) in order to increase your STR, thereby increasing the damage you deal with Burst Crack.

A back up Ring, of a sort. If you seem to have problems tanking, or your HP isn’t quite up to scratch, throw on a pair of STA rings (typically +6, higher if you can afford it) to increase your HP and augment your STA.

EARRINGS:

The main Earring that you will be using, the Plug increase the defense at your disposal by hundreds, which will reduce damage done to you by a significant amount, thereby increasing your tanking ability. Typically, you will find Plug+9′s to be more common. Albeit expensive, they’re worth every single Penya you pay for them.

If you find your Defense is so high that the Monsters you AoE deal minimum damage to you, you may want to consider swapping out your Plugs for a pair of Demols. These will increase the damage done by Burst Crack and Merkaba, which will in turn accelerate your AoEing, and by extension your experience gain overall. Remember, though, these aren’t suggested as your primary Earrings, only as spares for when the damage you take is as low as it can go that you can sacrifice your Defense.

An alternative to either a pair of Demols or a pair of Plugs is a pair of Speedos. Dropped from Clockworks, and exceedingly expensive for a +2 (6% Melee Block) or +3 (10% Melee Block) earring, it dramatically raises your Block Rate. This translates to a reduced chance of taking a hit from mobs that you AoE, translating to less damage. It is the more expensive route for Earrings, taking potentially billions to purchase.

NECKLACES:

The only necklace you will ever need, the Gore Necklace increases your base HP, which when you throw on HP modifiers such as those found on the Rimyth and Shurand sets, can add up to quite a bit of HP. This in turn raises the trigger point for prevention, increasing the likelihood you will not die.

Weapons
OVERVIEW:
As a Ringmaster who is AoEing, you may use any knuckle that is available to you. If you do not have the funds to afford a particular knuckle at a specific time, such as an Angels Glove, do not despair. A blue knuckle is sufficient in order to be able to AoE. However, as we all know, greens are the weapon of choice in this game, and so they will be covered. Specifically, which greens knuckles are of interest to you, and which should be ignored. By request, I will also include sticks, though ultimately it really, really, really doesn’t matter what stick you have: you’re not doing damage with the stick.

GREEN KNUCKLES:
What follows are two categories of green knuckles, those that are useful for AoEing, and those that are not.

AoE Knuckles:

The weapon of choice from level 60 to level 90 (80 with reductions) is the Guardian Knuckle. As it has an HP modifier of 15%, it is very useful to our purposes as an AoE Ringmaster.

From level 90 (80 with reductions) to level 120 (110 with reductions), the Angels Glove fulfills the optimum requirement for AoEing. The HP modifier is the same as the Guardian Knuckles, but the base damage is higher, which yields higher damage. If you can’t afford a leap to the Angels Glove from the Guardian Knuckle, don’t worry too much, the Guardian Knuckle will suffice in the interim.

The ultimate knuckle for AoEing, the Bloody Knuckle is the ideal. It has the biggest HP modifier of any knuckle, 20%, as well as a DEF bonus of 100 and an attack bonus of 250. All three bonuses are great for an AoE Ringmaster, especially the DEF and HP modifiers. This knuckle is the end-game knuckle, so once you get it, upgrade it to +10 as soon as you are able. It is available for use at level 120, or 110 if you have reductions.

1vs1 Knuckles:
The two green knuckles that follow, while nice, are wholly unsuited for AoEing. They have no useful bonuses that contribute to your overall character, and should be used as a last resort, or for moderately increased damage in their level range.

The Historic Knuckle is suited primarily for 1vs1 combat, and has no AoE-useful bonuses. Available at level 75 (65 with reductions) it’s only advantage is the higher attack rating that it has at the same upgrade as the Guardian Knuckle. However, it does not have the HP modifier of that Guardian Knuckle, and as such should be left alone in favor of the Guardian Knuckle.

The Legendary Golden Glove, like the Historic Knuckle, is primarily suited for 1vs1 combat. As it lacks AoE-useful bonuses, it’s only benefit to those level 105 and higher (95 with reductions) is the increased attack rating it has over the Angels Glove. It should be left alone in favor of the Angels Glove.

GREEN STICKS:
What follows are two categories of green sticks, those that are useful for AoEing, and those that are not.

AoE Sticks:

The first of your sticks, the Guardian Stick, is available to you immediately at level 60, this stick is useful due to the 15% additional HP bonus. This allows you to have a higher prevention trigger point during your gathering and mid-AoE stick swapping periods.

The second useful AoEing stick, the Angels Stick, is available starting from level 90 (80 with reductions), it is likewise useful due to the 10% additional HP bonus.

Available at level 105, (95 with reductions), the Legendary Golden Stick can be used in favor of all others. While it does not offer an HP bonus, it does offer an additional 20 INT. This will raise your Stone Hand timer and Prevention timer, which all but guarantees those skills will not expire while collecting or AoEing.

The final stick, the Bloody Stick is available at level 120 (110 with reductions), and is the one to die for (not literally). With a 20% increase in your casting speed, this allows you to drop your Merkaba faster, cast your Prevention faster, and get back to Burst Cracking in less time than it has ever taken you before. It will speed up your AoEing, as well as increase your margin-of-error in relation to how soon you have to cast Prevention during emergencies.

Useless Sticks:

The Historic Stick stick is, and always has been, the most useless stick for Ringmasters. Avoid it.

