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Chapter 23: Crystal Library

• Welcome to Zugzwang's Crystal Library! Too bad that, like everywhere else in Gnawnia, it's infested with mice. At least you won't be out of a job anytime soon!
• The mice here are of the group Zurreal's Breed. A Physical (Enraged Rhinobot or better) or a Tactical (Zugzwang's First Move or better) trap would do fine here. Some mice are weaker to Physical, others are weaker to Tactical, but either trap should be sufficient.
• Brie or Gouda should be sufficient for attraction, but to attract the Tome Sprite reliably, you need to use Super Brie.
• The mice that are weaker to Physical are: Explorator, Pocketwatch, Steam Grip, Scribe.
• The mice that are weaker to Tactical are: Bookborn, Tome Sprite, Flutterby, Infiltrator, Effervescent, Walker, Aether.
• Here, you can pick up a Library Assignment. At first you are only able to pick up the "Catalog Library Mice" assignment; other assignments are unlocked as you earn Library Points by completing assignments.
• Some of the assignments may be inconvenient or impractical to complete; it may require the use of a trap you can't or won't buy, for example. If you do not wish to complete an assignment, you can smash it with your Hunter's Hammer. Keep in mind that you can't receive another assignment for one hour from the time you accepted the last assignment.
• Here are the summaries of each of the assignments you can receive:

• Catalog Library Mice

• Requirement: None
• Rewards: 20 Library Points, 1 Yellow Tome of Wisdom (45,000 points), 15-25 Wealth Charms, 0-1 Bubbles Bookends
• You will be asked to catch 8 types of mice in the Library. None of these mice will require any special strategy to catch; you shouldn't ever need to smash this assignment.

• Library Research

• Requirement: 20 Library Points
• There are two types of assignment you may receive from this folder:
• Library Mice Research
• You will be asked to catch 8 mice of 5 different types. You may be required to catch 2 mice of certain types.
• It is possible that you will be asked to catch the Tome Sprite. If this happens and you do not have a good amount of Super Brie to spare, you should smash the assignment.
• Rewards: 30 Library Points, 0-1 Yellow (45,000 points) or Green (90,000 points) Tome of Wisdom, 15-25 Wealth Charms, 0-1 Bubbles Bookends
• Library Power Type Research
• You will be asked to catch 3 types of mice, using traps of specific power types. You may be required to catch 2 or 3 mice of certain types.
• You shouldn't need any special strategy for this assignment, beyond switching your trap weapon.
• Rewards: 30 Library Points, 0-1 Yellow (45,000 points) or Green (90,000 points) Tome of Wisdom, 15-25 Wealth Charms, 0-1 Bubbles Bookends

• Zugzwang Research

• Requirement: 50 Library Points
• There are two types of assignment you may receive from this folder:
• Seasonal Garden Research
• You will be asked to catch a number of mice in the Seasonal Garden under certain setup conditions. You also will be asked to catch specific mice from various seasons. Some of these tasks may involve unusual setups.
• Keep in mind that this assignment often involves waiting for the right seasons to arrive.
• Rewards:
• 80 Library Points
• 0-1 Blue Tome of Wisdom (130,000 points)
• 6-8 Wealth Charms
• 40-60 Amplifier Charms
• Mystic/Technic King Research
• This assignment is split into 5 steps. You can only tell exactly what the next step is after you've completed the previous steps.
• The first two steps will have you catching mice in the Seasonal Garden. Certain trap setup conditions may be required. You may be asked to use the Zugzwang's Last Move in the second step; do not confuse this with the Zugzwang's First Move! Since you've likely already smashed your ZLM to craft the ZFM, if you can't or won't buy another ZLM, you may want to smash the assignment.
• If you're going to be doing a lot of assignments however, it's probably best to cave and buy the ZLM, as advanced assignments often require it.
• The last three steps will have you catching mice from one side in the Zugzwang's Tower, culminating in catching the King.
• Ensure that your amplifier is charged and that you have enough cheese to last you through your run.
• Rewards:
• 80 Library Points
• 0-1 Blue Tome of Wisdom (130,000 points)
• 6-8 Wealth Charms
• 10-20 Amplifier Charms
• 2 Rook Crumble Charms
• 4-6 Spellbook Charms
• 1 Mystic Curd or Technic Cheese Mould

