Guide to Monster Card Collecting in Orbis/El Nath

This is the fourth guide I've made. The first was on Victoria Island found here.

I still highly recommend perusing this guide for basic information, as most of it is good information. The guide I reference puts emphasis to reduce walk time. Walk time, imo, is less important to farming time. The procedure I have here cuts down on the overlapping possibility of getting extra cards from mobs you already finished.

For the most part, Orbis and Orbis Tower are fairly straightforward. El Nath and the Dead Mines have some nuance to them. Overall, there are two area bosses and two anti-bot area bosses in total. Getting the timers for their spawns and coordinating your visits to their maps will greatly alleviate your waiting time when everything else is done. Not taking these into account are oversights that should be avoided. Check these maps first!! Coordinate with other players if they're farming these bosses. Maybe even come back at a later time when there's less competition. Coordinating your focus is key for those four sets. As for the regular mob sets, I find players can make only two mistakes when running through El Nath.

In order to reduce overlap, I highly recommend you have already finished card collecting in Japan (Mushroom Shrine), and Masteria (NLC) before you begin El Nath.

There are a lot of etc drops that are lucrative in FM for questers, so keep that in mind as you run through these.

1. Luster Pixie: Cloud Park VI. You'll want to start here and work your way back for the Pixie and Nependeath cards. Luster Pixie's Sun Pieces sell quite handsomely and are the preferred etc for the Exchange Quests in Orbis. Hopefully, you'll get one or two Lunar Pixie cards, too.

2. Lunar Pixie: Cloud Park IV. Finish up the Lunar Pixies and you may even get a Star Pixie card. Luster Pixie's Lunar Pieces sell well to questers. If you are a quester, be sure to stockpile these.

3 & 4. Nependeath & Dark Nependeath: Disposed Flower Garden. This hidden street is off of Cloud Park III and is heavily underutilized. You should be able to pick up all your Nependeath and Dark Nependeath cards here with little effort. Attempts to get these cards in the Strolling Path maps is not as effective. If a Nependeath Honey drops, you can complete a rare quest or sell it for 1M mesos. The Nependeath Seeds sell very well while the Dark Nependeath Seeds will sell well, too, but not as well.

5. Star Pixie: Cloud Park I. However many Star Pixie cards you still need should drop quickly here. Star Pixie's Star Pieces sell well to questers.

6. Jr. Lioner: Garden of Yellow I. The route I suggest here is simply for easier access to Eliza later on. Stock up on those Solid Horns for your quests or sell them in bulk because they will sell to questers! Each character needs north of 300 of them to complete all quests. [EDIT - Check Kmac suggestion in comment #6 for a slight deviation that may benefit you for these next 3 cards.]

7. Lioner: Garden of Yellow II. When finished, go through Stairway to the Sky I.

8. Grupin: Garden of Green II. I do wonder why the Grupins look blue, but this is somehow the Garden of Green? WTF?

9. Jr. Grupin: Garden of Green I. And the Jr. Grupins look Purple in this "Garden of Green"?? Stockpile the Solid Horns!! When finished, go through The Road to the Garden of 3 Colors.

10. Jr. Cellion: Garden of Red I. Stockpile Solid Horns!

11. Cellion: Garden of Red II. Nothing special here.

12 & 13. Eliza and Jr. Lucida: Stairway to the Sky II. [OVERSIGHT ALERT] If you begin the Eliza quest in Hidden Street: Eliza's Garden just to the left of the entry portal to this map, you can get some good experience and fame. This is a heavily hunted area boss with a 3-hour spawn rate, so expect this to be a struggle. Out of the 6 channels, if you do get to kill all six your odds are 1 card per run (0-2). This boss also drops a rare chair. If you find a player farming for the chair, team up with them!! Let them know if you need Jr. Lucida cards or not, too! This is the only place to get Jr. Lucida cards, and they can only come from Eliza. Don't kill Eliza right away - you need to damage her enough to make her want to spawn packs of Jr. Lucida. She should spawn about 6 - 8 sets of them until she runs out of MP and can't summon any more. It will become obvious that she isn't spawning anymore and at that point you can slay her. [If you are so terribly lucky as to be on when an event is going on that has a boss run (similar to Mu Lung Dojo), then do know that while the Eliza boss in the event will NOT drop her card, her Jr. Lucida spawns WILL!] While here, if you get a Lucida card or two trying to hold maps, great, but this is not the ideal map for this.

