The Card Collector Challenge

A cute new masochistic challenge inspired by Cob's Clearing MapleStory.

DA RULES
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0. Fresh character. The challenge begins immediately on Maple Island.
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1. You may not progress from a map until you've collected all card sets of the monsters in that map.
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EXAMPLE: In order to progress past Snail Hunting Ground I, you must collect 5/5 Snail cards. The next map (Snail Hunting Ground II) features Snails and Blue Snails. Since you've already completed Snails, you'll *just* need to collect 5/5 Blue Snail cards to continue.

• Once you've completed a set, you have completed that monster for every map.
• You can go back to previously cleared maps or explore alternatives whenever you like.
• Taking a taxi or other instant warp NPC/scroll/portal to a map that you haven't otherwise "unlocked" is forbidden (ex: taking the taxi from Lith Harbor to Perion without unlocking every map in the route between). CLARIFICATION: Instant warps ARE allowed after you've properly unlocked their targets (ex: I can use Henesys scrolls/taxi to Henesys after I've reached Henesys).
• Some areas/mobs don't have associated Monster Cards. Consider these free territory and do as you please.
• Area bosses such as Mano and Stumpy are exempt from these rules and thus optional (this includes the special anti-botting mobs such as Shade in the Kerning Subway).
• Mini-Dungeons and Hidden Streets within a map are not accessible until the map itself has been cleared.
• If a death results in you warping to a map that has not been unlocked, you must return to an unlocked map immediately without touching anything (Return Scrolls recommended).

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2. No parties. Challengers must make their own way.
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• Exceptions: Party Quests/Raids (your own discretion for these), Purchasing a (non-leech) service, Quests completable only with parties.

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3. Obvious: no self-gifting. It's not a challenge if you can give yourself all the meso/items you need. No begging/donations either!
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4. Free Market buying/selling/trading is allowed, however you cannot buy/trade for an item until you've obtained that item at least once by yourself (ex: You cannot purchase a Gun for Att 60% scroll until you manage to obtain one from somewhere in the Maple World). This gives the challenge an Ironman-esque flair without being too self-punishing.
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• Exceptions: skillbooks only obtainable from raid bosses (ex: Berserk 20, 30) can be purchased regardless.
• Purchasing a boss item service such as Zakum Helmet/Skillbook, Horntail Pendant, Mark of Naricain is allowed, but you must be at most 5 levels below the boss that drops the item (ex: Zak/Scar 135+, HT 155+).
• Special event items that are out-of-season are unobtainable. Can't dominate with Maple Weapons? Tough luck, find something else to work with.
• CLARIFICATION: NPC shops (ex: Lith Harbor potion store) are fair game no matter what.
• Optional Rule: Your character detests hand-me-downs. Buying pre-scrolled (unclean) items is forbidden.

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FORESEEABLE CONCERNS (aka FEATURES)

• You're going to be inadvertantly grinding. A lot.
• Seriously, you're gonna get walled by Blue Snails on the second map of Maple Island. Are you sure you really wanna do this?
• Getting a job will be a pain in the butt. Don't expect to get your first advance before level 3x.
• I've heard the road from Lith to Kerning has a map with a single troll Lupin, so good luck ever becoming a Thief via that route. Actually, good luck becoming a Thief at all considering you're going to have to traverse all the way from Lith to Kerning (the LONG way) with the majority of your points in LUK... STRdit meta anyone???
• Gachapon will be very important for unlocking certain scrolls and items (thankfully we have the Victoria gacha system for this)
• The ultimate goal: to unlock every map? to finish the monster book ring?? to defeat Pink Bean???

I've attempted a bit of the challenge thus far and I'll be reporting on my progress soon. Please feel free to join in on this thread if you're man enough to attempt it yourself! Calling out cobbages because he said he's interested and I know he loves new characters and self-torturing challenges.

btw no, MQv2 is not dead. in fact Skucci just made his 300th vote!

 

Then you're in a map that you're not "allowed" to be in, so you'll have to return as quickly as possible without talking to anybody/picking anything up basically.

just dont die lol

 

Mushkid's Card Collection, Chapter 1:
Concerning Birth and Origin of the Mushkid


Say hello to Mushkid! He's a big fan of mushroomgames.


Now say hello and goodbye to the last easy card set we're ever going to see. Except maybe those Pinbooms in aquaroad if Mushkid ever makes it that far.



Take your first look at what we're going to be dealing with a whole lot in this challenge: Maps with a few spawns of a monster that we'll be forced to grind in until, by sheer force of effort, 5/5 cards are achieved.