• Furoma Research

• Requirement: 130 Library Points
• There are three types of assignment you may receive from this folder:
• Furoma Research Assignment
• You will be asked to catch a number of mice in the Training Grounds and/or the Dojo under certain setup conditions (possibly including, *yawn*, the ZLM...). You will also be asked to catch one Master of the Dojo mouse.
• Maki cheese may be required for this assignment; if this happens and you don't have Super Brie to spare, you may want to smash the assignment.
• If you get the "Catch 10 Hapless Mice" task, remember that you can get lots of Hapless Mice by using store-bought cheese in the Meditation Room or Pinnacle Chamber.
• Of course, if your task is "Catch 1 Hapless Mouse in the Dojo", you can't do that as you need to catch it in the Dojo.
• Rewards:
• 90 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points)
• 8-12 Wealth Charms
• 3 Tokens of the Cheese Belt/Fang/Claw
• 1-3 Rumble cheese OR 1-2 Maki cheese
• Pagoda Research Assignment
• You will be asked to catch Students and Masters from all three schools, and one Master of the Dojo mouse. Certain trap setup conditions may be required.
• Other than, again, possibly requiring that accursed ZLM, this assignment shouldn't represent any great deviations from regular hunting strategy.
• Rewards:
• 90 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points)
• 8-12 Wealth Charms
• 3 Tokens of the Cheese Belt/Fang/Claw
• 1 Master Belt/Fang/Claw Shard
• 2-3 Rumble cheese OR 1 Onyx Stone
• Dojo Sensei Assignment
• Probably the most difficult assignment of this batch.
• You will be asked to catch 2 Students of a certain school using an Onyx Mallet. If you can't or won't craft it, you will probably want to smash this assignment on sight.
• Even so, given that the Onyx Mallet is of the incorrect Power Type, you will find this task somewhat painful!
• You will also be asked to catch 8 Masters from each school, 2 Master of the Dojo mice, and finally, 1 Dojo Sensei.
• If you don't already have a bunch of Furoma crafting supplies it's probably best to just smash this assignment and hope for an easier one, rather than hunting for them.
• Rewards:
• 90 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points)
• 8-12 Wealth Charms
• 3 Tokens of the Cheese Belt/Fang/Claw
• 2 Master Belt/Fang/Claw Shards
• 2-3 Rumble cheese OR 1 Onyx Stone

• Advanced Zugzwang Research

• Requirement: 150 Library Points
• It is recommended that you have the Blackstone Pass Trap, the Obvious Ambush Trap, and a supply of Checkmate cheese before attempting the assignments from this folder.
• Before doing these assignments, you may want to acquire Uncharged Scholar Charms from the Crystal Library Charm Shoppe. If you arm them before catching a Chess Master mouse, you get a Scholar Charm, which would come in handy later.
• There are two types of assignment you may receive from this folder:
• Mystic/Technic Amplifier Assignment
• This assignment is split into 4 steps. You can only tell exactly what the next step is after you've completed the previous steps.
• Step 1: You will first be asked to catch mice in the Seasonal Garden.
• Step 2: You will be asked to catch the Pawns of one side using the correct Pawn Pincher.
• Step 3: You will need to catch the Queen and the King using Checkmate cheese.
• Step 4: Finally, you need to catch a Chess Master.
• Rewards:
• 150 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points)
• 6-8 Wealth Charms
• 20-25 Amplifier Charms
• 2 Rook Crumble Charms
• 20-40 Spellbook Charms
• 1-2 Mystic Curd OR 1-2 Technic Cheese Mould OR 1-2 Checkmate cheese
• Advanced Amplifier Assignment
• This assignment is split into 4 steps. You can only tell exactly what the next step is after you've completed the previous steps.
• Step 1: You will first be asked to catch mice in the Seasonal Garden. The Spellbook Base may be required.
• Step 2: You will be asked to catch the Mystic King with Checkmate cheese. The Blackstone Pass Trap may be required.
• Step 3: You will be asked to catch the Technic King with Checkmate cheese. The Obvious Ambush Trap may be required.
• Step 4: Finally, you need to catch a Chess Master.
• Rewards:
• 150 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points)
• 6-8 Wealth Charms
• 20-25 Amplifier Charms
• 4 Rook Crumble Charms
• 40-60 Spellbook Charms
• 2 Mystic Curd OR 2 Technic Cheese Mould OR 2-3 Checkmate cheese

