MU Online Season 18, From Illusion Knight to Combat Power

MU Online Season 18 is the season of the Illusion Knight, the swordsman who conjures an illusion of his own blade into his empty left hand. It also built a new endgame loop around Artifacts and Boss Battle Together, opened Ignis Volcano and Bloody Tarkan, and closed by rebuilding the Dark Knight, Magic Gladiator, Rage Fighter and Slayer around a new stat called Combat Power. Korea ran it from September 2022 to September 2023, and global players received the same content from July 2023.

Season 18 at a glance

• Korean service: September 27, 2022 to September 19, 2023 (Parts 1-1 to 2-2).
• Global service: Part 1 on July 11, 2023; Part 2 on January 30, 2024.
• New class: the Illusion Knight, MU's 14th character.
• New hunting grounds: Ignis Volcano and Bloody Tarkan (Gore Tarkan on the global service), each with an Elite Zone.
• New systems: Artifacts, Boss Battle Together, Tempest Muuns and an in-game Season Pass.
• Class renewal: Dark Knight, Magic Gladiator, Rage Fighter and Slayer, built on Combat Power.
• Level cap (Korean service): 1450, then 1500 in Part 1-2 and 1550 in Part 2-1.
• New guardian: Ullr, the 5th, at level 1200.

When did the Illusion Knight come out?

Some lists file him under Season 19, but the Illusion Knight opened Season 18, in Part 1-1. Each calendar has its own date:

• Korean service: September 27, 2022, in Season 18 Part 1-1.
• IGCN server files: October 6, 2022, nine days later, in IGCN's Season 18 Part 1-1 release.
• Global service: July 11, 2023, in Season 18 Part 1, first on four Speed Servers.

How does the Illusion Knight fight?

In Webzen's story the Illusion Knight is Jacquard, a swordsman of Gladiator descent who could never use magic and learned instead to conjure a copy of his own blade. In play that means a real sword in his right hand, an illusory one in his left, and a skill set built on sword energy. Webzen rates him high in attack and average in defense. He is a basic class with no unlock quest and starts in Lorencia.

His key stat is Agility, which Webzen's Illusion Knight guide calls Dexterity: it raises both his attack power and his skill attack power. He starts with 100 HP, 20 MP, 25 Strength, 28 Agility, 15 Vitality and 10 Energy.

• Launch skills: Illusion Blade (from level 25), Charge Slash, Wind Glaive, Illusion Avatar and Blade Storm.
• Class line: Illusion Knight, then Mirage Knight, then Illusion Master.

Season 21's class renewal later gave him an "Illusion" attack power, made Illusion Blade raise attack speed instead of attack power and took the dash out of Blade Storm, so treat Season 18 builds as history. For how he plays now, see our Illusion Knight guide.

Which maps did Season 18 add?

Two top-end hunting grounds, each followed one part later by an Elite Zone. The entry levels below are launch values; Season 19 rebalanced them.

Ignis Volcano (Part 1-2)

Ignis Volcano, a volcanic field of magma monsters, opened on the Korean service on October 20, 2022 with an entry level of 1220. Its Elite Zone followed in Part 1-3 with the Magma Gladiator, Magma Hook and Magma Shaman. The same patch raised the level cap from 1450 to 1500, or Master Level 1100 (our master level guide explains leveling past 400), and, per the Korean notes, gave the older classes Brilliant weapons (8th mastery tier) and the Crimson Apocalypse armor (9th).

Bloody Tarkan, or Gore Tarkan (Part 2-1)

Part 2 began on the Korean service on April 18, 2023 with Bloody Tarkan, entry level 1250, known as Gore Tarkan on the global service. Its Elite Zone came in Part 2-2. The cap rose from 1500 to 1550 (Master Level 1150), and the 6th mastery earrings, Unity, arrived at level 900 (left) and 950 (right); IGCN's files call them Binding.

What are Artifacts in MU Online?

Artifacts arrived in Part 1-3 (Korean service, November 8, 2022): hexagon-shaped pieces that fit together like a puzzle in their own slot window. The first set, Spider Artifacts in the Korean notes, came in seven types for level 800 and up. The official loop:

1. Clear the Fortress of Imperial Guardian, the Baruka event map that Season 18 renewed, to earn Artifact Fragments. Webzen's global guide calls it Fortress of Empire: Baruka, and the global service requires level 1,000 and gives out artifacts and fragments nowhere else.
2. Combine fragments at the Chaos Goblin in Noria with Jewels of Creation and Zen. You get a random piece, and a failed mix costs all the materials.
3. Fill the slots with one piece of each type. A second piece of the same type will not fit, and on the Korean service a full set adds 100 to all stats.
4. Upgrade pieces up to +15 at the same NPC, or disassemble spares into enhancement stones. A failed upgrade drops the piece one level instead of destroying it.