Other than inadvertently becoming an Islander in the second map of Maple Island, it wasn't all that bad.


The next map, A Split Road, has a bunch of Snails, Blue Snails, and a few Shrooms. I was anticipating another big wall here, but it didn't end up being very difficult.


Next on the chopping block: Stumps. It became clear right away that this map was not the right choice for the buggers. There are only a few spawns up top and you need to kill a whole slew of lil critters before they'll ever show up again.


THANKFULLY, the Southperry route has a much better Stump layout while also providing Red Snails and Orange Mushies.


Getting this **lucky** Purse drop sped things up a whole lot as well.


It was an epic saga, but at last the snails, shrooms, and stumps did break against the iron stoicism of the Mushkid.


Finally every part of Maple Island that matters (sorry Pigs and Slimes) opened up for us.
Mushkid got RICH on event drops from all that grindin. Cheesy to say the least, but hey I'll take it.


Maple Island is FINISHED. No, I'm not repentant enough to try and hunt Pigs and Slimes here too. If you are, I salute you.


Mushkid's stats at level 21. I figure he'll need a bunch of INT to be able to un-gimp his HP from 30+ levels of beginnerdom. In all likelihood I'll be adding even more in the future. I mean, what kind of challenge would this be if I didn't hamstring myself with an unhealthy amount of INTelligence on an already pathetic character?

To Be Continued...

 

I'll be building a better computer soon (and finally giving up my beastly 2010 Dell laptop) so this is 100% a possibility. I would really love to get into video editing too.

 

Mushkid's Card Collection, Chapter 2:
Mushkid on the Road

Sick (possibly covaids???), woke up at 4AM, and couldn't get back to sleep so here's another update.


Here's our first challenge of Victoria Island.


Nothing terribly hard, and we even got a Gold Surfboard. This thing is so good, it's essentially the level 15 Maple Weapon for first job melee classes.


Never thought I'd use these damn things for anything other than throwing away, but surprisingly they're the best attack pot available to us at this point. Yeah, no Cokebear in Lith..



Next up... Thicket Around The Beach II is a doozy. There's only a precious few Pig/Rig spawns at the very top of this map, and you've got to clear out the bottom slime pit every 10-15 pigs. Quite the grind.


Got this dumb cape from raffle which is probably worth like 2m cuz I see at least 3 people get one every hour. Debatably better than an icecream hat though.


Long and arduous was the pig grind. Mushkid even took a few shopping trips here and there simply to break up the monotony. Fish Spear is good for walking around (+4 speed lul) and the 1h Bamboo Sword lets us use up our massive stock of red shells.


YAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! Mushkid doesn't give up. But I'd be lying if I said this was not the gnarliest grind by far.


Our final target on the road to Henesys: Green Mushies at HHG1.
HOWEVER... Mushroom Forest is WAY better for greenies, features blues as well, and is conveniently accessible from Mushroom Shrine. Thanks for the insight DMs :5head:


At last, Henesys! We can finally get a pet because I was too dumb to stock up on petfoods in Amherst. Also, cokepills.





To Be Continued...

 

Mushkid's Card Collection, Chapter 3:
Mush Outta Luck

It was tough, it took a few sessions, but FINALLY blue mushrooms have been completed. This opens up the most important route yet:


The road to employment.


Bam. Level 29 isn't too late to advance, right?


Really though, this is a ginormous power spike for Mushkid. Double Shot feels almost godlike after 29 levels of whacking off.


Now for Mushkid to spend all of those tickets he's been hoarding. Cross your fingers for that WS!


Wow, ok, it was all trash. The only redeemable thing was a Yellow Adventurer Cape, but you'd really expect something better from a 30 ticket run. Oh well.


Immediately after Nautilus is the next brick wall: this map before Ellinia with 2 (two) Axe Stump spawns. I messed around here for a few minutes and it didn't seem impossible... but surely there's something better and more interesting we could be doing, right?

...

So I got to thinking... are Lupins really all that bad?


And of course! How did it never occur to me?! Florina Beach is our ticket to Kerning City, the short way.


A plan was formulating: First, the Lupins in Florina; then, the Hogs in Henesys (the map before Mushmom). then the octopi but who cares about them.


One thing is clear: Mushkid is gonna have to get a whole lot stronger before he takes on any monkeys, let alone those iron porkers. Training arc incoming?!?!?!

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To Be Continued...
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