• Zurreal Research

• Requirement: 900 Library Points
• Rewards:
• 400 Library Points
• 0-1 Blue Tome of Wisdom (130,000 points)
• 1 Scholar Charm
• This assignment will have you travelling all around Gnawnia to collect the items needed to craft the special Zurreal's Folly trap. This trap is the only trap capable of catching the Zurreal the Eternal mouse.
• These loot items are special and can only be collected while the assignment is active. They are as follows:
• 1 Desert Travel Almanac (from Centaur mice in the Great Gnarled Tree or Lagoon)
• 1 Encyclopedia Gnawnia (from Master Burglar mice in the Town of Gnawnia)
• If you don't already know how to catch a Master Burglar, see the first part of the King's Gauntlet appendix.
• 6 Luscious Lumbers (from Kung Fu, Monk, Samurai mice in the Training Grounds)
• 1 Mesh Netting (from Leviathan and Squeaken mice in S.S. Huntington II)
• 3 Ectoplasmic Essence (from Ghost mice in the Mousoleum)
• 3 Warp Nails (from Realm Ripper mice in the Forbidden Grove during closing time)
• This can be tricky; since you get sent to the Acolyte Realm every time you catch a Realm Ripper, you can only collect 1 Warp Nail in each "cycle".
• You may want to consult the Mousehunt Timer; just spend your time hunting for the other loot items, then travel to the Forbidden Grove when it is about to close.
• 3 Runestones (from Stonework Warrior mice in the Jungle of Dread)
• Remember that it's attracted to Magical (blue) Havarti.
• 1 Draconic Book (from Whelpling mice in Dracano)
• 1 Lich Jewel (from Balack the Banished or the three Lich mice in Balack's Cove)
• That's altogether 9 loot items; fortunately, you have exactly 9 crafting slots as a Lord or Lady! Put them together to create Zurreal's Folly; no blueprints are required.
• Crafting Zurreal's Folly technically completes your assignment; but of course, the real reward for this assignment is the ability to catch Zurreal the Eternal. To do that, arm Zurreal's Folly with a Scholar Charm in the Crystal Library. Good luck!
• Zurreal the Eternal drops the blueprints to a new Shadow weapon, the Reaper's Perch. The recipe is as follows (est. cost: 2,767,750 gold):
• 1 Reaper's Perch Blueprints
• 1 Droid Parts (from Bazaar GS)
• 6 Metamorphic Rocks (from Seasonal Garden GS)
• 6 Onyx Stones (loot from Master of the Dojo)
• 6 Runes (loot in Forbidden Grove)
• With much more power and luck than the Clockapult of Time, those Jungle of Dread mice would seem significantly less scary with this trap!

• M400 Bait Research Assignment

• Requirement: 1,500 Library Points AND Count/Countess or higher rank
• Rewards:
• 200 Library Points
• 0-1 Purple Tome of Wisdom (180,000 points) OR 0-1 Red Tome of Wisdom (270,000 points)
• Wealth Charms
• Flawed Orbs
• Simple Orbs
• This assignment will have you collect crafting ingredients for Fusion Fondue cheese, the only cheese that will attract the M400 mouse.
• You will be given a list of mice to be caught for the crafting ingredients; these mice hail from various locations across Gnawnia, and the ingredients can only be collected while the assignment is active.
• The MouseHunt Wiki may be useful for info on where and how to catch specific mice.
• When you complete this assignment for the first time, you will automatically be given two recipes for your recipe book. One merely uses the ingredients you collected, and produces 3 Fusion Fondue. The other adds 3 Magic Essence to produce 6 Fusion Fondue instead.

• M400 Hunting Research Assignment

• Requirement: 1,900 Library Points AND Count/Countess or higher rank AND 1 Fusion Fondue (but more is recommended)
• Rewards:
• 300 Library Points
• 0-1 Silver Tome of Wisdom (520,000 points)
• Wealth Charms
• Divine Orbs
• Flawless Orbs
• Flawed Orbs
• Simple Orbs
• This assignment consists of 10 steps; you can only know what the next step is after completing the previous steps.
• In the first 9 steps, you need to collect a Piece of M400 Intel from the specified mouse and/or location.
• For the final step, you will be told the location of the M400 mouse. Travel there, arm your best Physical or Tactical trap (even if those power types are normally ineffective in that location), and the Fusion Fondue.
• Good luck; if you run out of Fusion Fondue, you will fail the assignment and have to start all over again! You may improve your chances by arming a charm that boosts your power and/or luck (I recommend Ancient Charms as they are relatively easy to acquire via treasure maps or wanted posters)
• Catching the M400 will automatically disarm your trap to avoid wasting Fusion Fondue. The M400 may drop unique skins for the Sandstorm Monstrobot and Chrome Monstrobot.
• There are many different types of rewards; here's an explanation of what the new items are, and their use:
• Amplifier Charms allow you to charge your Tower Amplifier faster while hunting in the Seasonal Garden.
• Bubbles Bookends are a rare collectible that you have a small chance of getting for the Library assignments. Good luck getting it!
• Library Points unlock more assignment options in the Crystal Library.
• Rook Crumble Charms give a power bonus against Rooks in the Zugzwang's Tower.
• Scholar Charms are required to attract the Zurreal the Eternal mouse in the Crystal Library. They are only consumed upon its successful capture.
• Spellbook Charms give a power bonus; but you must equip the Spellbook Base for it to take effect.
• Tomes of Wisdom can be "read" from Inventory → Special for points and level progress. Note that you can only keep a maximum of 3 at a time in your inventory; so be sure to read them before they go to waste.
• Wealth Charms can be equipped to increase the amount of gold you get from mice by 5% (to a maximum of 1,800 gold per mouse). These are consumed only when you actually catch a mouse.
• Recommended places to use the Wealth Charms: King's Gauntlet with Tier 7 or 8 cheese, Pinnacle Chamber with Rumble or Onyx Gorgonzola, Dracano with Inferno Havarti, or for the less patient, Derr Dunes with Crunchy.

Continue to Chapter 24: Fiery Warpath