SHIELDS:
Which shield you use is ultimately unimportant. Since version 11, shields are now merely items which allow you to get potentially amazing Awakenings, and use them. As such, what determines which shield you use is what sort of awakening you get on a specific shield. The better the awakening, the more you should use that shield. The defense values on a shield are small and meaningless, and only when you have money to burn should you begin working on getting a nice awakening on a very high level shield.

Awakenings / Blessings
OVERVIEW:
Awakenings function much the same as pets, able to provide nearly identical bonuses in similar amounts, but with a few marked differences. Firstly, there are three awakening slots possible for each equipped item (your stick, your knuckle, your shield, and your suit). Secondly, it is possible to have significantly more of some stat or modifier than it is with a pet alone. Thirdly, there exists the chance that the awakening will be a negative modifier, thereby reducing your stats.

As such, you will want to exercise some care as to what you awaken, when you awaken it, and if you want to live with the potential of really god awful, bad awakenings; i.e., have a Scroll of Reversion handy.

Now, along with awakenings are "Blessing of Goddess." These are similar to awakenings, with a few differences. Firstly, they can be used on your Cash Shop Suit and Cape, and secondly, they do not have any negative possibilities. And, of course, thirdly, they are Cash Shop.

AWAKENINGS:
There are quite a few awakened attributes that are possible, however only some are relevant to an Mercrack AoE Ringmaster. For your convenience, the possible awakenings are:

- HP
- MP
- FP
- STR
- STA
- DEX
- INT
- Attack
- DEF
- Speed %
- Attack Speed %
- Critical %
- Additional Damage of Critical Hits %
- Decreasing of Magic Motion Time %

Of these, the ones that are useful and should be sought after, are these:

- STR
- STA
- Attack
- DEF
- Speed %
- Attack Speed % (Sticks / Suit only, useful for Gathering)

BLESSING OF GODDESS:
Blessing of Goddess adds the same things that the Awakening system does, but it will add only one modifier, and it will always be positive. Of the possible Blessing of Goddess you can get, you should seek after these:

- STR
- STA
- Attack
- DEF
- Speed %
- Attack Speed % (Useful for Gathering)

Pets
OVERVIEW:
Pets can provide a significant amount of either raw stats, defense, or attack power. As such, they are a valuable asset to the Mercrack AoE Ringmaster. I will cover the five pets that are useful to you in this section, ignoring the two pets (Fox and Rabbit) which are not directly, or indirectly useful to this method.

This section will be flushed out further when I finally get some images to work with.

LEVELING TIPS WHILE AOEING:
I would suggest two things for leveling your pet while using this method:
1. Level the pet to C Class before using it in combat, that way you aren’t feeding it every 2 minutes.
2. Put the Pet Feed on the third bar, or an extra slot on bar 2, and switch to it to feed your pet, then back to whichever bar you were on before.

DAMAGE INCREASING PETS:
There are two pets available that will contribute greatly to the damage that you deal as a Mercrack AoE Ringmaster. They are the White Tiger and the Dragon, listed below in order of usefulness.

White Tiger:
STR Pet, adds between 5 and 75 STR at S Class.

Dragon:
Attack Pet, adds between 25 and 375 attack at S Class.

ENDURANCE INCREASING PETS:
When I say endurance, I am referring to how well your character can survive tanking mass numbers of monsters. There are three pets that fall into this category, the Unicorn, the Babari Lion, and the Griffin. They are listed below in order of usefulness.

Unicorn:
HP Pet, adds between 455 and 6825 HP at S Class. Will add more HP to your character as a 1/3/5/7/9 S Class Unicorn than a 1/3/5/7/9 S Class Babari Lion.

Babari Lion:
STA Pet, adds between 5 and 75 STA at S Class. Contributes to both your HP and DEF, a fair tradeoff. Will not add as much as either the Griffon (to your DEF), or the Unicorn (to your HP).

Griffin:
DEF Pet, adds between 20 and 300 DEF at S Class. Contributes directly to your DEF rating, more so than the Babari Lion. However, as at later levels you will likely max out the amount of damage reduction you can get, it would be wiser to invest in a different pet long term.

Buffs / Skills
BUFFS:
These buffs are those that are recommended to be in effect at all times. I recommend that you have a Full Support Ringmaster accompanying yourself so that you don’t have to concern yourself with it while you are gathering and AoEing. Geburah Tiphreth and Spirit Fortune are not shown, but they are highly recommended.

Order of importance:
For those of you who want to max the skills in the event your Support Ringmaster doesn’t have all the buffs, these are they in the order you should max them:

- Heap Up
- Quick Step
- Beef Up
- Haste
- Cats Reflex
- Protect
- Mental Sign
- Cannon Ball
- Patience

Remember, this assumes you have already maxed Burst Crack, Merkaba Hanzelrusha and raised Stonehand to at least level 19 and Prevention to at least level 18.

SKILLS:
The only skills that you need are colored. The ones you need to raise beyond the minimums required for the next skill and to max out, are:

- Stonehand
- Burst Crack
- Prevention
- Merkaba Hanzelrusha

You can get the other buffs as you see fit, but they are not necessary. A Full Support Ringmaster accompanying you as you level should take care of the buffs.

A word of note: it is not necessary to max either Stone Hand or Prevention. While they are shown maxed, you can save 6 skill points by leveling Prevention to 18, and Stone Hand to 19. There is no notable difference between those two levels and the max level.