Season 19 later added artifact ranks, raised by combining two identical artifacts.

Boss Battle Together

The same part introduced Boss Battle Together (Group Boss Battle on the global service), a co-op event where a large group takes on bosses together; Webzen's version allows up to 40 characters. Its map is still in the Season 22 server data, and Season 20 made its bosses tougher.

What was the Season 18 character renewal?

Part 2-2 (Korean service, May 18, 2023) rebuilt four classes at once: the Dark Knight, Magic Gladiator, Rage Fighter and Slayer. At its center is a new stat, Combat Power (%), which raises both attack power and skill attack power.

The character window shows one Combat Power total: the share your stat points provide plus the Combat Power option that the four classes' weapons gained. According to the Korean notes, the bonus only counts for skills that use attack power. Global players got the renewal on February 20, 2024, together with a free reset of stats and 3rd and 4th skill trees for those four classes.

From Season 18 to Season 22: the same four classes, twice

The renewal was one link in a chain: the Elf before it (Season 17), then the Grow Lancer and Dark Lord (Season 19), the Rune Wizard (Season 20) and a wider Season 21 renewal that gave the Elf, Magic Gladiator and Illusion Knight their own attack powers, Gale, Chaos and Illusion.

Then Season 22 Part 1-1 returned to the same four classes Season 18 had rebuilt, with new attack power types that scale with their stats: the Dark Knight gained Rage, the Slayer Darkness and the Magic Gladiator Fighting Spirit, while the Rage Fighter's Area, Divine and Melee options were reworked.

What else did Season 18 add besides the Illusion Knight?

• Ullr, the 5th guardian (Part 2-2): a level-1200 mount that adds speed and defense and resists Elite Zone debuffs (the rare version only looks different). It is crafted from a +11 or better Shining Tail and Ur's Seal at the Trainer in Lorencia (122, 110); officially the odds run from 60% at +11 to 100% at +15, and a failure resets the Shining Tail to +0. IGCN's files spell it Ur; the guardian and mastery gear guide follows the chain.
• Tempest Muuns (Part 2-1): a new Muun grade whose options, on the global service, raise skill power or attack, wizardry and curse.
• A new wings combination window (Part 2-1): wing crafting at the Chaos Goblin got a new interface for wing levels 1 to 4 and some new materials. The 4th wings themselves date from Season 13.
• In-game Season Pass: a pass you level up through daily missions, unlocking buffs and items as it climbs. The global service introduced it with Season 18 Part 2 on January 30, 2024, in 28-day rounds.

For SilverMU's own numbers, the rates page reads combination and upgrade rates straight from the server files.

What is left of Season 18 in Season 22?

Most of it, in newer form. The Season 22 server data still holds Ignis Volcano, the Boss Battle Together map and Bloody Tarkan, and the Illusion Knight is one of its 16 classes. The guardian chain kept growing from Ullr, with Leviathan in Season 19 and Tauros in Season 20, and the level cap climbed from 1550 to 1800 by the end of Season 21.

The roster also stayed at 14 classes for two years on the Korean service: Season 19 added none, and the Alchemist arrived with Season 20. So an Illusion Knight without an Alchemist points to Season 18 or 19 files.

MU Online Season 18 FAQ

What is the max level in MU Online Season 18?

1550, or Master Level 1150, by the end of the season. On the Korean service the cap rose from 1450 to 1500 in Part 1-2 and to 1550 in Part 2-1.

What did Season 18 Part 2 add?

Part 2-1: Bloody Tarkan (Gore Tarkan), level 1550, the Unity earrings, Tempest Muuns and a new wings window. Part 2-2: the four-class Combat Power renewal, the guardian Ullr and the Bloody Tarkan Elite Zone. IGCN's Season 18 Part 2-2 files bundle both Korean parts.

Where do Artifact Fragments come from?

From clearing the Fortress of Imperial Guardian event map (Fortress of Empire: Baruka in Webzen's global guide). You then combine them at the Chaos Goblin in Noria.

Which classes are in MU Online Season 18?

Fourteen: Dark Wizard, Dark Knight, Elf, Magic Gladiator, Dark Lord, Summoner, Rage Fighter, Grow Lancer, Rune Wizard, Slayer, Gun Crusher, Light Wizard, Lemuria Mage and the new Illusion Knight.

Start an Illusion Knight on SilverMU

Season 18 never really left: its knight, its maps and the four classes it rebuilt are all part of Season 22, and SilverMU runs that version, Season 22 Part 1-1 (server files 22.1.1.0). For what came before, read about Season 17 and its two new classes or the full MU Online season history.

SilverMU is still a test realm, so rates and settings are not final; both will be announced in the news before launch. When the client is published, the download page will link it, and you can register a free account now.