Magician The LUK Mage FAQ

What is this?

This is an FAQ about LUK mages and building a mage that uses high-level mage equips.

Why does this exist?

I noticed a lot of new mages adding LUK and people asking questions about the viability of LUK mage. There's a lot of outdated information floating around so I decided to make an FAQ as I main a LUK I/L archmage currently at level 153. This guide should also help LUKless mages make the best use out of all the free LUK they have.

Is LUK mage better than LUKless?

The short answer is no. If you're unsure of what build to go, you should go LUKless until level 140 and then evaluate whether or not you want to add LUK. If you like the idea of LUK mage, it is certainly a viable path, and hopefully this FAQ will provide some insight into how to build it.

MapleLegends is not vanilla v62 anymore. Numerous changes have made LUK mage much more viable than it was in the past.

If LUK mage is not as good as LUKless, why do people choose LUK mage?

1. The armor looks cool. It is drippy af... it's undeniable. If you add LUK you are instantly cooler.
2. With high amounts of funding, LUK equips can surpass LUKless in terms of total magic attack.
3. Some high level mage equips (which require LUK) have very good value to mesos. LUK scrolls are very cheap so you can potentially scroll a very good LUK OA or buy a very good LUK cape for nothing.
4. The defense bonus from high level mage equips can save some mesos while grinding.
5. Mages are generally more concerned with 1-hitting specific mobs than they are with straight up DPS and you can still reach these 1-hit breakpoints easily with a LUK build. In the worst case scenario, you should hit them maybe 5 levels later than a LUKless build would.
6. There's a lot of equips on this server that give free LUK, making these equips relatively easy to use.
7. It's a fun nostalgic build and you get to upgrade your armor a lot!

Why is LUKless generally better than LUK mage?

1. LUKless equips can be sold and used for HP washing. They retain their value much, much better than LUK equips.
2. With low funding, LUKless has higher TMA on paper.
3. LUKless build requires a lot less thinking and planning.
4. LUKless doesn't need to think about expiring event equips nearly as much.
5. Mages have some of the worst ROI (in terms of DPS) for their equips. The amount of mesos spent to get more TMA at endgame is better spent on any other job. LUK mage surpasses LUKless in terms of TMA at this point but most players have no reason to pour this amount of time and funding into gearing an endgame mage.

Edit: As of the November 2023 patch, the ROI on TMA has been increased. LUK mages can now very feasibly have higher DPS on their bossing skills than LUKless.

What changes on MapleLegends make LUK build better than it was in vanilla v62 or other pservers?

The biggest change comes from the sheer amount of additional sources of free LUK on ML. Rings, Crimsonheart Cloak, lots of event items, and more all give LUK. The second biggest change comes from the changes to Timeless mage equips. Their slots have been increased and they require less LUK to equip.

What is the AP allocation for LUK mages?

You only need 20-35 LUK, and potentially even less with certain expiring event equips. I wouldn't recommend adding more than 40 LUK. LUK mage is generally worse than LUKless until you have access to Timeless equips (level 150, 100 LUK) so I recommend going LUKless until level 140 or so.

What are the notable items for LUK mages?

Hats: Zakum Helm, Targa Helm, Scarlion Helm, Aufheben Circlet

The helm slot is the same as LUKless mage, but what matters here is the LUK on these equips. You can get anywhere from 13-22 LUK from these. Aufheben is very difficult to obtain and not often run, but is technically the best option for an endgame build.

Overall: Timeless Myst Blue, Bazura/Varuna

There are essentially three options with overalls: the best option in terms of stats is an INT-scrolled Timeless Myst Blue (or, if you're really pushing the limit in terms of scrolling, maybe even a LUK scrolled Myst Blue). This is a very expensive and difficult route. An easier route would be scrolling a Bazura or Varuna for INT. What I recommend, however, is scrolling an Oriental Fury or Enigma/Enigmatic for LUK and for INT. Start with LUK 30s and then move on to INT scrolls after passing a bunch of LUK 30s. I recommend this because LUK scrolls and mage OAs are cheap as dirt. You can very easily and cheaply create a very, very high LUK overall and use that to equip other Timeless pieces.

Myst Blue, Bazura, and Varuna require 100 LUK but because they also provide some LUK, you can equip them with lower amounts of LUK. I discuss how to do this later in the FAQ. Timeless Myst Blue are expensive but provide a lot of clean INT, especially with good level ups. Scrolling a Timeless Myst Blue for INT should be a priority. Just slamming one with INT 60s could be a good idea. Bazura and Varuna are much cheaper options that can be scrolled the same way.