SKILL INFORMATION:
What follows is an overview of all the skills and party skills that you can and should use. If it is not mentioned, it’s not a necessary skill, and is only optional. All information about the skill is when it is maxed.

Core Buffs:
Mental Sign:
INT+20
Patience:
HP+210
Quick Step:
Walking Speed+30%
Heap Up:
STA+40
Cats Reflex:
Melee Block +12%
Protect:
DEF+50
Cannon Ball:
DEX+20
Beef Up:
STR+20
Haste:
Attack Speed+25%

Attack Skills:
Burst Crack:
Primary AoE Attack, based on STR and attack rating of the equipped weapon.
Merkaba Hanzelrusha:
Secondary AoE Attack, based on INT and attack rating of the equipped weapon.

Support Ringmaster Buffs:
Spirit Fortune:
Attack+140
Geburah Tiphreth:
Attack+150, Attack speed+25%

Defense Skills:
Prevention:
100% HP recovery when damaged at or below 10% of your maximum HP.
Stone Hand:
12.5% Stun rate on regular Melee attacks, and Burst Crack.

Party Skills:
Link Attack:
10% increase to damage dealt, independent of your partner. If you have a red Expand Party Skill 15 scroll, the damage Link Attack deals may be increased to a maximum of 80%, based on the number of players in your party.
Fortunate Drop:
Increases the chance to drop unique items.
Gift Box:
Doubles the chance of items dropping.

Hotkeys
ROW ONE:
Standard Keyboard Layout:

Ergonomic / Split Keyboard Layout:

ROW TWO:

AoE Gathering and Attack Techniques
PREPARATION:
Before you start gathering, you should make sure to have two skills newly casted, so that they don’t expire while you are gather, and as a way to time yourself as you gather so that you can get into a precise routine of when to stop gathering and when to start AoEing. These two skills are Stonehand and Prevention. Cast them before you start gathering, and they should last through to the end of your AoEing.

GATHERING:
To gather, I recommend using the second hotkey row, as outlined in the Hotkey section. Using the stick to collect allows you to re-cast prevention at a moments notice without the hassle of switching weapons. Also, with Haste and Geburah Tiphreth cast on you while you gather, you will likely have 100%, or close to 100% attack speed, which makes for fast casting no matter which weapon you use.

Tips and Tricks:
Now, there is a neat trick to maximize your attack speed. This trick involves attack a monster, and as the first swing of your stick is being delivered, click off to the side. This will cancel the attacks that follow the first swing so that you don’t get stuck attack a monster. You can then repeat the trick on the next monster, and so on and so forth until you have completed your pull.

Also, if you’re really hardcore into weapon swapping, you can spend a few million Penya or so awakening vagrant Swords and Shields, hunting for Speed +% Awakenings. Using these while you gather will drastically cut down on your gathering time by increasing the speed that you move. The more Speed +% items you have, the further afield you can go to gather Monsters and returning to the mid-point before worrying about pull-distance limits.

AOEING:
Now comes the fun part. Actually AoEing your monsters! What makes the Mercrack method fun, exciting, and ultimately different from all the other forms of Ringmaster AoEing, is that it uses both AoE attacks available to the Ringmaster: Burst Crack and Merkaba Hanzelrusha. There is a nice, formulaic method to this attack that works out smoothly.

You start by dropping a Merkaba Hanzelrusha, and follow it up with two uses of the Action Slot, which has 3 repetitions of Burst Crack in it. Repeat that process until your monsters are dead.

Now, if you aren’t yet level 80, then you will be using solely Burst Crack. You should still use 3 repetitions of Burst Crack in your action slot, as that is the optimum trade off between the cool down time and usage out of your action slot. Once you reach 80, you just have to incorporate Merkaba Hanzelrusha into your AoEing, and you’ll be set.

PREVENTION TRIGGERING MID-AOE:
In the event your prevention triggers, the way to cancel your attack is to hit ESC to untarget, click madly off to the side, switch to your stick, recast prevention, and resume your attack process. Hotkey row one is engineered to be both your attack bar and your emergency prevention bar.

Practice that a few times with smaller pulls, and you will get the hang of the technique, which will allow you to handle larger and larger pulls.

Where to AoE and at what levels
DARKON 1:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Garbagepiders as early as level 60 with good gear, 61 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Water if fighting Small and / or Captain Garbagepiders. This will reduce the damage dealt to you by the Small and Captain Garbagepiders. If you are primarily fighting Garbagepiders, element your suit for Fire. This will reduce the damage dealt to you by the Garbagepiders. In the case of a Fire elemented suit, you will reduce the damage dealt by Garpagepiders, and on occasion Small and Captain Garbagepiders will hit 0′s.

You can begin AoEing Cranes as early as level 63 with good gear, 64 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Wind if fighting Small and / or Captain Crane Machinery. This will reduce the damage dealt to you by the Small and Captain Crane Machinery. If you are primarily fighting Crane Machineries, element your suit for Earth. This will reduce the damage dealt to you by the Crane Machinery. In the case of an Earth elemented suit, you will reduce the damage dealt by regular Cranes, and on occasion Small and Captain Crane Machinery will hit 0′s.

DARKON 2:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing the Syliacas around level 65 with good gear, 66 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity as that will reduce the damage that Syliacas deal to you. Start with Young Syliacas and work your way up to Grownup Syliacas as you increase in level. You may wish to stick with AoEing Cranes up to level 67, as the Health of Syliacas is nearly twice that of Cranes.

