Malevolence: The Sword of Ahkranox is an infinite, old-school RPG roguelike developed and published by Alex Norton, where players take on the role of the incarnate form of a sentient sword, protecting a realm of dreams (Ahkranox) from the shadows of its tormented soul.
One of the key features of Malevolence is the ability to develop your character into any class you want — just by playing the game.
Upon starting the game, you are a blank slate. You have rounded off stats, meaning your character will not be particularly good at anything. But don’t fret: Your class is determined by your in-game actions and the weapons with which you attack enemies.
In this guide, we are going to take a look at the steps you should take to build a Mage Class, from gathering spells to maintaining your wisdom.
Let’s get started.
The Pros and Cons of Malevolence’s Mage Class
As with most RPGs, Mages in Malevolence are very powerful beings, specializing in the art of magic. But they are physically weak because of this. Mages are able to cast the most powerful of spells that can be crafted using the many spell gems and the various spell discs found throughout the game.
They, however, are not able to take nearly as much punishment or deal as much melee damage as that of the other classes, such as the Warrior. A Mage also has another disadvantage: They need to keep on them a consistent supply of spell gems, otherwise, they be unable to use magic at all.
Your First Steps as a Mage
At the start of the game, where you get to decide the gift you receive, it is advised to take the candle, which will give you the gems for a Fireball spell.
Note: All options and the gifts are covered in our Getting Started Guide, which you’ll definitely want to check out.
You will have to switch between the Fireball spell and your healing spell to use both of them in tandem. To do this, use your spell disc.
From here, your aim is to increase your Wisdom stat, which is increased by casting spells. Offensive spells increase your Wisdom faster than defensive spells. Your biggest obstacle at this point is getting enough spell gems and spell discs to be able to use magic for a decent length of time.
At this point, you will have little gold at your disposal, so you will need to go into a dungeon to explore and find loot to sell in a town. You will be looking to face off against Goblins and Imps; anything tougher, such as Lizardmen and Orcs, will be too powerful for you at this point in the game.
What’s more, you should only use your Fireball spell if you really need to, as it’s gem will quickly break if used recklessly. Remember: even Mages need to use melee combat at times.
You might have to dungeon hop for awhile to find weaker enemies, but the pay-off is well worth it — and you’ll find gold and better equipment, which you can easily sell in any town.
Once you have gained some decent equipment and a good weapon, you should be able to face off against some of the stronger enemies like Lizardmen and Orcs. Just don’t get too overconfident and underestimate Ogres and Minotaurs. You may be able to take on Lizardmen and Orcs right now, but Ogres and Minotaurs are very, very powerful. Attacking them now will lead to a quick death.
Building a Collection of Spells for Your Malevolence Mage
Having a collection of spell discs and spell gems is vital to a mage build for two reasons. First, having a variety of spells at your disposal is important to your survival. Various spells effect monsters differently.
Second, you need to have a total of three spells crafted and in your inventory to be able to join the Mages Guild, which we’ll explore in more detail shortly. At this point, having explored a dungeon — possibly clearing it out — you should have a reasonable amount of loot to sell. On top of this, you’ll probably have a spare spell disc and a few extra spell gems.
After selling everything you don’t need and buying provisions for your next dungeon, you should still have some gold left over to buy spell gems and discs from the magic shop. If your current town doesn’t have a magic shop in it, explore around the local area for other towns, you are bound to find one with a magic shop.
When buying gems, make sure to purchase ones that are of use to you and fit the discs you have. At this point, you should have at least two or three spells crafted and ready to use. After several dungeons and a few quests, along with repeating these steps, you should build up a collection in no time.
Note: Always remember when building up a collection to only use spells when needed or your gems will break regularly — unless they are crafted using perfect gems. Kill weaker enemies (Imps and Goblins) using melee or ranged weapons.
See our guide Magic System Guide for all the spell effects and targets to make the most out of your purchases at the magic shop.
Joining the Mages Guild in Malevolence
At this point, you should have some decent equipment, a nice bit of gold, and a fair collection of spells, gems, and discs. Now, it will be time to take the next step in building your perfect mage: Join the Mages Guild.
Mages guilds can be found in towns throughout Malevolence’s world. If there aren’t any in your particular town, go exploring! Mages Guild are marked on the town map with an arcane symbol.
Before you are able to join them, however, you will have to prove that you are a capable spellcaster. To prove your worth, you have to have at least 3 spells crafted and in your inventory before joining.
Once you have at least 3 spells in your inventory, you will be able to join the Mages Guild. Here you can buy equipment, and (the entire reason for joining) you can train to increase your wisdom, making your spells ever more powerful.
Note: There is a third option for quests, but it is yet to be implemented into the core game at the time of writing.
But know this: Training costs gold. How much it costs will depend on how much you want to increase your wisdom. I would advise doing this after you have bought some of the provisions that you require for your journey. Afterward, increase your wisdom as much as you can with your remaining gold.
Maintaining Your Wisdom in Malevolence
The biggest issue you will encounter as a Mage is maintaining your wisdom stat. Because it is ill-advised to use magic recklessly, you will be using melee or ranged weapons regularly. This will cause your wisdom to decrease as your other stats, like strength and constitution, will increase.
If you have any spells crafted with all perfect gems, you can use those particular spells as much as you want. A good example of this is the healing spell from the start of the game. You can continuously cast it to increase your wisdom if you don’t want to spend the gold at the Mages Guild to regain what you have lost.
Keep in mind, however, it takes a while to do this, especially with defensive spells. Offensive spells increase your wisdom three times faster than spells such as healing. Alternatively, you can always pay a visit to the Mages Guild and train with them to regain what Wisdom you have lost.
Go Forth and Eradicate all Evil in Your Path
You now have all you need to create the perfect Mage of Ahkranox. Just keep in mind that you need to keep your wisdom as high as possible and don’t overuse your spells or they will break. Don’t let the mage’s huge spell power make you overconfident — they are still weak in close quarter combat.
When facing off against boss monsters who also cast spells, you will have greater difficulty than with their normal variations. Keep these things in mind and you will thrive as the greatest mage in the world of Ahkranox.
Got any other tips for building out the mage class in Malevolence: The Sword of Ahkranox? Let us know in the comments below!