14. Lucida: Zipangu: Hall of Mushroom. The best place to farm Lucida cards are in Japan! Go to the Blue Mushmom (Mushdad) map. It's smaller, more condensed, and easier to navigate with more spawns. Go here only after you've completed the Eliza cards. I wouldn't bother with the Lucidas on the Eliza map any more than you need to, but I've heard players have no problems with the Eliza map and/or the surrounding maps.

15. Jr. Sentinel: Orbis Tower <20th Floor>. How many Orbis Tower Scrolls do you want? A lot? Be sure to keep all of the shell pieces you get along the way!

16. Sentinel: Orbis Tower <15th Floor>. The only shell pieces worthy of being NPC'd because they are worthless.

17. Ice Sentinel: Orbis Tower <13th Floor>. Collect all shells!

18. Fire Sentinel: Orbis Tower <11th Floor>. Collect all shells! When done, do some quick calculations for how many sets of 45 Jr. Sentinel Shell Pieces, and sets of 20 Ice and Fire Shell Pieces you have. Go to the 10th Floor and make your first set of 5 scrolls. It is up to you whether to put the remaining pieces on a mule, save them in your inventory for future passing throughs, or sell them. This is good money - don't throw them away! Additional Jr. Sentinel Shell Pieces can be had on the 9th and 8th Floors if you don't need too many more.

19. Leatty: Orbis Tower <7th Floor>. There are some minor quests that require this etc drop, but they don't sell fast and they don't sell for much.

20. Dark Leatty: Orbis Tower <4th Floor>. Etcs here are junk.

21. Jr. Pepe: Orbis Tower <1st Floor>. Stockpile the Fishies!! Each character requires 600 to complete a quest string that gives Pet Equip Speed scrolls.

For El Nath, it's best to begin inside the Dead Mine and work your way back out. There are a couple of exceptions. I strongly advise finishing the Zipangu cards before beginning El Nath or Korean Folk Town. There's also an area boss and two anti-bot area bosses here. If at all possible, make a run for those first and get the timers on them and coordinate your plans to revisit these mobs in order to reduce your time spent here.

22. Bain: Zipangu: WanWan Spa of Hell or Zipangu: Armory. [MISTAKE ALERT] Do not hunt Bains in the Dead Mines when there are two maps in Japan that are far superior. If you are melee, I suggest the Armory. If you are ranged and have difficulty with mobs and/or you're lower level and can't take much damage, I recommend the Spa of Hell. If you are ranged but can handle mobs, go to the Armory. The Armory also has Male Boss and drops his card frequently and has a great spawn rate. He also spawns other mobs in the Shaowa Town area - you're not likely to get their cards, but you never know! While there is a quest in Shaowa that requires 200 of the etc drop, practically no one is going to buy them because the quest rewards suck!

23 & 24. Cerebes and Firebomb: The Cave of Trial II. This map is terrible, but you're not going to find a higher spawn rate for Cerebes anywhere else. Avoid the middle lava pit - you'll want to go there after this set, but not before. Cerebes Teeth will sell! The mistake players make is with the Firebomb. Some players already know of one better map (there's two), this is actually NOT the place to focus on them. Hopefully, you heeded my advice and did NLC first. If so, then you are likely done with Firebomb or very close to finishing. Since the drop rate for Firebombs is high, it's almost certain you'll finish the Firebombs while completing your Cerebes cards. For reference, the NLC map that should be done first is called MesoGears: Fire Chamber. That is the best map to farm for the Fire Tusk cards and the Firebombs are all over the place in there. If you already finished NLC and Cerebes and Firebombs are miraculously not complete yet, then you'll assuredly finish Firebomb in the Shaowa Town map Zipangu: The Secret Spa along when you get the Red Slime cards. Also, save up the etc drop, Firebomb Ore, as you will need 200 of them for your Ellin Ring! If you already have your ring and/or you have a surplus, they are one of the most expensive etc drops sought after in the FM.