You can begin AoEing the Greemongs around level 67 with good gear, 68 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity as that will reduce the damage that Greemongs deal to you. Start with Small Greemongs and work your way up to Captain Greemongs as you increase in level.

You can begin AoEing the Carrierbombs around level 69 with good gear, 70 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Earth as that will reduce the damage that Carrierbombs deal to you. Start with Small Carrierbombs and work your way up to Captain Carrierbombs as you increase in level. Captain Carrierbombs have Prevention, and will heal as they approach zero health the first time.

DEKANE MINES:
Monster Location Map:
Coming Soon…

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing the Blue Roaches around level 80 with good gear. Remember to element your suit with Fire, as that will reduce the damage that Blue Roaches deal to you. You may also choose to "pop" the small eggs that litter the chamber, as these will spawn three Blue Roach Larvaes. No element, so you don’t have to worry about accidently increasing the damage they deal to you, they can add additional experience to your AoE when it seems a bit low.

You can begin AoEing the Pinky Roaches around level 80 with good gear. Remember to element your suit with Water, as that will reduce the damage that Pinky Roaches deal to you. You may also choose to "pop" the small eggs that litter the chamber, as these will spawn three Pinky Roach Larvaes. No element, so you don’t have to worry about accidently increasing the damage they deal to you, they can add additional experience to your AoE when it seems a bit low.

DARKON 3:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing the Mushpoies around level 74 with good gear, 75 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity as that will reduce the damage that Mushpoies deal to you. Start with Small Mushpoies and work your way up to Captain Mushpoies as you increase in level.

You can begin AoEing the Irens around level 77 with good gear, 78 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Fire as that will reduce the damage that Irens deal to you. Start with Small Irens and work your way up to Captain Irens as you increase in level. Many find Mushpoies to have a better spawn, and stick with them for a few levels more.

You can begin AoEing the Watangkas around level 80 with good gear, 81 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity as that will reduce the damage that Watangkas deal to you. Start with Small Watangkas and work your way up to Captain Watangkas as you increase in level. Remember, however, that the spawns are spread fairly far apart, and it would be more time and energy efficient to invest in an Azria ticket, or level in the Dekane Mines.

You can begin AoEing the Antiqueries around level 83 with good gear, 84 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Wind as that will reduce the damage that Antiqueries deal to you. Start with Small Antiqueries and work your way up to Captain Antiqueries as you increase in level. Remember, however, that the spawns are spread fairly far apart, and it would be more time and energy efficient to invest in an Azria ticket, or level in the Dekane Mines.

You can begin AoEing the Shuhammas around level 90 with good gear, 91 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Earth as that will reduce the damage that Shuhammas deal to you. Start with Small Shuhammas and work your way up to Captain Shuhammas as you increase in level.

You can begin AoEing the Kerns around level 95 with good gear, 96 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Water as that will reduce the damage that Kerns deal to you. Start with Small Kerns and work your way up to Kerns as you increase in level. Captain Kerns have Prevention, and will heal as they approach zero health the first time.

You can begin AoEing the Glaphans around level 98 with good gear, 99 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Fire as that will reduce the damage that Glaphans deal to you. Start with Glaphans, (the Small Glaphan spawn is bugged) and work your way up to Captain Glaphans as you increase in level.

DEADWALDERNESS:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing the Chimeradon group of monsters around level 102 with good gear, or a deleveled Rimyth set. These monsters have "Rage Mode," where they deal twice as much -if not more- damage than usual. Start with the level 105 monsters, working your way up through to the level 107 monsters as you discover what you can tank, and as you level up. Element your suit with Water, as the two Fire elemented monsters will be weakened against you, and the level 107 Water elemented monster will hit 0′s on occasion.

You can begin AoEing the Bearnerky group of monsters around level 105. These monsters, like Chimeradons, have "Rage Mode". As such, start off with small groups of the Water elemented mobs, increasing your pull size as you discover what you can tank, and as you level up. Element your Suit with Wind to dampen the damage of the two tiers of Earth elements monsters while still being able to AoE the Water elemented monsters.

You can begin AoEing the Muffrin group of monsters around level 108 with good gear, 109 with decent gear. These monsters, like Bearnerkys, have "Rage Mode". As such, start off with small groups of the Water and Electricity elemented monsters, increasing your pull size as you discover what you can tank, and as you level up. Element your Suit with Earth to dampen the damage of the two tiers of Electricity elemented monsters while still being able to AoE the Water and Fire elemented monsters.

You can begin AoEing the Popcrank group of monsters around level 112 with good gear, 113 with decent gear. These monsters, like Muffrins, have "Rage Mode" as well as no element. As such, start with small groups of the Pawn and Knight Popcranks, increasing the size of your pulls as you discover what you can tank, and as you level up.

VOLCANE DUNGEON:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Meteonykers as early as 116 with very, very good gear, 117 with good gear, and 118 is when I recommend you start if your gear is less than good. Due to "Rage Mode", where the Meteonykers will deal double or more than their normal damage, AoEing them can prove extremely hazardous to your health. As Meteonykers have no element, you are unable to reduce their damage by elementing your Suit. If you feel your experience is getting low at either Popcranks or Cannibal Mammoths, give Meteonykers a try and see if it’s better or worse. When it’s better, it’s time to move permanently.