Cape: Crimsonheart Cloak

With 8 slots, up to 5 INT, and up to 5 LUK clean, this is by far the best cape in the game for a LUK mage. You should absolutely invest in a good INT-scrolled Crimsonheart Cloak. LUK-scrolled Crimsonhearts do show up on the market occasionally, and should be much cheaper. If you have the option, buy a LUK-scrolled Crimsonheart if it's at 20+ LUK. Scrolling these capes with LUK is not advised, however, as they can be difficult to resell. When scrolling your own cape, go with INT.

If you're really struggling, a LUK scrolled Purple Adventurer Cape can be a decent option. A perfect PuAC scrolled for LUK provides 8 INT and 15 LUK. This is not nearly as good as a decent Crimsonheart Cloak, but the extremely low cost of PuAC and LUK cape scrolls makes it a decent option on a budget.

Shoes: Timeless Cabatina, Dark Neli, Gold Lapiz Sandals

Tons of TMA and even some LUK on the Cabatina make it a must-have. Dark Neli and Gold Lapiz Sandals are decent alternatives if you don't want to commit fully to a LUK mage build.

Gloves: Timeless Hermosa

This is essentially a BWG with base INT, LUK, and decent defense. What's not to like? Scrolling a good Hermosa should be a goal for every LUK mage.

Shield: Timeless Prelude

With 10 slots and much more INT than a Maple Mage Shield, the Timeless Prelude is another must have for LUK mages. The shoes, gloves, and shield are a huge part of what makes LUK mage really shine on Legends.

Face accessory: Supreme Fishing King Flag, Chocolate Ice Cream

These items, which occasionally show up with summer events, provide a lot of free LUK as well as INT. If they become available they are definitely worth picking up.

Eye accessory: White Raccoon Mask

This is the same as LUKless mage.

Earrings: Octopus earrings, Glittering Altaire Earrings, Element Pierce

Octopus earrings are something which has shown up in past summer events. It's an untradable earring with some LUK and INT. Altaires are from EPQ. They're untradable. If you can get them, they're definitely worth making a detour to EPQ and trying to scroll these for INT. Element Pierce are an extremely expensive earring from NeoTokyo which provides INT, Magic attack, and LUK. People like to Chaos Scroll these. Ideally you'd want to Chaos Scroll these and get INT, m.att, and LUK on them before scrolling them for INT/magic attack.

Rings: Monster Book Tier 10, Ellin Forest ring, Zombie Army Ring, Ring of Passion

The ring slot is a big part of why LUK mage is a viable route on Legends. Monster Book Tier 10 Ring and Ellin Forest ring are mandatory. After that, look out for expiring rings from events.

Pendant: Horntail Necklace, Timeless Pendant

HTP provides 23 INT and 23 LUK. It is a must-have. Timeless Pendant is potentially better if it levels well, which is not a guarantee. You need to beat Pink Bean to loot the Timeless Pendant, it's not something you can buy in the FM.

Weapons: Timeless Aeas Hand, Elemental Wands, Elemental Staves

For Archmages: in terms of endgame weapons, the Elemental Wands are still your best bet. The 165 LUK requirement for the staves is a huge barrier to overcome. They are very cheap to scroll, so if you want to go for them I suppose you could try slamming 30s on them.

For Bishops: the Aeas Hand provides the ele wands a run for their money. While it is untradable after being equipped, it potentially provides much more magic attack than elemental wands and should be much, much cheaper to scroll, given the low cost of staff 30s. It's definitely something to consider, and in terms of making a perfect weapon, it has a lot more potential.

Others: Events occasionally provide NX items that give stats. In the past these have included items that give LUK. Look out for these whenever an event is released!

Doesn't Maple Warrior benefit LUKless mages more than LUK mages?

I've been asked this a few times. The answer is no. The only way you will lose stats to MW on a LUK build, besides overcapping LUK, is if you lose 1 AP to rounding. MW20 provides 10% to all base stats but always rounds down. So if you have xx9 INT and x9 LUK, you will lose out on 1 AP. This can be fixed by keeping your base LUK as close to x0 as possible. For example, 40 LUK is better than 39, provided that you can make use of the 1 more LUK that MW20 would provide you.

I heard that you can equip Timeless Equips with less than 100 LUK! How does this work?

Notice how most Timeless Equips provide some LUK. Let's say you have two Timeless Equips which each provide 5 LUK. If you have a total of 95 LUK you can equip something that brings you to 100 LUK and then equip both Timeless pieces. When you remove that equip and go back to 95 LUK, the Timeless pieces won't be removed. This is because they both provide enough LUK to equip the other. This works for anything, not just Timeless.

It's a nice option but do note one serious drawback: if you rely on both this trick and Maple Warrior to use your equips and you get dispelled or MW runs out, you will need to re-equip your LUK piece again. This makes it very cumbersome in bossing situations. Some players do opt to use this trick though.

I'm not sure that this is the case. Needs more testing.

This FAQ is a work in progress. If you have questions, please ask.