25. Jr. Cerebes: Hidden Street: Cave Within the Cave. This map is the most ideal for this mob. Yes, there is a map in Shaowa Town that have these, but the Extra C's aren't on that map and you'll wind up putting in more work than you need to if you go there. There's also a questline that requires you to go to this map that opens up your ability to buy Magic Rocks, Summoning Rocks, and All-Cures from Alcaster in El Nath. Try to coordinate this! Also, the Jr. Cerebes Teeth are probably the highest sought after etc drop for questers in all of El Nath.

26 & 27. Fly-Eye and Miner Zombie: Dead Mine IV. I prefer this map to the other three - I think it's just more navigable in my opinion. You'll definitely get the Fly-Eye cards done before the Miner Zombie cards. Stockpile those Gold Teeth!! This is the most sought after etc in all of El Nath by ALL players, not just questers. The Fly-Eye Wings are also needed for particular quests - quests that are not easily done for the quest level. While they won't likely sell fast or for a lot, they will sell.

28. Riche: Forest of Dead Trees I, II, III, and IV. [OVERSIGHT ALERT] Be very careful around Riche - it's an anti-bot boss and it will send you back to before the entrance of the mountains. Riche's spawn rate is 3 hours, but with 6 channels and 4 maps (24 per run) you should be able to finish the set in two runs.

29. Coolie Zombie: Zipangu: Forest Full of Ghosts and El Nath: Forest of Dead Trees II. [MISTAKE ALERT] Because Nightghosts are a rough set to get in Zipangu, it's possible you might be finishing that set while on the map that also has Coolie Zombies. I recommend finishing Nightghosts first before getting the rest of the Coolie Zombie cards in El Nath. I always preferred Forest of Dead Trees II of the four maps, but it doesn't really matter. The Zombie Teeth sell very quickly in FM for players wanting to level their lowbie characters through the Orbis Exchange Quest.

30. Lycanthrope: Wolf Territory III, IV, and V. Three maps each with three spawns and a spawn timer of about one minute. I recommend starting on map V, go to III, then change channel and go from III to V and cc again. Rinse and repeat until you have 5. This might take 30 minutes to an hour - your luck will determine how long this takes for you. If you're really lucky, the Lycanthrope will spawn some Werewolves and they can drop their cards! You may even pick up one or two White Fang cards. The etc drops for Lycanthropes are needed for an Omega Sector quest which gives a horrible reward. But if you've spent the time and effort, you might as well turn them in to complete the quest, right?

31 & 32. Dark Yeti and Dark Pepe: Dangerous Cliff. There are three Dark Yeti & Pepe mobs here, so if you happen to get a card from them, GREAT!! But your primary focus here needs to be the Dark Pepe first and foremost. I don't recommend getting the Dark Yeti cards anywhere else but from here, but you're welcome to try your luck at Sharp Cliff I or II, but I don't think it's better - not by a long shot. All etc drops are only useful for the exchange quest in Orbis.

33. Dark Yeti & Pepe: Wolf Territory II. This map was changed by Kimmy in order to make Dark Yeti & Pepe cards more accessible, but I hate it! But it is what it is, though. (I think I hate it because it's the map that suggests we'll eventually get Lion King Castle and that area is one of the reasons I quit GMS.) Plenty of mobs here, shouldn't take too long. This cannot be said for some upcoming mobs.

34. Werewolf: Wolf Territory I. Once upon a time, Wolf Territory II had Werewolves, but now it's nothing but Dark Yeti & Pepe mobs. Nevertheless, this has four spawns on six channels with a spawn rate of about one minute. I recommend cc'ing your way through this solo map just like you did with the Lycanthropes. Hopefully, you got a couple of Werewolf cards when farming the Lycanthropes, so this shouldn't take as long. You may pick up a Hector card, too...maybe two. The etc drops here will sell in FM for the quests that are attached to them.

35. Snowman: Hidden Street: Valley of Snowman. [OVERSIGHT ALERT] This area boss has a 3 hour timer. You'll probably need to make 2-4 runs to complete the set. While you're here, you may get a Yeti & Pepe card, a Yeti card, or a Jr. Yeti card. I don't recommend farming this map for any of those, but I've met some players who swear by it. [EDIT] As Krythan points out below, if you are a 4th Job Mage, your ultimate will hit all four levels making this a very easy map to farm. I did all of my farming before 4th job and my guide reflects that.