You can begin AoEing CyclopsXs around 118, 119 is recommended, however. Like the Meteonyker, these mobs have "Rage Mode" and deal double or more damage when nearly dead. As CyclopsXs have no element, you are unable to reduce their damage by elementing your Suit. They have been known to hit 5,000 damage Critical hits, which pierce through most Ringmaster’s prevention trigger points. Be very careful when AoEing these until you are comfortable.

AZRIA:
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

With the proper gear, you can begin AoEing Yetis as soon as level 68. Remember to element your suit with Wind, as that will reduce the damage that the Yetis deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Mutant Yetis as soon as level 74 with good gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity, as that will reduce the damage that the Mutant Yetis deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Augus around level 78 with good gear, 80 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity, as that will reduce the damage that the Augus deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Mutant Augus as soon as level 86 with good gear, 87 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Water, as that will reduce the damage that the Mutant Augus deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Ghost of the Forgotten Princes as early as level 93 with good gear, and level 95 with decent gear (such as your deleveled Rimyth set). Remember to element your suit with Earth, as that will reduce the damage that the Ghost of the Forgotten Princes deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Ghost of the Forgotten Kings around level 98 with good gear (such as your deleveled Rimyth set), 100 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Fire, as that will reduce the damage that the Ghost of the Forgotten Kings deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Mammoths around level 105 with good gear (your now available Rimyth). Remember to element your suit with Electricity, as that will reduce the damage that the Mammoths deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Cannibal Mammoths around level 111 with good gear, level 112 with decent gear. As there is no element on the Cannibal Mammoths, you will not have that advantage, so be careful. Roughly 1700 DEF is needed to get minimum damage dealt around level 112.

FORSAKEN TOWER:

The following lists the monster information and locations for the five floors of the Forsaken Tower. You should remember and take note that all monsters within the tower deal damage that is higher than usual when compared to similarly leveled monsters. However, while they do deal a lot of damage, they do not have any form of rage mode, which means no surprising and dramatic increase in damage.

Also, the due to the damage that every tier of monsters deals, it is recommended that you only use it when you have at least good gear. This means Plug+9′s, suits pierced with Earthquake or Lightning cards, and a decently upgraded set, such as +6 or higher; +8 is recommended. It is not necessary to have that gear to use the tower, but you may find yourself in high-risk and near-death situations, so take care.

B1 (62-72):
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Catsies as soon as you become a Ringmaster and enter the world of Mercrack AoEing. As they have no element, take care when pulling large groups, as unless you pierce your Suit with Earthquake cards, you are bound to take large amounts of damage. The higher your DEF rating, the better off you will be.

You can begin AoEing Harpies at roughly level 65. If you find they do too much damage to AoE effectively, consider piercing your equipment with Earthquake cards if you have not already, and getting some Plug+9′s. Remember to element your suit with Water, as that will reduce the damage that the Harpies deal to you.

B2 (74-84):
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Gullahs around level 69 with good gear, 70 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity, as that will reduce that damage that Gullahs deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Abraxas around level 75 with good gear, 76 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Earth, as that will reduce the damage that Abraxas deal to you.

B3 (86-96):
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Hagues around level 81 with good gear, 82 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Fire, as that will reduce the damage that Hagues deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Tengus around level 87 with good gear, 88 with decent gear. As Tengus have no element, you will not have the advantage elementing your suit would normally give you. Be cautious, as this means you will need to have higher DEF rate to bring the damage they deal to you down to where you’re used to.

B4 (98-108):
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:

You can begin AoEing Asterius around level 93 with good gear, 94 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Water, as that will reduce the damage that Asterius deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Dantalians around level 95 (with a very good deleveled Rymith set), 98 with good gear, and 99 with decent gear. Remember to element your suit with Electricity, as that will reduce the damage that Dantalians deal to you.

B5 (110-120):
Monster Location Map:

Monster Briefings:


You can begin AoEing Ganessas around level 102 (with a very good deleveled Rymith set), or 105 with your now available Rymith set. Remember to element your suit with Earth, as that will reduce the damage that Ganessas deal to you.

You can begin AoEing Asuras around level 108 with a good Rymith set, 109 with a decent one. Remember to element your suit with Fire, as that will reduce the damage they deal to you. One thing to note about Asuras is that unless you have Speed (Wind Card) piercings in your weapons, Speed awakenings, and generally a lot of Speed increasing items, you will never, ever, outrun one of these things.

You do not have to follow the level recommendations.
If you feel your XP per hour is getting low, try out the next tier of monsters.

PvP Discussion
OVERVIEW:
PvP for the Mercrack AoE Ringmaster is actually fairly effective. To be sure, you can’t take out the high-HP characters unless they let you, but you can kill off pretty much anyone around and below your level. I’ll be covering some of the types of PvP attacks available to you as well as when to use them and what they’re effective against. That, and what buffs you yourself should be using when in the Arena.

I will not be covering either of the Guild Sieges, unfortunately. Just take what you have here of Arena PvP and extend it to the Siege; it’s somewhat similar…

BUFFS:

To get Geburah Tiphreth, you will of course need another Ringmaster to tag team people with. But that’s common enough, I’m sure you will be able to find a Ringmaster who will cast it for you. Accuracy, while not a normal AoE buff, is useful for PvP and Melee attacks.

PvP SKILLS:
I will list the skills you have available to you as attack skills.

Knuckle-Punch Skills:
Straight Punch:
Single hit attack, weaker than Power Fist. Based on STR and Knuckle attack rate.
Not recommended.
Power Fist:
Strongest single hit attack available to the Ringmaster. Based on STR and Knuckle attack rate.
Recommended for when you have points to spare.

AoE Skills:
Burst Crack:
Primary AoE Attack, based on STR and attack rating of the equipped weapon.
Merkaba Hanzelrusha:
Secondary AoE Attack, based on INT and attack rating of the equipped weapon.

PvP ATTACK TECHNIQUES:
There are several ways to attack other players in PvP. Melee, using one of your Knuckle-punch skills, and then using your AoE technique on masses of players.

Melee Attacks:

The standard attack using your Knuckle and your Shield, this is effective against most everyone. In combination with Stone Hand, it is possible to gain a stun lock on your opponent until they die. It is not effective against high-block characters such as: Bow Jesters, Dex Blades, and Rangers. That doesn’t mean it won’t work, but you should be expecting lots of blocks.

Knuckle-punch Attacks:
Straight Punch:

Straight Punch is much the same as Power Fist, but weaker. It has its uses, typically against characters with high block-rate. Specifically, when your regular melee attacks end up in blocks and misses, you should switch to your Knuckle-punch skills. They have a guaranteed hit, and will deal decent damage. Best used against Bow Jesters, Dex Blades, and Rangers.

Power Fist:

Power Fist is the strongest of your knuckle-punch skills. Like Straight Punch, it is best used against those characters that have a high block-rate. It’s best used against Bow Jesters, Dex Blades, and Rangers.

AoE Attacks:

Just the same as when you are leveling, your Merkaba Hanzelrusha / Burst Crack combination is just as effective in the Arena and other PvP situations. The double-damage dealing is effective against all classes regardless of level. It will deal more damage, faster, than Power Fist, and is more effective at killing characters with both high HP and high block-rate. Best used against groups, high level Dex Blades, high level Rangers.

Damage shown is not representative of what this method is capable of.
Screenshots taken with a Full STA Ringmaster.

Piercings
OVERVIEW:
In this section we will cover what you should and should not use to pierce your equipment. Information about all the piercing cards is included for convenience, but there are individual recommendations for each card. This information is current to version 12.

SUIT PIERCINGS:
You have five components you can pierce your suit with, ordered by usefulness:

Use these primarily, or in combination with Earthquake Cards. These are the most useful as they increase the damage you deal, which in turn increase the speed you kill off your AoE. The sooner you kill off your AoE, the less likely you are to be critical’d through your prevention.

Use these secondarily, or in combination with Lightning Cards. These are nearly as useful as Lightning cards in that they increase your maximum DEF, which in turn reduces the damage monsters deal to you, allowing you to tank more monsters and for longer periods of time before your prevention triggers. You also have the option of using Demols instead of Plugs with this arrangement, as your DEF should come up significantly depending on the cards you use, which would compensate for the lack of Plugs.

Use these as stand-alone if you can’t afford Earthquake or Lightning cards, or in combination with Lightning cards. There is no PvM benefit to HP over DEF, as a mere increase in HP will not reduce the damage that is dealt to you, only slightly increase how long you can last. As such, rather than raise your prevention trigger point to what the monsters are hitting you for, throw in Earthquake cards to bring their damage down. If you do use these, augment your DEF with Plugs.

Under no circumstance should you use these cards.

Under no circumstance should you use these cards.

WEAPON AND SHIELD PIERCINGS:
You have five components that you can pierce your weapons and shield with, categorized by what piece of equipment that should be used on, and ordered by usefulness:

Knuckle / Shield:

Fire Cards are the mainstay of your Knuckle and Shield piercing cards. They add STR to your overall stats, which will increase the damage you deal which will in turn result in shorter AoE’s, and faster experience gained.

Alternatively, you may use Land Cards in your Knuckle and Shield piercings, as it increase your STA, which in turn will raise your HP and DEF, increasing your ability to tank larger and larger spawns for longer durations, allowing you to complete your AoE easier. You may consider alternating between Fire and Land cards based on the type of spawn you are AoEing, if you have the money to afford it.

Stick:

My personal favorite, and recommended for your Stick, are Wind cards. These cards increase your movement speed and your attack speed, which will result in faster gathering by a reduction in the amount of time spent moving from monster to monster, as well as the time spent attacking a monster to get it to follow you. That, and they come in handy in the Arena and Siege. Catch me if you can, eh?

If you prefer longer self-buff timers, and a shorter time re-casting your skills, then Water cards are your goal. These cards increase your INT, resulting in longer timers (Stonehand and Prevention, anyone?) as well as a reduction in casting time, which speeds up how fast you cast, which will reduce how long you spend before and during AoE’s casting your spells with the stick. The less time you spend with your stick, the more time you can spend with your Knuckle and Shield, Burst Cracking away at your pull.

Useless:

Under no circumstances should you use these cards. DEX serves no purpose at any time.

SOCKETING YOUR CARDS:
You should socket your cards in order of importance. For example, say you have 1 Lightning (7%) card and 3 Lightning (4%) cards. Since you can remove socket cards and replace them with better ones, always socket the most important card first. In the example, you would socket the Lightning (7%) card first, and then the Lightning (4%) cards.

Why? Because when you remove cards, they are removed in the reverse order they were socketed, starting with the most recently socketed card. Also, because when you get another Lightning (7%) card, you can remove the three Lightning (4%) cards, put in your new Lightning (7%) card, and then throw in two Lightning (4%) cards to complete the 4/4 piercing, in the case of your suit. The same goes for either your weapon or shield, up until your slots are full for maximum effect.