36 & 37. Yeti & Pepe and Yeti: Ice Valley II. This map spawns far more Yeti & Pepe than Snowman's map. Nevertheless, the drop rate for these are incredibly poor that unless you want to complete your Monster Book, I recommend skipping this mob. In your attempts to obtain 5 Yeti & Pepe cards, I can guarantee you'll be done with Yeti cards. If you wish to skip Yeti & Pepe, then finish the Yeti cards on Ice Valley I. You may pick up a Jr. Yeti card here, too. The Yeti Horns are good for a couple of quests, but they don't sell very fast in the FM if you wanted to try, or just use them for the Exchange Quest in Orbis.

38. Pepe: Hidden Street: The Crown Flyer. This is the only map where Pepe mobs exist. There are also some White Fang on this map. It's a hidden street from Cold Field II. The Etc drops are only for the Exchange Quest in Orbis.

39. Ice Witch: Icy Cold Field. [OVERSIGHT ALERT] The Ice Witch is an anti-bot area boss with a 3 hour spawn timer. I highly recommend coming here first to get the timer and revisit here every chance you get. The average number of runs you'll need to make to complete this set is 2-4. There are a multitude of White Fang and some Hector on this map. If you get one of those cards, it'll make things easier as we go.

40 & 41. White Fang and Hector: Cold Field I or Cold Field II or Icy Cold Field. At this point, if you've not completed or at least have 3/5 White Fang cards yet, then you are very unlucky. Take a look at your White Fang to Hector card ratios. If you have about an even amount of each, I recommend Cold Field II. If you have 2 more Hector than White Fang, I recommend Icy Cold Field. If you have 2 or more White Fang than Hector, I recommend Cold Field I. The farther you are to the left, the more Hector cards you will get. The farther to the right you are, the more White Fang cards you'll get. Adjust maps as needed. The tails of each mob are needed in bulk by questers, so use them if you need them or sell them.

42. Jr. Yeti: Watch Out for Icy Path I. Hopefully, you'll have picked up a couple of these cards on your way down, or even one or two when finishing off Electrophants in NLC if your luck was particularly poor. Etc drops are only useful for the Orbis Exchange quest. Finish this mob off and YOU'RE DONE!

And you've finished Orbis / El Nath!! ... You now have 42 more cards, 41 if you skipped Yeti & Pepe. To conclude, the first mistake is trying to do Bains. The second mistake is not finishing Japan first before engaging Coolie Zombies. I used to consider a third mistake finishing Firebombs in Showa instead of in NLC, but Red Slimes now drop their cards - which means you're not going to avoid getting more than 5 Firebomb cards. The four major oversights are not coordinating your time and effort into the bosses.


If you think I missed a better opportunity, please let me know! =o)

 

Guide updated with this information.

 

I think I tried that with my first two characters, but I found myself constantly checking to see which card I got. This was before the game was modified to tell you how many of the type of card you picked up. Those first two characters were my White Knight and I/L Mage. After that, it was my Ranger and I found The Road to the Garden of 3 Colors was significantly more difficult to navigate. I never tried it with my CB, so I think a Shadower probably has an easier time navigating given their Avoidability and Assaulter skill.

 

Fixed! Thank you for pointing that out.

 

It was a multitude of things, LionHeart Castle being the final straw. It began with Big Bang, then the replacement of the Maker Skill with Professions (which after I liquidated everything I had in Maker materials I had 12B mesos), I made myself some awesome Timeless gear for me and my Maple Partner, only to have LionHeart Castle come around and make all of that untradeable Timeless Gear obsolete and very poor. On top of that, because I didn't create my characters correctly, I was never going to deal enough damage to make training in LH Castle worth my time - no one would party with me because I couldn't carry my own weight. Everything about the game at that point had lost all purpose and all joy.

 

[UPDATED] I forgot to include the Firebomb mob - which carries a common mistake for players, and it's probably not what you think! I noticed this mistake when thinking about the next guide I will be publishing soon. [UPDATE 2] I also needed to include additional information regarding Jr. Yeti.

 

The library is wrong. If you go to Sharp Cliff II, you will encounter Dark Yeti, Dark Pepe, and 3 Dark Yeti & Pepe mobs.