Pros, Cons, Myths
PROS:
1. Quick kill speed. Average between 15 and 25 seconds, faster the better your gear is. Significantly faster than a Merk-only AoE Ringmaster.

2. Greater DEF potential than a Merk-only RM as a result of a Shield. Can get same / more DEF with less STA than a Merk-only RM. This means you can devote more stat points to STR.

3. Does not require good gear to function efficiently. It is fully possible to AoE well with clean gear and a basic Knuckle. A Merk-only RM in similar gear, on the other hand, spends a huge (minutes) amount of time killing their monsters. As with all classes, the more upgraded your gear is, the better you will do. Mercrack RM’s have greater output than Merk-only RM’s with identical gear.

4. Can get double the number of weapon piercings (20 piercings VS 10 piercings) as a Merk-only RM.

5. The cost of getting 6 piercings over two weapons VS 6 piercings on a single weapon is significantly cheaper. Thus, enhancing your ability in that department is much cheaper than it would be as a Merk-only RM.

6. Knuckles provide for greater offensive and defensive bonuses than Sticks. Angel Gloves and Bloody Knuckles have a 15% and 20% HP bonus respectively, in comparison with the 10% HP bonus available on the Angel Stick. The Bloody Knuckle is an ideal weapon for AoEing, where no Stick is as useful for AoEing. A native +250 Attack Rating combined with a +100 DEF bonus makes it the ultimate offensive weapon. This is simply not an option for Merk-only RM’s.

7. Burst Crack stuns. This effectively reduces the amount of hits you are receiving, which in turn reduces the rate at which you lose HP. You are at less of a risk of uncontrolled HP loss than a Merk-only RM.

8. Prevention, while available to a Merk-only RM as well, does not trigger as much as a Merk-only RM, or at all. Often by the time it does trigger, the group of monsters is so close to being killed that there is no need to abort and recast Prevention.

9. Faster EXP over time in comparison with a Merk-only RM. While a Merk-only RM is famous for getting huge amounts of EXP per AoE, this is actually very slow. There is a point when gathering monsters that continuing to gather is less efficient than AoEing the group. Generally, this is when the remaining mobs are a fair distance away, and are spread out. A Merk-only RM must take these mobs to make up for their long kill times, a Mercrack RM does not, and should not.

10. Able to tank as many monsters as a Merk-only RM. Contrary to popular belief, Merk-only RM’s do not have an advantage when it comes to how many monsters they can effectively take. Thanks to Burst Crack’s stun, and your fast killing speed, by the time the group of monsters is able to overcome your Prevention, Pill usage, and Heals, they are dead. As Ecclesiastes put it: "[Mercrack] relies on stunning and killing the mob before it has time to crit you to death, and the suicidal offensiveness actually works, believe it or not."

11. Viable in PvP. A Mercrack RM has enough STR to be able to deal high, direct damage with their Knuckle. While not the best at PvP, they are still good enough that the Arena isn’t just a place you go to get killed, but to do some killing yourself; and not just low HP low levels, either.

12. Gianting is a viable source of income. Thanks to the STR and the Knuckle, a Mercrack AoE RM can farm giants, where a Merk-only RM has extreme difficulty doing the same. This is a source of potentially vast income that a Merk-only RM cannot exploit.

CONS:
1. HP is typically much lower than a Merk-only RM, so to compensate you will likely need to use Pills and have a dedicated FS RM.

2. Requires more work to operate than a Merk-only RM, however given enough time the process becomes reflex, and will no longer be an obstacle.

3. The learning curve and all the nuances of the style takes longer to get a handle on than a Merk-only RM, but it pays off in time.

4. More dependent on an FS RM than Merk-only RM’s. Merk-only RM’s are famous for being able to AoE with anyone as a partner. Now, since FS RM’s can be hard to find, being a Mercrack RM can be restricted by that. However, an FS RM has several responsibilities that make your AoEing easier. They keep your buffs active, heal you, apply SF and GT when available. All this allows you to focus exclusively on dealing damage. Merk-only RM’s have to stop constantly to rebuff themselves and cast SF, which takes time. Time that adds up.

5. The weapon switch. This little dance of the keys is the core of the Mercrack RM. And it can go wrong, horribly wrong. On occasion you may accidently press the keys too fast, in the wrong order, or at the wrong time, which may result in you being weaponless. This means that you are standing there doing absolutely nothing. Not attacking, and if Merkaba is active, the damage it deals is very low. This is easy to deal with however, if you keep an eye (and an ear if sound FX is on, so you can hear the sound equipping weapons makes) on your weapons to make sure the process goes smoothly.

6. In the event of over-tanking, you have to stop everything, run, and recast Prevention. As a Merk-only RM, this process is easy, and is the core of the style. As a Mercrack RM, this can be quite the rush, as well as stressful. Aborting Burst Crack, switch to your stick, and getting far enough away so that you can recast Prevention without getting killed, can be a challenge. The solution is simple, though. Learn what you can handle, and use Pills. Use pills. USE THEM. Don’t rely on Prevention and your FS RM only to keep you alive.

MYTHS:
A Mercrack RM requires good equipment to AoE.
No more than any other AoE able class and character. Mercrack RM’s are perfectly capable of doing decent damage and getting decent EXP with a very basic set of equipment, such as a Clean or +3 set with 1 or 2 piercings, basic Plugs (not even +9), and a +3 Knuckle, Blue or Green.

Mercrack RM’s die all the time; Merk-only RM’s are immortal.
On the contrary, Mercrack RM’s, once you get the hang of it, don’t die all that often. And if you start slow at the beginning when you’re learning how to play the style, you won’t die then, either. So no, Mercrack RM’s don’t die all the time. Merk-only RM’s, on the other hand, are not invincible. They are prone to accidents, screw ups, and freak accidents just like everyone else, and die as a result. Missing Prevention is a Merk-only RM’s greatest error, and is always fatal. Mercrack RM’s can, not should, AoE without Prevention being active, and finish without dying. However, that is an exception, not the rule, and it usually ends badly, so don’t do it.

Switching weapons is hard and takes a long time. It’s not worth it!
Ah, no. It’s not hard at all, though at first it may be a little daunting or confusing. Once you get the hang of it, you can do it in your sleep. And it doesn’t take all that much time, either; generally just a second if executed correctly (and it usually executes correctly.) That time spent switching weapons allows you to bring considerably more damage to bear than using a single AoE attack, and that more than makes up for the time spent switching weapons.

Mercrack RM’s are so expensive! I’m never going to be able to afford one!
Right. Mercrack RM’s can make money through Gianting much easier than Merk-only RM’s. Their equipment is no more expensive than a Merk-only RM. It all depends on how good you want your gear to be. Honestly, there are plenty of Merk-only RM’s running around in +8 sets, +10 sets, with +8 or +10 Sticks and highly upgraded Jewelry. Upgraded gear is not some exclusive thing that only Mercrack RM’s have to deal with, every single AoE class has that option, and almost always they take advantage of it. Start small, work your way to better things. You don’t have to have great gear right at the beginning to be a Mercrack RM.

Merk-only RM’s can kill a ton more monsters than Mercrack RM’s!
Not so. As I mentioned earlier, contrary to popular belief a Mercrack RM is fully capable of tanking the same amount of monsters as a Merk-only RM. And they have the added benefit of killing them faster.

Mercrack RM’s have no HP! Clearly they’re useless.
Due to the offensive nature of a Mercrack RM, being purely a tank is not a plus. The idea is to completely destroy your monsters before they can destroy you, not leisurely stand there chipping away at their HP until they drop dead at your feet. The speed at which you kill, combined with your stuns, is your greatest offense, and your greatest defense. The faster you kill your monsters, the less time you are at risk of being annihilated. Stun likewise keeps monsters from hitting you, and that reprieve combined with the high kill speed (even with low HP) allows Mercrack RM’s to survive, and function effectively. You only need enough HP so that your Prevention trigger point is higher than the most damage the monster you are fighting can deal to you. Anything beyond that is padding, and generally a wasted distribution of stat points.

Using just Burst Crack is faster than Mercrack, ya know.
No, not really. Since Merkaba’s damage is almost exclusively determined by the attack rating of the equipped weapon, Merkaba’s damage increases as your Burst Crack damage increases. It does not stay perpetually low. As such, The damage that Merkaba contributes to your AoE is actually significant. Since the argument is that Burst Crack can hit so much damage that it is slower to switch weapons and cast Merkaba, take my own damage (which is rather high), for example, to illustrate my point.

Right now, my Burst Crack damage with all the bells and whistles hits at nearly 13,200 damage. In a 10 second period without activitions and 3 Burst Cracks in the action slot, you can hit 5 times (the 6th is at 11 to 12 seconds), that is 66,000 damage dealt. Merkaba, on the other hand, hits for roughly 7730 damage per pulse, with 5 pulses in a 10 second period. That is 38,650 damage.

Captain Asuras have 140,000 HP. Doing pure Burst Crack, I would need to hit 11 times to complete the AoE. With Activitions, and a full action slot, it takes around 17 to 18 seconds to complete. In a 10 second period, I can get off a full run of 5 Burst Cracks, and the first Burst Crack in the second cast. That is 79,200 damage. That leaves me with 60,800 damage left to deal, or 5 Burst Cracks. That is the four Burst Cracks remaining in the action slot, and a single Burst Crack when it starts the action slot a third time.

With Merkaba thrown in, in a 10 second period I can deal 104,650 damage. That is one Merkaba, and 5 Burst Cracks, since due to weapon switching, there is a little delay before you can start Burst Cracking. Roughly the time it takes to start a second run of the action slot. That leaves me with 35,350 damage left to deal. That is 3 Burst Cracks. There is no need to cast Merkaba a second time, just continue through with Burst Crack since I’m so close to completion. The time it takes to complete that AoE is roughly 13 to 14 seconds. This is faster than pure Burst Crack, and when you try it out yourself after you get a feel for how long it takes to finish an AoE, you will literally feel the difference in killing speeds.

Kira! Your results are skewed since your gear is so good!
It’s really, really, not that great. Several Merk-only RM’s have MUCH better gear, and I still out perform them. Also, my gear doesn’t include decent awakenings or stat pets. Plenty of high level characters have these things, and my gear is easy enough to obtain if you are willing to put in the time and effort to make the money and create the gear. It’s not like +10 sets are rare or unique these days. At the higher levels, it’s practically a standard.

I’m assembling a database of AoE damage from both Mercrack and Merk-only RM’s at all levels, with all types of gear to prove that point.

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Credits go to kira.